FanX Spring 2019

Event details
Name
Name FanX Spring 2019
Date
Date April 19, 2019
Location
Location Salt Lake City, UT
Entries
Entries 36
Upload sources
#1 Copy

Undercoverwillshaper

So you had had a Word of Brandon that had said that Tien was on his way to becoming a Lightweaver. My question is, did he ever actually become a Lightweaver; did he speak an Oath, and if so, did he bond with a Cryptic?

Brandon Sanderson

That's an excellent question. If you look closely through the first book, you will see Tien having some slight Lightweaving effects. In the back of my head, he was where Kaladin was during most of the first book, where it wasn't really official but there was a spren hanging around. He was very close to-- by the time he left, already done that. I would say he never actually managed to get that bond working... Otherwise, perhaps, things would have played out differently than they did.

#2 Copy

Stormlightning

Are Hoid and the Set aware of each other?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, but I wouldn't say the Set as a general rule, but members of the Set.

Stormlightning

How do they feel about each other?

Brandon Sanderson

Some various shades of loathing.

Stormlightning

On both sides?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

#5 Copy

Questioner

Are you planning on doing more from Threnody?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. I've got a Threnody book. Silence won't be in it. But there's a Threnody book.

Questioner

Like a full size?

Brandon Sanderson

A full size novel, on Threnody. 'Cause there's a group I need to get a book out about because they're relevant later on, that you need to know who they are.

#6 Copy

Questioner

Can you make a Hemalurgic spike and get two people at the same time?

Brandon Sanderson

So, it's going to Invest from the first one and then potentially spike it into the second one, what it is stealing from the first, generally is what's going to happen.

#9 Copy

Questioner

I was wondering about how Alcatraz book 6 is coming along?

Brandon Sanderson

Its coming along really well. It's almost done. I've written my half, Bastille hasn't finished her half yet. Otherwise known as Janci -- A friend of mine that I'm co-writing it with so that I can blend the voice and make it sound a little more distinctive. It was sounding too much like Alcatraz, so I wrote a big chunk of it, and then I asked her to write a big chunk of it, and she is smoothing the voice together. I think she is near the last chapter of it, of the chunk she had been writing... It's going to be really cool. The ending that I have, it's really zany and it's really crazy, but it is great.

#12 Copy

GyozaGuy

Allik Neverfar has those medallions that let him to talk to people in their language, but he has an accent because it knows his parents aren't from that area. So I'm wondering, if he and his parents are both using those in a foreign land, does he no longer have an accent and his parents would?

Brandon Sanderson

I would say that they would both still have an accent. 

GyozaGuy

So it's not connected--

Brandon Sanderson

It's connecting to the soul of his parents and it's kinda picking that out. There are ways around that. If you are really good with the way Connection works and things like that. Obviously you've seen Hoid speaking without an accent all over the place. The medallions are kind of a crude, early version of doing that sort of thing, not really in control of the magic more, and so I wanted to build in some little indications that things are not quite as fluid as they will someday get.

GyozaGuy

So it's more of a hack and not a rewrite of the Connection.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, exactly.

Bluebar

It's not a direct link from them to the Investiture.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah. If you find someone who's using the magic themselves, you'll see that they-- like Dalinar didn't have, the people who spoke with Dalinar didn't have accents when he was using the same sort of Connection magic to give them linguistics and things like that.

#13 Copy

Stormlightning

You've talked about how Hoid really appreciates his new Lightweaving abilities, but what about the Soulcasting side of things?

Brandon Sanderson

So, you'll have to see.

Stormlightning

Is he excited about that, or does he already have all of that?

Brandon Sanderson

No, he doesn't have all of that. He knows more than a lot of people do, and knows to be more-- frightened of Soulcasting than others are. Frightened is perhaps the wrong term. Wary. 

#14 Copy

Questioner

What was your motivation behind-- for killing Elhokar and simultaneously ripping my heart out?

Brandon Sanderson

So, it was-- I never feel like I'm killing characters, I'm letting characters take risks and I'm letting other characters have agency to do the things they're doing in the books. That whole plot cycle was more-- less me killing someone off and more me letting Moash go down the dark path that he have been demanding that he go down.

Questioner

Okay, but you realize half the fandom-- or the whole fandom practically wants him dead now.

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, yes. Well, they should! He made a very, very bad decision, and he deserves everything that the fandom is throwing at him.

