Recent entries

    Holiday signing ()
    #13053 Copy

    zas678

    Why can a human be affected by Surgebinding but metals within their bodies cannot be Pushed or Pulled?

    Brandon Sanderson

    They can be Pushed or Pulled, if you're strong enough.

    zas678

    So is it just the Innate Investiture--

    Brandon Sanderson

    The Innate Investiture is interfering with things. Like if you look at it this way: So you're Surgebinding someone, I am touching him and sending the power straight into him. There's difference between there's something inside of him that I'm messing with and going through?

    Holiday signing ()
    #13054 Copy

    zas678

    If an Awakener went to Roshar and bled color from a gem, would this gem still hold Stormlight?

    Brandon Sanderson

    If an Awakener bled-- No it would-- Oh wait yes it would because a colorless gem could still hold Stormlight. It just would not have--

    zas678

    Would not have the properties of the original color.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah, the color is integral to what's going on because molecularly some of these gems are the same except for the different coloring. The coloring is kind of what--

    zas678

    What defines what magic.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah. It has to with fabrials and some of the effects, and that relates directly to the spren and what spren-- anyway.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13055 Copy

    zas678's sister

    So it said in the book that if Marasi and Wayne had it on at the same time-- Would it cancel it out all the way, or would it just cancel out where both of the bubbles were?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Where both of the bubbles were.

    zas678's sister

    So it would be like a--

    Brandon Sanderson

    You could make a bubble in a bubble, yes. Third book of...[Era 2]...will have a moment where they try to do a time bubble in motion.

    zas678

    A bubble in a bubble.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Not that one, the motion one, so you'll finally get some views on what's going on. You get some rules on that.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13057 Copy

    zas678's sister

    If Wayne and Breeze, like if Wayne had a time bubble up and Breeze was inside Pushing on somebody's emotions what--

    Brandon Sanderson

    He could still make that work.

    zas678's sister

    Would it affect it?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Not really. It wouldn't dramatically affect it. You're going to have one of these sort-of effects-- Yeah, because what he is doing is on another Realm, it's not going to affect it.

    zas678's sister

    Is that the same with all of the *audio obscured*

    Brandon Sanderson

    Not necessarily. See what's going on is if you are affecting things on the Cognitive Realm--

    zas678

    It's kind of time-independent?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah? It's not as-- Really it's the Spiritual Realm that is completely time-independent, right? All time and space are irrelevant once you reach the Spiritual. You're kind of going to go over the top a little bit, it's going to work just fine. In fact you can probably-- So he could use that to make his metals last a little bit better, probably. So that is a hack of the magic systems that you could probably do.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13058 Copy

    Questioner

    Did Kaladin’s name come from anywhere in particular?

    Brandon Sanderson

    No. I'm sure the word paladin was in the back of my head, but it's not like he shares much with like an actual paladin. His name was Merin in the initial version and it was-- it didn't work, he wasn't a Merin and all the fans-- all the readers were like "this name just doesn't work" so I spent years hunting for the right name for him, and that's the one I ended up with. It's really based-- it's Kalak, which is the Storm-- not really the Stormfather but people y'know. Most of the names you'll find are based off one of the Heralds in some way. So he's KALA + DIN, Kalak and din is a suffix.

    Isaac Stewart

    We do have a meaning for it though. Can I tell them the meaning?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Ehhh, have we canonized it?

    Isaac Stewart

    We have canonized it, and we have told people before.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Then yeah.

    Isaac Stewart

    It means "Born unto Eternity".

    Brandon Sanderson

    ...I mean, it means that in the same way that names mean something, like my name means-- But when they're naming him that they aren't thinking that. What they are doing is picking one of the Heralds and making a name out of it. But my name technically means "Dweller by the Beacon", but really what it means is "He was the son of Alexander".

    Holiday signing ()
    #13060 Copy

    Questioner

    Could a Forger re-write their history to adjust the kind of metal they burn as an Allomancer?

