Around the Cosmere for March 15th, 2013

Welcome to Around the Cosmere! We've been... around. For uh, a long time. Around the cosmere. You know, doing cool stuff on Hoid’s Shadesmar Zeppelin*. But we're back for your somewhat regular assortment of Brandon news!

There's so much that has happened since the last Around the Cosmere. There is a ton of news on Words of Radiance--namely, you know, a title for that book. We also just created a Words of Radiance discussion board so you can talk about all of that good stuff, while people who don’t want spoilers can steer far away.

Speaking of spoilers...

Edelweiss (apparently a publisher’s catalog) revealed an interesting plot blurb for Words of Radiance. So, you know, there’s spoilers here, just like on the back of a book. It says:

Having met the challenge of a posthumous collaboration with the great Robert Jordan to complete his classic, bestselling fantasy series The Wheel of Time® with three #1 New York Times bestsellers in a row, Brandon Sanderson is at last free to return to the decade-spanning task of creating his own multi-volume epic, one that he hopes will make a comparable mark on the field. That epic is The Stormlight Archive and it began in 2010 with Tor’s longest, most elaborately embellished novel ever, The Way of Kings.

In that first volume, we were introduced to the remarkable world of Roshar, a world both alien and magical, where gigantic hurricane-like storms scour the surface every few days and life has adapted accordingly. Roshar is shared by humans and the enigmatic, humanoid Parshendi, with whom they are at war. Among those caught up in the conflict are Brightlord Dalinar Kholin, who leads the human armies; his sister Jasnah, a renowned scholar; her student Shallan, a brilliant but troubled young woman; and Kaladin, a military slave who, by the book’s end, had become the first magically endowed Knight Radiant in centuries.

In Words of Radiance their intertwined stories will continue and, as Sanderson fans have come to expect, develop in unexpected, wonderfully surprising directions. The war with the Parshendi will move into a new, dangerous phase, as Dalinar leads the human armies deep into the heart of the Shattered Plains in a bold attempt to finally end it. Shallan will come along, hoping to find the legendary, perhaps mythical, city of Urithuru, which Jasnah believes holds a secret vital to mankind’s survival on Roshar. The Parshendi take a dangerous step to strengthen themselves for the human challenge, risking the return of the fearsome Voidbringers of old. To deal with it all, Kaladin must learn to how to fulfill his new role as leader of the restored Knights Radiant, while mastering the powers of a Windrunner.

With this second book, the Stormlight Archive grows even more richly immersive and compelling. Sanderson’s fans, old and new, are likely to lift it at least as high on the bestseller lists as its predecessor.

Well now that is an interesting look into the plot! There was some debate in our topic on the blurb as to whether this is accurate, but Peter (Brandon’s assistant) came in and said:

This marketing catalog copy does come from Tor. Much of it is accurate, but not as accurate as what will eventually end up on the book's cover flap.

So well, that’s awesome.

In more Stormlight news, Tor is starting a Way of Kings reread (don't worry, we'll have something like that later this year too), but maybe more interesting to you will be that the ebook of The Way of Kings is now $2.99. Certainly there's no better time to purchase this wonderful book. I mean, the sheer words to dollar ratio is through the roof! (It's approximately 133,000 words per dollar, which by itself is way longer than many books.) You can get it from all major ebook retailers like Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Google Play (which apparently no one wants to link to, as neither Brandon’s original blog post or Tor’s mention it, but hey, I like Google Play), iBooks, and also, Dragonmount sells it DRM free too! So there are many options for your viewing or device pleasure. Sadly, you don’t get the door-stopping power of the physical version, but the words-per-dollar ratio! So good.

Moving on from Stormlight Archive, Brandon somewhat regularly answers questions on Reddit, and this week he’s answered some major questions on the Dor, Odium, and Shadesmar. Check it out, cosmere buffs, and hopefully you’ll squee as much as I did.

Hey did you know The Rithmatist is coming out in May? It’s so soon, and it is amazing. You should be excited for this--as if the prologue and first chapter didn’t get you pumped enough. But additionally, the Facebook page of Michael Kramer and Kate Reading, the people who do the Wheel of Time audiobooks as well as The Way of Kings said this week they are starting work on the audiobook of The Rithmatist.

Isaac Stewart (artist who does maps and symbols for Mistborn and Stormlight Archive) and Ben McSweeney (who does even more artwork in Stormlight, as well as illustrations in The Rithmatist) were interviewed recently about visual adaptations of novels. Check it out.

Oh, what else? You may have noticed, I don’t know, that all of 17th Shard is totally different now. Let us know how you feel about the new site and any bugs you may find in our impressions topic! We think it’s a massive improvement in design and functionality, so we really hope you enjoy it!

See you for another Around the Cosmere... "soon"!

*Hoid’s Shadesmar Zeppelin may or may not be an actual thing.

The image to the side is the UK Rithmatist cover.