#16 Copy

Questioner

Does Marsh know much about what Kelsier's doing during Arcanum Unbounded?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. 

Questioner

Okay. Anything else on that, or just a yes until further--

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. He knows. He's aware. 

Questioner

I'll read into it. It's probably on 17th Shard or something.

Brandon Sanderson

That's just me, that's not in there anywhere. He's aware, but he's - yeah, yeah. He wasn't aware of all the stuff like he is by now, though, that's what I'll say.

#17 Copy

Questioner

You've stated before that Denth's ability to change is hair color is independent of him being Returned? So meaning he has the Royal Locks. Are Siri and Vivenna descended from him, or just a separate line of the same family tree?

Brandon Sanderson

I will RAFO that. But he does have the Royal Locks, so you can at least assume that they're related, at the very least.

#18 Copy

Questioner

I'm gay, and I thought it was really cool that you had a gay bridgeman. Do you have any other LGBT stuff, your characters--

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah. Mistborn series has Ranette, who's LGBTQ--

Questioner

Is she?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. It's, you know, you'll... So that's in the Wax and Wayne books, I don't know if you've read those. 

Questioner

Yes, yes, I remember her, okay. 

Brandon Sanderson

So yes, we've got her, we've got him, there are others that will show up here and there. Drehy is kind of special in that he's a very good friend of mine that I put into Bridge Four, so he's one of the ones that I kind of say "is it okay if I do it like this? Is it okay if I do it like this?" I kinda let him voice his character and things like that sometimes.

#19 Copy

Questioner

I have a question about the Sibling, actually. So, do you-- Can you say something about who or what the Sibling is?

Brandon Sanderson

Who or what the Sibling is? I can tell you, the Sibling will be a matter of discussion in a future novel of The Stormlight Archive. That's a RAFO. You will find out a lot more as the narrative progresses. The Sibling is very relevant, but I don't want to say too much right now. 

Questioner

There is a lot of rumors that there's something going on...

Brandon Sanderson

..Saying too much about the Sibling is gonna give big spoilers, so I'm just gonna stay quiet on it, alright?

#20 Copy

Questioner

So I was wondering, can Siri and Vivienna, does their hair change to unnatural colours, like pink and green--

Brandon Sanderson

It can. Yes.

Questioner

What would elicit that?

Brandon Sanderson

Well, I would have to go back to look at my notes, honestly. I would expect you could get green by eating something that made you sick, right? They're gonna associate these colors partially with associations that people are putting on them, the same way that spren are acting like the associations that people give them, but I would have to look at the culture, because in their culture, they may not associate green with disgusting the same way we do, right, if that makes sense. So that's why I'd have to look at the notes. These things are partially based on their own interpretation.

#21 Copy

Questioner

At the end of Oathbringer, or near the end, Kaladin is talking to Syl about not getting Shallan or whatever, and he says that she really just reminded him of someone, who is it that she reminded him of?

Brandon Sanderson

She reminded him of Tien, his brother, because his brother was a burgeoning Lightweaver, and Lightweavers, you'll notice, when they're around someone, that person starts to act a little bit more like a little bit of their best self. There's a bit of, also, counteraction to feelings of darkness and despair, it's just a natural Lightweaver sort of thing. And so, part of what Kaladin was drawing from Shallan was that feeling. I think it could've totally become love. And he's now cutting that off, he's saying it couldn't at all have become-- it could have. But that was part of what was drawing him in.

#22 Copy

Stormlightning

So about the Girl Who Looked Up, when her hair turns white, I'm just wondering, was that a Shallan-caused thing, or was that external?

Brandon Sanderson

External.

Stormlightning

It was nothing to do with her?

Brandon Sanderson

Everything in that had something to do with her.

Stormlightning

But she didn't cause it? Subconsciously or otherwise?

Brandon Sanderson

Well, she was involved, but the original source of that-- Yes, she is involved in that--

Stormlightning

But she didn't know something that caused it, even way back in her memory?

Brandon Sanderson

No, no. You're going the wrong direction for that.

#23 Copy

Questioner

How did Hoid get the name Cephandrius?

Brandon Sanderson

Cephandrius? Cephandrius is one of his very earliest aliases. Not his real name, but very soon after he stopped using his real name.

Questioner

Okay. Is there any relation to his real name? With that?

Brandon Sanderson

I will give you a RAFO card.

