Recent entries

Questioner

What's the Dark One right now... like the film?

Brandon Sanderson

Oh yeah Dark One is looking great. So we have the television show that they announced so I can talk about it. I didn't leak this--with Joe Michael Straczynski, right. Yeah, they already leaked that. And Joe will write the pilot of that some time this fall or this winter. But we have the graphic novel, it's going full steam ahead and then we'll be doing some audiobook versions so they'll be like the graphic novel or an audiobook and you can just kind of choose. There won't be like a traditional novel for it probably, it will be audio or.

Questioner

Will the story be the same?

Brandon Sanderson

It will be from the same outline but there might be small deviations based on how the graphic novel but we're trying to keep it close together. The television show? No idea. Alright, because we have a really great show runner involved and they know television, they might do. But the audiobook and the graphic novel, the audiobook should be prose narrative so not just the quotes, so... and this should be graphic novel, both from the same outline we'll see how it goes.

Oversleep

Does Nazh want his knife back, the one he gave to Kelsier?

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, he would want it back but it's not like the flute. It's not something that was super super important to the person who gave it away. So he would like his knife back eventually,  but you know, nothing important.

Questioner (paraphrased)

Before the Shattering, was Worldhopping from Yolen possible to other worlds like Roshar, etc.?

Brandon Sanderson (paraphrased)

I'm gonna say yes, it was possible--but it was a lot more difficult to pull off. Not nearly as frequently as now.

Isaac Stewart

And I've got, we'll do two more of the fashion pieces.

Brandon Sanderson

Yep, we got two fashion plates in the work also. Cause I love how those looks.

Paleo

The Thaylen one with *inaudible* is good.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, the Thaylen one looks great.

Isaac Stewart

We're still deciding on what we're doing.

Brandon Sanderson

Yep.

Brandon Sanderson

The next were going to have all the Spren from Shadesmar like-

Paleo

All the Radiant spren.

Brandon Sanderson

All the Radiant spren, you know well nine of the Orders we're going to get all nine in. 

Isaac Stewart

We're going to do yeah, we talked about the tenth. 

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, we're probably not going to do the tenth.

Isaac Stewart

We're going to have to wait until after the book is done to decide.

Brandon Sanderson

But they'll be nine of them at least. They're looking very cool, I'm very pleased with how those are. They're very like these natural history illustrations and so.

Isaac Stewart

They do look nice.

Questioner

The second one is Starsight and the third one will be?

Brandon Sanderson

Probably Nowhere is what it's called. My US publisher doesn't like that title but I do because they go to Nowhere so we'll see if they persuade me not to use the title. That's the working title right now.

Questioner

When will it be in the English?

Brandon Sanderson

Published? It's probably not for a little while because next year is Stormlight 4 and everything I have is dedicated to writing that and so I won't start Skyward 3 until January at the earliest and probably turn it in. So I would guess two years from now would be when we would see Skyward 3. It depends on whether I write that or the last Wax and Wayne book next.

Paleo

The Dark One graphic novel is coming out I think next year sometime? Did you also... Were you also involved there or was it more...

Isaac Stewart

So, Dark One, we are less involved with the actual...

Brandon Sanderson

We're giving them a lot more freedom because it's not Cosmere which means that their interpretation of Dark One we can let a lot more things slide because there's not a continuity happening to get in that way.

Isaac Stewart

So... Dark One is looking fantastic. They are so far doing a really amazing job. I think people are really going to like it.

Paleo

Yeah, the cover already looks fantastic.

Brandon Sanderson

What we're trying to do is to do a graphic novel where we give people a little more freedom and so my outline is pretty solid but for art direction things go with more what you feel. They send us their impressions and we give them responses but were not being nearly as, with the Cosmere we have to try do the detailing.

Isaac Stewart

And if they were to send us something we didn't like we would let them know but so far they just, the art is, I love the art in it.

Paleo

And like I said the cover already looks pretty amazing.

