In Hero of Ages, I have a room that is both looking at the sunset, and looking north, in different scenes. In one scene, someone walks in, they can see the sunset, and in another scene, they see the army, that's to the north, through the window? And they were like, "Ahhhh!"
So I said, "Oh! Let's make it a corner room, and put two windows." So there's a solution, but it was not...
But it wasn't intended that way.
Yeah.
Ruin and Odium, they both talked about their passion, and it was italicized both times. Would any other Shards talk about passion in that same italicized way?
Yes they would.
Would any of them not talk about it that way?
Yes. Excellent, good questions.
So, you talked about a weapon made by the enemies of Adonalsium, and you said it doesn't exist in its original form. Do any remnants of it still exist in the Physical Realm?
Yes.
Have we seen any of those remnants on-screen?
*pause* RAFO.
In current continuity (and people would know this), Hoid's immortality comes from this. People who have read Dragonsteel know that.
If I remember correctly, [Calamity] was sent to destroy the world?
Kind of, yes. He was sent to make it destroy itself. Apocalypse Guard ties into that, with further explanations, if I can ever get the thing to work.
So it's part of the same...?
Continuity, yes. She is from the same dimension Megan sees into, the main character is.
With the gemstones, we know that the hue seems to matter more than the rarity. Is that somehow tying in to the colors for Warbreaker, and how that stuff works?
Yes, that is tying in. Color will be a recurring theme, much as metal will be a recurring theme, as you see different magic systems work. In this case, the color has an affect on the spren and getting a spren trapped in it.
So just the color itself?
Yeah the color is the important part. When I was researching Stormlight, I determined that color had to be the point. Because a lot of the gemstones I'm using are molecularly identical.
So that was the best way to differentiate?
So this was the best way to differentiate. But I had already had this as part of the cosmere, that color and the way people perceive color and things like, that were part of it. But getting ten different gemstones that were molecularly different proved to be very difficult and not worth it. If you look, so many of them are just basically the same gemstone with a few impurities. Their crystalline structure is the same.
If Dalinar actually brought Honor back together to summon the perpendicularity, and Odium said he Ascended. Dalinar did he actually hold the Shard Honor and is he now considered a Sliver?
RAFO! They are really waiting on this one. Let's just say, he is not Honor currently. But of course, you knew that.
How would a Cryptic deal with computers?
Cryptics would love computers. Loooovvvveee computers. They would have a blast. They might be offended that the computer isn't talking back to them, because they would think the computer's a pattern and should just be talking to them. But otherwise they would find them really cool.
I'm sad, there was a really good sequence in Oathbringer that had to get cut out for timing reasons where Pattern talked about how famous he was, that hopefully I will be able to release as a deleted scene or something.
What would happen if Lopen and Wayne ever met.
I think they would get along fantastically.
Why does Lift need Stormlight?
Lift went to see the Nightwatcher, and got a blessing and a curse in that she can metabolize food to turn into Stormlight, but she can't use regular Stormlight. And there is something else, as well.
So they have the same Surges or different Surges for Cultivation?
She uses the same Surges, but they are powered differently.
Sja-anat tries to convince Shallan she is not her enemy and tells her, "Ask my son." Is the son that she's referring to, is that Pattern?
No. Sja-anat is referring to--I'll try not to give too many spoilers on this--if you look through the books for a spren that does not seem to belong to Honor or Cultivation, but is bonding a Radiant, that is where you want to look for Sja-anat's influence.
Is it Glys?
RAFO!
Would a Mistborn be able to push and pull on a Shardblade?
That's an excellent question. The answer is, it would be very hard. In Mistborn, anything that's pushing on certain metals, particularly infused metals, gets progressively harder the more Investiture they've got in them. And Shardblades tend to be very highly Invested; they'd be very difficult to push on. If you got the right Allomancer, they could push on it. But I would say, in most cases, no.
Can you give me a hint about the Parshendi gods? It can't be Odium, right? Because it's plural...
No, it's not Odium. The Parshendi gods... *he paused here for a while* are closer to what the humans would call "Heralds".
So, you spend a lot of time comparing lifespren and rotspren. They're complementary colors, *inaudible*. The rotspren can appear around animals, as well, whereas lifespren only appear around plants. Is that a misnomer? Is there something that we're missing?
No, there's nothing you're missing. It just takes a large number of organisms in the same place. So, in a herd of animals, you could find lifespren. They don't come to people as often. But, the thing you have to remember about spren is: spren are attracted by something. And they have to be nearby, and they have to make their way there. So, sometimes, you will have an emotion, and no spren will appear. Because there's not one nearby enough. Or they just didn't feel like this. I worked this in because I didn't want the spren popping up too much. They're a big symbol of Roshar, they're a way, in very early chapters, for you to realize this is a different place and a different world. But if every other sentence were, "And a spren appeared," it would go crazy way too fast.
What is the name or intention of Bavadin's Shard?
I have not revealed that yet. I don't think I want to get into that quite yet.
I also asked about the connection between the spren and Surgebinder, such that the spren turns into what the Surgebinder wants. Like in Edgedancer, [Wyndle] turns into a bar of metal and into a Shardfork. Wyndle himself isn't "in tune" with Lift, so his turning into something that she needs with no prior warning...
Yeah, they actually mix. When the bonding is happening, what's happening is that the gaps in the souls are being filled with the spren's <essence>. And they are actually melding into one
*inaudible*
And they are actually melding into one individual *inaudible*.
<And the minds are separate?>
Yeah, mhm.
If a Feruchemist Taps warmth, does it actually warm them up physically, or do they just feel warmer?
It actually warms them. It’s not just a feeling.
So, is Kings in any way like your other books? Shall we expect an unexpected twist?
KINGS is like my books in some ways. But in order to be grand as a series, it had to start--oddly--more humbly. Yes, there are twists. I wrote it so that the epilogue redefines the entire book and series. Each of the 4 viewpoints has an epilogue. Much as RJ had huge prologues, this series will have huge epilogues. Those epilogues, like the Elantris first lines, are intended to be ‘BANG’ moments.
Why did Lord Ruler not destroy the logbook knowing what trouble Ruin could cause with it?
A few reasons. First, Ruin had his fingers in the LR’s soul by then already. Subtle things are easier to influence.
He played off the LR’s natural nostalgia and desire to hold onto something so important to his past.
where do you get your inspiration to create new worlds & characters?
Inspiriation comes from all over. Often things I see. Color magic in WRBRKR came from watching b/w movies.
The mist in mistborn came from driving through a foggy night at 70mph..
Sazed came from a Buddhist monk I met in Korea.
Sarene came from a friend, Annie, who complained that she was too tall and too smart for men to want to date.
If you want more, send me an email and ask for my “Ideas” essay. @PeterAhlstrom will send it to you.
at the end of warbreaker you said that they split up their breaths, how if they can only do all at once?
I talk about this in the annotations. But Denth was lying to Vivenna at that point.
You can split up breaths. You put some in an object first.
Can Hoid travel through worlds? or, in other words, are all of your "Hoids" one person?
Well, ‘Hoid’ the name is an alias that a certain person is using, and he stole it from someone else.
But the person named Hoid in Elantris, Mistborn, and Warbreaker are all the same individual..
Would you be willing to take bribes to start "Nightblood" before finishing WoT!?
Heh. Nightblood will happen someday. Bribes of cookies or Magic Cards at signings might help. More seriously, I do intend to do this--and post it online as I write it-but it probably won’t be for a few years.
Then you shall have both when you come here this winter. Help turn a few years into six months, right?
lol. Well, it can’t hurt. But I DO have a lot on my plate... We’ll see. I want an ELANTRIS sequel out for 2015.
Wow, an Elantris sequel would be awesome too. Where would it fit chronologically after the end of Elantris?
Elantris direct sequel would be 10 years later and use Kiin’s children as viewpoint characters living in Fjorden.
How did you come up with what metal would give what powers in Mistborn?
The assignment of metals to powers was done mostly randomly.
I started by trying to mix and match colors and hues, but that ended up not working.
I also originally wanted the physical to be more common, and then move toward less common with mental and others.
Hence, iron is physical, Gold is mental, Atium is temporal. The mentals don't quite fit this, though.
Do you think you will ever include dragons in your books?
Dragonsteel, a series I’ll do someday, has Dragons in it. Hint: This world/series is very important to Hoid..
Why didn't Vin know the Atium bead Zane gave her wasn't real? Cant she sense how big reserves are?
Atium reserves always look bigger than they are to an allomancer. It burns so quickly.
She just didn’t have enough experience with atium to realize she’d been duped.
What first gave you the idea for Warbreaker? What was your first inspiration for it?
WRBRKR came from a lot of sourcres. Siri and Vivenna were side characters in a book I never finished.
Vasher came from the line that starts the book. No space to post it here, but give it a read.
Nightblood came because…well, I just wanted to have a talking sword.
Brandon, how do you think WoK will read as a complete set with your voice in the last books? Did you plan ahead for that?
Short answer is yes. We’ll see if I can pull it off. Original plans for my series was for a 36 book arc.
I thought that would intimidate readers. (; But the secret answer is this:
People ask for an Elantris sequel. There is one. It is called Mistborn.
A question that's been on my mind for a while. If Returned can't have children, how are Siri and Vivenna descended from one?
Excellent question. One I have to RAFO. When I was writing WRBRKR, I was planning on two books.
I seeded two questions to be answered in the next book. One was the origin of the royal family..
The second was how Vasher was able to survive while hiding his divine Breath. I will answer these questions.
Eventually. (It has to do with restoring Breath and life to the child while still in the womb.).
Would it be possible to Soulforge Nightblood and change the command that was given to him when he was Invested?
That is possible. That would actually not be a very difficult Soulforge. The problem is, he's Invested. So reInvesting him, which is what Soulforgery is, is really hard. So you'd have to figure out how you could use Forgery on something that is already Invested. But Forgery can get through some of those hoops a lot easier than some other magic systems can.
What would happen if a Forger got their hands on Nightblood and they Soulstamped Nightblood?
Nightblood is so heavily Invested that it would be like trying to freeze the ocean with an ice cube. *crowd wows* Maybe not that scale, that's your metaphor.
Is it possible to use a Soulstamp to give Shardplate life or at least achieve a robotic status?
Wow, it is really, really hard to Invest things that have already been Invested. Regular-- Let's just say that, it is really hard to do that. Part of the reason why it is difficult for instance to Push or Pull on something that is inside of somebody because the Investiture is interfering and you would have that similar problem doing anything to Shardplate with any of the magics.
Do bigger gems store more Stormlight for longer than smaller gems? So a broam would hold it for twenty hours where a chip might hold it for six hours or something.
The cut of the gem and how flawless the gem is has more to do with how long the Stormlight stays than size.
Is Shalash the daughter of Jezrien?
Umm... Oh, yes, she is indeed his daughter.
Would Rock be able to see the Cryptics?
Would Rock be able to see a Cryptic? That is a good question, you will have to see.
Is that kind of similar to the reason why there are no spren in Shinovar is because the people there so disbelieve them that it creates a negative pressure that keeps them from physical manifestation?
Good question.
Why can Rock see Syl?
Ooh, good question, why do you think Rock can see Syl?
My personal theory here is because his people have such a strong belief and reverence in them it allows him to see them for that reason because his strong belief creates some sort of cognitive or spiritual pressure which allows them...
He would agree with that philosophy. I would say, usually when something like that happens there is also something physiological going on.
When do you plan on releasing the Way of Kings annotations?
I've only written about a quarter of them. I have a sneaking suspicion that it will take me a few years just because it's taken me three and a half years to get the second book out. So I feel a burden to get the books going before I do side things like this. My life got a whole lot more busy with The Wheel of Time than it used to be. Which has cut out some of my side-projects like this but I would like to do them eventually.
What are some characteristics of and how many other wordhoppers are there that we have seen excluding Hoid, Demoux, and Galladon.
You gave me really good wiggle room on that one. Obviously the other person with Galladon and Demoux.
Right, the one from a future book.
His characteristics are-- What is he like? Some people have read his book so they know what he's like--
Which book is he from?
He's from White Sand.
Okay, that's one I have but have not gotten to.
It's only mediocre so don't worry about it. Let's see what other worldhoppers I want to give you clues about-- *long pause* There's a Terriswoman running around, if you keep your eyes open.
I have to re-read it, everything.
Who else do I want to talk about-- Words of Radiance has a couple good ones, that will be pretty obvious.
Can you store Breath in metal without the [Ninth] Heightening? Just put it there without Awakening, just to hide the Breath.
Can you hide Breath in-- Yes you can hide Breath in things.
Metal in particular, without the [Ninth] Heightening could you put it into metal. Without the purpose of Awakening it, just storing it there.
Oh without the [Ninth] Heightening-- I would say yes you could.
Does Shu-Keseg predate the splintering of Devotion and Dominion?
No, I don't believe it does.
Is the word Hoed based off an Aon and if so which one?
Yes, it is. It would be Hoe... no Oed, O-E-D.
What year did the Reod occur in the Elantrian calender?
Let's go ahead and-- Oh boy, Elantrian calendar?
...I don't have my wiki on me, I'm not going to-- I mean--
Is Resealing a subset of Forging, or a separate system like Bloodsealing is?
Um...
*Looooong silence*
I'm trying to remember what I decided—I was building all of this on a fourteen hour plane flight, keep in mind—I believe it is—Let's go ahead and PAFO that one. I need to go to my notes. I can give you a tentative "I believe it is the same system and not a cousin system" but at the end of the day I kind of had to go to my notes and work things out. There was lots of wiggle room built into the Elantris magic systems but I have to know what I decided.
Did seons exist when the Aonic peoples discovered Elantris?
When the Aonic peoples discovered Elantris, did seons exist-- Okay let me go back to my timeline... It kind of means you have to define what you mean by Aonic. The problem is if you dig back too far in history it's kind of like asking "What's a German?" You know what I mean?
Because the Aons are based upon Elantris itself and so they don't become Aonic until they are writing the Aons.
