Shardbound
Is Hoid's inability to do harm voluntary or--
Brandon Sanderson
Involuntary.
Is Hoid's inability to do harm voluntary or--
Involuntary.
So, at the end of [Oathbringer], a certain Shard says "we killed you." Is "you" Adonalsium there? Or is that a [RAFO]?
That's a big RAFO!
We know Ati chose how Ruin was interpreted, in that he was a card-cackling maniac. Could someone so differently interpret a Shard as to change its name to be something different? Could someone pick up the Shard of Ruin and think I'm the Shard of Change? Or could someone pick up the Shard of Honor and think--
*hesitantly* Yes. To an extent. The interpretation, what you call a thing-- I think it would be arguable either way in-world, regardless of what they call themselves. There are those who would say the core intent is still there and you can't shift it that far, and others would argue you can shift it far enough to change the definition to a synonym. You see evidence of someone claiming this in the books. I'm not gonna confirm or deny for you whether that is actually a thing or not.
When you start planning your books, is there anything you start with? Is there always some sort of starting point, or do you start whenever an idea occurs and you run with it?
Every book is a combination of multiple ideas that are bouncing around in my head. And when they start sticking together, like when I've got an idea for a cool idea where "There's a storm all the time," mixing with "Hey, I want to tell this story about these ancient orders of knights." with "Ooh, this magic system might develop here." When these all start sticking together, that's what makes a book for me. And then I sit down and write out all the ideas I had, and then start I organize it into an outline.
How would Nightblood work when drawn on Scadrial?
So, you would have to be actively burning a metal or tapping a metalmind, or Nightblood would eat you very quickly.
We've seen what Shardblades look like in Shadesmar. What do spikes look like?
Like, Hemalurgic spikes? That's a RAFO. You will see eventually.
Is there ambient Investiture in all of the planets, or just the Shardworlds?
*pauses* It's mostly Shardworlds. But that definition gets a little uncertain in the case of some various planets, like Threnody. There are other Threnody-esque sorts of things.
The next book, Szeth, will he be the primary character?
I'm probably going to do him as [Stormlight] Five. Eshonai is [Stormlight] Four.
From what little we know about the Willshapers, I'm really interested in them. Is there any really tiny tidbit about that Order you could tell us? Even really small?
One of the first Orders that I developed when I was building the magic systems was the Willshapers... Very excited to do a story about them.
If you're an aquatic civilization on Roshar, would the oceans match the oceans? ...Because of all the spheres...
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I've never been asked that before. That's an excellent question... I think it would have some weird different manifestation in Shadesmar, depending on their culture, and the way they view the world.
One that's probably for Peter. Shadesmar appears to be flat. And you talk about people walking between worlds. But worlds are spherical. What's up with that?
This has given him a bit of a headache. It works in my brain, and I'm pretty sure we can make it on the world. Remember, things people think about manifest in Shadesmar, so I've been able to work out a map where places that just aren't inhabited are shrunk in Shadesmar.
And they turn into points, so you can just walk off them?
Yeah.
How do you come up with your concepts on flying across all of your books? They're a little different from usual flying.
So, I look for something that just hasn't been done before. Almost all powers in fantasy books have been done. But can you put some interesting restriction on them that'll make it more actually interesting to write? A little different? I spend a lot of time just kinda brainstorming these sorts of things.
Have you forgotten about little Gav?
...Let me tell you this. I have not forgotten about little Gav.
Will you ever make a book based in Shadesmar?
Yes, I will, actually. There's one that I've plotted in Silverlight. Whether I'll be able to write it as a whole book, or whether I'll be able to do it just as a novella I'm not sure yet. But I do actually have a plotted-out story with Khriss as the protagonist in Shadesmar.
Could you tell me something about Lift that's not in the books?
...There are foods that Lift hates. They do exist... Things she does not like to eat, they are hard to find, but they do exist.
Was Melishi bonded to the Sibling?
RAFO, good question. Very good question.
Any tips for a Stormlight Archive RPG?
Hmmm... I would say make sure that--this is just my RPG opinion--make sure you have things to do outside of combat that are as useful and fun as things inside of combat.
How does Cultivation figure in this conflict between Odium?
So, what people assume is that Cultivation is hiding. I would disagree with that. People in-world would assume that.
Just wondering if I could ask what the name of Azure's sword was?
I'll RAFO it now. That's mostly a RAFO because I have several names that I have not-- it's a TBA, sorry. I was gonna stick it in, and then I just didn't. I wasn't satisfied.
*written* What color eyes do Siri and Vivenna have?
