Dustbr1nger
When creating something for Mr. Sanderson, is it normally a back and forth? As in, if he sees something you draw that doesn’t quite fit what he imagined but might run with it, or is it more so slightly editing stuff until it resembles exactly what was in his mind?
Isaac Stewart
Good question! It is normally a back and forth. Oftentimes we work hard to get a specific vision he has in mind. Other times, he'll see something he likes better in the concepts I present to him. He's pretty open to new interpretations, if he likes the direction we're going better than what he originally had in mind, so long as we don't contradict what's already been written in the text. There have been several times where the art has informed the text of an in-process book, and we go back through the book to change the descriptions to match the art. But most often, we make sure that the art--as best as we can--matches the text.
Kyrroti
Is there a time when you two felt strongly on a design and disagreed, or are you both very open minded?
Isaac Stewart
This occasionally happens, but we're both very open minded about these sorts of things, and in the end, Brandon is the director of his stories. I would let him know if I thought going a certain direction in the art was a bad idea. He would let me know if thought the same thing about a direction I was taking something. It's a very respectful process.
The_Second_Best
When you're designing the look of something like a chasmfiend how many iterations do you go through?
Isaac Stewart
It really depends on the creature and project, honestly. @Inkthinker is the artist on the chasmfiend and the whitespine, for example, and he is absolutely a fantastic artist. I think he submitted three versions of the chasmfiend, we chose one, and then he pretty much got it spot on for Shallan's illustration of the beast in Words of Radiance. He had already come up with a paradigm for these types of critters (a la the axehound) back in Volume 1, so that might've helped this one come together so quickly.
The whitespine, however, was a tougher nut to crack. He submitted ten or eleven different designs before we found the general shape that looked correct to Brandon, and then there were several smaller revisions after that to get different parts of the whitespine's body correct. But again, we were developing a different creature paradigm here. The chasmfiend was based off crustaceans, and the whitespine was more shark- or ray-like in the way its body was supposed to work. A landshark with spikes.
Brandon Sanderson
I will speak up... I do like the American cover. Some people don't and I can understand... there's like... a lot of people who don't like it say that it looks too sci-fi. And Stephan Martinière was a concept artist for science fiction movies and the book, the cover feels too sci-fi for a lot of people.
Questioner
Will we see more of Vivenna in this one?
Brandon Sanderson
Yes, oh in book four? I won't, I'll RAFO if it's in book four. You are going to see more of her but I won't promise where.
Questioner
When can we expect Elantris 2?
Brandon Sanderson
So, Elantris 2... Elantris 2 has to be done by the time I do Era 3 of Mistborn, which is the contemporary era. There are certain things that have to be in there before I can finish that series. So, right now - what it's looking like - I will finish Stormlight 4, I will do Wax and Wayne [4] and Skyward and then I'll do Stormlight 5. *applause* And then, what I'll probably do is, I'll try to - this is not a promise - but this is what my goal will be because Mistborn and Elantris books are about each half the size of a Stormlight book, I can probably do one a year, where Stormlight takes me about one every three years. So the goal will be to go, Mistborn Era 3 book 1, then Elantris 2, then book 2 of Era 3, then Elantris 3, then book 3 of Era 3.
Questioner
So it will be a trilogy, right?
Brandon Sanderson
Elantris? Yeah. But the trilogy of Elantris is not the same. It's the story of the world more than just the story of characters, so you'll find about the characters and things, but don't expect... Sarene and Raoden will not be the main characters of Elantris 2. There will be a time jump. Elantris 2 is probably Kiin's children who I've seeded to be main characters for the sequel and book 3 will probably be somebody else, right? So, keep in mind that that's how the Elantris books are intended to go.
Questioner
The Emperor's Soul was intentionally on Sel or was it just picked up as...
Brandon Sanderson
No, it was intentional, because the magic system... the way I build the magic systems in the Cosmere is very deliberate and certain planets have certain themes for their magic. And Sel's magic systems are all basically computer programming languages and when I was designing that magic system, it had to be on Sel, it couldn't work on any of the other planets for various reason.
Questioner
And another question, is the Shaod random or is there a purpose beyond it?
