Other Book Questionspfchristopher: Why didn't Vin know the Atium bead Zane gave her wasn't real? Cant she sense how big reserves are?Atium reserves always look bigger than they are to an allomancer. It burns so quickly. She just didn’t have enough experience with atium to realize she’d been duped.
mnehring: How did you come up with what metal would give what powers in Mistborn? The metals just worked out right. I see I misunderstood. The assignment of metals to powers was done mostly randomly. I started by trying to mix and match colors and hues, but that ended up not working. I also originally wanted the physical to be more common, and then move toward less common with mental and others. Hence, iron is physical, Gold is mental, [sic] Atium is temporal. The mentals don’t quite fit this, though.
King_Yoshi: How did you come up with the amazing plot twitst at the end of HoA?Honestly, I did it by plotting out all three books at once. It feels right because I’d been planning all along.
joshuapatrao: Do you plan to ever interconnect your worlds or at least allude to past worlds in your books?Hummm. What an odd question. I’d never do that, would I? (Look for Hoid/Adonalsium).
Thistledown: Any plans for a kindle Elantris version? Is The Way of Kings slated for 2010 along with WoT book 2? Now that you've revised WoK, do you think you'll release 2 books next year (WoT and WoK)?Yes, if we can get Amazon to pay attention. (Grr.) And yes, two books next year. WoK and WoT13. 2011 will probably have just one, though. I don’t know if I’ll be able to write the WoK sequel in time.
rrjr010: Would you be willing to take bribes to start "Nightblood" before finishing WoT!?Heh. Nightblood will happen someday. Bribes of cookies or Magic Cards at signings might help. More seriously, I do intend to do this--and post it online as I write it-but it probably won’t be for a few years.
Then you shall have both when you come here this winter. Help turn a few years into six months, right? lol. Well, it can’t hurt. But I DO have a lot on my plate... We’ll see. I want an ELANTRIS sequel out for 2015.
Wow, an Elantris sequel would be awesome too. Where would it fit chronologically after the end of Elantris? Elantris direct sequel would be 10 years later and use Kiin’s children as viewpoint characters living in Fjorden.
Czanos: Would anything interesting happen if an Allomancer Burned a Hemalurgic spike, or a Feruchemist Tapped one? Er, well, it’s possible. But you’d have to be burning a Hemalurgic spike that killed you and took your power... Just like you can’t gain anything by burning a metalmind unless you infused it yourself.
ecurbmp: Any chance of an Elantris or Warbreaker revisit down the road, or are you done with those worlds?I hope to do a 10th aniv. edition of Elantris (revised and updated) in 2015, with a sequel the same year.
Meeeeech: Who would win this three way fight? Vin vs. Vasher vs. Lan? I vote Vin...Depends on how much metal Vin has, how many Breaths Vasher has, and if Lan can get the jump on them. Probably Vin, though Rand would blow her out of the water.
P.S. Vin would lure Rand to Far Madding and take him down.Czanos: If a Feruchemist Taps warmth, does it actually warm them up physically, or do they just feel warmer?It actually warms them. It’s not just a feeling.
Feifner: Can Hoid travel through worlds? or, in other words, are all of your "Hoids" one person?
Well, ‘Hoid’ the name is an alias that a certain person is using, and he stole it from someone else. But the person named Hoid in Elantris, Mistborn, and Warbreaker are all the same individual. For the record, this is not a ‘name cameo.’ This is, indeed, the very same person. Anusien: Why did Lord Ruler not destroy the logbook knowing what trouble Ruin could cause with it?
A few reasons. First, Ruin had his fingers in the LR’s soul by then already. Subtle things are easier to influence. He played off the LR’s natural nostalgia and desire to hold onto something so important to his past.Feifner: Do you think you will ever include dragons in your books?Dragonsteel, a series I’ll do someday, has Dragons in it. Hint: This world/series is very important to Hoid.
General QuestionsRinzi: or visit Albuquerque, NM! I'll work on getting cookie and magic card bribes for you... Ha. I have friends in Albuquerque who keep wanting me to come to Bubonicon. I will visit eventually.
pmrbluepat: Who is your favorite character that you have ever created in any of your books?You ask a tough question. Very tough. I’ll have to say Hoid is my favorite.
jamesgubera: where do you get your inspiration to create new worlds & characters?Inspiriation comes from all over. Often things I see. Color magic in WRBRKR came from watching b/w movies. The mist in mistborn came from driving through a foggy night at 70mph. Sazed came from a Buddhist monk I met in Korea. Sarene came from a friend, Annie, who complained that she was too tall and too smart for men to want to date. If you want more, send me an email and ask for my “Ideas” essay. @PeterAhlstrom will send it to you.
Rinzi: Are there any characters in your books who you actually DON'T like? Does Cadsuane count? (J/K. I love you Cads. Really, don’t beat me up.) I have characters that didn’t bloom like I wanted. Parlin in WRBRKR still itches at me. Could have been done better. I always wished I could give Ham more time in Mistborn. But I can’t think of anyone I don’t like. When I write as someone, as oily as they are, I see life as them.
