FeatherWriter

Did you want reference pictures of the way some fanartists have drawn the Bridge 4 uniform? I'm sure I could compile a good smattering of them if you'd like.

Video game crossovers? Did someone ask for Dragon Age? Did someone ask for twenty five thousand words of tragic soul-rending fanfic about the Stormlight crew in Thedas? Well I did it anyway. Kaladin grows up in an family with his apostate healer dad. Turns out Tien has magic too. Roshone turns Tien over to the Chantry for revenge, and Kaladin volunteers to join the templars in order to protect his brother. Meanwhile Renarin's secretly a mage and hiding it from the court, and gets caught and sent to the Circle. Plot ensues. I mean, as for supporting characters, Adolin is pretty much Alistair. A heavy-armor warrior who happens to be royalty and in line for the throne? We've got our red-haired quick-witted rogue with a foreign accent who was betrayed by her mentor, so that's Shallan as Leliana and Tyn as Marjolaine. Then again, every Stormlight-reader who plays DA ends up meeting Cailan and asking "What the heck is Elhokar doing in this game????" AUGH. *spritzes Pintrest with a spray bottle* Bad Pintrest. Unsourced art is very bad. VERY BAD. Stop it. That art is by the oh so lovely ExMakina, whose general art tag on tumblr can be found here. That picture itself is right here. And her 17S art thread is here, because she is a 17S member as well.

Funny that you say I might have some ideas about them. I... kinda wrote the fic. And a follow-up after some people mentioned that it wasn't villianous enough.

Well, first of all, I'm EXTREMELY jealous, because I would have majored or minored in Linguistics if I could have. Alas, my school was very small and didn't offer a full major or minor. My major, which was Global Studies, had a few classes though, and I adore Linguistics. I would recommend that you think of language as almost like a puzzle, and they all work differently. If you're the kind of person that wants to dig into the technicalities of why something works and why we do things the way we do -- as well as looking at the way that other languages do things differently and why, it's a really cool area of study. If you speak another language, you can probably get more out of it, but if you don't, linguistics will make it much easier to learn a new language! ...she says from China while currently epically failing at learning Chinese. Oops. Chinese is hard and I don't have much time to study, though.

My first real intro to RP was a DND group with friends. Then RP over Skype (which is still my favorite format) and then I did some tumblr RP, which... is slower and tends to have weird expectations about formatting, so that one's probably my least favorite. My recommendation would be to find a friend who might also be into it and just make some characters together. Maybe do characters in a setting you're already familiar with, like one of the cosmere worlds, though if you're feeling adventurous, you could go for a full original setting or something. If you want something more structured, I'd recommend checking out the FATE Core system, which is very easy to use if you want more of a campaign-like set up. As for Arrow, I've seen the first few episodes, about a year ago, but never got any farther into it than that.

Ohhhh my god I totally wrote up a super long response to this and it got eaten. Nooooooooooo. Alright, that's fine. I'll just TYPE IT UP AGAIN 17S. Alright, so here's my advice: Write. Like, a whole lot. You've probably heard this advice before, but really it works. I always remember Brandon wrote like 16 novels before he ever even started to get published, and that makes me feel a lot better about the fact that I'm probably not publishable right now. You just gotta write a lot. Try different things, write different genres. Go crazy or be careful or whatever but just write. That's why I love NaNo so much, because it's a great way to keep getting kicked in the pants until you get your fingers on the keys. It doesn't have to be good. It probably won't be good. My favorite encouragement is that "Every first draft is perfect, because all a first draft has to do is exist." It's true, just get something on the page. Later, you can go back and see how you've improved over time. Characters get deeper, plots get a little more subtle and well developed, prose gets cleaner and nicer. It's fun to see, but if you don't ever get started, you'll never have a starting point to look back on, you know? One of the reasons I like fanfic so much is that sometimes its easier to just pick up someone else's characters or setting and just run with it, rather than having to think everything up from scratch. That and it can be really fun to do things with other characters that you might never get to do with your own. Another thing I'll recommend, since I know you Quiver, and that's RP. Because RP is great and fun and I loooooooove it so much. It also helps you stretch and learn your characters, since you have to react to outside writers. Sometimes I make up entirely new characters, like Eliane Casuana, from the Mistborn RP I'm in. Eliane I ended up loving so much got adopted into the Called Forth universe, as Eliane Kassuan (since Casuana is not a name I came up with). But other times I like to use my regular OCs. I stick Len, the main character of Called Forth, into ALL KINDS OF RPS. And I know her character really well because of it. Other characters like Sylvie Mansen, from Scroungers, I try to shove into original works now, because RP developed her so well. Sylvie (and by extention Vee and fiVe) are kinda difficult to do that with, since they're very setting-dependent on the Pacific Rim universe, but I managed pull her into the Dragon Age universe for a bit to RP with Seiko and Miranda. (She's an apostate mage who managed to get herself possessed by two different spirits: Vigilance and Hostility. Specializes in electric magic, of course.) So yep. That's my advice. Write a lot, and find fun things to write so that you stay engaged.

http://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/32687-cards-against-the-cosmere/ Even better, it's free to play online. Made by yours truly. If you want to order a deck though, I think CardCast will print them for you C: Also, I feel bad that I keep responding to this thread without continuing to play the game, but I'm waiting for one that I'm familiar with again. Seeing as the current docket is Farscape, I must leave it for someone else.

