Brandon Sanderson: There's always another secret project.

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The Book Barn > Brandon Sanderson: There's always another secret project.

«‹›532 »

Eric the Mauve: May 8, 2012; Making you happy for a buck since 199X

Heh, somehow I never noticed until just now what unfortunate initials Brandon Sanderson has.

# ? Jun 20, 2013 21:26

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 16, 2024 19:15

Quantum Toast: Feb 13, 2012

Sherringford posted:

I wouldn't worry about him burning out, it seems like he has a lot of fun writing. In one podcast he did he said he had to remind himself to set aside time for reading because writing gave him the same sort of feeling but 'a higher buzz' or something like that. I think it's more likely that he breaks his wrist writing so much than if he burns out.
...Actually that sounds like a realistic possibility considering sometimes I blink and find out he wrote another book when I open my eyes.

Yeah, this is a guy who takes a break from writing books by writing different books. I'd be surprised if he can burn out.

# ? Jun 20, 2013 22:38

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Death by inhaling Magic booster pack fumes. What a shame.

# ? Jun 20, 2013 23:04

computer parts: Nov 18, 2010; PLEASE CLAP

Quantum Toast posted:

Yeah, this is a guy who takes a break from writing books by writing different books. I'd be surprised if he can burn out.

Dude is going to live to 95 and in his retirement is going to finish Tolkien's mythos.

# ? Jun 21, 2013 16:32

VAGENDA OF MANOCIDE: Aug 1, 2004; whoa, what just happened here?; College Slice

computer parts posted:

Dude is going to live to 95 and in his retirement is going to finish Tolkien's mythos.

Gonna have to claw it out of Chris's cold dead hands first.

# ? Jun 22, 2013 03:46

Fezz: Aug 31, 2001; You should feel ashamed.

New words of radiance chapter

I believe this has been floating out there, but here's an official source for the Taravangian interlude chapter.

Looks like Brandon turned in the first draft. So it should be out sometime early next year.

# ? Jul 5, 2013 19:03

Tunicate: May 15, 2012

Fezz posted:

New words of radiance chapter

I believe this has been floating out there, but here's an official source for the Taravangian interlude chapter.

Looks like Brandon turned in the first draft. So it should be out sometime early next year.

Apparently they're haggling over the date in January atm.

# ? Jul 5, 2013 19:47

Charlz Guybon: Nov 16, 2010

Tunicate posted:

Good news, Radiance is planned to be shorter than Way of Kings.

Bad? news: It's currently 1650 pages in draft form.

That just means he'll have a head start on book 3! :downs:

Tunicate posted:

Apparently they're haggling over the date in January atm.

That's way to far away.

# ? Jul 13, 2013 05:33

ShadowGlass: Nov 13, 2012

Tunicate posted:

Good news, Radiance is planned to be shorter than Way of Kings.

Bad? news: It's currently 1650 pages in draft form.

Those are manuscript pages, not book pages. It's already shorter than Way of Kings by word count, and he usually cuts around 10% during revisions.

# ? Jul 15, 2013 10:05

Cartoon Man: Jan 31, 2004

Here's a great interview about Steelheart. Its a little spoilery, but if you're interested in the book at all, its nothing major. It just sets up the city and a little backstory on the villain.

http://www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/54338

quote:

I hate to admit it but Steelheart is the first book I have read by Brandon Sanderson. That being said it will not be my last. There is no doubt that readers of all ages will love it. Taken into an alternate reality where people with superpowers (known as Epics) splinter the world into their own domains, one young man loses the person he loves most. In that moment, he discovers that this Epic, Steelheart, can be hurt and he is determined to hurt him again.

BTW�Brandon�s answers below are a transcription from audio he recorded specifically for Big Shiny Robot. Enjoy!

What was your inspiration for Steelheart?

I was on book tour, running late to meet my editor in Pittsburgh. My phone was dead, I�d forgotten my charger, and was rushing along, when someone cut me off in traffic. I got very annoyed at this person, which is not something I normally do. I�m usually pretty easygoing, but this time I thought: �You�re lucky I don�t have super powers, guy-who-just-cut-me-off, because if I did, I�d totally blow up your car right now.� Then I thought: �That�s horrifying that I would even think of doing that to a random stranger!�

Anytime that I get horrified like that makes me realize that there�s a story there somewhere. So I spent the rest of that drive thinking about what would really happen if I had super powers. Would I go out and be a hero, or would I just start doing whatever I wanted to? Would it be a good thing or a bad thing? I came up with a world where people become what I call Epics. They gain super powers, but they use them in the wrong ways, like I was tempted to do when that car cut me off. That spun me into the story. How would normal people fight against these individuals with awesome powers? How would the country deal with them?

