(Note: This was actually my first BLOG entry, which was written on Wednesday, March 30th, 2005.)

Hi there! My name is Matt Busch, welcome to my VIP Blog on StarWars.com: my tiny little corner of the "galaxy far, far away...."

Some of you may know who I am and what I do, but for those of you who don't, let me introduce myself. I'm an official STAR WARS artist that has been working on Lucasfilm licensed material since 1994. In laymen's terms, that means I work on many of the different books, magazines, and other various products that you may have picked up over the years. What have I done? Here's a partial rundown...

I started at West End Games on tons of STAR WARS Roleplaying Game books, games, and playing cards.  (I illustrated a few book covers, and got my first chance to do some real writing there as well.) That networked into Bantam Books, where I illustrated the cover to TALES FROM THE EMPIRE. Meanwhile, I was doing a lot of STAR WARS work for companies like Mattel, when they were trying to acquire the toy license, and Team Disney, where I helped to design a new (but never produced) STAR TOURS ride at Disneyland. Over the years I've gone on to illustrate a number of items for the STAR WARS INSIDER and STAR WARS KIDS Magazine. For 'KIDS', my main contribution was writing and illustrating the HOW TO DRAW STAR WARS series of articles. When Wizards of the Coast acquired the new license for the STAR WARS roleplaying game, I was one of the few artists that made the cut from West End Games. More recently, I've been involved with Topps Trading Cards, producing Sketch Cards for both HERITAGE and REVENGE OF THE SITH. I illustrated the cover of the Program Guide to the CELEBRATION II in 2002, and am exhibiting my work at the upcoming CELEBRATION III, where I'll have a licensed limited edition poster for sale exclusively at the show!

Phew! But the real glory is that this has been a real dream come true for me. Many of today's STAR WARS artists grew up as starry-eyed kids, inspired by the Original Trilogy. I'm no exception, and I can definitely say that STAR WARS single-handedly is the reason I got into art in the first place.

Anyway, enjoy the blog! I can't wait to get to know the rest of my fellow STAR WARS fans and comrades!