Recent entries

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9752 Copy

    Questioner

    I didn't know you listened to metal.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I do, I do listen to metal. I am not as much into it as I should. Like, all the cool little metal bands, I don't know as much as I should. But I've been thinking, one of my books, I am gonna write a metalhead as one of my main characters. So I've actually been hanging out on metalhead forums, and kind of reading about what they are talking about, "that's metal", "this is not metal" and stuff like that. Reading-- submerging myself in that culture. Because I think a metalhead advocate for metal would be a really great character one day.

    Argent

    It has to be in Mistborn!

    Brandon Sanderson

    No, it wouldn't, it would actually be on our planet, because I want to use our metalhead culture as the main character.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9754 Copy

    Argent

    Can somebody travel to the Spiritual Realm, the same as the Cognitive?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes, but it's a very different experience. It is possible… You may have seen people do it...

    Argent

    As in you're not sure, or you're being obnoxiously vague?

    Brandon Sanderson

    No...

    Questioner #1

    As in, you probably have but he's having trouble remembering it.

    Brandon Sanderson

    No no no... For instance, Elend burning atium and duralumin pulled most of him into the Spiritual Realm.

    Argent

    Oh, that's what happens there.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah. He kind of got yanked into- You also have seen people Ascend with the powers and dip into the Spiritual Realm for a little bit.

    Argent

    So, Vin?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah. But they could be on both, or either, or both at the same time. But you have seen Vin stick into the Spiritual Realm. And it happened to Sazed/Harmony...

    Questioner #2

    Oh! So is that where the gods live? Kinda?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Most of the bulk of the Shard's energy of being is contained in the Spiritual Realm, yes. Except for one notable exception!

    Questioner #2

    The <mists? mistwraith?>?

    Brandon Sanderson

    No.

    Footnote: We now know that the "one notable exception" Brandon refers to at the end is the Dor, which is mostly contained in the Cognitive Realm.
    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9755 Copy

    Argent

    The Hemalurgic constructs Bleeder uses. Do you have a name for them?

    Brandon Sanderson

    I have not named them yet. Should I? Is it important for fandom?

    Argent

    We don't know what to call them.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I have in my head that they're kind of Hemalurgic chimaeras.

    Argent

    Okay. We'll go with that.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9759 Copy

    Argent

    Can you confirm: When Bleeder died, she only had one spike made of that new metal in her?

    Brandon Sanderson

    What does the book say?

    Argent

    It could go either way. Because it could be either one spike of the unknown metal and one regular, or just one of the unknown metal. And we're divided right now.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I have heard this. I didn't intend you to get divided, but I've heard that you are, and part of me doesn't want the… One week later... I want more time for the theories to come out!

    Argent

    There are theories.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I know. Let's give the theories a little more time and then I'll canonize it for you in a little bit. I didn't intend for there to be a division here, but obviously there is, and so I'm going to wait until I'm done with tour. Then you can write to us and we'll tell you exactly what's going on there.

    Footnote: Peter Ahlstrom confirmed on Twitter that Bleeder died with only one spike in her, and it was the "trellium" spike.
    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9760 Copy

    Kendra

    You have to congratulate whoever did the Soonie pup ad. Effective advertising: I want one!

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes, lots of people have said this. It was not something we were intending to do. It would have to be more than just a little puppy, though. You'd have to be able to rip out its spikes and transform it or something. You can go get a stuffed puppy anywhere.

    Kendra

    But it's a stuffed TenSoon, so it's a stuffed Irish wolfhound. And you can find those in adult. You cannot find those in puppy.

    Brandon Sanderson

    That's true. I'll think about it.

    Kendra

    You don't have to do the spikes.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I know, but people will want the spikes. They are gonna be like "If you're gonna provide me with a Soonie pup"-- You'd have to be able to take out the spikes and turn it into a blob, so it's a mistwraith on the inside and a Soonie pup on the outside.

    Kendra

    It'd have to be something like a backpack dog. Maybe the spikes are clasps on the outside or something.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9761 Copy

    Questioner

    Would [cadmium] function if it were affixed to a body smaller than a planet with its own source of gravity?

    Brandon Sanderson

    What do you mean by work [function]?

