In Shadesmar, the solid and liquid phases are inverted. So, in the Spiritual Realm, is it something to do with solid and gas phases, or is it not the same at all?
It is not quite where you're going, but I like the way you're thinking.
So then what's the reason that they can't travel to the Spiritual Realm?
The Spiritual Realm is not a place.
How was Vin able to use the mists against the Lord Ruler even though they hadn't been keyed to her?
That-- You are making an assumption there, and so tell him he might be making the wrong assumption.
Has Jasnah come up with her armor? Because there's a part where they say that geometric shapes were kind of disappearing and it wasn't like someone changing like they normally would.
I will RAFO that for now.
How do you think Kelsier really feels when it's revealed that the skaa really are different from the other ruling--
So-- *pause* I would call it still a matter of debate whether they are or aren't. Whether they were is a different matter of debate, right? But I would say that a lot of the things that were claimed about skaa were not accurate. Some of the things claimed about them were, and that is part of what makes it subject to debate. And Kelsier is very good at not accepting answers he doesn't like.
Any idea when we'll learn more about The Lost Metal?
Yeah, probably middle next year you'll know more about it. It's going to depend on how working on Stormlight 4 goes.
Are the humans who arrived on Roshar at the first Desolation refugees from the Evil on Threnody?
No. Good question. Excellent question.
I see Shai as one of the founding members of the Seventeenth Shard trying to hunt down Hoid. Is there any--
I'm gonna RAFO you on this. I'm gonna RAFO you on that. I'm not even going to say whether or not she ever managed to get off planet, even.
Are we gonna get to figure out how Vivenna got to Roshar?
You are, eventually. It may take me a little while, but I will get to it.
How do you decide whether or not a story is part of the cosmere?
There's a couple dividing lines. If it mentions Earth, I'm not gonna put it in the cosmere, because I don't want any sort of relationship there. At that point, the dividing line becomes, does the magic fit the cosmere, and is the story one that fits the cosmere, right? I made the decision very early on, I wasn't gonna try and force everything in. So if it's a natural outgrowth of the stories I'm telling in the cosmere, then I will go that way. I'm usually more finicky about pulling them out than putting them in. There are very few stories I've put into the cosmere, and I've pulled a ton of them out.
I was wondering what your thoughts on cosmemes are.
Cosmemes? I think they're hilarious and we can only aspire to the greatness that is trebuchet memes or prequel memes. Someday, perhaps, we, too, will be great.
Can a metalmind be made into a sentient object?
It's already got Investiture in it? Yes.
Has the Cognitive Realm of Scadrial changed at all since Sazed redid everything?
I'll RAFO that, I'll RAFO that.
If you had to make any of your books into a musical?
Ooh. Well, since we already have a canonical version of The Hero of Ages as a musical in the Mistborn world, in one of the broadsheets, we would have to go with that, we would have to do the version in-world.
I think Warbreaker would translate the best.
Yeah, that's probably true. If you want a real answer, that's probably true. It's probably the best.
In Warbreaker, is the picture that Lightsong saves the same picture that Kaladin finds in Celebrant?
*Presumably gives RAFO card*
With a cadmium or bendalloy savant, would they be able to impact the amount of time that they can compress or expand?
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
So they could fit-- Theoretically they could make-- fit more time into the same amount of metal.
Oh, that's what you're asking. Yeee-- *pauses* So, yes, technically, because... Yes, but mostly what that's going to do is going to influence your strength and how much you can multiply--
The size of the bubble?
The size of the bubble and the amount of time, like when you flare, you are pressing more time into it and a savant is gonna get really good at that. They're gonna get good at changing the bubble and the shape of the bubble, they're gonna get good at some of the other things involving the bubble. It does technically, as you become a savant, does mean you're able to squeeze a little bit more out of your metal, because that's just how it works, but that's not the main effect.
Any progress on making any visual adaptations of any of your works?
The closest right now is actually probably Snapshot, which is a lesser-known novella of mine. That's at MGM, we have a really good script, and they're about to announce a director very soon.
Is Yaalani a character in any other stories?
Right now, no. Good question.
Does not seem like a Eelakin name. And there are people in Stormlight who seem to have aviar.
Yeah. People in Stormlight do have aviar. That has happened. But let's just say, during Stormlight era, getting things on or off of First of the Sun is really hard.
Are spren able to visit other planets than Roshar?
So, spren are, because of the nature of their Investiture, connected too strongly to the planet to normally get off. That doesn't mean it couldn't happen, but I will just say, normally no.
So the Cognitive Realm, or whatever that sort of like-- is that different on other planets?
Yes. It looks different on each planet, partially based on perception.
Have you thought of the implications of Pulsers, or cadmium Mistings, in space travel?
Yes, I have.
Because you could slow down the time bubble around the ship and extend your life span during long journeys.
