Ad Astra

[8bitBob]

2 minutes ago, Pagerunner said:

Source.

That name was confirmed to be Discord, right? I remember it being a name for the Hero of Ages in the Terris religion.

Edited May 5, 2017 by 8bitBob

[Pagerunner]

4 minutes ago, 8bitBob said:

That name was confirmed to be Discord, right? I remember it being a name for the Hero of Ages in the Terris religion.

I don't know if it was confirmed or not, but the thread I linked to lists it as a possibility. It's widely accepted, I think.

[Kinnsayyy]

4 minutes ago, Pagerunner said:

Source.

Exactly thank you I looked everywhere for that. 

 

Anyways I guess I should reword the question. 

 

If Harmony was less able to control his two shards, would his metal have different properties? 

 

Does that sound better? Idk I think it's possible and very interesting. It could also have a lot of ramifications. 

[BlackYeti]

3 hours ago, Sherwin94 said:

Hi guys, I got another possible question: "In the Arcanum Unbounded star chart for the Rosharan and Drominad Systems, the suns in the charts are sixteen-pointed, is this intentional/significant?" 

This comes from something I recently realized, the Rosharan sun in the Rosharan star-chart is half-covered, but by extrapolating the top half (which has 8-points), you can tell that there is 16-points in total, similar to the Drominad system sun. Seems fishy to me, given that 16 is so cosmere-centric, moreover only these 2 systems have this unique feature. 

Actually, this isn't limited to those two systems, it's just that other systems have a secondary set of points (and some extend it beyond that as well). They're still organised into sixteen groups though.

The exception to this is the Taldain system where both stars each have fourteen points, not sixteen. If someone does want to ask about this, might I suggest asking why Taldain is different?

[Lightflame]

I'm there at Ad Astra, and it seems pretty cool.

I was on a elevator, and Brandon was walking by. I said, "Hey," because I wanted to greet him or something. Then my mom screamed, "BRANDON SANDERSON!" (She hasn't even read any of his books until The Emperor's Soul just today on the drive.)

I'm still feeling ridiculously embarrassed.

[Lightflame]

I was with a group of people talking with Brandon for two hours in a hallway, and it was fantastic.

A lot of what he said was awesome, and I retained some of it, but it would take some time to say it all specifically. Here are some random details.

- Dalinar's wife isn't some minor character who's been mentioned somewhere else. She's someone completely new.
- In one of the Interludes in Oathbringer, there's a character reading a bad romance novel, and he went nuts with the purple prose.
- He hates the Hobbit movies.
- His youngest son, Oliver, watches a ton of YouTube videos, and now believes that when you stop playing with something, you have to give the "Please like and subscribe" spiel, so he does that all the time.
- He says the secret to approaching an editor is to ask them about what books they're editing, then pitch your own book at the end of the conversation. When he sold his first book, he spent three hours talking to the editor before he pitched his book at the end.
- There are beta readers who are only just realizing in Oathbringer that Kaladin has depression.
- His cat has a really long name. It starts with Pine Cone, and that's what they can the cat, but I think the full name is Pine Cone Neko Hello Kitty Chan Sparkle Oliver Sanderson.
- I mentioned asking him about the Shardfork in the AMA, and he said, "Oh, so you're the Shardfork guy. You put that idea in my head." He said that he'll draw a fork in my copy of Arcanum Unbounded.
- He said that foreshadowing is actually one of the easiest parts. His sweet spot for twists is 1/3 people guessing it ahead of time and most of the rest figuring it out on the page before.
- Sixth of the Dusk is roughly 200 years after everything else in the Cosmere.
- When working on Wheel of Time, he asked how Morgase was pronounced, and the two people he was talking to disagreed on how Robert Jordan pronounced it. Also, he had recordings of all the pronunciations sent to him, which he put on his iPod and shuffled with his songs.
- He mentions fan theories and drawing the lines before fanservice when taking over The Wheel of Time. He mentioned that a lot of people wanted to see Narg, and he could have put him in there, but he didn't, obviously. But lots of people were asking about various things like sideways gateways, and he thought, "If 9 out of 10 fans are thinking about it, somebody in world should think about it." He gave my Shardfork as an example.
- Sazed counting down the religions in The Hero of Ages wasn't originally there, but he added it to give the character a sense of progression. He says that negative progression can be as interesting as positive progression.
- He finds Indian names difficult.
- Another author, Kay Hawkins, showed up to give him a copy of her first book, The Stars Will Rise. She said that she met him earlier when she was going through a rough time, and now she's better and has her book out.

All in all, it was great talking to him. He's really nice, and I would recommend. My brother is going to be there with people playing Magic with him tomorrow. I don't play Magic, but I'll be hanging around there.

[maxal]

14 minutes ago, Lightflame said:

- Dalinar's wife isn't some minor character who's been mentioned somewhere else. She's someone completely new.

Ah finally we can put the whole "Vivenna is Shshshsh" and/or "Shalash is Shshshsh" discussions to rest. RIP theories, you have done your time.

15 minutes ago, Lightflame said:

- There are beta readers who are only just realizing in Oathbringer that Kaladin has depression.

This one is surprising, but it also gives me some level of fear... I have been hoping Kaladin's depression wouldn't such a major plot point going into book 3. I felt we had spent enough time with it, I was hoping the story wouldn't focus on that (not to say it would disappear, just that it wouldn't be so present), but if it only becomes obvious to beta readers now then well.... Ah. 

This being said, great transcript! I love the bout where he says he hated the Hobbits movies, for some reasons, I enjoyed finding out that.

[WeiryWriter]

12 hours ago, maxal said:

This one is surprising, but it also gives me some level of fear... I have been hoping Kaladin's depression wouldn't such a major plot point going into book 3. I felt we had spent enough time with it, I was hoping the story wouldn't focus on that (not to say it would disappear, just that it wouldn't be so present), but if it only becomes obvious to beta readers now then well.... Ah. 

It's important to note that Brandon likes to employ a diverse group of people for his beta readers. Yes some of them are supefans who know this stuff but others are casual fans who may not have picked up on it yet.

[Jazzy Kandra]

14 hours ago, maxal said:

This one is surprising, but it also gives me some level of fear... I have been hoping Kaladin's depression wouldn't such a major plot point going into book 3. I felt we had spent enough time with it, I was hoping the story wouldn't focus on that (not to say it would disappear, just that it wouldn't be so present), but if it only becomes obvious to beta readers now then well.... Ah. 

I...doubt that will just "go away" because that's not how it works in real life, either. It needs to be a major point, as it's central to his character, and would be actually really bad if it was just swept under the rug (or less focus was put on it)...

In short, it's an amazingly rare thing for people with depression (or other mental differences) to be represented, and moreover, to be represented well. I love it, seeing as I also have it, and it that respect, relate to Kaladin immensely. 

[Spoolofwhool]

At the Goh for Brandon come say hi if you're there. I'm at the left end of third row. 

[maxal]

1 hour ago, Kandra-in-disguise said:

I...doubt that will just "go away" because that's not how it works in real life, either. It needs to be a major point, as it's central to his character, and would be actually really bad if it was just swept under the rug (or less focus was put on it)...

In short, it's an amazingly rare thing for people with depression (or other mental differences) to be represented, and moreover, to be represented well. I love it, seeing as I also have it, and it that respect, relate to Kaladin immensely. 

I didn't mean to say it should disappear: I meant to say I didn't fancy the idea it would remain such an integral part of the main narrative. In other words, a great deal lot of page time were spent, in WoR, focusing on Kaladin being depressive. I was hoping the next book would give the focus to other aspects of the story. It isn't I want it to go away, I just don't want, for instance, to read another 4 chapters in a row focusing on Kaladin being depressed in prison.

I understand there are readers who relate to Kaladin, but there also are readers who don't. I was hoping the future books would have a better balance in between Kaladin and other characters.

3 hours ago, WeiryWriter said:

It's important to note that Brandon likes to employ a diverse group of people for his beta readers. Yes some of them are supefans who know this stuff but others are casual fans who may not have picked up on it yet.

My understanding were he picked his beta readers out of the super fans and/or the highly involved members of the 17th Shard and/or other communities. This is what Brandon implied on Reddit the several times he was asked about it. I am surprised he is picking up very casual readers, so casual they aren't aware of Kaladin being depressive... I mean, that's pretty much basic information at this point in time. I would rate is as "entry level" information. 

I thought being named a beta readers meant you had contribute enough to the community to receive this "advantage" or this "honor", so huh this kind of breaks the "beta reading" magic 

[Spoolofwhool]

I have recordings of his guest of honor panel (minus OB reading), his bonus art of World building panel, and my signing question. 

[+TheAlmighty]

I just left. I was the metal head in the second row. That was a lot of fun, it was my first con/signing. When he signed my books I asked in SoS 

Spoiler

Paalm told Wax that she hadn't killed his father yet. I asked was she referring to Wax's father, Marasi and Steris' father, or someone else. After being confused by my question for a moment he said "someone else." 

I look forward to doing that again and getting him to sign the rest of my books, which are in storage awaiting a pending move. 

[+TheAlmighty]

Also, I haven't seen it mentioned, he did a reading from an from Oathbringer Interlude.

Spoiler

LOTS of intriguing tidbits revealed about Aimia and Soulcasting. 

 

Edited May 6, 2017 by TheAlmighty

[Spoolofwhool]

@TheAlmighty. Nice, I was close behind you. Also, can you but the Oathbringer details in a spoiler? 

[Lightflame]

The reading was cool! I didn't record it (I might have if I had space on my phone), but I'll give you the gist of it.

Spoiler

Kaza, the POV character, is a Liaforan with a Soulcaster that can only change things into smoke. She's used the Soulcaster so much that she's turning into Smoke herself, and every time she Soulcasts, she feels the temptation to do turn herself to smoke. She has a huge hole in the side of her face, and every part of her is bleeding smoke. She's on a ship going to an old Aimian island, where Chasmfiends go to die, leaving lots of Gemhearts behind. Kaza only has a few years left before she turns completely into smoke, so she's hoping to find a cure on the island. She soulcasts them a way in, but everyone except her dies before they can get to the island, because the cook, an Aimian, poisoned them all so that nobody would know the secrets. Kaza is taking longer to die because she isn't fully human anymore. She wants her death to be her own, so she soulcasts herself into smoke.

Also, at the signing, he answered my question and my brother's question at the signing. Mine relates to the reading, while my brother's is about Reckoners.

My question:

Spoiler

Soulcasters have an affect on people, like Kaza turning into smoke and the ardents turning to stone. Do Shardblades wielded by non-Radiants have any effect on them?

He said no, but that it was a good question.

My brother's question:

Spoiler

In Steelheart, it's mentioned that Steelheart, Oblivion, and Night's Sorrow are the three most feared Epics. My brother wanted to know about Night's Sorrow. Brandon said that the Pacific Southwest has suffered greatly due to Night's Sorrow, and that we'll see them and learn their powers in a future book.

 

[Argent]

@TheAlmighty, the book makes it clear whom Paalm was referring to - is there a reason you think that's a red herring?

[+Extesian]

1 hour ago, Argent said:

@TheAlmighty, the book makes it clear whom Paalm was referring to - is there a reason you think that's a red herring?

Yeah this surprised me but the answer sounds like it really is someone other than Wax's or Steris' father, in which case my best guess would be Harmony. 

Quote

Sixth of the Dusk is roughly 200 years after everything else in the Cosmere.

Spoiler

This excites me, it's not all that surprising but at least that means we can start doing vague calculations as to the time-frames for developing fully functioning FTL

And the Interlude reading sounds amazing! Getting to learn about (Oathbringer spoiler)

Spoiler

soulcasters AND the Aimian in one section. It seems to answer a question I've seen asked about whether soulcasters can soulcast themselves (though maybe we knew that already), we should get glimpses of not just Aimia but generally land that far West, and we get information (again, I'm not sure if this was already known) that Aimia has a wealth of gemhearts. 

And the Kaladin depression thing, I hope it takes a more minor role by Kaladin healing himself of it by making it clear that was only possible if he views himself as a normal person suffering from an illness rather than it being integral to him as a person. Because that's a key to overcoming depression for so many people, not seeing it as a part of you (which is why some people can't get past it in reality) but seeing it as a treatable illness that is changing your thinking and outlook in harmful ways. To me, that would be both a positive plot step and an important message to real world sufferers.

I can't wait for any recordings and transcripts, and as always in happy to help with transcription

Edited May 7, 2017 by Extesian
Spoilered

[Koldun]

I asked Sanderson if the Cognitive Realm changed based on what people considered to be mystical, such as being composed of mists or spheres, and he said that the Cognitive Realm was indeed related to people's perception.

[Lightflame]

Brandon is now running a Magic tournament, and the Winners will be in Oathbringer. I'm not in it, because I don't play Magic, but I'm hanging around because my brother is there.

EDIT: My brother asked for Pink Pinkness's power, and Brandon didn't have one. I asked if I could make something up and it would be canon. He said okay, so I said she could distort your vision so that you can only see pink things, and nothing else is visible to you. That's canon now. (It was a group effort, though.)

EDIT 2: I asked him about the Weeping. By the end of the Weeping, all spheres are dun, so there's no Stormlight. This would have been a problem for the Radiants, so did they do anything special to get Stormlight. He said that with the information I have now, there would be weeks where they would be without Stormlight. I asked if the Highstorms and Weeping used to be different, with the bells of Kharbranth as evidence. He RAFOed me.

Edited May 7, 2017 by Lightflame

[Spoolofwhool]

@TheHunter. Has recordings from the panel and the signing. 

[CosmereAvair]

9 hours ago, TheAlmighty said:

Also, I haven't seen it mentioned, he did a reading from an from Oathbringer Interlude.

  Hide contents

LOTS of intriguing tidbits revealed about Aimia and Soulcasting. 

 

Spoiler

I know that whole reading was intense,  and more importantly was the black soulcaster connected to the black metal spike in shadows of self?. so many question!!!!!!!!!!!! Just in case anyone asks his reading was on a interlude and not a main chapter.

 

 

Edited May 7, 2017 by CosmereAvair
Grammar mistakes

[CosmereAvair]

My two questions that I asked were RAFO'd the first one I had to ask and try to remove spoilers, but I still think I got some decent info and TBH kinda happy I got RAFO'd makes me feel like I am on to something.

Spoiler

Me: As we are talking about design art I just have a question about the star chartin Arcanum Unbound. Mostly is the Red Star in Threnody connected to the red stars in The scar?

WoB: RAFO! got a card for it and everything

 

Me: When Dalinar is having a flashback to when he sees the KR in WK their helmets come off inexplicably fast, can they summon it just like a shard blade?

WoB: RAFO

If anyone can point me to where I can put those WoB I would be happy to post them to that thread as well.

Edited May 7, 2017 by CosmereAvair

[Argent]

40 minutes ago, CosmereAvair said:

If anyone can point me to where I can put those WoB I would be happy to post them to that thread as well.

In here is good enough. People with rights to edit Theoryland will eventually pick them up.

[LH1407]

Sorry if this is a stupid question but is there anywhere I can find the new interlude reading?