    Questioner

    Like a spacecraft. My thinking is that it could be used on long space voyages, because you’ve said that you're going to eventually progress into the space age...

    Brandon Sanderson

    So are you asking if we can use that as cryogenics?

    Questioner

    Yes.

    Brandon Sanderson

    I actually give you some tools for figuring these sorts of things out in The Bands of Mourning, so I'll refer you to that, because I'm dolling the physics of these things out, and since I know it's coming in January, just read that one. You'll get some more actual concrete laws and rules so you can start extrapolating.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9766 Copy

    Questioner

    Can you write the Fourth Ideal of the Windrunners?

    Brandon Sanderson

    No. No no no no no no. [...] The Fourth Ideal is guessable, I feel. Much more so than... Well, you probably could have guessed the Second-- Third Ideal as the book progressed. I think you could guess the fourth one right now, but it's going to be hard. It's not obvious, but it's there.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9771 Copy

    Questioner

    What happens if you put Shardplate in a highstorm? If you are in Shardplate and you go out into a highstorm...

    Brandon Sanderson

    You're pretty well protected, but a boulder flying through the air can still do some major damage to a person in Shardplate.

    Questioner

    What will happen to the gems in the Shardplate?

    Brandon Sanderson

    They will be recharged.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9775 Copy

    Questioner

    So, can we talk about your science fiction stuff, like Defending Elysium? Do you have any intention to go further with that?

    Brandon Sanderson

    I have no current intentions. I kind of have ideas for where I would go, but I just have so many projects that right now I'm letting that one lay as is.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9776 Copy

    Questioner

    So far all the spren that have bonded to humans appear to be emotion-based as opposed to nature-based. Is that true for all the Knights Radiant?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Well it depends. For instance: how would you define Wyndle?

    Questioner

    I struggled with that one.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Uh hm. So I would say that you are on the right track, that there is a definite inclination that direction.

    Questioner

    Towards Honor?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes. There is.

    Questioner

    Is there other surges then, that are more Cultivation-exclusive or other Knights Radiant that are...?

    Brandon Sanderson

    We'll RAFO that, but the original Knights Radiant are more focused on Honor and his spren.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9781 Copy

    Dragon13

    Any chance we'll be seeing further correspondence between the writers of the letters? In further books, perhaps?

    Brandon Sanderson

    You will see more letters.

    Footnote: The question refers to the epigraphs of The Way of Kings (Part II) and Words of Radiance (Part IV), which form a letter (from Hoid to Frost) and a response (from Frost to Hoid).
    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9782 Copy

    Dragon13

    Syl identifies herself as an honorspren.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yes.

    Dragon13

    Would Wyndle identify himself as a cultivation spren?

    Brandon Sanderson

    He would definitely... Yes. I think you could say that he would.

    Dragon13

    By the same logic, would a voidspren follow the same naming convention, so to speak?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Here's the thing. Certain spren have decided that they are the most pure forms of Honor, or that they are the most pure form of whatever, where all of them are kind of... Syl's got a good argument for what she is. But there are other spren that would be like "well, I'm an honorspren too, I'm just this variety of honorspren." Does that make sense? Syl's like "I'm an American!" and I'm like "I'm an Nebraskan!" Yes, you're an American. I'm an American too. It's kind of similar to that. But she would be the most pure... many would view her as the purest form. Wyndle would view himself as the purest form of a Cultivationspren.

    Shadows of Self Chicago signing ()
    #9783 Copy

    Dan

    The 16 Shards, are they finalized?

    Brandon Sanderson

    I have finalized them with the reservation that I can change them when I do their adaptation if something works better. So while I have them all written out, I don't canonize. So I guess "is it canonized?", the answer is no. But they are written down, and I could tweak them. Once I put them in a book, they're canonized. I like to give myself a little bit of flexibility before I put them in a book.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9787 Copy

    Questioner

    I know Hoid jumps around and meets various people that are very influential in the various books. I'm curious as to how he knows who he needs to meet, how's he lead to them.

    Brandon Sanderson

    This is a RAFO, but it is a question you're supposed to be asking-- You know what a RAFO is?

    Questioner

    No.