Yes, I have thought of that.
I noticed in the end of Oathbringer, right before Dalinar goes all Unity on us, that his fabrial gets ripped off his wrist. Is that significant?
Yes. Maybe not for the reason you're thinking, but it is.
As I read about the Parshendi, can't help but think of indigenous peoples. How do you deal with that and respecting the whole experience of colonization?
I think one of the things I have to do is embrace it. Like, if I just ignore it, it's worse, and so that's why I've tried to dig into and kind of acknowledge the issues. I mean, it is a minefield, right? I'm wandering into a minefield by writing a story that is basically based off of--
American colonization?
Yes. But at the same time, ignoring it wouldn't work. And the thing about it is, most cultures in our world, this is a question they had to deal with. Whose land is it? I mean, we're still fighting this war--we, I say, we aren't--but war is still being fought in the Middle East over whose land is it, and it's both of theirs, right, depending on how far you go back. And things like that, and so I think ignoring it is the wrong thing to do. But I also think there's a danger in trying to present an answer that is too easy, and so that's the line I have to walk. Embrace it, talk about it, not present an answer that is too easy, present multiple sides on it. It's kind of like the same way like the people in Roshar are both incredibly racist and incredibly sexist, right? Writing people who are racist and sexist without the narrative itself bolstering those sorts of those things is really hard. But, you know, we sign up to do hard things, and if I fall on my face, the best thing I can do is just acknowledge that I've fallen on my face, as I have done in the past.
How is the Cognitive Realm of Nalthis?
Yes, Nalthis. I'm gonna RAFO that. You will see it before too much longer, I hope.
The missing number of Shardblades. I just want to confirm that, when the Blades were abandoned, that all of them stayed in the Physical Realm. My question is, did some just evaporate?
Ahh, good question. They did not evaporate.
Has Hoid been in contact with Harmony in the timeline so far? Like, physically.
Physically in contact with Harmony in the timeline so far? "Physically" as it relates to a Shard is a difficult thing to say, but I would say that yes, they have interacted.
Is Nightblood going to out Vasher or Vivenna on Roshar?
Is Nightblood going to what-- out them?
Yeah.
Nightblood, you can never quite tell what Nightblood is going to do. And so I would say there's a high likelyhood that if that opportunity came, that he would do so.
For Hoid: how old is he at the end of Oathbringer?
Very old. *gives RAFO card* Here you go, here's your card.
When Shallan is telling the story about the girl and the wall, she said that her hair was white. Does that matter in any way?
Yes.
Are the Shinovars-- Shin people hair white?
They are not all white, but I'll RAFO the further question.
Is it possible to splinter a spren?
Yes. That is theoretically possible.
While Sazed holds Preservation and Ruin, could his intent change from Harmony to Discord?
It is possible.
Jezrien: he was killed with this little thing. Was it made specifically custom to him? Would it have killed anybody else?
RAFO.
Would Hoid be able to harm a Herald or a Cognitive Shadow?
Um, so, he is curious about this too. I don't know if I should canonize this. Let's say: odds are, no. Cosmere scholars would guess no.
So Hoid has some sort of magical compulsion that doesn't allow him to hurt people.
That is correct.
Is there any other involuntary compulsions he has that would stop him from doing things he'd like to? "Involuntary compulsions" being the kicker there.
I'll RAFO that.
Is there a limit to hordeling size? Like what the size of one is?
Yes.
Should I be worried about whitespines being a hordeling?
They are not a hordeling.
So what's the size limit?
Fist-sized is about how big they get.
And how many can you have? For one.
Lots. More than you have seen on screen.
What would happen if Hoid held Nightblood?
Uh, Hoid would not do that. Hoid would stay very far away.
Not even hold it??
He would stay really far away. There are very few things in the Cosmere that Hoid is afraid of, and Nightblood is one of them.
I thought he'd be afraid of the blade end.
So let's just say if very, very, very few things in the Cosmere had a chance of destroying you, you wouldn't even pick one up. You'd try to be in a different room entirely.
*Whispering about Nightblood being able to destroy Hoid*
I didn't say, I said theoretically. I said "had a chance of", I did not confirm. Hoid doesn't know. But there's a chance, and so he is not going to risk that.
Can you coppermind muscle memory?
No. Good question, I've haven't ever been asked that before.
The second set of Stormlight books, [six] through ten, will that-- will those be more focused on the Heralds' point of view, is that the idea?
Yeah, so Taln and Ash, who are both Heralds, are going to be main characters, and they'll each get books dedicated to them. The characters who survive the first five will still be main characters as well, but it's gonna turn more on what happened with the Heralds and things like that. The first five are turning more on what happened with the Knights Radiant and then the last five are more what happened with the Heralds... 'Cause we'll get flashbacks to the time of the Dawnsingers and things like that.
Does Lopen have a good story later? Because he's my favorite.