Brandon Sanderson

The art is amazing. The interior art like, and it's really fun because I can see exactly how my outline is turning into their scenes and things in a really fun way. I'm really hopeful. I don't know whats going to happen with the television show. That's honestly more up to Joe [Joseph Michael Straczynski] then it is to me. I mean I should be there for the writing room meetings and things like that but really we're letting Joe go and...

Paleo

How far has it progressed since it was announced that Joe would run the show?

Brandon Sanderson

How's the progress? He's finishing up a pilot for something else and then he's working on this. I don't know how far... if he's gotten to our pilot yet or not. I haven't received it yet so it's not done. Yeah, that's what I heard back in September he was finishing up another pilot so sometime soon he should be working on a pilot for this.

Isaac Stewart

We're going through and trying to fix all of those things for a later version that Dynamite will put out, just small inconsistencies. We will get rid of the boombox, we will get rid of the second IV because we got it in the first one. I don't how we missed it in the closeups. For all I know we told them to erase it, and that one they just didn't get to, so that's funny.

Brandon Sanderson

I do not know if they have IV technology, on Dayside in particular. You could maybe, probably not, but you could maybe argue it on Darkside.

Paleo

In Allomancy, bad alloys can be detrimental to you, can make you sick and stuff like that. Does it also apply in Feruchemy or generally impurities, do they apply?

Brandon Sanderson

Not as strongly.

Paleo

How would they apply? Is it more like a smaller charge or?

Brandon Sanderson

It would just take less of a charge. It wouldn't make you sick.

Paleo

When we have an unkeyed metalmind and then we also store a keyed charge in it, which one would get tapped first?

Brandon Sanderson

I'll RAFO that.

Paleo

When you store multiple memories in a coppermind is it still technically one large coppermind or could you say it's more like a ton of "virtual" metalminds, because you're technically tapping individual ones?

Brandon Sanderson

More like the second. I would say that's accurate. I mean I'm not sure that really aligns one to one but it is another good model, though.

Paleo

Somebody also theorized along the lines that a nicrosilmind is a lot like an Honorblade in that you just have, or they said, do you only have to touch it in order for it to work, or do you actually have to tap it?

Brandon Sanderson

Oh... I'll RAFO that.

Paleo

Then we also talked about, theorized about unkeyed metalminds - that is Identity-less ones that anybody can that has the power can tap.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah.

Paleo

We also were wondering is it like, we compared it to cryptography and encryption, stuff like that. Is it just that like, your Identity is sort of this unique encryption key.

Brandon Sanderson

And you need a key to you getting it. That's a valid line of theorizing. It is not exactly but it's close enough to be a good model.

Paleo

And would an unkeyed metalmind theoretically be capable of storing a little more than a keyed one.

Brandon Sanderson

Oh, because of yeah.

Paleo

Because it has to... Is it inherent to the Investiture or is it like an extra bit?

Brandon Sanderson

I'll RAFO that, mostly because I haven't considered that yet.

Paleo

All right, regarding the 'Wisdom Shard' again. We have one quote where Hoid... I'll just cite it: "Some men, as they age, grow wiser. I am not one of those, for wisdom and I have always been at cross-purposes." Is he referring to that Shard there... or the Vessel?

Brandon Sanderson

*thumbs up, grins* ... Yes.

Paleo

We tried to develop a theory of what a metalmind actually is, and we know that splitting a metalmind can halve the charge effectively or divide the charge.

Brandon Sanderson

It can divide the charge although it makes it much harder to, yeah.

Paleo

But is it actually physical... is the charge concentrated physically at one point or is it more like a gas so it diffuses?

Brandon Sanderson

It diffuses.

Paleo

Do you actually store something related to...do you store the actual attribute or do you only store like an Investiture representation of an amount...

Brandon Sanderson

You store the Investiture representation.

Paleo

So the metal is just the focus that says this will turn into this.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah.

Paleo

Then I was wondering about the Dysian Aimians or the Sleepless. Do they reproduce at all, and if so how does it work? Like is it that one... is it asexual if they do?