What type of world did you set out to build in Steelheart?

Even though I feel like Steelheart is in the action movie genre, there�s still a slight post-apocalyptic feel to it. I wanted a unique take on this sort of world, so I avoided empty wastelands in favor of populated areas�crowded and busy, not empty and desolate. I picked a population center, Chicago, and went from there. In a moment of passion, the Epic called Steelheart turned the entire city into steel, immortalizing and fossilizing it, like the husk of something dead. People still live there. They�ve built houses on top of the steel, or beneath the steel. They�re burrowing in it, using some of the technology to make steel catacombs beneath the city. The world is in chaos, and even though Steelheart, as the emperor of Chicago, rules the city with an iron fist, at least here there�s some order. It�s oppressive, terrible order, but it is order nonetheless. I hope all this makes for a fun, futuristic, yet post-apocalyptic city that feels different from anything you�ve read before.

With so many superhero comics running for so long, did you ever run into problems with originality in writing the book?

Again, Steelheart is an action book. It deals less with the superhero tradition and more with the story of ordinary characters trying to take down Steelheart. Still, I am evoking some of those superhero concepts, so I did run into some of the issues you�re talking about.

For example, I found that a lot of potential names for superheroes and super villains have been used a dozen times by DC or Marvel over the years, so coming up with original names was difficult. Finding original uses of powers was also very difficult for the same reason. I had to scratch into nooks and crannies to discover things I hadn�t seen done extensively before.

I do enjoy the comic form, but�outside of some of the indies�I find I don�t often get complete storylines in the way that I would like to. One of the things I want to do with Steelheart is to create a complete story with a distinct beginning, middle, and end. I do hope that I�ve been able to clear some new paths and add something distinctive to the genre. At the end of the day, though, I was just trying to tell an awesome story.

Some people may say that stories about superheroes are predominantly highly-colorful, action-packed, but most of all a visual experience � how can you get over this with a prose novel? What does prose bring to the table that �comics� can�t � or don�t?

Excellent question. I�ve thought about this quite a bit and have a few of my own theories about the novel as form. What can novels do that films can�t? The trick is to highlight what a novel can do. For example, more so than in visual media, novels allow you to really dig into character thoughts, emotions, and motivations. Steelheart is told from the first-person viewpoint of the main character David. In doing that, I can really dig into who David is as a character and have the way he describes the world inform us about him. Granted, a good comic is going to give you some of this, but there just isn�t a lot of space for words. The more thoughts you add in comics, the more the reader just wants you to move on with the story. There are different strengths to the different mediums of storytelling, but one of the strengths of the novel is its ability to showcase character.

Assuming that Steelheart is on screen at some point (I think it will be)- is that something you�re looking towards? Something you�d want to script, or just sell the rights and allow the different medium to tell the tale its own way?

I feel the best film adaptations are those that are more strongly adapted. I love when filmmakers are respectful of the source material, but when they try to stick too closely to it, I feel that the films aren�t as good. I would love to be involved in making a film, but not having practiced the screenwriting skillset as much as I have novel writing, my instincts are to find people I trust to make a good film and allow them to use their talents to adapt the novel.

# ? Jul 18, 2013 23:29

Superstring: Jul 22, 2007; I thought I was going insane for a second.

I like that the impetus for Steelheart basically starts from the same place as a Louis C.K. bit.

# ? Jul 19, 2013 01:25

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Superstring posted:

I like that the impetus for Steelheart basically starts from the same place as a Louis C.K. bit.

Spoiler: Steelheart gets a man to eat an entire bag of dicks. Like, the whole thing.

# ? Jul 19, 2013 04:47

Democratic Pirate: Feb 17, 2010

So, uh, Sanderson writes a whole lot :stare:

http://www.brandonsanderson.com/blog/1186/State-of-the-Sanderson

# ? Jul 24, 2013 23:40

Superstring: Jul 22, 2007; I thought I was going insane for a second.

Jesus Christ, that's 17 books in planning or some stage of development/writing.

# ? Jul 25, 2013 00:34

Zila: Jun 21, 2013

Tunicate posted:

Apparently they're haggling over the date in January atm.

I can't wait, I'll have to reread the first one for the 3rd time before then.