Brandon Sanderson
It is not completely random. *laughter from audience*
Questioner
Also, The Emperor's Soul, will we see Shai in future books?
Brandon Sanderson
You will see Shai in future books. *applause* I came up with a really good idea for a sequel for her, also. I don't know if and when I can write it, but there's a really solid idea I have for one, so, we'll see. But she'll make appearances, she is around.
Questioner
We've heard a lot about the lighteyes' ranking system, but less so about the darkeyes. I would like to ask if you can tell us more about what happens at, like, tenth nahn, the lowest of the lowest.
Brandon Sanderson
So, tenth nahn is easy, because that's the slaves. So, it's the middle ones that get really interesting. And actually, in some ways, the top ones are interesting because the nahns, the top of the Alethi darkeyes, would be analogous to how in the early 1800s, you saw a rise of a merchant class -- that actually started back in the 17, maybe 1600s -- but the rise of a merchant class who were not noble, but more powerful or richer than the nobility in almost every situation except for some legal situations. And that's what you're seeing there. That's really interesting.
The middle nahns are also interesting because they have the right of movement, which is an Alethi right that you can leave a city and move to another city. You basically can't be a sharecropper, you can't be required... you can't be a serf. And that power can be wielded over the lighteyes, by -- if the lighteyes is terrible, they can call upon the right to move, leave to a different city and that lighteyes is demoted, right? Because your lighteyes rank can be influenced by how important the people... your civic rank, you could actually become a lower dahn because of that, or at least lose a lot of prestige because of that.
And then the lowest of them are basically serfs, they don't have the right of movement, and the right of movement is a big dividing line. There is a nahn that doesn't have the right of movement that isn't a slave, also, and these people have pretty dismal lives.
Questioner
My question is connected to an acquaintance of both of us. Namely, a lovely, lovely Australian named Shad, who is an expert in weapons and medieval warfare. It is very easy to criticize books and everything about *interjection* because we have the real things in the world, but in all of your books, you have created magic systems that are so... real. How is the initial thought when you create a new world, what is the initial process of creating a new magic system?
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, so first I'll point you toward my essays called "Sanderson's Laws", which are basically stepping through the rules I follow to make a magic system. There's three of those. I would recommend going and reading those.
The process is really me trying to create something that is both different and unique and something that approaches the theme of the story the right way. Like, I want a magic system that accents my story, not one that contradicts my story. And these things all come together into it: I'm looking for interesting flaws, interesting costs, interesting powers, and interesting connections to the rest of my world.
Questioner
I read the Mistborn series in audiobook form and it was just such high quality. And I was wondering if that was specifically your decision and if so, what made you choose to make it so?
Brandon Sanderson
So, if you're thinking of the Michael Kramer version. That came about because I loved him and Kate's readings of the Wheel of Time audiobooks. And I just... they were my favorite audiobook readers. When they came and said "Who do you want for your audiobooks", I said "Please get Michael and Kate".
If you're thinking of the full cast audios... the full cast audios are done by a group called Graphic Audio and they just do high class work, that's why we picked them. I listen to a bunch of things they've done and I have nothing to do with how great they are, that's all on them.
Questioner
I just wanted to know what you think about writer's notebooks and do you have one?
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, mine's... I have two, I have a little... whatever they call them... the little leatherbound ones that I put in my pocket. That's if I'm working on a specific book. If I'm not in the outlining stage on a specific book, which I'm not right now because I'm writing prose on something. At that point, it's just my phone and I email cool ideas I have to myself to put in my file. It used to be called "Cool things that need to be used some time", but it was just too weird a title, so now it's just called "Working ideas".
Nextorl
My question is about Bavadin. Is she a hive mind?
Brandon Sanderson
No, hive mind isn't the right word for it, but...
Nextorl
So she's not an Aimian or something like that...
Brandon Sanderson
She's not an Aimian. That's - that's a good question. No, she is not.
Questioner
The Reachers in the ship that leads Kaladin and the group... What kind of Order do they create?
Brandon Sanderson
That will be answered in the next book. You'll have pictures of all of the Radiant spren and their bonds, except the Bondsmiths, obviously.
Kfirw
Did Taravangian meet the Nightwatcher? Or Cultivation?