    Brandon Sanderson

    They could, but it actually wouldn't do anything, because the magic would not be able to replicate the other magic.

    Questioner

    So they would not be able to re-write history in the necessary way?

    Brandon Sanderson

    They would not be able to. I mean they could, but it wouldn’t have an effect, does that make sense? It would do nothing, it would be like you can create the stamp, the stamp would look like it was working but you just wouldn't end up with Allomancy.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13065 Copy

    Questioner

    The cover of, the front cover of any Way of Kings books, there's the little engraving, are those Honorblades?

    They are the symbols of the various orders of Knights Radiant stylized as Honor-- as Shardblades.

    Questioner

    Oh, okay. That makes a lot more sense, because I've seen the symbols on the back...

    Brandon Sanderson

    *pointing at the book* So it's this symbol right here is the same symbol as this.

    Questioner

    Right, it's just a little more expanded and stuff down the blade.  Wow.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13068 Copy

    chasmfriend

    Who is Lady Truth?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well, who do you think Lady Truth is?

    chasmfriend

    Tindwyl is who I hope it is. *long silence* Why is that a secret?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Because there are certain things I am not sure how much more I want to say in the books, or how much things-- So it's not that it needs to be a secret or something big and mysterious is happening, but it's because if I speak now I risk undermining things that I might do and I don't want to risk that even if there's a decent chance that whatever I say won't have anything to do with it. So a lot of times my RAFO's are "I know the answer to this, it's not a big secret, but I am not ready to just pin it down". Does that make sense? You've already pried a couple important things out of me so...

    Holiday signing ()
    #13070 Copy

    chasmfriend's friend (Paraphrased)

    My friend asked for Brandon to write something about Harmony in her Alloy of Law.

    Brandon Sanderson

    There's another name Harmony could go by if he weren't able to control the conflict between his halves… *to Zas* Have you guys figured that one out yet? Oh, I'm not going to say anything. You have it on recording… I was pretty sneaky with that one so I don't know if you have it or not.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13071 Copy

    chasmfriend

    *written* Why did Vasher Return? What did he want to accomplish?

    Brandon Sanderson

    You know what you’re going to get in this one.

    chasmfriend

    I have a feeling. That's okay.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Come on, someone I'm going to write another book about?

    chasmfriend

    But that's in the past though, right?

    Brandon Sanderson

    It is, but his past is-- It is a good question. It is an important, relevant question, relevant to who he is.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13072 Copy

    Questioner

    Are you going to do another book for Perfect State? ‘Cause that sucked me in.

    Brandon Sanderson

    A lot of people really want more.

    Questioner

    It made me so mad. "Stop writing novellas! I need more information on this."

    Brandon Sanderson

    The big secret on that is that Sophie, the one-- is actually his nemesis. So the robot was not actually a robot, it was a VR thing that she was controlling...

    Questioner

    So are you going to write another?

    Brandon Sanderson

    I don't know if I will, I don't know if I will. So you didn't actually get to see Melhi, his nemesis getting to play with him in-person and things like that. So there's layers there that are kind of complicated.

    Questioner

    Like even with the cosmere novella you released Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell, that one I was like "Why are these so short?!"  I'm not used to this.

    Brandon Sanderson

    That world is important to the cosmere, so that world-- Silence herself you won't see any much more of, but that world itself is very cosmere relevant.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13073 Copy

    little wilson

    Are Ruin and Preservation separate in Sazed or are they fully combined together like can he give one of them, or does he have to give both.

    Brandon Sanderson

    They are not fully combined. I mean that's not the way this works. He could pull off a piece of one even and make-- stuff like that. That's totally, totally viable. I mean it's basically what happened with the spren. The spren existed before even Honor was destroyed and things like that.

    little wilson

    So, did the-- my gosh, on Sel-- the Aons-- not the Aons-- the seons did they exist before the Splintering?

    Brandon Sanderson

    They did not. That's a good question. But they are not the majority of the power. They're just little pieces, they are like the sparks when something gets destroyed. The sparks are not the majority but they are the sparks that were thrown off, if that makes sense?

