Karen Traviss is known for authoring numerous Star Wars books, notably Republic Commando: Hard Contact and its sequels, which include Republic Commando: Triple Zero, Republic Commando: True Colors, Order 66: A Republic Commando Novel, and Imperial Commando: 501st. Furthermore, she penned the Star Wars: Legacy of the Force books Legacy of the Force: Bloodlines, Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice, and Legacy of the Force: Revelation. She shares credit with Karen Miller as one of the two writers behind the five novels that tie into the Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. She authored the initial novel in the series, titled Star Wars: The Clone Wars, as well as the third, The Clone Wars: No Prisoners. Traviss had plans to write a sequel to Imperial Commando: 501st, but due to disagreements with the publisher and concerns regarding Star Wars canon, the project was reassigned to another author. Additionally, Traviss canceled a untitled Boba Fett novel that was originally scheduled for release after Imperial Commando 2. Traviss was initially slated to write The Essential Guide to Warfare, previously known as The Essential Guide to the Star Wars Military, but ultimately passed the project on to a different author. She also contributed to the book Star Wars on Trial, arguing in defense that her work on Star Wars novels enhanced her writing skills in other areas.
In 2004, Traviss released her first contribution to the Star Wars universe, the novel Republic Commando: Hard Contact. Her Star Wars works often feature clone troopers, Mandalorians, or characters connected to them, such as Boba Fett. She is also recognized for her work in developing the Mandalorian language, Mando'a, into a fully functional language.
On August 8, 2009, she made an announcement stating that the second Imperial Commando novel would be her final contribution to the Star Wars franchise. However, Traviss later withdrew from the project citing various reasons, including continuity discrepancies introduced by The Clone Wars television show.
- Giving Commandos a Human Side: Author Karen Traviss on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- Karen Traviss: Tracing Bloodlines on StarWars.com (content now obsolete; backup link)
- " Blaster " — Star Wars Insider 110
- " Launchpad " — Star Wars Insider 223
- Heavy Metals: Exploring Cortosis and Beskar on StarWars.com (backup link)