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Thanks again for your input, Twi. I think the solution may be to ask my alpha/beta readers for more directed feedback. I know the feeling in trying to get across at each point in the story, but clearly some of those aren't having the right effect. Maybe figuring out which ones are broken will help me see how the whole thing needs to be fixed.

Awesome work, Chaos (and everyone else involved). I know this has been a long, arduous process. All your effort really paid off. I particularly love the new quote functionality. You can multi-quote on mobile! You don't have to select all of the desired quotes in the right order, or even all at once! Instead, clicking "Quote" inserts the quote box right where you are currently editing the new post. Yay! And you can quote selected text! This will make things so much nicer. I like the activity stream functionality, though getting back to previously saved streams is not easy at the moment. As luckat described, you get to the stream you saved either by clicking the checkmark to make it default (in which case it replaces the "Unread Content" and newspaper icon) or by going to the url: http://www.17thshard.com/forum/discover/17/, adjusting the number to be whatever your saved stream is. I spent a while exploring, so for anyone interested, here's how it works: The saved stream is just the combination of filters selected (and the title), and it will adjust to whichever user is logged in. (So if I go to discover/6/, made by Pagerunner, it will show me content I haven't read in the Cosmere subforum, not what Pagerunner hasn't read.) #1-5 are defaults, while 6 and above are user-defined. As of this post, 20 is the highest. If you go to another user's saved stream, you have the option to "Add to my streams" which will duplicate that set of filters as a new number, now owned at editable by you. Chaos mentioned earlier that he's planning to enable a dropdown on the newspaper icon, which should include (a subset of?) the defaults and all of the ones you've saved. In the meantime, you can look at your numbered url. The default five are: Everything Unread (1) Threads You Started (2) Content You Follow (3) Members You Follow (4) Threads You've Posted In (5) Finally, here is an example stream (20) that I made to illustrate some of the options available. It finds any posts made since your last visit in the selected subforums (Events and Signings, all Mistborn excluding Secret History, plus the Reckoners RP), along with new Cosmere or Rithmatist fanart in the gallery. I also like the option under "Read Status" that allows you to choose whether clicking on something unread takes you to the first unread post (super useful) or the start of the thread (default).

Maybe it's because I didn't sleep well last night, but I'm having trouble parsing that. What is the long version?

Thanks, Twi. The links were informative, but unless I missed something, the articles don't address the question I was trying to ask. I think maybe I was using the word "deconstruct" wrong. I just mean analyzing and outlining the pieces of a story; I feel like I can do this for plot, but that I'm not good enough at breaking down the emotional arc. I arrived at this conclusion after listening to the party of Creativiy, Inc. where Ed Catmull describes diagnosing problems with Toy Story 2. The fixes they used had minimal impact on the plot but powerfully punched up the dramatic and emotional tension, and I'd like to read more examples or suggestions of how to do that sort of thing.

Eagle, I really like the phlogiston system. Great idea! Question: does flammability imply flame, or does it refer to oxidative potential in general? Because your airship decks may rust out from under you, and you could design some really interesting electric circuits with phlogistically modified materials. (I'm thinking about a combined lightning rod and galvanic sink for your airships.) Another question: where and how do you store extracted phlogiston?! That sounds like a very difficult material to handle! For other properties, Ecthelion's suggestion of ductility could be interesting. I'm not sure what you would pair it with, especially since it seems like most uses would be to temporarily enhance the ductility of something while you shape it, then make it less malleable in the new shape, so the trade off would only be in play for the manipulation of the object, but for its use. My thought for another property is vital force, in the sense of "the thing that causes spontaneous generation." I'm sure you're familiar with that theory, where frogs and flies and fungus arise spontaneously out of water or food or wood. I'll have to think longer about a good paired attribute for it.

I've re-plotted a particular work 8 or 9 times now, and I finally realized why none of those efforts have solved the problems in the story--i wasn't fixing the part that was actually broken. I had deconstructed the story into its plot elements, when what I needed to do was break it into its emotional beats. As it turns out, I don't think I actually know how to do that (at least not effectively, or I would have by now). So... can anybody recommend a good resource or WE episode to learn better deconstruction techniques?

Does the double eye of the almighty resemble a true biological eye of some Cosmere creature?