Brandon Sanderson
Cultivation. Good question.
Storming Radiant
I asked what's up with Warbreaker's sequel and if we'll get to see Endowment get a bigger role.
Brandon Sanderson
Someday.
Storming Radiant
Can Susebron break Nightblood's commands?
Brandon Sanderson
Nope.
Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)
Susebron just isn't strong enough.
Storming Radiant
Could Shashara have retrieved her Breath from Nightblood?
Brandon Sanderson
Not by means she knew.
LiftIRL
(paraphrased)
Which part of the two in Dalinar's oath in the end of book three - y'know, "I will take responsibility [...] If I must fall I will rise each time a better man" - would you say encompasses the Third Ideal of the Bondsmiths best? The neutral version of it, what would it be?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
*he thought a bit, hummed* It would be about the second part, mainly about getting better - I will rise each time a better man.
Halel
(paraphrased)
If I were to cut an Elantrian's head off, would it still live? Just the head, the body, both or perhaps neither of them?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
The body would grow a new head, as most of the soul is in that part.
Inhorman
(paraphrased)
Can you Awaken a complex mechanism in a way that it will work by itself?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
I didn't understand the question.
Inhorman
(paraphrased)
Like Awakening a gun so it'll shoot by itself.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
It's very hard since you need lots of Breath but theoretically it's possible.
That Dude
(paraphrased)
We can see all over history that people with absolute power tend to be quite awful, was Adonalsium like that?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
RAFO, good question and you will learn about this
Benjamin velvel nayman
Brandon said this is the first confirmation of a second Shardpool on Sel when he signed my book.
Brandon Sanderson
There is a second Shardpool.
Yoav Yaran
(paraphrased)
How will time bending metals (of Allomancers) affect electronic devices?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
RAFO, but they will probably be OK.
Doombrigade
(paraphrased)
Can a Shardblade cut a drab or just a soul? As they are only half alive..
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
A Shardblade would cut the soul, killing the drab.
Doombrigade
(paraphrased)
If an individual has a mental sickness, such as multiple personalities, can that affect a Shard's intent if picked up by him or her?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Yes, that is possible.
Doombrigade
(paraphrased)
Is it possible that Autonomy is one such, and has multiple personalities?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
RAFO.
Doombrigade
(paraphrased)
I noticed most of the Unmade have a Middle Eastern mythology inspiration, and could pair them with deities, but I couldn't find a fit for two: Yelig-nar and Ba-Ado-Mishram. Could you tell us their names' origin?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Those two are actully not Middle Eastern but actually inspired by Lovecraft.
yahel26
(paraphrased)
Since the gemstones on Shardblades seems to be infused with Stormlight, could a Surgebinder draw that Stormlight and use it?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
No he couldn't. You see, that Stormlight is the Shardbearer's life energy, you wouldn't be able to draw it just like I can't draw your life energy from you. If you were to extract that gemstone from the Shardblade it is possible.
yahel26
(paraphrased)
But then the gemstone would go dark.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Exactly.
yahel26
(paraphrased)
What would happen if an Elantrian burned or flared aluminium? Would they become Reod or a normal person? Or something else?
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Like if they got Allomantic powers?
yahel26
(paraphrased)
Yeah, like a lerasium [bead] or something.
Brandon Sanderson
(paraphrased)
Okay, yeah, I'm gonna say RAFO, I knew this one was coming.
Questioner
I want to ask how were the Realms created and does their creation have anything to do with Adonalsium and the Shattering?
Brandon Sanderson
So, good question. The Realms predate the Shattering of Adonalsium and are part of the fundamental physics of the cosmere. So they would have been created at the equivalent of the cosmere Big Bang when time was created and things like that.
Questioner
When I read Wax and Wayne, I have in my head, "That's how Batman would look like if Brandon wrote it." When I read The Rithmatist, I think "That's how Harry Potter would look like if you wrote it." My question is: Do you have this in mind when you write such stories and is it intentional?
Brandon Sanderson
It wasn't intentional for Wax and Wayne, but my pitch for Rithmatist to my publisher was, "The Muggle at Hogwarts." The Rithmatist is the person with no magic, who's a superfan of the magic, who gets to go to the magic school. So for The Rithmatist, it was actually part of my original pitch and concept, so yeah.
Questioner
I have a question about emotional Allomancy and ways it can affect things that aren't from Scadrial. Specifically, I had a conversation about what it would do to Lifeless.
Brandon Sanderson
Emotional Allomancy would have a more compelling effect on Lifeless than on a regular person.
Questioner
Like breaking Lifeless with Allomancy?
Brandon Sanderson
Oh... to break Lifeless. This... I'll RAFO that for now, just because the actual details there I'm gonna RAFO. So, you're really asking, "Can emotional Allomancy bring back the person behind the Lifeless," and that I'll have to RAFO.
Questioner
I meant like breaking the Command.
Brandon Sanderson
Oh, breaking the command of a Lifeless. Ohhhh... I'll still RAFO that. *laughter and applause from audience* That's not nearly as difficult a question, but yeah... I would say if you're doing that in a roleplaying game, I would call that a viable use of the magic as currently understood. So you could make that happen and have my authority to do it.
Brandon Sanderson
When I was first naming all the characters, I did this--it's a very classic mistake new writers make. And sometimes it works, but sometimes it doesn't. And this is to name the characters things that relate to their role in the plot. So I was naming all these characters and I was basing their Aons on their personality. Which if you think about, doesn't make any sense. Parents could not name their characters after the trait the characters was going to eventually exhibit?
Questioner
But it's like a mystical thing! Maybe determined or fates...
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, you could say that. But at the end of the day, if you could look at the back and be like, "This one means Traitor. That character probably is the traitor!" It worked for Star Wars, right? He named Darth Vader, "Dark Father," in German, and none of us got it. When I went back to the books and I looked him over again, when I was editing it, my editor said, "Do you really want to do this. Do you want to name the character this, because they can just look in the back and find out what the character's name means." And I realized no parent would name their kid, "Traitor." I thought it was cute but it was actually just dumb. So I went back and changed it all.
Questioner
Who was it originally and what was his name?
Brandon Sanderson
I'm trying to remember who I named, "Traitor." I named one of the nobles, "Traitor." I'm trying to remember who it was.
Questioner
Probably the traitor one.
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah probably the traitor one. It was more than that. I named all of the nobility these names based on what their role in the plot was.
Questioner 2
*Inaudible* Ahan maybe?
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah. That's who it was, yeah.
Questioner
We know that on Sel, it's incredibly difficult to worldhop there because of a certain dangerous factor in the Cognitive Realm.
Brandon Sanderson
Yep.
Questioner
Is it possible to worldhop by means that are not through the Cognitive Realm?
Brandon Sanderson
You wouldn't call it worldhopping, but if you could FTL there, you could get there without having to go through the problems. I call worldhopping mostly using non-physical means, but we haven't gotten there in the Cosmere really yet, except for, like, Sixth of the Dusk and things. So, the fan terminology may include worldhopping as jumping in your ship and FTLing over. But... nothing would prevent that. If you had a ship that could FTL using one of the magic systems in the Physical Realm, you would probably be okay, getting to Sel.
Questioner
Why did the Elantrians came to Roshar in the first place? Because the question came up after I reread Elantris, so...
Brandon Sanderson
Are you talking about... specifically... the old ones? Yeah, why were they on Roshar? So, those specific individuals - the Ire, as we call them - are a group of Elantrians that are not representing all Elantrians. They were there. The one you've met is there for a specific reason. The Ire are involved there. They're mostly... where you've seen them, is on Scadrial so far, but they're interested in Roshar. You are talking about the lighthouse keeper, I assume? So, the lighthouse keeper, wouldn't... would be counted, I guess, as one of the Ire and is there for a specific purpose, but it is not related to their general purpose, that they're trying to achieve.
How's that for being vague? I'm sorry.
Questioner
So, yesterday on the metal panel, you talked about how creating aluminum revolutionized our society. So ever since yesterday, I wondered if you one day can see some kind of... like you know, the Empire from Star Wars? Like, a society like that, probably from Scadrial that is made entirely out of aluminum and things of that nature.
