1stBondsmith Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 A Hypothetical: In a moment of splendid brilliance (based on years of reading, Sharding, and pondering on the WOBs) you are able to see into the future of the Cosmere, and consequently can predict two unnamed Shards' Intents, severe plot twists, and undoubtedly anticipated surprises from our favorite author. These are all tied to one bright idea. In a flash you see the breadcrumbs left for us throughout all the books, and can support it with such evidence that it is overwhelming to your internal skepticism, and you know it is true. To check this, you offer the theory and evidence to a spouse who has read all the writings of the Cosmere as well. She is usually a strong skeptic of theories (because you have had many of them, and many are/must be wrong), but she also readily sees the body evidence as overwhelming. Because your age, upbringing, location, travels and reading selections are similar to Sanderson's, you are now feeling you are on solid ground with the prediction. Enough, say, to bet a years' income on it if you were the betting type. The Dilemma: ...and now, what? In the past, sharing theories with like-minded fans and scholars was very enjoyable, and mentally stimulating, because a test of theory produces all kinds of friendly interactions, mental gymnastics, and pleasant distraction. However, if you share this one, there will be undesirable consequences. Terrible spoilers will occur. Individuals will dislike you for ruining the "Awesomeness" of the reveal. Ahlstrom or Sanderson might find the predictions made public, as the body of evidence is discussed and commented on. This could change the plot to preserve a strong reveal, or could cause them to hunker down and interact less with the Shard in an effort NOT to let it change them. Any way you see it, the external consequences seem negative. Personally, the positives include: the "I knew it!" moment when you read it in the future- which remains whether you share it or not, increased reputation among other fans (like an aluminum-chest-of-Koloss-spikes-worth of reputation points), great discussions to enjoy in the meantime, credibility in discussions, but mostly feeding your pride because the brilliance of the leap you made would be obvious to others. Deep down, revealing the theory, when you believe it to be true, feels like it would only be selfish. The Counter Argument: You could be wrong. You have no inside information, just what was published as hints. It is out there for people to read and speculate on. Any author that takes 30 years to publish a story must expect spoilers to be ruined as fans guess in this communication-rich time. It is really fun. You have guessed about things before and been both right and wrong. Though this is a big plot reveal, it could be spread out with many more books of hints till everyone can guess it, so you are not doing much harm. Etc. The Decision: So would you share a BIG plot prediction that would be a huge spoiler if you really believed you were right? Please share why. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiver Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 12 minutes ago, 1stBondsmith said: So would you share a BIG plot prediction that would be a huge spoiler if you really believed you were right? Please share why. I feel like this is the distinguishing point. A theory is what you suppose will happen. It might be overwhelmingly supported by the evidence; I say plenty of people predictating certain revelations from Words of Radiance months before the books release. In fact, a good theory, twist or revelation should all be supported by the text. A spoiler would be a case of knowing something that was going to happen, either because you got an early copy of the book, or you managed to get Brandon or Peter to tell you Dalinar betrays the Knights Radiant, Szeth becomes the champion of Honor and Kaladin ends up with Shallan. A theory is what you think might happen; you could still be wrong. A spoiler is what you know will happen, short of you posting and derailing carefully laid plans. I wouldn't feel bad posting a theory (tagged with appropriate spoiler possibilities, of course); I would feel bad if I posted a spoiler. One is me exercising my wit and ingenuity; the other invovles me making public information I shouldn't otherwise have had access to. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pagerunner Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 Just spit it out already! Oh, right... this is a purely hypothetical situation. I'd tell this hypothetical person to 'just spit it out already.' You can't spoil future events with a theory. By definition. Brandon is intentional about laying clues, and if you've picked up on all those clues, then more power to you, and I'd love to hear your interpretation. But don't give your (hypothetical) self too much credit - it's not like, if you posted an accurate prediction, everyone would come on board 'cause there would be no reasonable alternative, and it would fundamentally change the community. I was just reading Brandon's comments about Taimandred, a Wheel of Time theory where a controversial view is that Robert Jordan started writing a character (Mazrim Taim) as secretly being a bad guy (Demandred) in disguise, but switched it after the fans figured out all the clues. The official story, anything actually said by RJ and Team Jordan, is that Taim was never meant to be Demandred. But similar questions to yours have been raised (as conspiracy theories, true), about what to do if people figure out the foreshadowing too soon. Brandon said that changing plans could be more damaging than proceeding with something someone has figured out, because it's undermining the foreshadowing in the book at the expense of a particular facet of the fan community. Being able to correctly guess the twists 10 years or more in advance isn't a flaw, it's a feature. Brandon's foreshadowing is intentional. If you think you've got it figured out, good for you. But there is a lot, A LOT, of potential ways to take this foreshadowing, and I guarantee you posting an overarching theory like this hypothetical one would not stifle discussion, but would expand it. (Some pretty accurately predicted how harmonium would function in the mechanical Metallic Arts well before BoM came out... I think it was @Kurkistan. I can't even say with certainty who it was, because regardless of the truth of the matter, nobody believed it!) 