#25 Copy

Stormlightning

Would the Ghostbloods try to recruit [a Sleepless]?

Brandon Sanderson

Um, the Ghostbloods would not trust a Sleepless.

Stormlightning

They wouldn't? So they wouldn't even try to get one?

Brandon Sanderson

They would not. They would expect a Sleepless to take over their organization or try to. And try to stay far away from the Sleepless.

Stormlightning

What about the Seventeenth Shard?

Brandon Sanderson

There are members of the Seventeenth Shard who would be interested in recruiting one of the Sleepless. Generally they represent a wildcard faction that a lot of other people are wary of.

Stormlightning

I guess Khriss and them just know about them?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. The Sleepless are cosmere-aware.

Stormlightning

Are they worldhoppers?

Brandon Sanderson

There are Sleepless on many planets. They have mostly settled on Roshar for various reasons.

#26 Copy

Stormlightning

How hard would it be for a Sleepless to imitate the larkin powers in one of their hordelings?

Brandon Sanderson

Oh, they would take generations and generations of purposeful attempts at mutating that out.

Stormlightning

Could they theoretically do it?

Brandon Sanderson

They could theoretically do it.

#27 Copy

Questioner

Can Hoid eat?

Brandon Sanderson

He can, yes.

Questioner

And is there anything that he can't eat?

Brandon Sanderson

There are things he does not like. He would be-- Eating something that's still alive would be very difficult for Hoid. But he-- There aren't foods that would be forbidden to him by his particular ailment.

#29 Copy

Stormlightning

Is the bird that talked to Allomancer Jak a kandra?

Brandon Sanderson

Haha, RAFO. Allomancer Jak thinks that it probably must be.

Stormlightning

Are you gonna say if it's an Aviar?

Brandon Sanderson

I'm going to say Allomancer Jak has a strange blend of trustworthiness and not. He doesn't think that he's lying when he says things.

#30 Copy

Questioner

So...what is the safehand about-- Like how did that develop into a thing, having one hand being scandalous?

Brandon Sanderson

So it relates back to philosophical treaties written in world, long ago, where a woman was saying 'these are feminine arts, these are masculine arts'; that sort of thing. It was partially a way to control access to Shardblades, when Shardblades and Shardplate first entered the-- common people being able to have them because the Knights Radiant had abandoned them. At the same time there was a struggle for power over language, and this happened long ago. Really the reason is "humans are weird".

#31 Copy

Questioner

Was Lopen ever actually a slave or did he just see a slave wagon walking by and was like, "Hey, can I join you guys?"

Brandon Sanderson

I'll get to his story eventually. But he did not spend a long time in a bad situation like some of the others did.

Questioner

*inaudible* One of the people just would walk up and it's like, "Hey, can I join you guys?"

Brandon Sanderson

It didn't happen quite like that but it is a little bit goofy.

#32 Copy

Questioner

Does BioChromatic Breath cure color-blindness?

Brandon Sanderson

So... having enough Breath will interact very strangely with color-blindness. It won't heal it, necessarily, but it will have an interesting effect.

Questioner

Ah. I was hoping--

Brandon Sanderson

Are you color-blind?

Questioner

I am. So the entire time I read the book I was hoping it could cure color-blindness.

Brandon Sanderson

You will have an interesting time. I think you would be pleased with how it affects it.

Questioner

Will we ever see a color-blind person in the books?

Brandon Sanderson

I want to do one. I'm not sure if I'll be able to get it in there... but you will be pleased with how it happens.

#34 Copy

Steeldancer (paraphrased)

 According to General Relativity, there should be spatial distortion in speed bubbles. So, why does no one notice it?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

There is spatial distortion in speed bubbles, that's why bullets are refracted when they enter a bubble. However, I played with it a bit, and ignore the redshift that should happen. The barrier of the bubble absorbs it, otherwise everyone would just be irradiated. 

#35 Copy

Steeldancer (paraphrased)

Have you ever heard of the Alcubierre Drive? 

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

Yes, I know about the Alcubierre drive. 

Steeldancer (paraphrased)

So, if we took two speed bubbles--mechanized, because Allomancers aren't powerful enough to pull it off--could we create a functioning Alcubierre drive?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

You are theorizing in the right direction. 

Event details
Name
Name FanX Spring 2019
Date
Date April 19, 2019
Location
Location Salt Lake City, UT
Entries
Entries 36
Upload sources