Brandon Sanderson
Yeah, I totally can. Absolutely, I can see that and it's going to be pretty cool, if I can get it all to work.
Questioner
We were talking about Nightblood. How do you go about creating characters that are inanimate objects, but come to life? Because it seems a lot different. Also, gods... like, things that are otherworldly, because characters like real people, it's easy to write that. But considering gods and inanimate objects, that's beyond, sort of.
Brandon Sanderson
Well, fortunately, for us writers, nobody among our audience will be able to contradict us. Right? So, in some ways, writing something that nobody has ever experienced is a lot easier than writing something that a fair percentage of the population has experienced but you have not. And so, I just do my best. Being a writer is about learning to, "fake it." To pretend you're someone you're not, to pretend to have the experience that you don't, so that character sounds authentic. And faking something that no one can call you on is actually fairly easy.
Questioner
In the world of Stormlight, we have the Weeping season, where there are no large storms [highstorms], we don't have any new Stormlight. How did the Knights Radiant deal in the past? Like, how did they handle this time?
Brandon Sanderson
Well, there's a couple of things, some are spoilery for the books. Large gemstones can keep the Stormlight, though. Some dealt without and just didn't have it. In some cases, they had the large gemstone reservoirs. It was a thing they planned for and there were a couple of other little hacks that are not obvious in the beginning of the series. So, you actually get a RAFO on that.
Questioner (A wheelchair user)
Have you had any negative feedback from other wheelchair users about Rysn's storyline?
Brandon Sanderson
I did go to a bunch of them to ask, so I've been trying. But if you have negative feedback to give me, I would love to hear it, because I had two beta readers in wheelchairs give me the best advice they could. But I obviously do not have that same disability, so there's things I'm going to get wrong.
Questioner
How do you think you did? How did you do [on Wheel of Time]?
Brandon Sanderson
How did I do on Wheel of Time? I think I did as close to as good a job that I could have done. There's a few things I'd change if I could. I think I dropped the ball a little on Padan Fain, in retrospect, and my Mat, particularly in Gathering Storm, was... I got there on Mat, I feel, as best as I could do Mat, which is not as good as Robert Jordan could, by the time I got to A Memory of Light, but it sticks out a little bit. But he just had a big event in his life, no spoilers, just a big event. Just pretend he's off kilter because of the big event.
Those are my two biggest regrets on that. I think I got pretty close to as good as I could have done. I don't think I did the job that Robert Jordan could have done. By definition, his would be better.
Questioner
If you were in the Reckoners books, what kind of superpowers would you have and what would be your weakness?
Brandon Sanderson
I'm canonized in the Reckoners books and the Reckoners board game as Quicksand. My weakness is early mornings. Wake me up too early and my powers go away.
Questioner
Does Gavilar and Amaram know that Nale and Kalak are the Heralds and that all the other Heralds also...
Brandon Sanderson
That's a spoiler. Can you talk around it?
Questioner
Yeah. So did they know that the people being met, who were they and also if they knew, why'd they still continue on the missions?
Brandon Sanderson
Let's just say that information is not being shared clearly and succinctly between different groups that are interacting in the prologues of the Stormlight books. How about that. But the cat obviously got out of that particular bag that you're asking about and the ramifications of it are in the first prologue. You'll find out. When this book comes out, your question will get answered pretty clearly so just know that you'll get your answer in about a year.
Questioner
My question is about, especially in the Stormlight series, I noticed that you use a lot of different languages and that when people speak in languages that is not their mother tongue, they use different phrases and they make mistakes that really remind me of the mistakes that we Israeli do when we speak English. Do you speak multiple languages and can you tell us a bit about languages in the Cosmere?
Brandon Sanderson
So, yeah. I do speak... poorly... I studied French all through high school and my French is really bad. And I was a missionary in Korea and learned Korean and my Korean is slightly less bad. *speaks Korean* I said, "I don't speak Korean very well, I speak about as much as a rat's tail," which is a phrase in Korean. Learning another language was really helpful for writing fantasy books. Going and living in another culture? Really helpful for writing fantasy books.