Obligatory ninja: I am not fully caught up on the story, but if I wait to post until I am, and until I have all my thoughts in one place, I'll never get a response in. I am enjoying the story immensely, and I have a lot I'd like to say. I'm sorry that I only have time to give you the highlights. Thank you for the well wishes. Our new daughter is doing great. She is the mildest, most patient baby I think I have ever seen. She fusses far less than her brother did, and is basically adorable around the clock. Even so, there is a lot of busyness at our house, and work demands are taking up their share of time as well. For the story, I like nearly everything you've done. I think part 12 and part 16 have been my favorites of the whole thing so far. I am particularly liking the developing respect between Kaladin and Shallan. You have developed that well and sold me on it. In light of that, it felt off to me the way Shallan lit into Kaladin immediately with the insults as they set out on their excursion. It became good-natured later on in the conversation, but that opening salvo was harsh and wasn't triggered by anything more than looking for something to say, and possibly by some lingering "I hate mornings" feeling. I thought they should have been talking at least a little before the put-downs emerged. Also, I am a bit incredulous of Shallan's naivete. Can she really not figure out what "mysterious medical issues" might refer to? Can it possibly take her the better part of an hour to clue into what "expecting" means? I get that she grew up sheltered and without much in the way of womanly or worldly instruction, but this seems to be on the far side of extreme. Tyn was her governess, after all, and she is passably clever about other things. The attack and aftermath are great, and until she climbed out of the tower I kept wondering whether Karsten had perhaps betrayed them to Kabsal and company. I'm not sure if that tension was something you intended, but it was there. I was surprised to find zero corpses as evidence of Kal and Adolin's fight outside. Did the attackers really get away clean except for the one Shallan encountered? It struck me in part 16 just how much the Kaladin-Adolin friendship has progressed, compared to canon SA. The trust and BFF status in this AU are nearly palpable in that scene where Adolin is baring his soul to Shallan, basically within sight and earshot of Kaladin. That dynamic is something I appreciate, and I hope that strength of bond eventually develops in canon. Shallan's backstory is coming through loud and clear to the reader, and with very obvious misapprehension to both Adolin and Kaladin, in different measure. It makes me wonder what Adolin is actually getting out of this conversation. Does he at all realize the feeling she says it with, or what she is saying about herself? And did Kaladin overhear that part? Likewise, how much does Kaladin guess from their "first time you kill a man" conversation? It seems like not much, not yet, but he is clever enough to start putting the pieces together soon. This line really resonated with me. I love it. Somehow, at least to me, it avoids sounding trite or pithy, and jumps straight to meaningful and true. Way to put the real-life feels into it. That may say more about me than about your writing, but it definitely struck a chord. Oh, and S.K. for Shshshs Kholin made me laugh a lot. I'll read the rest soon, and hopefully find time for more feedback.

I'm back and caught up on this thread. (My wife had a baby last week, so I've not been doing much besides that.) Also I feel like I'm not meeting my quota. Is there a minimum ninja requirement for comments in this thread? For the record, I thought there was no ambiguity about Dalinar and Navani being fully intimate. So much has been happening! That last sketch page with the boar--such evocative red blotches! It is really making me think. In the canon Stormlight, that would be a scene from Kal's backstory, but in this AU Shallan drew it. Is this an event from her time at Loch Davar? Is this a story she heard from the Duke? Or (gasp) from the Doctor? I'm excited to find out. I also really like what you've done with the ether drifting. It fits, both the time period and the characters. (And I'm trying to figure out if it will figure into the whole Visions from the Almighty thing--can't decide if I think it should or not.) Agreed. The problem is that many authors (such as myself) don't have the legitimate skills to show off as a character's work. I am impressed that you have the artistic ability to include the sketchbook pages. Thanks for sharing your talents! I think my first set of reactions should be what I thought of your Author's Notes. Maybe it will be helpful to see which things I clued into on my own and which I needed some authorial nudging to catch. Some of the backstory you reveal is (as I'm sure you know) the type that I would expect to be disclosed in-text in a longer work, but is good to share in this sort of short "excerpt." Here are my thoughts, spoilered for length.

Your essays would be a welcome addition to the Coppermind wiki. If you haven't already, take a look at which articles could benefit from what you are planning to write up.

Go ahead! I like to read those things. They may or may not end up included in the Theoryland database, but it would be good to have them here.

Welcome to the forums! I think the analogy is a fair one, and it is a difference in degree more than kind (though there are important differences). The magical abilities of Radiants and the deific powers of Vessels are both due to the piece of power they hold. This power is the source of all magic in the Cosmere, as well as each person's "spark of life"--it all comes from what Brandon had repeatedly described as "pieces of the power of creation." A Shard is much, much larger than a spren, and the KR bond with a spren is more of a partnership than an infusion of power, so I don't think you can safely assume much about one from what you learn of the other, but yes, the analogy is a good one. I suspect that is partly why we ended up with the distinctly confusing terms Shardholder and Shardbearer. The powers (shards and spren) and the roles of those who hold them (Vessels and Radiants) are closely tied together in Brandon's mind and in-world.

I am enjoying the this immensely! Thank you so much for writing this! I am so excited when I see the thread has been updated. I wasn't expecting the sketchbook pages. A welcome inclusion that adds so much :-) What sort of feedback do you want? I don't want to give you plot suggestions or style notes that you aren't looking for.I would especially hate to risk making you think this is less than wonderful by pointing out something negative. Edit: I thought the clysters joke was hilarious, though I was even slower than Adolin since I had to look up what that word meant. You definitely know your period vocabulary, and use it to great effect.

This is the same link that Esais posted above to the audio from the Chicago signing (original post and direct link). The reading starts at 30:45 and goes for 23 min. There was just one reading. The Murder By The Book stop is why it's not the same reading as the Shadows of Self tour:

I also think part of it may be because the Well was underground. That is how I interpret Hoid's use of subastral, as analogous to subterranean. I suspect that at ground level there is less danger of falling through, or at least more chance to catch yourself.