*written* It can vary
*spoken* So this, I'd have to go look in my notes, but it can vary...
In the book, there's the one time they talk about it being darkeyes, but I wasn't sure if it was makeup because it was right after the fight with *inaudible* or if it was makeup eyes.
I'll have to look in my notes. But it can vary.
*written* Has Vasher (or any of the alias he goes by) ever fathered a biological child? (before or after he returned)
*written* RAFO
*spoken* That's also a RAFO, sorry.
Have we seen any evidence of Hemalurgy on Roshar? And, as sort of an addendum, given the end of Oathbringer, was what happened to Jezrien Hemalurgy?
There are certain cosmere philosophers that would count it. I would divide it as two separate things that are using similar fundamentals... I wouldn't call it myself, but there are people who would disagree with me in-world. Have we seen evidence? I would say no evidence that is easily-- easy to pick out.
But it's there?
Yes, there are people with Hemalurgy who have been to Roshar. I'm pretty sure they've been on-screen.
With Hoid, we know that he's got some sort of Lightweaving, Yolen magic. If we're gonna hypothetically say that he bonds with the Cryptic, at the end of Oathbringer. Talking about resonance between magic systems, what are we going to see if he tried the two together? Would they be separate? Or would they form some sort of resonance magic system?
So, I'm gonna go ahead and RAFO that.
Obviously, we know that spren look different in the Cognitive Realm, as opposed to in the Physical. Seons, from Elantris. Do they look different?
Yes.
What is the most Invested item so far revealed?
What counts as an item?
Inanimate object. Sentient swords, stuff like that.
Okay, inanimate objects, would be Nightblood. Well-- is he inanimate?
Well, he's a sentient sword, but he's an inanimate object.
So, yeah, he would count.
Is there any reason why Odium's known as the Broken One? Has he got some part of him ripped off? ...Has he had any Investiture ripped off of him?
Has he had Investiture ripped off of him? Yes, asterisk.
Trellium could be Hemalurgy-viable without Trell messing with magic?
Yeah, I'll go ahead and give you [a RAFO card].
If you have 32 Misting and Ferring, every kind possible, without using Hemalurgy, you can craft a medallion? Without the aftermath of the--
So could you craft a medallion... without-- oh. That should be possible, but this is one of the things where I have to dig out the notes and double-check myself. But this should be possible.
When someone dies on Nalthis, their Breaths: go away with the soul, or remain in the corpse?
Breaths return to Endowment.
Together with the soul? Or remain in the corpse?
The soul--
Passes away?
Yes, unless it turns into a Cognitive Shadow. Then, the soul goes into the Beyond. And so the actual essence of the soul, the Investiture of it, does return to Endowment.
What power do you think you would get if you were in the Steelheart universe?
...I would hope to be able to fly. That would be my favorite. I don't think I'd get that. I'd get some weird temporal power, probably.
As the two Realms, the Cognitive and the Spiritual, are, well, fictional... Are they all comprised of Investiture, completely?
Yes. No, completely? Well, here's the thing. Investiture, matter, and energy are all the same thing in the cosmere. So, just like energy and matter are the same thing here. So, yes, everything's made of Investiture, in the same way that everything's made of energy in our world. Does that make sense?
So, what about what spren are made of in the Cognitive Realm? Is that just Investiture?
So, yeah, I'll dig more into that. I'm gonna go with Investiture for now, but I could change that as I move along. What I'm kind of debating is, is there a separate Cognitive state, and I don't think so. So I'm gonna go with Investiture for now.
How about Connection?
Connection is, like, the equivalent of a quantum connection in our world, so it's more like a force than something comprised of something. The question is like, "What is gravity comprised of?" And then you start asking weird questions.
What was the thematic decision behind the number 16? Why did you choose that?
I really like how divisible it was. It looked really cool when I was playing with things like an Allomantic table and whatnot. It was mostly an aesthetic choice. Like, it just felt right.
So was it originally the Shards or the metals you decided on?
So, I started with the metals. And then expanded out to that, yeah. So what you've gotta remember is, like, I write Elantris without knowledge of the cosmere. I knew I was gonna do something, but I didn't know what I was gonna do. And then I wrote Dragonsteel, and in Dragonsteel I had all sorts of theories and plans, but I never canonized any of that. And when I sat down to write Mistborn, I said, "All right. We're building the cosmere for real now." And before then I had just kind of been winging it. So when I did Aether of Night, which I put Shards in, I was like "Okay, there'll be some of these things, and what-not." Mistborn was, like, the first real cosmere book, if that makes any sense.
Do kandra count as metalborn?
I would count them, yes.
And would Wax count them as metalborn?
He would not. Probably.
'Cause he calls VenDell metalborn, and I was wondering if he was testing VenDell in some way or not...
Yeah... I'll have to go look at what I wrote on that one, as well.
Can you tell us a little bit about what Hoid was up to in Terris in The Well of Ascension?
He was hunting for the Well of Ascension.
In the new continuity, he already knew where the Well was, because he used it to come back to--
Right, we changed the continuity, didn't we. Yeah. Oh boy. We came up with an explanation of this, because when we wrote the book-- Yeah, why don't you send me an email on that one. Now that I have the conversation with Peter, he brought that one up when I finally got around to Secret History. That was one of our big casualties. What did I come up with? I think he was just really, really-- I will have to-- because I canonzied it to Peter. We're gonna have to go to Peter and say "What's in the wiki now?" Yeah, that was one of the big casualties, and the fact that I couldn't get Kelsier to one of the places where I had left foreshadowing for him to speak in someone's head, and I can't remember what that one was, either.
Oh, that one was Sazed, you said it was his imagination.
Yeah, I had to make that his imagination. Because I just couldn't get people where they needed to go. This is the problem with writing an outline, then writing a book, and then writing another book so many years later. Certain things, we just can't work into the continuity. Write us an email, we'll get you the official continuity for that one. Because Peter did nail me down when we were working on the book.
After Hoid got the bead during the scene in Secret History, he went north to Terris to do research on possibly acquiring Feruchemy. While he’s there, all hell breaks loose, and he ends up embroiled in helping the Terris people.
Advice for worldbuilders that are trying to create a scientific-based fantasy?
Learn to differentiate between the three kinds of what we talk about with science-based magic. One is internal logic. One is logic with the world. And, oh, what is the third one? For instance, "logic with the world" meaning, "This is an explanation of how the magic actually could come to be." And a logic with "This is trying to break one rule, and then keeping the others as consistent with our universe as possible." With the difference being, like, for instance, Investiture keeping the laws of thermodynamics except for the fact that it exists is kind of a reference to the third. We're letting rules affect the laws-- the laws of our universe, we're trying to tie into that. You don't have to do that. Internal logic is the most important. Then the other one would be, kind of, the "How does this magic arise out of the nature of the universe? How could I take a few steps extra? Can I make it realistic?" That's a completely different rule. So look at those three things.
Is that where you fit Investiture in the magic? Matter, energy, Investiture?
Right, that's where I'm trying to do a little bit of all three of those things. But you don't have to. Understand that you can do one of the three.
In Words of Radiance, the ardent Rushu calls Renarin's symmetry improper. Is that just meant to categorize his untrained hand, or is the symmetry different from normal?
No, it's his untrained hand.
What is Scadrial's primary intergalactic export?
Okay so, this is what I got from Brandon.
Prior to Kelsier exploding the Pits, Scadrial's canned goods were one of the main things exported to the intergalactic market from the planet.
NB: This is something that Brandon can change at any time if the story calls for it.
I'm a little late to this, because of travel/booksigning woes, but I did want to jump in and offer a few things here. As Lyn said above, the AMA isn't often going to be able to dig into details about what was in the original draft--that's the sort of thing we like to keep a little closer to the chest. I'm okay with revealing things like that in the abstract, but having a wholesale "let's reveal plot points in early drafts of books without context" reveal seems like it might be dangerous.
So here, off the top of my head, are some of the things that I changed in the book related to Beta Reader comments. These topics are "open" for discussion--meaning you can ask Betas for more specifics on them, if you feel like it. These were all things I changed specifically because of Beta interaction.
Adolin's viewpoints were added to Part One. As was a quick run-down on Renarin's powers, and what he was learning to do with them.
The romantic angle between Shallan/Adolin/Kaladin was tweaked as I more and more referenced the idea that two different personalities of Shallan's were in love with two different people. IE--moving it further away from a love triangle, and instead showing more clearly that that Shallan was splitting further into multiple people, with different life goals.
This wasn't coming across in the early drafts, though I sometimes coulen't quite tell which responses were knee jerk "Twilight ruined love triangles! Don't do them!" comments and which were "I'm not convinced these four people--counting Shallan as two--are actually working in relationships." (I'll note that I, personally, am very pleased with how this part turned out in the books--but the betas certainly helped me get there. I'd guess that this is one of the more contentious matters of fan discussion about the book. The point of bringing it up here isn't to discredit anyone's feelings about the actual arc, just point out how the betas helped me find the balance I wanted.)