    Brandon Sanderson

    It means Read and Find Out. If you watch at the end of this book he's not always certain why he needs to be where he needs to be. So there is some measure-- something is going on here but it is not made clear yet and I don't want to clear it up with you quite yet.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9790 Copy

    Questioner

    I wonder if you knew what color the stone was inside of Horneater peaks and the mountains around the Shattered Plains?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Depends if-- most of it's going to be cremstone. So it's going to be various shades of tanish brown. Very generic stuff, particularly around here.

    Horneater peaks, you-- *pauses thoughtfully* Horneater peaks you're probably going to get into some more slate, some more dark grays and things like this, weathered stone that doesn't have the crem buildup because the peaks are gonna pop up above where the crem is building up, so.

    So that's where you're going to get some real, untainted rock which otherwise on Roshar you've got to burrow to get.

    Questioner

    So the gray one is the untainted one?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9791 Copy

    Arbron

    So how long has "Zahel the swordmaster" been slumming it on Roshar? I mean I don't know who that is obviously.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Zahel the swordmaster has been on Roshar for a long while at this point. There's something on Roshar that's very easy for him to get that's very hard in other places. And so, yeah.

    Arbron

    So he retains his previous abilities?

    Brandon Sanderson

    He was actually in the first draft in 2002. But yes there's something in Roshar that makes it better for him to be there.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9792 Copy

    Questioner

    So Nightblood. Is it going to go into maybe in the next book how Vasher loses him, because I'm assuming that's what [Szeth] gets at the end of the book?

    Brandon Sanderson

    *Coyly*

    Oh you assume that this is uh yeah...

    Questioner

    So far as we know that's the only sentient sword...

    Brandon Sanderson

    You will find answers to these questions eventually.

    Shadows of Self release party ()
    #9797 Copy

    Chaos

    I'm sorry Brandon, you might RAFO me.

    *written* For the metal in Bleeder, is it from a Shard we know?

    Brandon Sanderson

    Oh no… You drove all this way, that's what makes me. Eric comes and he's like--

    Chaos

    You RAFO'd me at Words of Radiance--

    Brandon Sanderson

    I know.

    Chaos

    --I asked you a question that was too much.

    Brandon Sanderson

    …you push, yeah… There you are you got your answer. You got me.

    *writes* Yes.

    Footnote: at that time we knew 9 Shards: Devotion, Dominion, Preservation, Ruin, Odium, Honor, Cultivation, Endowment, and Autonomy
    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9798 Copy

    Questioner

    So you mentioned that Kaladin gets sad during the Weeping. Is that due to lack of stormlight or maybe seasonal affective disorder?

    Brandon Sanderson

    It is mostly due to seasonal affective disorder. Now, you know, there are other things going on and whatnot, but yes he has strong seasonal affective disorder.

    Words of Radiance Seattle signing ()
    #9799 Copy

    Questioner

    See *inaudible* and other signings that Hoid had both long life and lived through time when we was worldhopping, how about other members-- or not "other," just members of the Seventeenth Shard? Like are they time travelling or they have long life--

    Brandon Sanderson

    It is a mixture of both. Either, or, and.

    Questioner

    And the RAFO question: where did they get it from?

    Brandon Sanderson

    RAFO! There are many methods and there is no one method, and you know some of them already.

    Shadows of Self release party ()
    #9800 Copy

    Brandon Sanderson

    You're going to make me. They're trying to get me to canonize Endowment's gender. *crowd goes oh* ...Yes I have... I'm going to look at the thing that you guys would just love to see--

    Kendra Wilson

    So now's not the time to snatch that?

    Isaac Stewart

    It's encrypted, we've been developing a language that only we can read. *laughter* It's all in glyphs.

    Zach Stay

    Is it in the women's script? 

    Eric Lake

    Should we get Mi'chelle over here?

    Isaac Stewart

    It’s in a language that will never be decrypted...

    Brandon Sanderson

    I can't find-- Karen must have moved this. I have the name in here. I haven't canonized the name either have I?

    Kendra Wilson

    We don’t know. You can put that information on there too.

    Brandon Sanderson

    Yeah but Karen moved it.

    Zach Stay

    People have guessed that it's Edgli but..

    FeatherWriter

    I think it’s gotten RAFO'd before...

    Brandon Sanderson

    *writes* Endowment is female.

    There you go. You guys got two big ones out of me.