He posted that he wants to keep them 18-24 months apart, hopefully he can keep to that. He has so many books hes working on and switching between, he must be a machine.

# ? Jul 25, 2013 01:14

VAGENDA OF MANOCIDE: Aug 1, 2004; whoa, what just happened here?; College Slice

I'm still waiting for Death by Pizza.

# ? Jul 25, 2013 01:44

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Dammit Brandon, don't make me buy a GRRM anthology for a taste of a new Cosmere world :ohdear:

# ? Jul 25, 2013 07:00

Fezz: Aug 31, 2001; You should feel ashamed.

Well, since it's only one story you could just read it in the bookstore. Or check it out at your local library.

# ? Jul 25, 2013 20:43

Xachariah: Jul 26, 2004

Superstring posted:

Jesus Christ, that's 17 books in planning or some stage of development/writing.

He says there that part of the reason he's so productive is because he jumps between various works repeatedly. Seems like a good way to stave off writer's block.

# ? Jul 26, 2013 03:10

Wolpertinger: Feb 16, 2011

I like how he's trying for a Steelheart movie, and somehow managed to get a producer 'very engaged and very excited' about it even though it hasn't even been released as a book yet.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 05:50

Mahlertov Cocktail: Mar 1, 2010; I ate your Mahler avatar! Hahahaha!

Wolpertinger posted:

I like how he's trying for a Steelheart movie, and somehow managed to get a producer 'very engaged and very excited' about it even though it hasn't even been released as a book yet.

You mean it hasn't been published. If a producer is that interested in a property, he probably got an advance copy.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 12:33

Fezz: Aug 31, 2001; You should feel ashamed.

Mahlertov Cocktail posted:

You mean it hasn't been published. If a producer is that interested in a property, he probably got an advance copy.

Yeah, books are announced as having movie deals before being published all the time.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 18:46

Chexoid: Nov 5, 2009; Now that I have this dating robot I can take it easy.

So I just finished Warbreaker and it was good, but is Sanderson aware that he has one of this characters go Super Saiyan at the end. Like, he literally is described as glowing then getting huge muscles and yellow hair.

When I read that I was like "loL"

Chexoid fucked around with this message at 21:48 on Jul 27, 2013

# ? Jul 27, 2013 21:44

ConfusedUs: Feb 24, 2004; Bees?
You want fucking bees?
Here you go!
ROLL INITIATIVE!!

Chexoid posted:

So I just finished Warbreaker and it was good, but is Sanderson aware that he has one of this characters go Super Saiyan at the end. Like, he literally is described as glowing then getting huge muscles and yellow hair.

When I read that I was like "loL"

Almost certainly. He's a huge nerd.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 21:46

Troll Bridgington: Dec 22, 2011; Keeping up foreign relations.

Chexoid posted:

So I just finished Warbreaker and it was good, but is Sanderson aware that he has one of this characters go Super Saiyan at the end. Like, he literally is described as glowing then getting huge muscles and yellow hair.

When I read that I was like "loL"

I haven't read Warbreaker yet, but now I want to buy it.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 22:20

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Chexoid posted:

So I just finished Warbreaker and it was good, but is Sanderson aware that he has one of this characters go Super Saiyan at the end. Like, he literally is described as glowing then getting huge muscles and yellow hair.

When I read that I was like "loL"

That wasn't Super Saiyan, that was a White/Green player gaining 40 life and giving his main beast +8/+8 and Trample.

Remember, he's a very particular kind of nerd.

# ? Jul 27, 2013 22:42

NinjaDebugger: Apr 22, 2008

404GoonNotFound posted:

That wasn't Super Saiyan, that was a White/Green player gaining 40 life and giving his main beast +8/+8 and Trample.

Remember, he's a very particular kind of nerd.

To be fair, he is also an anime nerd, as I recall, it's just not as visible as his Magic addiction.

# ? Jul 28, 2013 01:59

Grundulum: Feb 28, 2006

404GoonNotFound posted:

That wasn't Super Saiyan, that was a White/Green player gaining 40 life and giving his main beast +8/+8 and Trample.

Remember, he's a very particular kind of nerd.

What card is this a reference to? I stopped playing Magic about 12-13 years ago, and my friends and I would have dismissed such a card as baseless fantasy (while secretly hoping to own the only legit copy ever printed). What the hell kind of ridiculous power creep has been happening in my absence?