Fiirvoen: What is your favorite book that you've written and had published? I’d pick MISTBORN 3 if I had to. But TGS and KINGS are both better than it is.
Feifner: Who is your favorite character from The Way of Kings?Favorite character is Lightsong. I had long wanted to do a character who would have fit in an Oscar Wilde play.
If you want to cast Rupert Everett as Lightsong in your head, feel free. [Mistake on Brandon's part? This was the closest match I found.]
onelowerlight: You've obviously read many fantasy authors, but which SF authors have been major influences in your career?I’d say that my biggest SF influences are Asimov and Vinge. I love Asimov’s plots. I love Vinge’s worlds.
joshuapatrao: Have you thought about publishing a short story collection in the future? Would Tor do it? Don’t expect this for many years. And it might end up at a smaller specialty press.
pmrbluepat: Can we hang out sometime? I'll just sit and watch you write, maybe even bring a fruit cake over.Thoughts?Ha.Well, that would be...odd. But I go out to dinner with readers while on tour, if they get a group together.
mossjon: Loving Warbreaker! How do you write women characters so well?A mixture of helpful women friends and a lot of early failures. I’ve found the biggest problem with writing the opposite gender comes when you add them simply be a love interest. Nobody is just a love interest in their own minds. Make them a character first, a plot device second.
Even Elantis had a great woman character. So you must be hiding the early failures. 
And that is why/how you succeed so well. Kudos! Early failures were in the books that didn’t get published. (White Sand’s female lead was cringe-worthy.)
joshuapatrao: Do you read Stephen King? Also, which fantasy tomes would you absolutely recommend reading? King is amazing. Truly a brilliant writer. If anyone hasn’t read, try The Stand or a short story collection. I suggest NAME OF THE WIND, DRAGONSBANE, or anything by Pratchett. Particualrly THE TRUTH. I like Jordan (duh) McCaffrey and Rawn a lot too. Williams’s SORROW AND THORN is great. Others: Tigana, or anything by Kay really, Sabriel by Nix, and the Golden Compass are all excellent.
padmeamanda: As a RJ fan who has never read any of your literature, which of your books should I start reading today?I’d suggest MISTBORN first. WARBREAKER wouldn’t be a bad place to start either, as it’s a stand alone. Mistborn (the first book is called The Final Empire) is a complete trilogy. RJ readers tend to like series.
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goldeneyes05: Do you ever take a break? seems like your always doing something.Went out to dinner with my wife for our anniversary last night. Does that count? The truth is, I love what I do. So if I have time when I’m not doing something else, I work on books.
pfchristopher: Now that you've published more, what order should people read your books in? Both Fntsy & non-fntsy readrs Non fantasy readers I’d give Elantris to first. Fantasy readers I’d give Mistborn to
starrylites: When working with new characters, how do you keep their voices straight in the early writing?It can be hard. I often have to rewrite my first chapters after the book is finished. Practice by having four very different character ride through the same town, but see very different things.
starrylites: Thanks, Brandon! I think I"m going to have to do just that on my currently project; having character meshing problems.JasonMichelsen: What music have you been listening to while writing AMoL?Daft Punk, George Winston, Will Ackerman, OC Remix, Enya, Fotheringham, and Metallica. Among others.
ren833: What is the most important part of writing that you have learned to be a successful author?1) Persistence. 2) Revision. 3) Characters with distinct viewpoints. 4) Use of concrete detail.
goddessladyj: Will you come back to Nebraska soon, please??Coming to Nebraska next year to be Guest of Honor at a sf convention. April, I think.
chrisoubre: what is the largest battle you ever fought with your editor? It was about Lightsong. He and I disagreed on some of the humor. Oddly, we were both right. He was claiming Lightsong wasn’t funny. What he meant was that I was allowing the humor to undermine setting. We came to a balance, and I think that Lightsong is much better for it.
mysterylover12: Where do you get your inspiration? I always have trouble finding things to write aboutIt’s different for everyone. From me, history books help a lot. Try a favorite movie, then at a pivotal point, ask what would happen if it had gone the opposite way.
Cearafetu: Will you come to the DC area some time?I will be at the DC areas, signing at the Baily’s Crossroads Borders, this November for the WoT book release
briansturner: Warbreaker was great, do you feel it benefited from online publishing? & would you publish that way again? It struck me that online pub is a great way to start a series, the first book is free then we are hooked.I don’t know if it helped, but it certainly didn’t hurt. I’ll do it again, probably for the WRBRKR sequel.
bcpeterson: What advice do you give students in your classes about writing? Opinions on 'elements of style'?Whew. I don’t know if I can cover writing advice that extensive on a twitter Q&A. Most of my classroom advice ends up in my writing podcast, Writing Excuses.
http://www.writingexcuses.com/joshuapatrao: Would you ever, if given the chance, do screenwriting, for television or for a film?For instance, I did the initial screenplay concept treatments for ALCATRAZ VS. THE EVIL LIBRARIANS. That’s what got the book sold to Dreamworks Animation. (2013, hopefully. Fingers crossed.) I might do other film screenplays. Not really interested in Television.
nethspace: so, I've seen a scheduled event in Phoenix, AZ this November. Any chance of Flagstaff? Afraid Pheonix is the closest I’ll get to Flagstaff for now. Tor wants to see the turnout in Phoenix first before we go to other places in the state.