Brandon Sanderson

So they reproduce, yes. But reproduction for them has a variety of terms. They can breed specific cremlings for specific purposes over time if they want to. They can also exchange cremlings if they need to, in order to improve their genetic diversity. Creating a new one is a different experience but yes. In fact, they... I've written sections, not for the books yet but where I talk about them developing and over evolving one of their cremlings to do something new.

Paleo

Okay. If they do reproduce does it require two of them or is it more like they breed enough and then they split one off.

Brandon Sanderson

That's a RAFO for now, but the individual's consciousness is an interesting thing for them.

Paleo

Does aluminum actually store Identity or is it more like a sink so you just dump it in and it poofs away.

Brandon Sanderson

I'll RAFO that for now. Sorry, I want to get into that eventually.

Paleo

You also said... somebody asked whether there are points in Shadesmar where you could instantly travel across diametrically opposed points on a planet.

Brandon Sanderson

Right, there has to be.

Paleo

Of course, I heard topology last year in university and it's all about mappings and stuff like that and so I was wondering just how continuous - if you know math term - the mapping from like the Physical Realm to the Cognitive Realm is.

Brandon Sanderson

It's not very. You'll notice already elevation is not mapped, you can find points in the books already where someone appears closer to the sea level and things so it's not very... there's a lot of bending going on and it gets worse or more obvious the further the series goes. Not a one to one correlation, not even close.

Paleo

So it's not just that it's very compressed it actually doesn't match some things.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, no. Imagine that things in the Physical Realm are mapping to places in the Cognitive Realm but not, they're not alternate dimensions of one another that are overlapping one to one.

Paleo

On the Discord also they tried to... because the moon is always like on the horizon and they did the math and technically it's possible but it would have to change its inclination I think through one hundred degrees every turn. Is it natural or is it also maintained by...

Brandon Sanderson

It is also maintained by the system. We ran the math on that one too. It, like, the Rosharans also are not in a stable orbit but this one's even less in a stable orbit, let's just say that.

Paleo

Somebody did like the universe simulator thing and somebody ran it to Roshar and they said it crashed into each other.

Brandon Sanderson

I mean they would, we find we got like ten, no like a hundred thousand years before it happens but yeah, the moons are very not stable on Roshar, let's just say that. I'm not convinced that the continent is stable either. On geological terms I don't think... if Roshar were as old as Earth is, you would not have a continent, is what I think. Even with the crem and stuff.

Paleo

The crem isn't enough... you said before that it shifts east?

Brandon Sanderson

That's what I think, I haven't done the math but that's what my instinct says that it wouldn't be enough. But we'll leave that for people who actually run the math until they... because I do not have time to get a degree in ecological science.

Paleo

We also know that Taldain is not natural, the placement, tidally locked. It can happen naturally but it is not natural for it. You also said it was done by somebody, was it Autonomy or was it Adonalsium?

Brandon Sanderson

RAFO.

Paleo

In May, in Germany, you told me that... or I asked whether Wisdom was a Shard, and you said it was or something like it, and that wisdom was close to an intent of a Shard, and you also told me that it has realized that survival isn't necessarily the most important thing for it. I wanted to ask whether it has realized that over time or was it from the get go?

Brandon Sanderson

Over time.

Paleo

Okay, so then naturally, my next question: Is it the survival Shard?

Brandon Sanderson

RAFO.

Paleo

And then somebody actually came up with another good probable name. Is Prudence close?

Brandon Sanderson

Prudence sounds an awful lot like a Shard name. That's some excellent theorizing there.

Paleo

So we know that aluminum resists Investiture or blocks Investiture in some cases. Does it act like radiation protection like lead or something that actually gets deteriorated while it's resisting something or is it like, does it just interfere?

Brandon Sanderson

RAFO, good question.

Questioner

I read Mistborn: Secret History and you put some stuff from Elantris and I love it. In second Elantris will we see some?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, we will.

Questioner

Do you need to love writing to be a writer?

Brandon Sanderson

I think a lot of writers hate writing so I don't think it's required. I know a lot of writers who hate writing but love to have written if that makes sense. A lot of writers do love writing but a lot of writers love to have written.