I really like the economics points made by Sheep, but I think the issue of the Davar creditors may have been misconstrued. While the situation may still provide evidence for lack of banks and joint-stock companies, I believe Lin had reasons not to choose those routes even if they were available. Illegal and dangerous about sums it up. Lin was positioning himself to become the next Highprince, an elevation that the Ghostbloods apparently thought he had a shot at achieving. If they weren't perpetrating murders and other illegality on the sidelines to clear his way, I would be very much surprised. The soulcaster they lent him is something he could not have gotten anywhere legitimate. Their use in Vorin culture is tightly restricted to the ardentia, and would certainly have been considered taboo. As sister to the King, Jasnah may be able to "use a soulcaster" despite their objections, but a minor house lord is another matter, especially for the purpose of producing personal wealth. Now that I say this, though, I realize that the soulcasting subterfuge was performed with the express purpose of satisfying his other creditors and keeping the house solvent until the political scheming could pay off. So prior to and apart from the loan of the soulcaster, Lin had already sought out individual creditors (not banks) for loans. So the original interpretation probably still stands.

Just want to mention that I woke up incredibly disappointed this morning. I dreamed that a signing I went to got disrupted by a police raid, so Brandon had to come spend the night at my house. He gave me 20 minutes to ask questions, and I had just pulled out the Ultimate List when I woke up :-(

For the past month or so, if I try to post from the mobile site then none of the bbcode tags I include convert to actual code. Quotes, spoilers, links, and italics all stay as [whatever] text [/whatever] until I go back and edit using the full site (still on my phone), at which point they render correctly. I've tried both Chrome and Firefox and get the same effect. Is this a known issue? Or am I doing something wrong? If it's not an easy fix I can adjust to using the desktop version when needed, but I thought it should be mentioned.

Sheep, this is fabulous. I love your character and world building decisions. I am incredibly excited that not only have there actually been three full episodes, but that more are in the offing! It has been some time since I read any Bronte, etc. but this definitely has the right feel. Well done in many ways! I don't have any problem with it staying here, but if (as I hope) there is quite a bit yet to come, it might be good to give it a dedicated thread. I almost recommend it simply to increase visibility for people who may be skipping over this thread.

We know from various WoB that allomantic bronze can theoretically detect all sorts of "kinetic" investiture, including active Feruchemy. Is there any information on whether a Seeker could sense both storing and tapping similarly? My mental image is that bronze can tell when there is active investiture doing something in a person, but storing an attribute is more or less shunting investiture out of yourself into static storage. It makes me think that storing would be much more difficult to detect, but I can see counter arguments.

Sheep, that was amazing! I very much want to read more of the Regency Archives. Thank you for thoroughly convincing me this genre port is necessary. I eagerly await the next installment. (I presume you are doing this as a serial publication, of which this entry was only the first taste?) @vineyarddawg- thank you for the compliment, and I'm glad you like it. (FYI I am planning to expand it and make an illustrated copy to give Brandon when SA3 comes out.) But I feel compelled to say that you may be suffering from a severe tendency toward hyperbole.

But how do you account for the difficulty in pushing on metalminds? If it is easiest to push on something that is a gateway for investiture, why would extra investiture either mask or shield that thing from your push?

Thank you, botanica and landis. That may destroy a pet theory, but it's good to know. I will have to check out the anthology.

Scadrians are roughly half "of" Preservation and half Ruin. Is this a unique result due to Ati and Leras creating their own planet? Or would you expect individuals on other Shardworlds with multiple invested Shards (such as Sel before Odium's visit) to have roughly equivalent connection to the contributing Shards? (i.e. if I pick a hundred Selish people from back then, will they all be about 50-50 Devotion and Dominion, or will I get a full range with some individuals being nearly all Devotion to others almost fully Dominion)

Here are the questions I would suggest adding to your list, if they interest you: Would a Soother be able to prevent a listener from attuning a given rhythm? If the shades on Threnody stopped enforcing the Simple Rules, would the spread of the Evil from the Homeland be hastened? In WoK Prime there were no spren as part of the world. In that version, where did shardblades come from? If Ruin and Preservation had picked Nalthis or Roshar, instead of Scadrial, would magical abilities on their world still divide into sets of 16? If events hadn't intervened, could Wax and Lessie have had biological children? Aluminum can shield from emotional allomancy. Emotional allomancy is also one way to exploit cracks introduced by hemalurgic spikes. Would someone with a hemalurgic spike made from aluminum be more resistant to external influence than an individual with a different type of spike? If you use two different metals to make a spike (glued together, not alloyed) could that double spike steal two different abilities from the same person? The Rithmatic "Mark's Cross" is a mini circle with two anchoring Lines of Forbiddance that intersect. How does one go about drawing that? It seems as though the first LoF would prevent the formation of the second one. Bands/Secret History: