20 May A Quiet Love Letter to Star Wars (From a Fan Who Stayed Anyway)

If you’ve ever felt disconnected from the Star Wars fandom but still love the stories, this is for you. You are welcome here! This Geek Life Blog celebrates cozy living, personal style, and home spaces inspired by the stories and characters we love. Here we embrace fandom as part of everyday life with subtle, intentional approaches to creativity, self-care, and everyday living—rooted in the things you love. And sometimes we tackle deeper issues in the fandom. This is my love letter to Star Wars.

In this house, we don’t stop celebrating Star Wars after May the Fourth. If I’m being honest, we don’t really stop celebrating it at all! For a long time, I thought about writing something about the louder side of this fandom—the parts that make it harder to exist as a fan sometimes. But that’s not what this space is for. So instead, I wanted to write something softer. A love letter—to the galaxy far, far away, and to the version of myself that chose to stay.

A Love Letter to Star Wars

Hello there!

As I celebrate Star Wars during the month of May, I wanted to write a love letter to Star Wars. Despite the negativity and toxicity that surrounds this fandom, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on all the amazing reasons I love this galaxy and its characters.

My First Star Wars Experience

I fell in love with the saga a little later than some. Even though I didn’t get to see the movies in theaters when it first came out, I still feel that I love Star Wars just as much as the first fan. I remember sitting down with hubs, who introduced me to the first and second trilogies. We wanted to watch all of them before the Last Jedi came out; so we sat down and binged Episodes 1-6, the Clone Wars, and Star Wars Rebels. I was immediately drawn into the story, and fell head over heels for the characters. All of them. They each had their charms and something to contribute to the overall storyline – I felt like everyone on that screen had an important part to play in the story that George Lucas wanted to tell.

I wanted to stay in that galaxy a little longer…
To understand more…
To find the details I had missed the first time through.

Even after the last trilogy – which, if I’m being honest, didn’t shine as brightly as the originals – I was still able to find characters and themes that I loved and appreciated, even if the last three movies weren’t my favorite. I dove into the books and even re-watched some of the movies for details I didn’t catch before. Before I knew it, I was fully submerged into this Universe, and I had no inclination of pulling myself out.

I started collecting figurines, artwork, jewelry, pins, bookbags, and clothing and expressing my excitement for Star Wars out loud and in public.

Experiencing Negativity in the Fandom | The Fandom Menace

But every love story has it’s issues, and I didn’t want to bypass some of my less-than-positive experiences as a lover of Star Wars.

Star Wars Online

I experienced my first toxic fan interaction early on. I joined an online discussion, and as a new fan I was so excited to be able to just talk about Star Wars with other fans. Or at least I thought they were fans. I made the mistake of asking a question and was immediately chastised for not knowing the answer. “How can you be a fan and not know this?” he responded. “I’m new to the fandom,” I explained, “how would I know the answer as a new fan?” He would not be moved, “everyone knows this.” He snapped through his typed words.

After that, I found myself pulling back a little—keeping my questions closer to home. Instead, I harassed poor hubs with all my questions, theories, and facts as I discovered them and delved even further into the lore.

Thinking back, I chuckle as I wonder if he ever regretted exposing me to this world (lol)! I doubt it – we have fun with it.

Star Wars at DragonCon

DragonCon. I was still a new fan and a new cosplayer, so I put together a Lady Vader costume with a half mask, long black coat-dress, and wig that resembled Vader’s mask. It wasn’t going to win any awards, but I loved that costume. We wandered into the Star Wars panel room and there was a Doctor Aphra cosplayer. I had just started reading the comics and was so excited to see someone cosplaying her. Thinking back, I don’t remember if I came on too strong with my excitement, but when the panel was over, I went to compliment her on the amazing cosplay and asked her for a picture. She rolled her eyes. Literally rolled her eyes before posing with a huge attitude. I felt deflated, but thanked her for the photo and left. After a similar interaction with her the next year, I realized that she was not my person. And that’s okay.