    Holiday signing ()
    #13074 Copy

    little wilson

    Are Trellism and Trelagism the same religion?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Uuhheha, that's a RAFO too.

    little wilson

    Is it the same god in both?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Let's just say that… who Trell is and what happened is a matter of some interest in the cosmere and amusement to me.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13075 Copy

    little wilson

    Which eye did Gaz lose?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Which eye did Gaz lose? Did I go back and forth on that?

    little wilson

    I have no idea.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Okay, that's a Peter. I thought it was the left eye but if i did it wrong… It's entirely possible. I have no idea. It's in my notes.

    little wilson

    How did he lose it?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well that is a RAFO! That is definitely a RAFO.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13076 Copy

    little wilson

    Can a Mistborn turned into a Lifeless still use Allomancy?

    Brandon Sanderson

    *long-ish pause* Uh, no.

    little wilson

    So I would assume that is the same for a Feruchemist?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah if you-- taking some-- Yeah.  No they can't.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13077 Copy

    little wilson

    Can a Shardblade-killed body be turned into a Lifeless?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Can a Shardblade-killed body be turned into a Lifeless.  Yeees, it can be re-Invested. Yes.

    little wilson

    Are there any side-effects to doing so?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Uhhh, there would be side-effects. I won't tell you what they are. They would be minor, minor, mostly inconsequential side-effects.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13080 Copy

    Questioner 1

    Can you tell me the name of Dalinar's wife?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well…  I can but I'm not going to, because it's not that big a deal but it is something for him in the books. I would just rather you read it in the books, but you will find out.

    Questioner 2

    Will it be in the third book?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well in the flashbacks he doesn't have that issue so when you see her from his viewpoint in the flashbacks he can say her name and he can hear it. So the flashbacks involve him meeting her and things like that, so you'll know her name then. And it's not like some big secret like "Oh her name--" but I would rather you just read it there.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13081 Copy

    Questioner

    How do koloss breed with humans, because you say in Alloy of Law that one of the--

    Brandon Sanderson

    What happens is the koloss breed with each other and a koloss-blooded is the result, because a koloss needs the Hemalurgic spikes to make them full koloss.  So if two koloss breed you get a koloss-blooded, which is basically a human with some weird genetics in them and if they choose to go through the transformation to full koloss they will become one.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13082 Copy

    Questioner

    So you initially said that you had started the first third [of Shadows of Self] and then you took a break for two years.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah, mmhmm

    Questioner

    I kind of get the feeling that in the first third The Set was supposed to be the Big Bad villain of the second book and then you massaged it into the kandra.  Is that the case or--

    Brandon Sanderson

    No the kandra was always planned as the second book villain. When I sat down to do the outline of the three, that is when I decided-- So yeah it was the kandra. The big change is that Marasi wasn't working at all, that's probably one of the reasons I stopped it. I had to rebuild her from the get go in that one, and she works much better in the revision. I was pushing her in the first draft more toward lawyer/attorney stuff and it just wasn't working, it's not where she wanted to go.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13083 Copy

    Questioner

    Not to bring up Rithmatist, do you think it is just going to be the two books or--

    Brandon Sanderson

    I plotted it at three, so it is probably going to be The Rithmatist, The Aztlanian, and then I-- The Nebraskian? But I have to find some goofy thing so it's not necessarily Nebraskan...

    Holiday signing ()
    #13084 Copy

    Questioner

    So are any characters, like Vasher, going to be in any of your other books?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well, Vasher is in Words of Radiance.

    Questioner

    Yeah, I knew he was in Words of Radiance. Is he going to show up more in that? Have more importance?

    Brandon Sanderson

    He is not going to have a huge role, he'll have a little one. Normally I try to confine people who are interfering in other series to their own series, if that makes sense?

    Holiday signing ()
    #13085 Copy

    Questioner 1

    I just notice that in the newer Mistborns that some of the older Mistborns, on the metals, aren't there a couple metals that are missing?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes. There are. They didn't quite understand the-- all things, just like we don't understand all science, and as the series progresses you will see that table become even more intricate as it becomes more and more scientific.