JasonMichelsen: What is your typical daily wordcount as far as new material goes?It varries. 10 pages is still my goal. I usually hit it, and sometimes do much more. I write faster at the end of a book than the beginning. Also, some days I write four or five hours--some days I write fourteen or sixteen. Pretty consistently, I’ve done around 300k words a year for the last few years. Last year I pushed very hard and got around 400k.
Danbarbour: Out of everything that you have written, what would you say is your favorite and/or most proud of?The Gathering Storm is, by far, the best--and most difficult--thing I’ve written. It’s what I’m most proud of. For what is published, though, WRBRKR has the best writing of anything I’ve done.
cancer_moon: what's next for you after finishing TWOT? any new worlds in store, or going back to your other ones?Next is getting WoT 13&14, along with the final Alcatraz book. After that, WoK 2 Then, finally, I’ll be able to do some new worlds. I’ve got two in particular I really want to visit.
mnehring: How many new story ideas do you get in a year? How many do you act on?About one or two of those end up as books. But each book is a combination of a dozen or more ideas.
cancer_moon: what author inspired you the most in your writing?Would it be cliched to say Robert Jordan? Because...well, it was Robert Jordan.
chaunceymeade: Any advice for a wannabe writer?Listen to Writing Excuses for more detail
nethspace: So, what do you think of Dot's term “Brandy Sandorow” = Brandon Sanderson + Cory Doctorow?Oh, boy. Brandy Sanderow? Sounds like a hobbit name.
Danbarbour: I just finished warbreaker and need a new book to read.I always have trouble picking a book.Any suggestionsGave some book suggestions below. If you haven’t read Pratchett, Guards Guards is another good place to begin. I liked SERVANT OF A DARK GOD, coming out from Tor next month, I believe. Also, Crystal Rain by Tobias Buckell and A Fire Upon the Deep by Vernor Vinge are great.
DigLazarusDig86: how do you group different ideas into one solid story?Look for conflict. Take the ideas, and try to make them intersect at points of conflict. Don’t let something happen that isn’t personal and important to at least one of the viewpoint characters.
Meeeeech: Which magic system of yours would you be most inclined to use? (Also include channeling!)Probably Feruchemy. The memorization potential would help me be a better writer.
joshuapatrao: Do you think you'll ever develop a language like Tolkien did? Elantris might count, actually, I'm not sure.Maybe. I did a lot of that in White Sand, which didn’t get published. I’ll do more for other books.
greywanderer: Has your Mormon upbringing consciously affected the recurring religious themes of your work?I’d say it is more subconscious. I’m fascinated by religion, all types, because of my upbringing. That’s why you see religion as an antagonist in my books. Also, my religion has shaped how I see morality--and therefore, how many of my characters do.
pmrbluepat: Any movie deals on the horizon?... I would particularly like to see WRBRKR. I have movies in the works for both Mistborn and Alcatraz.
ScottTRogers: How do you set up your workday for writing and getting all of your other "work" done?I try to break it up and do things in several hour chunks. Writing during some, email others. The honest truth is, I usually end up ignoring other stuff and just writing. This is why I need an assistant.
RedefineBeauty: are you going to do a tour in the midwest ever? *Cough*cough* chicago *cough*cough*Hopefully! My publicist is watching this, so maybe your plea will encourage her....
raveire: what do you think the relationship between governent and religion is?I like separation of church and state because it protects all of us. But I like it best when religion stays out of politics directly.
txkyle: Any chances you'll do any future book-signing tours in Texas? (Houston, please!)I will be there 2011, as I mentioned.
http://www.condfw.org/Ethan1072: What do you do to relax?Also, the funny thing is, writing IS relaxing for me. (Which makes me just about the luckiest guy ever.)
yagiz: Which one comes first? The story or the setting (world, races, magic sys, etc) or do they emerge together? It depends on the book. For Mistborn, setting was first. For Warbreaker, characters. It’s very hard to pinpoint, though, since I don’t start writing until I’ve developed all three.
Ryshon: what kind of avg pagecount were you able to put out daily when working as a part time writer?I was a special case, as I intentionally picked a job where I could write at work. I shot for 2000 words a day. I suggest to new writers that 2k a week be a minimum. That gives you a book in about a year.
mysterylover12: Are you doing any signings in SLC soon? I’ll be in Provo the 11th and SLC sometime in August.