Yeah, like Little Wilson said, it's a video game series from Bioware. If you've heard of Mass Effect, then it's the same company. Fantasy, to counterpart ME's sci-fi. I've been obsessed with the franchise for... oh about 8 months now. Seeing as I'm currently 20,000 words into a Dragon Age/Stormlight Crossover, it's been on my mind recently. Don't get me started talking about where all the Stormlight crew ends up in Thedas I will NEVER SHUT UP. Not to mention, my group of cosmere fandom friends tends to be very... united when it comes to fandoms. If you're that corner of the cosmere fandom, you get dragged into all the other stuff too, and Dragon Age was one of the latest things we've all gotten into. (Others have been Homestuck, Steven Universe, Fullmetal Alchemist, the 100, so on and so forth.) Basically, once one person gets into it, we learn to jump on the bandwagon so as not to get left behind. I've played so many games of Dragon Age + Cosmere Cards Against Humanity... the two are very linked in my mind. Also I think my favorite thing is whenever a new cosmere person starts playing Dragon Age: Origins, everyone meets King Cailan and asks "What is Elhokar doing in this game????"

Yes, Glys (who is Renarin's spren) is referred to with masculine pronouns. The current speculation is on the grounds of the fact that most of the other Nahel bonds involve opposite gender pairs, with Renarin and Dalinar proving the exception.

A very Cullen Rutherford way of thinking...

Oh man, Infinity blade? You're gonna stretch my character knowledge here. Push off a cliff: Radriar (STOP BEING A JERK WHY DO I LOVE YOU) Set on fire: Worker of Secrets Have a relationship with: ....Sssssiris? Marry: That one desert level from IB3 Wrap a blanket around: TEL (how cute would that be) Be roommates with: Isa, my bab. Alright, let's be my regular flavor of garbage -- Dragon Age

Oh wow! Thank you! Yeah, The Fangirl: Weaponized is one of those fics that I'm kinda embarrassed to try to explain to people, but I'm actually really, really fond of it in execution. I mean... Avengers fanfic where a bunch of fangirls help Loki escape? It sounds intolerably silly, but I really like the way that it turned out, and I feel like I managed to play it a lot more seriously than most people were expecting. TF:W was the first long, multi-chapter story that I managed to finish and it kinda was what convinced me that I actually could write good stories that were longer length. I... actually have no idea what that is. Got a link and/or explanation for me? EDIT: Ah I see the link in your sig. Looks like a tumblr ask meme but on a forum, so SURE.

Wasn't there a confirmation that Hoid somehow knows where and when he needs to be in order to see important things? Like, he felt that he needed to be in the area of Shallan's fair, but then he didn't know what he'd find when he got there. I got the same impression from Jasnah's reappearance at the end of the book. He knew where and when he needed to be, but he had no idea what was going to happen. SUDDENLY JASNAH.

Well, supposedly a Smoker would only be immune while they're burning copper, so any time that Vin wasn't burning she would be fair game. Still, it does seem odd to think that she might not be burning while around Zane, since I was under the impression that she kept copper on at pretty much all times. I don't think that Zane had access to or knowledge of duralumin, if I remember correctly. Also, I think once you reach the point of using duralumin to force your way through someone's defenses, I'm pretty sure subtlety and delicate manipulation is out of the question. The target would probably be pretty aware they were under the influence of forces when they're that strong.

Ah, alright, thank you. Yeah, laughing at a joke fic that's meant to be funny is different than laughing at a fic that you simply thought was done poorly. One is okay (and encouraged!) and the other is not. Thanks.

I found once a story where someone had clearly just written a story set in modern-day Seattle where two guys went on a boring date, and the author just renamed the characters Kaladin and Renarin despite absolutely no similarities, in a veiled attempt to get cosmere fans to read their original story. Quick mod note: Guys, I know it's fun to make fun of stories that you thought were not good or amusing to you, but please remember that these kinds of comments can be very hurtful, especially to the original writers of those works. The cosmere fandom is still a pretty small place, and there's a good chance the those writers could see your comments. I know you weren't intending them to be mean, but please be considerate. If you don't like a story or a pairing, then that's okay, but please don't go bashing it where you think the author won't see. Let's support fan-writers and artists and stay positive please. /end mod note Okay, so more on topic. I actually got Word of Brandon (though vague word of Brandon) on this subject at the WOR midnight release. I know, I should have written it down, but it was my first real signing and I was young and naive and didn't do that so... whoops. So, I don't have exact words for you guys. That said, I asked Brandon if there was significance in the fact that Renarin had a male spren, when most of the rest of the Nahel bonds were opposite-gendered. His response was (if I recall correctly) was that yes it was significant, but maybe not in the way that I was imagining. (Though, I'm not entirely sure what he thought I was imagining, so.) So, I can confirm that there is something to the gender relationship between spren and Surgebinder, but that's about it. Serves me right for giving Brandon an easy "yes or no" answer that he could duck like that, I suppose. EDIT: Since I see there were some more posts thrown in here while I was typing. Considering that Pattern didn't understand how eating worked, I'm going to go ahead and posit that the spren's "biological" functions (if we could even say that a being of almost purely cognitive form has "biology" at all) do not resemble humans' at all, much less that spren would have anything resembling physical, reproductive sex. I mean, spren are thoughts given sentience. I can't imagine that they're even really physically or chemically "alive" by any kind of human definitions.