    Questioner 2

    So this series is a step modernized? I've only read the original.

    Brandon Sanderson

    This one is a step modernized, still all the magic and stuff, but it's kind of mixing gunslinging and Allomancy. There's going to be another series that's going to be 1980's level technology where you'll really see things start to modernize, and then there's a science fiction series. Eventually.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13086 Copy

    Questioner

    If you were to place yourself in the...  what Knight Radiant-- what Radiant Order would you be?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Mmmmm.

    Questioner

    It's a hard question.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah that is a hard question. I probably naturally, I think the best fit would be Lightweaver but it could be Bondsmith depending on what mood I'm in. You'll have to read that one… Dalinar becomes one at the end.

    Questioner

    We don't know much about them yet. What do they do? There's only three though, right?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Right now? There's-- yeah. But there's also Lift, who's an Edgedancer--

    Questioner

    No, I mean three Bondsmiths.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Oh, yeah. There aren't very many, ever.

    Holiday signing ()
    #13087 Copy

    Questioner

    How hard is it to write about the death of a character? Like when you wrote about Kelsier, and Vin had to go through the aftermath--

    Brandon Sanderson

    It's, to me, pretty hard. The thing is, it's harder for me in the planning because by the time I reach it in the books I'm usually well-prepped for it because I'm an outliner so I know before I start. It's not like in the moment. Once in awhile, I'll have to go and rebuild the outline, y'know, this person has to not make it but usually I know it very early on. But it can be hard, for sure. But it helps like, that I know their whole life, you know what I mean? I don't just get the glimpse of the story, I know everything about them. And you do know that there are hints of Kelsier in Book 3 Mistborn, he was around doing some stuff.

    Firefight Atlanta signing ()
    #13091 Copy

    ccstat

    In Shallan's drawings during the course of The Way of Kings, she sees multiple Cryptics. Were there other Cryptics accompanying Pattern in those drawings?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes.

    ccstat

    Were they approving of Pattern's choices.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes. The Cryptics are much like what is happening with Lift, where there is more of a conscious effort on their part. As opposed to what is happening with Syl or Jasnah where there is hesitance. What the Cryptics are driven to do is in part because of what a few of their members have been experimenting with.

    Firefight Atlanta signing ()
    #13092 Copy

    ccstat

    Vasher uses Awakening in a very interesting way, off-stage, to modify the memories of the girl he rescues. Can Hemalurgy do the same thing if used carefully?

    Brandon Sanderson

    *long pause* No, I don't really think that it can. Nobody has asked that before, but just looking at the way the magics work, I don't think that is something that Hemalurgy is capable of doing.

    Firefight Atlanta signing ()
    #13095 Copy

    ccstat

    Can a Seeker, standing outside a Coppercloud, that is between them and another Allomancer, can he sense the person standing on the other side of the Coppercloud?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes, but he might get some interference.

    Ben McSweeney

    Would you sense the cloud itself, like "Hey, there's a cloud between me and what I'm looking at"?

    Brandon Sanderson

    If you know what you're doing, you might be able to say something is interfering, but you wouldn't be able to determine what. There are multiple things that could cause that, for instance-- Most of them are only-- That they would be able to-- Yeah, there are multiple things that could cause that. Like, for instance--

    Ben McSweeney

    Big buildings?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well, aluminum.

    Firefight Atlanta signing ()
    #13100 Copy

    Questioner

    When you do get around to giving us Hoid's story is it going to be like Ender's Shadow type of thing where you're filling in the gaps?

    Brandon Sanderson

    You know I know that stuff, but I don't plan to do it that way. I plan to do his backstory more as his own story because while I really like Ender's Shadow, most of the things like that I haven't enjoyed as much. Plus, it would take me books and books and books to do it. We'll see. I haven't closed the door on that idea, but I'm not planning on it right now. There are parallel things like that I am planning to write, but it's not Hoid.