Another year, another DragonCon, another Star Wars panel interaction. I attended a panel where they asked for volunteers to put on a skit. Shakespeare, maybe? Still excited, and obviously not having learned my lesson from the previous year, I raised my hand to volunteer. The woman in charge frowned when she stepped in front of me and contemplated which character to give me. She studied me and then begrudgingly handed me the ugliest alien lifeform mask in the batch, and I realized that I was going to die as soon as the skit started. As she moved on to the person next to me, her entire demeanor changed as she smiled and handed her the part for Princess Leia. I felt so embarrassed, but played my part despite my hurt feelings and left.

I stopped going back to that panel. Instead hubs and I started finding other ways to enjoy DragonCon. We met amazing fans outside of that panel room and made really nice memories.

My Growing Love of Star Wars

Those moments stayed with me—not because they pushed me away from Star Wars, but because they quietly changed how I experienced the fandom.

I stopped looking outward for connection… and started building my own relationship with the stories instead. And through all of that, my love for Star Wars never really changed.
It just became… more personal.

What I Love About Star Wars

I love the diversity in the Galaxy. Even if the fandom seems to hate new characters of different backgrounds, I find that there is not a character I truly hate. As a fan, I can appreciate what each person contributes to the story, even if they aren’t my favorite.

Also, I love the variety of television shows we’ve had recently. The Star Wars Galaxy feels so much bigger, now, than when I first climbed aboard my first space journey. There are western themes, conspiracy thrillers, stories of adventures, and even shows for kids. And yes, there are politics. Every show has a different point of view with new characters to learn about. There is something for everyone, and even if a show is produced that doesn’t spark my interest, as a fan I can choose whether to watch or not. I don’t have to love everything to consider myself a fan. And I don’t have to belittle others for loving a show or character.

And I love that there is room for this Universe to grow. Our original heroes will always be our heroes, but there is also room for new heroes, new villains, and new stories. We can miss Luke, Leia, and Han while still embracing the new characters and new stories they introduce.

The authenticity of the characters in Star Wars and their tenacity inspires me to hope, or to fight – despite the circumstances. I love that so much!

George Lucas created a world I can get lost in. There is so much lore and I love that he has opened up his galaxy to others to contribute to his story, and allowed us all to make it our own.

Every episode, every show, every character gives me something to think about. Whether it’s politics, interpersonal relationships, or how I face my own problems – the stories within Star Wars help me to discover and appreciate new perspectives. Even if I don’t agree with them.

And speaking of characters, you gave us characters like Ahsoka Tano, who, for me, inspires me more than words can describe. The strength and resilience she exudes makes me want to be a better person. There are so many characters we fans can see ourselves in; and that is why it’s so important to continue creating diverse stories and points of view for every fans to appreciate the diversity in their own communities and in the world.

I also love that no matter how many times I watch the movies and television shows, the stories always, ALWAYS, touch my heart. No matter how many times I watch it, I can never get through Revenge of the Sith with dry eyes. I don’t care how much hate is thrown at the last trilogy – I will never not cry when I see Carrie Fisher as General Leia one last time. Never. That’s what fandoms mean to so many of us and we should be able to share those feelings together.

And of course I will always feel that Episode One was amazing. And that it is relevant to the overall story.

I love the depth of the villains. The Dark Side. The Sith. And I’m often left wondering, ‘are they really the villains?’

Every single movie is relevant to the story. And every character has a right to add their story to the galaxy. Every. One.

My Future with Star Wars

Honestly, I don’t need to be part of every conversation to love this galaxy. I don’t need every space to feel welcoming to know that this story still belongs to me. Star Wars is still the place I go when I want to feel something bigger than myself—hope, resilience, possibility.

And that hasn’t changed.

May the Force be with you—wherever you find your place in it.

— Fern

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