Author's Bio -- Help Wanted

[+Slowswift]

I put this topic here even though this case specifically relates to the Stormlight Archive. Feel free to move, mods, if I've been a massive dork.

Okay. So. As you may or may not know, while I go by Slowswift here on the Shard, I tend towards TheOtherKholin everywhere else. At first, it was just a name: the Kholins are pretty cool people (with maybe a couple of exceptions); who wouldn’t want to be associated with them? But, for the sake of a proper beginning, we’ll say it’s a reference to (WoK Prime spoilers)

Spoiler

Sheneres, the deceased, no-longer-canon brother to Adolin and Renarin mentioned in the original draft of The Way of Kings.

But then I got thinking. What if there were actually other Kholins? And so I wrote this, after taking a look at my NaNoWriMo page and deciding that I needed to freshen up my author bio there.

Spoiler

Perhaps you’ve heard of House Kholin, the royal family of Alethkar? Most well-known among them would be the brothers Dalinar and Gavilar, who together conquered and united the ten Alethi princedoms, with the latter eventually being crowned king. There are other lines, of course: distant relations not important enough to remain relevant. However, there is one line that was deliberately forgotten.

Generations ago, the Kholin brothers’ great-uncle [name] was involved in a plot to overthrow his brother and seize the Kholin princedom for himself. Further, it was discovered that he intended to take action against the Vorin Church and expel them from the country. He was executed, and his children were exiled to the farthest corners of Roshar.

The descendants of [name], for the first generation or so, fought back. They either perished on the battlefield or in quiet executions. After that, they turned to just about every other possible path. Some became beggars, some became mercenaries. Some tried to make a living as a farmer or laborer. Either way, though, the [name] line of the Kholin family faded into utter obscurity.

One, in particular, chose to make a living as a storyteller and an amateur scholar. He travels between cities in Western Roshar, singing and telling stories, all the while studying the culture and language of the places he visits. Whenever somebody asks his name, he replies with a smile and a wink: “Oh, I’m the other Kholin.” Everybody either assumes he’s lying or has no idea what he’s talking about, which suits him just fine. He intends to make his way back to Alethkar and on to the Shattered Plains, perhaps become the new King’s Wit, and restore some semblance of honor to his family line.

(Or, to summarize, it’s a massively over-thought reference to one of my favorite books.)

This is still an early draft. I'm coming here to the Shard for help because I want this to be more than some half-cremmed backstory for a bad OC, though I don't plan on writing any fanfic with this (yet). Also, I've left the [name] brackets in because I have yet to make a final decision on his name, though I do have some ideas. 

So, if y'all have any thoughts, I'd love to hear them.  

[Oversleep]

@Slowswift IIRC Gavilar's branch of Kholins was not actually the heirs to the Kholinar's rule until Gavilar started his conquest.

[+Slowswift]

Just now, Oversleep said:

@Slowswift IIRC Gavilar's branch of Kholins was not actually the heirs to the Kholinar's rule until Gavilar started his conquest.

Things like this are the reason I posted it here. Thanks! 

[Oversleep]

1 minute ago, Slowswift said:

Things like this are the reason I posted it here. Thanks! 

I think it may be one of the fresher WoBs.

[Dragon314]

6 hours ago, Oversleep said:

I think it may be one of the fresher WoBs.

For some reason I feel like this info was in WoK. @Slowswift, I really like it. Lisarasil as name?

[+Slowswift]

2 hours ago, Dragon314 said:

For some reason I feel like this info was in WoK. @Slowswift, I really like it. Lisarasil as name?

The info on the Kholin lines of inheritance? Probably. But even though I just reread it, I probably missed it.

And, for names, I was thinking about a few variations on something like Keleb. Such as Keled, Keleth, Keledar, or Kelethar. I like the association with Kalak (a la Shallan and Shalash), but I don't know if he's the most appropriate namesake, thematically at least. Also, I like the alliteration and rhythm of pairing those names with "Kholin". I do like that suggestion, though.  

[Narcoleptic Axolotl]

I love the idea! I'd read it if you made a full story out of this.

On 8/26/2017 at 7:02 PM, Dragon314 said:

For some reason I feel like this info was in WoK. @Slowswift, I really like it. Lisarasil as name?

Actually I think it was in OB. I may just think that because OB is all about Gavilar and how he became king. I'll probably know by my next listen-through.

As for the name, it's too symmetrical. Ialai's name is considered blasphemous because it's a perfect palindrome. You'd have to add a suffix.