Move every three months. Not even a question. I've got a serious case of wanderlust and I want to see as much of the world as possible! I mean, it'd be hard not settling down and knowing people, I guess, but I don't wanna get trapped anywhere. Especially not America. Not that America's terrible perse, it's just... well I know America. I've done it. Cool, thanks, what's next, what's new? SHOW ME THE WORLD.

All those Alethi thinking she's exotically pale. Adolin said her skin was "almost like a Shin." She does still have the epicanthic folds, so not totally "white" looking. I've pictured Korean actresses for Shallan before, but that's probably because I listen to too much kpop...

Ack, I just looked it up and you're right. Tan skin is how Rock is described. I guess he probably matches the rest of bridge 4!

Quick reminder that there is NO discussion of unpublished works allowed, in spoiler tags or not, unless those works are publicly available. Thanks guys.

That's kind of amusing, since I believe Rock is actually the palest of the bridgemen. Light skin, red hair (which is why he calls Shallan "cousin"). Sigzil, as an Azish, is the darkest.

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Done. Shallan's fake name has three, I think, but Rock's just got one. The way I remember it is that there's almost like... two rhyming sets, and then the apostrophe. Numu-huku maki-aki APOSTROPHE! aia lunamor It helps break up that "iaia" too, so that they're not all smushed together.

Scroungers was my JAM. My first really big RP with some really excellent peeps and I absolutely fell in love with the characters and players and everyone involved. I guess I don't really consider it entirely "my" writing, since I only played 1/6th of the cast (give or take). But it was a really cool project, and I loved every minute of it! Y'all reviews, liveblogs, and comments are THE BEST THING EVER. Guaranteed to make a writer or artist love you forever and put you forever in their favor. Quiver, your liveblogs of Sydney Scroungers are so great that I go back and read them sometimes even now (because I am a horrible narcissist). And sure, why not! You've certainly read enough of my stuff! I warn, I may not get around to it for a bit, but I'll try to save the links for my free time!

So, yes I am writing a book (kinda sorta in the midst of way too many fanfics). Current working title is Called Forth, but I really dislike that title and will almost certainly change it before trying to get it published. I have not ever actually finished a book, at least not a publishable thing. I do have three finished long-form fanfics: The Fangirl: Weaponized (29,454 words) which is Marvel Cinematic Universe fic, The Mess We've Made (17,371 words) which is Dragon Age 2 fanfic, and Blades and Barriers (31,331 words) which is Dragon Age Inquisition fic. I've had a few Stormlight Archive long-form fics on my docket before. A Strange Mix of Both was supposed to be many more chapters, but has since been abandoned after Words of Radiance tore huge holes in its premise (and my heart). I've had a Renarin-in-Bridge-Four-during-WoK AU fic that I started a while back, but it's been a long time since I worked on that one. I might go back to it eventually but the sparkly lure of other projects has captured my attention. Alright, so you asked how I came up with story ideas. Honestly, it depends! I can tell you Called Forth's story idea began with two characters "a selfish summoner and her familiar, whom she habitually kills for fun because she can just summon him back and he won't stay dead." Those two became Len (summoner) and Kasten (familiar), and they're still very much at the heart of the story. From there I started trying to build a world around them, and then a universe with multiple worlds, and then a plot, and the rest of the cast. Lots of my fanfics start from some kind of prompt or idea. If it would cause pain, I'm all for it. My friend Kogiopsis is a great source of little prompts like this "what if Renarin ended up in Bridge 4 under Sadeas?" or "What if the Stormlight crew was in the Dragon Age universe?" or "What if Kaladin ended up in Kharbranth as a surgeon, rather than as a soldier?" Answering those questions in interesting ways and to the best of my abilities is a really fun way to explore characters, relationships, and situations. (If you ask me about my Dragon Age AU, I will talk your ear off because it is INVOLVED and EVERYONE NEEDS A PLACE IN THEDAS.) I've also been known to borrow and relocate characters and worlds from one idea to merge them with another. The Called Forth universe adopted one of my other worlds, Kannar, and the desert society there, the Jaiseti. I had an idea for a frozen ice-world (combat figure skating, y'all) and thought "can I make this part of the CF universe too?" Yes, indeed I can. My characters tend to get shuffled around quite a bit too, especially Len. (She's the main character of that Dragon Age 2 fic, The Mess We've Made as Len Hawke). My Seeker informant from the Elendel United RP, Eliane Casuana, shows up in CF as Eliane Kassuan, with a very similar role. So... yeah, that's a not-so-quick rundown of my idea and building process, I guess?