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kurkistan Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 7 minutes ago, Pagerunner said: ... (Some pretty accurately predicted how harmonium would function in the mechanical Metallic Arts well before BoM came out... I think it was @Kurkistan. I can't even say with certainty who it was, because regardless of the truth of the matter, nobody believed it!) Not me, I don't believe. I tended to shy away form speculation about mechallomancy because it was such an unknown. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yezrien Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 (edited) If I had such powerful knowledge, I'd make every effort to get in touch with Team Sanderson. Let Brandon decide what's to be done. We may enjoy theorizing and discussing, but Brandon's the one who built this thing. Built a career around it. A reputation. This affects him more profoundly than any of us. Edited January 31, 2017 by Belzedar 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landis963 Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 I would use that knowledge to make a few theories and formulate a few questions meant to corroborate its veracity. And once those questions are answered in a way that convinces me of the motherload's truth, I'd have a decision to make. (That decision will not be to ruin it all for everyone else) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jedal Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 4 hours ago, Landis963 said: I would use that knowledge to make a few theories and formulate a few questions meant to corroborate its veracity. And once those questions are answered in a way that convinces me of the motherload's truth, I'd have a decision to make. (That decision will not be to ruin it all for everyone else) This and this. 4 hours ago, Belzedar said: If I had such powerful knowledge, I'd make every effort to get in touch with Team Sanderson. Let Brandon decide what's to be done. We may enjoy theorizing and discussing, but Brandon's the one who built this thing. Built a career around it. A reputation. This affects him more profoundly than any of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeTess Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 If I was in that hypothetical situation, I'd follow Landis and Belzedars advice. Then I'd write the whole damnation thing down. Encode the text in such a way that an NSA code-breaker team would take at least an hour to decode it and post it here with a quick explanation what it is about and the promise that a decoding key will be provided once the predicted events have come to pass. Why would I do that? Because if I had had such a stroke of genius, I'd want to be able to prove it once events have proven me right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tsidqiyah Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 I am on @Quiver and @Pagerunner 's side as long as there is NO inside information it cannot be a spoiler. Therefore put it here for discussion because I can guarantee someone will disagree and will have just as strong evidence that there is a flaw in the thoughts. As for contacting Sanderson every time I have been able to talk to him at signings (No I am not personal friends with the man. Though that would be my number 1 wish.) I get the impression he hopes we will find the crumbs and follow them. He just doesn't want to confirm too much for those not following the crumbs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiver Posted January 31, 2017 Report Share Posted January 31, 2017 9 minutes ago, Tsidqiyah said: I am on @Quiver and @Pagerunner 's side as long as there is NO inside information it cannot be a spoiler. Therefore put it here for discussion because I can guarantee someone will disagree and will have just as strong evidence that there is a flaw in the thoughts. As for contacting Sanderson every time I have been able to talk to him at signings (No I am not personal friends with the man. Though that would be my number 1 wish.) I get the impression he hopes we will find the crumbs and follow them. He just doesn't want to confirm too much for those not following the crumbs. Adding to that...it sounds like the situation with Jon Snow and A Game of Thrones. Jon Snow's parentage is, technically, a spoiler and still "just" a theory...but it's a theory which is heavily supported by textual evidence and foreshadowing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pagerunner Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 28 minutes ago, Tsidqiyah said: I am on @Quiver and @Pagerunner 's side as long as there is NO inside information it cannot be a spoiler. Therefore put it here for discussion because I can guarantee someone will disagree and will have just as strong evidence that there is a flaw in the thoughts. As for contacting Sanderson every time I have been able to talk to him at signings (No I am not personal friends with the man. Though that would be my number 1 wish.) I get the impression he hopes we will find the crumbs and follow them. He just doesn't want to confirm too much for those not following the crumbs. Remember, this is just a 'hypothetical situation.' 17 minutes ago, Quiver said: Adding to that...it sounds like the situation with Jon Snow and A Game of Thrones. Reveal hidden contents Jon Snow's parentage is, technically, a spoiler and still "just" a theory...but it's a theory which is heavily supported by textual evidence and foreshadowing. I've heard that when they came to GRRM to ask to adapt the books, he made them tell him who Jon Snow's real parents were. When they gave him the correct answer, he gave them permission. Might just be an urban legend, but I like the story. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yezrien Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 But this grand cosmere revelation isn't "heavily supported by textual evidence and foreshadowing." It's informed by... 8 hours ago, 1stBondsmith said: Because your age, upbringing, location, travels and reading selections are similar to Sanderson's, This is something only one person has figured out. And it comes from unique insight into Brandon's life and experiences. Isn't that comparable to exclusive inside information? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spoolofwhool Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 If, as an author, you change your story because the fan theories are close to what you have planned, then I would lose respect for you as an author, as that shows that you care more about surprising your fans than you care about the story. I don't think it is something that should be done at all. No amount of fan theories can ever take away from the thrill of reading the ending, because no matter how much I have faith in the theory, I know that it is just that, a theory. I would still gain great pleasure in finding out that the theory is correct, but it shows that us, as readers, have been paying attention, as well as showing that the writer was able to seed the story that well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Landis963 Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 3 hours ago, Pagerunner said: Remember, this is just a 'hypothetical situation.' I've heard that when they came to GRRM to ask to adapt the books, he made them tell him who Jon Snow's real parents were. When they gave him the correct answer, he gave them permission. Might just be an urban legend, but I like the story. It's true, there was a featurette on HBO's YouTube channel (narrated by Charles Dance) about the making of the series, and Benioff (IIRC) specifically stated that the identity of Jon Snow's mother was their trump card. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steeldancer Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 I agree. However much we may postulate, there is something about reading a Brandon sanderson book that could never go away. Its not just the plot, it's the writing itself. And the awe you feel when you finish a book and you go holy crap he just did that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1stBondsmith Posted February 1, 2017 Author Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 (edited) My Friends, I believe I have a good response to the hypothetical dilemma posted above, and not surprisingly, it is a combination of the wisdom of various Sharders who have been kind enough to post. I love to theorize about the future, but if a person truly believes they are correct, I think a new standard is required. Fortunately, Sanderson's worlds are so vast and intricate, that there are a million theories to discuss with what is given as fact, and what could be in the future, so I tip a hat to the opinions of @Pagerunner and @Quiver. However, @Landis963 and @Belzedar most closely reflect my own views on the matter, and I believe would preserve the experience we all look for in the moments of "Awesomeness". Therefore, to follow the Zeroth Law of Sanderson, and to ere on the side of Awesomeness, I would postulate the following response: 1: Following @randuirs advise, I would have taken a picture with the main reveal including today's Deseret News paper for date verification. This is much easier than encrypting and keying- old ways are good ways!). Proof of timing and scope is needed for hypothetical credibility and to keep people from thinking or saying "What a dope! Says he has a great prediction with bad spoilers, but won't tell anyone!". 2. I would create several ancillary questions to be posted in public forums that would verify the kernels of the prediction using known breadcrumbs and published information. I would NOT however do so in an order or time that would lead to an obvious reveal of the prediction. This is needed to verify prediction, as well as a chance to put friends on the right footing to make the same discovery, without dashing to pieces the match of wits with the author, who always holds the upperhand. 3. Ask two very simple and direct questions of Brandon, in a private setting. If they get RAFOd, I will say no more to other people. If they get RAFOd with a big smile (he loves to do that when people guess what he has hinted at but doesn't want the future plots revealed), I too would smile and say no more to other people. If it does NOT get RAFOd or if is discussed at all, I would then immediately post on a more public forum the question and answer, and post the photo with the date with it. The boards would then explode with discussion on a hundred new topics related to it. Once again, I appreciate all the views, and have argued internally in very nearly the same lines as each of the posters, but people read books for different experiences, and a major plot reveal can and does spoil the moment of discovery that Brandon loves to include. Just like he wishes he could have had the experience of reading the Way of Kings like his fans did, I would prefer to save that experience for others who might be tempted to read more than they should years before the books come out. (I am one of those people). Thanks for your various and honest input. It is appreciated- even for hypothetical situations. Edited February 4, 2017 by 1stBondsmith Edited to fix word choice after an education. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yezrien Posted February 1, 2017 Report Share Posted February 1, 2017 Sounds like a good, solid (hypothetical) plan. Duly upvoted! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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