And Aonic is also-- You are talking about the people and so it's like are the Normans Brits? Or are they Vikings? Or are they Frenchman?
Why don't we phrase it as the people of Sel when they discovered Elantris.
No, no, that's getting, okay-- Let's go ahead and RAFO that one, just because the history of Elantris is very interesting to the cosmere. When people are starting to get an inkling of that.
Odium was there once upon a time.
Yah... And the question of who built Elantris and how they built Elantris. What's going on with the Elantrians back then and things like this. So let's just RAFO that.
Hey Karen, I have a question I hope you can confirm for the Stormlight fans.
What are the exact gemstone types Rosharans use in their currency? In The Way of Kings Shallan suggests that only nine out of the ten Polestones are actually used in spheres (or is this wrong?), and while eight of those are accounted for in the books, we don't know whether the last one is a smokestone or a heliodor. Is this something you can and are willing to confirm for us?
Here's what I have on my wiki page. I'm pretty sure it was written by Brandon before I started to work on things.
Gemstones
◆ Sapphire: blue (deep)
◆ Zircon: blue (light)
◆ Ruby: red (deep)
◆ Amethyst & Garnet: red (light)
◆ Topaz: yellow (deep)
◆ Heliodor: yellow (light)
◆ Emerald: green (deep)
◆ Smokestone: grayscale (deep)
◆ Diamond: grayscale (light)
Elsewhere I found this list that shows the spheres from highest to lowest value. It says that smokestone coins are very rare.
Values: Highest - 50 (250, 1000)
◆ Stone: Emerald
◆ Color: Deep green
◆ Essence: Pulp
Values: Prime Pair - 25 (125, 500)
◆ Stone: Amethyst
◆ Color: Pale violet
◆ Essence: Mineral (Metals/claws)
◆ Stone: Sapphire (skymark)
◆ Color: Deep Blue
◆ Essence: Vapor
Values: Middle Weight - 10 (50, 200)
◆ Stone: Zircon
◆ Color: Pale blue
◆ Essence: Blood (Water-based liquids)
◆ Stone: Ruby (firemark)
◆ Color: Deep red
◆ Essence: Spark (Fire/Soul)
◆ Stone: Smokestone (Uncommon as a coin)
◆ Color: Translucent
◆ Essence: Smoke
Values: Less Weight - 5 (25, 100)
◆ Stone: Topaz
◆ Color: Pale orange
◆ Essence: Talus (Stone/Bone)
◆ Stone: Garnet
◆ Color: Deep violet (Bloodmarks)
◆ Essence: Flesh
◆ Stone: Heliodor
◆ Color: Light yellow
◆ Essence: (Sinew)
Cheapest 1 (5, 20)
◆ Stone: Diamond (Clear chip/mark/broam)
◆ Color: Transparent
◆ Essence: Glass (Crystal/Eyes)
One thing I am noticing is that the essences don't entirely match what's in the Ars Arcanum of the books.
Yeah, AA is correct and what we base things on. Like I said, these are probably written by Brandon a long time ago when he was just world building.
How do you make up names and words for your fantasy settings?
Mostly, I choose an earth culture (or two) to base my linguistic influences on. For instance, in the Mistborn books, I used French. It's obvious in words like Fellise, Renoux, Blanches, Delouse and Demoux. Less obvious is Kelsier, whose name would be pronounced in-world without the last R sound.
Do you think you'll ever develop a language like Tolkien did?
Maybe. I did a lot of that in White Sand, which didn’t get published. I’ll do more for other books.
Do you use Hebrew words?
The name Adonalsium is derived from a Hebrew name for God, Adonai and Aharietiam was derived from the Hebrew/Jewish term for the end of days acharit hayamim or אחרית הימים
How does electrum work?
Electrum can see future shadows only as far in the future as is done with atium in the books. They use it to counter atium in that they see their own future shadow fighting, and if they see their shadow get hit by an attack, they know to avoid that attack, and they change their own future. This compounds the future shadows they see, which makes it practically as effective at countering atium as atium itself.
While the scope of an electrum shadow is very limited, it could be useful in many situations. Like if you were playing tennis, you’d be able to look at your shadow and tell if you managed to hit the ball or not, and adjust accordingly. That would still take a lot of practice to master, but it could be very effective.
For Words of Radiance, could you put a comment about something in the upcoming books, something not too specific, just something I can think about? Something like "Renarin has a spren" you wrote for somebody else in The Way of Kings?
[written] Stormlight makes plants grow.
Is there only one perpendicularity on a planet per Shard Invested there, or can say Scadrial have more than two (natural) at a time? (Old School Scadrial when there were two separate shards)
RAFO
Does the highstorm/no highstorm rotation of the Weeping have to do with Ashyn's relative location to Roshar?
No! But great question!