# ? Jul 28, 2013 07:21

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Grundulum posted:

What card is this a reference to? I stopped playing Magic about 12-13 years ago, and my friends and I would have dismissed such a card as baseless fantasy (while secretly hoping to own the only legit copy ever printed). What the hell kind of ridiculous power creep has been happening in my absence?

Not one particular card, but Brandon loves comparing story elements to Magic: The Gathering, such as pointing out that the Lord Ruler was using a two cards from different sets for an Infinite Life combo.

# ? Jul 28, 2013 07:22

Tunicate: May 15, 2012

404GoonNotFound posted:

Not one particular card, but Brandon loves comparing story elements to Magic: The Gathering, such as pointing out that the Lord Ruler was using a two cards from different sets for an Infinite Life combo.

That sounds interesting. I heard that he statted out nightblood as well.

# ? Jul 28, 2013 13:50

Streebs: Dec 6, 2003; RIP

Cover for Words of Radiance: http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/07/brandon-sanderson-words-of-radiance-cover-reveal-michael-whelan

Looks pretty cool.

# ? Jul 29, 2013 19:49

404GoonNotFound: Aug 6, 2006; The McRib is back!?!?

Tonight, the role of Kaladin will be played by Michael Biehn.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 01:16

Democratic Pirate: Feb 17, 2010

The scene that cover is depicting is going to be awesome.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 01:50

Cartoon Man: Jan 31, 2004

gently caress that, put Szeth on the front cover instead of the back.

:black101:

# ? Jul 30, 2013 02:46

Ethiser: Dec 31, 2011

Spoilers I guess. Are Kaladin and Szeth part of the same order of the Knights Radiant or do they have slightly different powers?

# ? Jul 30, 2013 03:59

Subvisual Haze: Nov 22, 2003; The building was on fire and it wasn't my fault.

Ethiser posted:

Spoilers I guess. Are Kaladin and Szeth part of the same order of the Knights Radiant or do they have slightly different powers?

Kaladin and Szeth have the same group of powers, gravity and air pressure, which are the powers of the Windrunner order of Knights Radiant. Technically Kaladin isn't a true KR yet, and who knows what horrible thing Szeth did to an honorspren to get his abilities, so neither is really is Knights Radiant member.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 05:32

Xenix: Feb 21, 2003

keiran_helcyan posted:

Kaladin and Szeth have the same group of powers, gravity and air pressure, which are the powers of the Windrunner order of Knights Radiant. Technically Kaladin isn't a true KR yet, and who knows what horrible thing Szeth did to an honorspren to get his abilities, so neither is really is Knights Radiant member.

It's been a while since I read WoK, but didn't Szeth follow his peoples' code of honor to a fault? He was sold as a slave for some crime but believed he must endure the punishment and his owners despite loathing what they had him do, loathing himself because he did it, and having the means to end his captivity at any time. They are honor spren and not morality spren, after all.

Xenix fucked around with this message at 06:18 on Jul 30, 2013

# ? Jul 30, 2013 06:13

Sulphagnist: Oct 10, 2006; WARNING! INTRUDERS DETECTED

Streebs posted:

Cover for Words of Radiance: http://www.tor.com/blogs/2013/07/brandon-sanderson-words-of-radiance-cover-reveal-michael-whelan

Looks pretty cool.

I'm waiting for the UK cover which is hopefully gonna be stylistically congruent with the previous Sanderson covers, and which I much prefer to US covers.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 06:22

Benson Cunningham: Dec 9, 2006; Chief of J.U.N.K.E.R. H.Q.

Antti posted:

I'm waiting for the UK cover which is hopefully gonna be stylistically congruent with the previous Sanderson covers, and which I much prefer to US covers.

No one who has thoughts and sight is going to argue the UK cover are unilaterally better than US covers.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 06:35

Adbot: ADBOT LOVES YOU

# ? Apr 16, 2024 19:15

Ethiser: Dec 31, 2011

Xenix posted:

It's been a while since I read WoK, but didn't Szeth follow his peoples' code of honor to a fault? He was sold as a slave for some crime but believed he must endure the punishment and his owners despite loathing what they had him do, loathing himself because he did it, and having the means to end his captivity at any time. They are honor spren and not morality spren, after all.

Didn't in the latter Szeth sections he start having less reservations about committing acts that were against his people's way of life. I seem to remember him having some inner monologue about not being bothered by walking on stone anymore.

# ? Jul 30, 2013 06:50

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > The Book Barn > Brandon Sanderson: There's always another secret project.

«‹›532 »