Questioner

Do you think, at the end of Calamity, did Nighthawk ever get his wife back?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, he did. There's just a little bit more to that story than that answer, though.

Questioner

Is trellium, the metal that Paalm uses, an alloy of atium or any other god metal.

Brandon Sanderson

Is the metal that is being used a god metal? It is at least a god metal hybrid. There is a god metal component to it.

Questioner

Can any Allomancer burn atium?

Brandon Sanderson

Can any Allomancer burn atium? Atium, no. Asterisk but no. There is a reason why. But no, they cannot.

Questioner

Are you planning some more books along the lines of the Legion.

Brandon Sanderson

Of what?

Questioner

The Legion books.

Brandon Sanderson

Oh Legion books. I'm not planning any more Legion books right now but it's not impossible.

Questioner

Is Hoid real, or is he just a fantasy form.

Brandon Sanderson

Is Hoid real? Hoid is real in the books.

Questioner

In the books, yes. So the characters are not hallucinating him.

Brandon Sanderson

They're not hallucinating him. We're not pulling a Fight Club or anything on you.

Questioner

I was interested if, the Wax character, if he was inspired a little by Sams Vimes by Terry Pratchett.

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, absolutely. Vimes had a deep effect on me as a writer so any time I'm writing a copper you'll end up with some Vimes but I'd say Wax has a little extra Vimes, so does Dalinar, Dalinar's got a bit of Vimes in him to.

Oversleep

Why do Fused accelerate slower than the Surgebinders?

Brandon Sanderson

Fused accelerate [slower than] Surgebinder's because they're expending less energy.

Oversleep

It doesn't have to do with the Braize gravity?

Brandon Sanderson

No, it does not have to do with Braize's gravity, that's a good question. That's actually a really clever way to ask.

Oversleep

Yeah, cause I thought the planet was smaller so.

Brandon Sanderson

Clever, very clever but no, it is not to do with that. You'll find other explanations but they can expend less energy, they can afford to spend less energy. They can only afford to expend a little bit of energy so that's the way to say it.

Oversleep

Okay now I have one about Shard avatars, like Autonomy's. Is it possible for one to form without the Shard's Vessel directly making it, so independent...

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, it is. They would be aware of it, however. They couldn't not be aware of it, but it could arise without their direct and conscious decision to do so.

Oversleep

And the one on First of the Sun, is it by Autonomy's direct...

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, that is directly created.

Questioner

Before the Shattering, were people already able to worldhop from Yolen to the other planets like Roshar, and so on?

Brandon Sanderson

It was possible, it did not happen nearly on the extent that it happens now. It's possible. I would say that, I don't know if there, yeah very very very few instances.

Questioner

Lightweaving on Roshar, is it more of a Physical thing or Cognitive Realm thing?

Brandon Sanderson

Lightweaving? I would say it's a hybrid between the two.

Questioner

So there's a Physical effect, but also a Cognitive component to that?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, and then even a little bit of a Spiritual component. Lightweaving tends to involve, I'd say it's mostly Physical. Mostly you're not changing what someone's mind is, but you're actually changing light. Mostly Physical, but Lightweaving in particular has a lot like- you'll see weird things happening with Lightweaving on occasion, that are kind of a little bit of Cognitive and Spiritual influence that's happening. So keep your eyes on that. Yeah, I would say, if you're asking is light actually being changed yes, it is.

Questioner

Are the Shards ever going to be bonded like the spren?

Brandon Sanderson

RAFO, here's your RAFO card.

Questioner

So after Nightblood was used pretty obviously in Thaylen City does Zahel [or Vasher] know?

Brandon Sanderson

Where Nightblood is? Zahel is pretty sure where Nightblood is; Vivenna does not know. She's on the look out let's say.

Questioner

I guess it's hard to get back from Shadesmar.

Brandon Sanderson

It is. She had some plans and that didn't work out.

Questioner

I have a question for the world of Steelheart. How do the electric sockets work if everything is steel?