Languages in the Cosmere are going to vary based on my needs for a given book. I spend my worldbuilding time on what is relevant to the characters and story. So, for instance, the linguistics in Elantris were really important to the story. The linguistics in Mistborn were not as important to the story and so I spent more time on the languages for Sel than I did for Scadrial. I did spent a decent amount of time on the languages for Roshar because all the different cultures and things like that having conflicts with one another is a big part of the story.
Worldbuild in service of the story, is my suggestion to you guys. Spend your times on things that are going to be relevant to the characters.
Questioner
Is Hoid named after the Sephira of Hod? Like with an Ashkenazi pronunciation? The Kabbalistic thing.
Brandon Sanderson
Oh, the Kabbalistic thing. Not consciously, though the Double Eye is based a little bit on the Kabbalah tree of life, consciously. That's the illustration on the front cover of the first Stormlight book. And I have read a bunch of Kabbalah, so it's totally possible that it ended up in there on accident.
Brutal_murder
How was it that the Lord Ruler was able to speak into the minds of the Terris and ask them if they want to become kandra while he was wielding Preservation?
Brandon Sanderson
Lord Ruler... able to speak with the minds of the kandra...
Brutal_murder
At least TenSoon said in the text that he spoke directly into their minds.
Brandon Sanderson
Send that to me, I want to go to Peter for that one. I think we have an answer for that one, but I want to make sure I'm getting it right.
Nameles36
Why was it that Vasher was able to throw Nightblood while fully drawn but Szeth couldn't even drop him
Brandon Sanderson
So it may have been part to why Nightblood has less an effect on Vasher in general than the other people, but there's also a little of a bit a measure of experience... but there's some other stuff going on with Vasher.
Brandon Sanderson
I often, when I'm building languages, there are a lot of different ways that I go. I am not a philologist like Tolkien was. I'm not a linguist. Peter is, my editorial assistant, but I am not. I have had a little bit of schooling in linguistics, but not enough to be creating complete con-langs out of nowhere. So I'm usually using a few tricks to develop my language, one of which is to look for historical languages and seek inspiration from them.
And the pitch for myself on the whole thing, in Fjorden, was what if the Vikings had created a very hierarchical religion like Catholicism, and had instead of conquering the world as Viking, Nordic destroyers, they had become a religious group. They're really based off of the Geats, which is Beowulf's people, which are Nor--are British, they're British Vikings, basically. And so when I was developing them, I was using a bit of Nordic--old Nordic and things like that--and I'm using a bit of old English, and just trying to get that feel. In Beowulf, because in Beowulf they have some Danes and you have some people from the British isles, and there's this crossing over, and things like this, and it's this interesting sort of mix and hodge-podge of cultures and languages, from, 1000AD, and i really liked that feel, I really liked that linguistic flavor, so to speak, and so, I was really reaching towards lots of names out of Beowulf as inspiration.
Questioner
If you could meet any author from history, and you could meet with him and ask him a question. Who would it be, and what would be the question?
Brandon Sanderson
I'm going to guess God doesn't count?
Audience
*laughs*
Questioner
Moses!
Brandon Sanderson
Moses, I could go with Moses. *sighs* Would it be Moses? Would it be Abraham? It's gonna be one of the bible writers, right? It might just be Isaiah, or one of the ones like... It would probably be Daniel and I would be like, "Let's go over that dream. Right?" *laughter from audience*
"Let's go over that dream and you can tell me exactly what it actually means. You can trust me, I won't tell anyone." *audience laughs and claps*
Questioner
So, *inaudible*
Brandon Sanderson
Secondary answer would be "Robert Jordan" and "How did I do?"
Questioner
If you needed to pick a band to write your soundtrack, which band would it be?
Brandon Sanderson
Band to write my soundtrack? Probably, Two Steps From Hell.
Questioner
Was Nightblood a metalmind or a Hemalurgic spike originally?
Brandon Sanderson
No. Great question!
Questioner
In Warbreaker, the royal family's hair can change colors based on their emotions. Why is it only natural colors? Is there a reason for that?
Brandon Sanderson
It's only natural colors, they could go further than natural colors. Basically, their perception is what's influencing that. They can actually change more than just the color of their hair, but as in a lot of things in the cosmere, the way you view how your abilities work shapes the actual abilities.