Yes, he does. Lopen has lots of good stories coming up.
Will we be finding out more about the Ryshadium?
Yes, but it's one of those things we're gonna find out in little bits here and there. I mean, I think I've told people they are animals that have managed to form a spren bond, which has given them more-than-animal intelligence. It is the symbiosis there that is letting them. So if they did not have the spren bond, they wouldn't be--
Were you intending to kill Eshonai off from the beginning of the series, or is that a decision you made later on?
That was a decision I made later in the outlining process. It was not begun that way, but it became obvious I needed to do it fairly early on. Why?
I was just wondering, because as I was reading Way of Kings, a lot of people thought she was going to be a continuing character, maybe even be one of the good guys later on.
Right. The decision I came to, and it was probably-- Trying to remember exactly when it was. When I came to the decision that Venli was more interesting as a perspective, viewpoint character than her sister was, because we already had characters in the series whose attribute was paragon of their-- This kind of paragon soldier who's trying to do the right thing is well covered in The Stormlight Archive. She was intended originally, but pretty early in the revision process, I decided it needed to go the other direction, 'cause Venli just worked way better as a viewpoint character.
Is Eshonai still getting a flashback book?
Yes, she's still getting a flashback book. I didn't change any of that. In fact, before I even began the series, I knew there were some characters who would not make it to their flashback book, and I wanted to make sure that I made clear that that could happen.
You said that before, I was like, I want to hear it.
Eshonai was intended to continue through, but I changed that pretty quickly, when I realized-- like I said.
I just finished rereading through Legion, and I was curious what led you to write so much about religion and that sort of thing. As a religious person, I really appreciated the fair way that you dealt with it in those books.
Being religious myself, it fascinates me, and the different ways that people intersect religion. Having one person who had all of these different personas that can all have different, varying levels of interaction with religion and the divine was also really fascinating to me. It offered me an opportunity that I probably couldn't do in any other story.
What inspired you to write Dalinar's amnesia and all that? What was your inspiration for that?
That, all of that, was really just partially narrative necessity. I didn't want to dig into that until I got to the right book, and so I needed the meddling to have pulled a little bit of that back. Plus, the fact that he was an alcoholic let me get away with a little bit of what was going on there. I really liked the intriguing element of someone who had had a piece of their memories ripped away and then was being given it back at the right time, right? That deliberateness of it was really interesting to me. I thought it made for an interesting story hook, when you meet a character and then realize he's had part of his memory excised. It's a bunch of things moving together.
Why did you write Zane for the Mistborn series?
Zane was a character that I found fascinating. When I designed him, I felt that the setting and characters needed more nuance, and he provided it. I feel that Zane could've gone either way, and he made a bad decision at the end, but could've absolutely gone the other direction and I was really interested in the idea of someone who thought they were insane but actually weren't. So a bunch of things collected, making Zane.
Have we seen Kelsier outside of Mistborn yet, and will we see him outside of Mistborn?
No you have not. And RAFO, but realize, he is-- The way Investiture works, you would consider him similar to how you would consider a spren. It's gonna be hard for him to get off-world.
It also means that he can still-- He gets kind of close, he gets really close--
I considered him still--
Still on this side.
Yeah, but he got close to the line. But I would say he did not get off [Scadrial].
So it's gonna be hard.
Yes.
Which hand is the safehand?
It is the left hand.
What's your favorite Lopen moment?
Probably where he is on the ground talking to the sky. Probably that one.
In The Stormlight Archive, do corrupted spren act differently in fabrials?
Yes. Excellent question!
Why are Spensa's eyes purple?
Because the artist drew it that way. Since Spensa's eyes, I don't imagine actually being purple, but it looked really cool on the cover, so there we go. Maybe they're canonically purple now. Maybe I'll write that in.
Is silver in Shadows for Silence similar in any way to aluminum in the rest of the cosmere?
*hesitantly* Yes, but not really. Silver is like silver, and aluminum is like aluminum.
Does aluminum have any specific use in Shadows for Silence?
Yes, you could definitely find a use for it.
Where do you lie on the "BrandoSando" versus "Branderson"?
I would probably go "Branderson", but I don't mind either of them.
Because I'm firmly in the BrandoSando camp.
BrandoSando? What about "BrandySandy"? I get that one too... No one goes with the cool ones. "Oh, the Sandman". I'm not cool enough.
Is there a maximum speed a Coinshot can propel themselves or something else?
Yes. It will vary slightly based on the strength of the Coinshot, but there are maximum velocities, just kind of-- you would burn yourself up at certain points.
So imposed by the laws of physics.
Yeah, laws of physics are going to-- Those aren't normally going to come in play in Allomancy, because Pushing that hard will be really difficult... But, as we are getting into more mechanical uses of Allomancy, those laws of physics become more and more relevant.