I got a LOT of help from people for writing Shallan's getting drunk scenes.
Slightly beefed up Yelig-nar's part in the plot, as what he did wasn't coming into play enough--and originally (I can't remember if this was a beta thing or an alpha thing) he wasn't as involved in the Amaram/Kaladin fight.
I revised part four heavily, moving the scene where Kaladin runs into our "so very beautiful" friend from Elantris (and the subsequent dip into the Spiritual Realm) from happening in the market to happening in the Lighthouse. Originally, the Lighthouse was run by Cryptics. (Which was a lot of fun.) However, I needed stronger establishment of Kaladin's motivations earlier in Part Four, which was going kind of off-the-rails a little.
Lots more conversation between characters who weren't talking enough in Part Four. (Most specifically Azure.)
There are hundreds more, but those are a few that might be of interest--and I need to be up in three hours to get on a train to go do more signings. Jet lag sure is fun!
In the universe that the cosmere takes place in, is Adonalsium god or is he a smaller entity?
That is a matter of some debate and I will not answer yes or no because I would rather not-- I would rather leave it to the characters' debate.
So I've noticed a pattern in the way that the Radiants learn their surges. They seem to learn their anti-clockwise surge before their clockwise surge?
They do.
Excellent, everyone thought I was a crazy person!
They do tend to-- Now, I'm gonna give you some behind the sausage stuff on that. That is partially for writing expediency reasons.
How do you mean?
I designed that partially because I didn't want to overwhelm people with too many magic systems at once so I came up with a little bit of a pattern so that I could have a little bit of an in-world reason why we were slowing that down. It's not a hard fast rule, it's something that I've kept to in order to not overwhelm readers so it's more of form following function than the other way around.
This map,
*Hands Brandon the Part Four Sea of Lost Lights Map*
How much of a hand did you have in this map or did you kind of let Isaac go crazy?
So this one is half and half, I went to Isaac and said put this and this and this and then he added some craziness. One of Isaac's voices in the cosmere is Nazh and almost everything that is written by Nazh is Isaac and he named a bunch of this stuff, he ran it all by me. I actually vetoed a few. He came up with some, I'm like "Ehh" and then I renamed them to things that actually fit.
Okay, why is spren fishing banned here, is that you or Isaac?
That was Isaac...
My friend has a theory: The Lord Ruler is the one that Shattered the Shattered Plains. Is that a possibility?
I won't discount it out of hand. Mostly just so that he can keep arguing with you guys.
Do all the Shards have the same powers just limited by their intents?
No. There are a uniqueness to them, but. There is some uniqueness to each of them. There's a lot of overlap.
I was wondering if you were ever gonna talk about how some of the names are, like, palindromes and what it means?
So, in the Stormlight world, symmetry is holy. And so, palindromic names are how the names of a lot of religious figures, and things are. And even a lot of people, who-- particularly those who are based off of them. It's a religious concept. The keteks, the poems in the back, are symmetrical poems.
Can you write the Fourth Ideal of the Windrunners in that book?
Nope. Because I haven't released it yet... I haven't gotten those yet.
I have a question about the Shin. Are they originally from Roshar? *laughter*
Answers are coming.
Is there significance in the metal thing relating back to... Scadrial?
Yes.
In Words of Radiance, can you give me a worldhopper that you haven't told us about?
Afraid not. The problem, I just get asked that, like, twenty times per signing, and I wouldn't have anything left.... I'm sorry... The one I get asked a lot is, "Can you name a Shard you haven't named before?"
There's, like, three left!
Yeah, I mean... And people already pulled out from me all the worldhoppers that I am comfortable talking about.
Had you planned to write... the whole Cosmere when you initially started?
So, I wrote Elantris, had a bunch of the ideas. I started planning right then, and it has evolved a lot since. A lot of Elantris kind of got retrofitted into the things I came up with over the next four or five years... By the time I did Mistborn, I had most of this in mind, but it changes so much, even while I'm writing it.
So, like, when you had Warbreaker, it was--
Warbreaker, I wrote as a prequel to Stormlight. I had already written Stormlight One by that point, but I didn't like it, so I wrote about Kaladin's swordmaster, who was in the first book in that version.
A sword. Can they, like, feel it when they stab something?
Some of them really don't like it. Watch Wyndle's reaction to this sort of thing.
Is Soulcasting more efficient if the item you're Soulcasting resembles the item you're trying to make?
Good, no one's asked me that yet. RAFO.