Sometime after the events of 0 BBY, a member of the Whill order was given the responsibility of authoring the Journal of the Whills. This task involved chronicling the complete history of the galaxy.
Subsequent to the conclusion of the Galactic Civil War, this particular Whill took on the monumental project of documenting the comprehensive history of the galaxy. These events were to be meticulously recorded within the pages of the Journal of the Whills. After conducting extensive research on the subject matter—listening to numerous accounts, examining every holocron, and analyzing all available artifacts—the Whill intended to begin the narrative with the happenings of the Imperial Era. A fellow Whill voiced opposition, suggesting the chronicle commence with the Republic era. However, the writer dismissed this suggestion, instead proposing the other Whill create their own independent account for the Journal of the Whills. The dissenting Whill conceded, departing while muttering about exciting concepts for a Life Day episode featuring Chewbacca's family.
The writer Whill proceeded with summarizing key events: the conflict between the Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance, the Alliance's victory on Scarif achieved by Rebel spies, and the secret mission to Tatooine undertaken by Princess Leia Organa.
The unidentified Whill made its initial appearance in "Whills," a short story penned by Tom Angleberger and featured in the collection From a Certain Point of View. The idea of two Whills debating the events of Star Wars while composing the text—which ultimately forms the opening crawl for Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope—serves as a reflection of contemporary Star Wars fandom, incorporating references to topics beloved and criticized by fans, such as Star Wars: The Clone Wars television series, The Star Wars Holiday Special, and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.
Within Star Wars Legends continuity, the character was identified as the Keeper of the Whills by Star Wars creator George Lucas during a conversation with Industrial Light & Magic employee Rob Coleman. Lucas explained to Coleman that R2-D2 recounts the Skywalker family saga to the Keeper a century after Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi, as detailed in Jonathan W. Rinzler's 2005 publication, The Making of Star Wars Revenge of the Sith. However, Matt Martin of the Lucasfilm Story Group clarified that Lucas's statement is not considered canon because nothing is canon until officially presented in storytelling. Martin also highlighted Lucas's history of self-contradiction.