Brandon Sanderson

How do the electric sockets work? They needed to be rebuilt for the electric sockets to work, but you can also get down far enough where the builders, the machines, have rebuilt everything and so that wouldn't all have been turned to steel. Some of that has been dug out and reworked and rebuilt. There are some pretty crazy things that happened. 

Questioner

Another friend, she wanted to know about if you ever heard about Warhammer-esque game based on your books, like the Shadow Titan for example at Quality Games?

Brandon Sanderson

I have indeed. I have considered and thought about it. Whether it will happen or not we're not sure, but I think that a Shattered Plains war game is likely at some point.

Questioner

So I wanted to know if the asteroid belts around some planets are because of Splintering of a Shard there?

Brandon Sanderson

Okay, one more time. If the what?

Questioner

Asteroids belts around some planets.

Brandon Sanderson

Are caused by the Splintering of Shards? So the Splintering of Shards has had cosmological effects; you should not assume that most asteroid belts are caused by the Splintering of a Shard.

Questioner

Yeah, you know most of the planets, I think all of the planets where the Shards were Splintered have asteroid belts. So is it like the physical manifestation of the Splintering?

Brandon Sanderson

You should not assume that all planets that have that are the result of a Splintering of a Shard but the Splintering of a Shard can have such an effect.

Questioner

So, the establishing of the Knights Radiant followed up the Surgebinders. So I had a question about Renarin - Is he closer to the modern day Radiants power-wise, or the pre-Knights Radiant Surgebinders?

Brandon Sanderson

Renarin?

Questioner

Because he's weird right?

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, he is weird. Is he closer to pre-Knights Radiant Surgebinders or to modern Knights Radiant? I'd say closer to modern Knights Radiant, is what I would say... but it's a tough call.

Questioner

How behind on word goal are you right now?

Brandon Sanderson

I have like 28 working days left before the end of the year and I would have to write 5,000 words a day of each of those so I'm somewhat behind. I'm about right now somewhere around 15,000 words behind. When I get back from this tour I'll be somewhere around 35,000 words behind so I'll have to try to catch that up. We'll see, we'll see if I do it.

Questioner

*translated* In Feruchemy, if someone's existence is being in--stored in it, is it as a whole?

Brandon Sanderson

It is little pieces of Investiture filtered through their mind and their soul. *waiting for translator* You could say it's a little piece of them, but it's not the whole them.

Brandon Sanderson

I don't think there are any worldhoppers that people have missed. I think they know all of them that there are hints about. So I can just write that most people missed Felt, but that's not going to make you very happy.

Snoxcatko

Roshar--it's obviously, it is or it seems to be in the Southern Hemisphere. Is there something else in the world?

Brandon Sanderson

There are no other continents. It's not completely--it is Southern Hemisphere--but I think we inch up above the equator, don't we?

Isaac Stewart

Just a bit, just the islands. They kinda curve over the equator.

Brandon Sanderson

There are no other continents but there might be other smaller landmasses.

Snoxcatko

At the end of Words of Radiance, when Hoid met Jasnah, he said he wasn't scared of the Shardblade at all. Is that just because he has enough Investiture to heal himself or is there something else going on?

Brandon Sanderson

There's multiple reasons but you're theorizing along the right terms.

Snoxcatko

Why is Lift different in the way she processes Investiture?

Brandon Sanderson

She was created that way specifically, by ac- an "Act of Cultivation".

Snoxcatko

Okay, so she went to see Nightwatcher?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

Snoxcatko

Can people from another world like Scadrial or Sel become a Knight Radiant.

Brandon Sanderson

Yes.

Snoxcatko

Is there some like special conditions in world?

Brandon Sanderson

Nope. You just have to be chosen by the spren. So because the spren are involved then the requirements are a little different for Roshar. But to became an Awakener, you just need to get the Breath so you could pick it up on Nalthis also pretty easily.

Snoxcatko

Who's telling "Unite Them" to Dalinar because it's obviously not Stormfather nor Honor because he's hearing it even outside of the visions, right?

Brandon Sanderson

He is hearing that, that is a RAFO. You can have a RAFO card.