Theoryland of the Wheel of Time

We also meet three other people who can travel between the worlds, two of whom we've met before (one in Elantris and one in Mistborn), who are apparently trying to track Hoid down.

Brilliant, just brilliant.

robdizzledeets

This really makes me excited to meet Blunt from Dragonsteel.

Blunt is NOT from Dragonsteel. :)

You gave me really good wiggle room on that one. Obviously the other person with Galladon and Demoux.

Chris King (Miyabi)

Right, the one from a future book.

Brandon Sanderson

His characteristics are… What is he like? Some people have read his book so they know what he's like…

Chris King (Miyabi)

Which book is he from?

Brandon Sanderson

He's from White Sand.

Chris King (Miyabi)

Okay, that's one I have but have not gotten to.

Brandon Sanderson

It's only mediocre so don't worry about it. Let's see what other worldhoppers I want to give you clues about… There’s a Terriswoman running around, if you keep your eyes open.

Chris King (Miyabi)

I have to read it, everything.

Brandon Sanderson

Who else do I want to talk about… Words of Radiance has a couple good ones, that will be pretty obvious.

You do know that I've got a character in one of the books named Bowen? [Clarification: My name is Bowen. He said this while personalizing our books]

Herowannabe

Really?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. He's actually been in the books so far, but not by name. He's one of the Worldhoppers. If you go look and talk to them they may have identified him, some people who have read.

Herowannabe

Thank you for naming a character after me!

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. I did it. He's from White Sand. I wrote the book in '98. Yeah, he's one of the Purelake guys.

Herowannabe

Is he Blunt?

Brandon Sanderson

Yeah, yeah. [...] (later) So yeah, Bowen, you'll have to see because when I redid the linguistics for the world, his name I think got changed. I think it's now Baon. But in the very first draft of the very first book I ever wrote his name was Bowen. And the reason I think I changed it - is because he's a bowman. And I'm like I can't name the bowman—the archer—Bowen. That's kinda dumb. But in my head he's still Bowen.

Herowannabe

Anyway, my question...

Vasher misses Nightblood and feels responsible for him.

Rhandric

How many worldhoppers have we seen?

Brandon Sanderson

Oh, I haven't kept track, you've seen quite a few. There's one from Mistborn, did you catch him? I don't think people have really picked out the Terriswoman yet, who makes her way into them, but they're mostly not supposed to be noticeable yet, until you get to know them as characters and you look back and be like "oh that was that person."

Rhandric

Is it the Terriswoman I think it is?

Brandon Sanderson

I don't know which Terriswoman you think it is.

Rhandric

Tindwyl?

Brandon Sanderson

No.

Kurkistan

Speaking of the Terriswoman, is she the nurse in Warbreaker?

Brandon Sanderson

< Pauses; gleefully says > RAAAAAAFO!

Hehehe, good question!

Question

Has she already popped up?

Brandon Sanderson

She has not already popped up.

Question

So she's not a Radiant. Or is she?

Brandon Sanderson

You have not seen her on screen yet, other than in her story.

We're working on a graphic novel of it right now.

Question

Who's gonna do the art?

Brandon Sanderson

We have four or five people who have sent us pitches, and we are looking through them to decide who we want to use.

Question

Can you put me in one of your novels? I'm a three-fingered Irishman who speaks four languages.

Brandon Sanderson

Okay, write me an email that says "I'm a three-fingered Irishman who speaks four languages," we'll see what we can do. [...] Who did you think Hoid was, in White Sand?

Question

Hoid is not a real person, he did not start life as [can't make out].

Brandon Sanderson

No, who did you think he was in White Sand?

Question

I don't know yet, I'm not that far.

Yes.

(He thought for a moment first and then said that. I think its more complicated.)

Did the Lord Ruler know how to worldhop?

He was familiar with the idea that people lived on other planets, but had no interest—or experience—in visiting other places. During his Ascension, he could have left Scadrial, if he'd wished.

Hoid has indeed gotten between worlds before through Shadesmar.

Question

And would you be willing to give us a hint as to how he does that?

Brandon Sanderson

There are hints in the books. There is a hint in the very first cosmere book I released [Elantris]. Which I thought was a huge hint, but so far I haven't seen anyone talking about it.

Argent

Really?

Brandon Sanderson

Mmhmm. I thought that once people started figuring the cosmere, they would see the massive in-your-face hint I put in that book, but so far, as far as I know, no one has. [Some chat about Brandon's tendency to drop sneaky hints and how he likes doing that] Now, the one [hint] about the map, that one I don't think is obvious. I know people have been trying to figure it out. It's something fun once you figure it out, but it's not something huge and obvious. The Elantris once was, like, enormously "HIIINT!"

Yes.

leiftinspace

Can non-invested people do that, or do you have to have some form of investiture?

Brandon Sanderson

[Hesitantly] Every individual is invested to some extent...

leiftinspace

Do you have to have any special investiture above and beyond the normal spark of life?

Brandon Sanderson

I'm gonna go ahead and RAFO that.

Yes, he's been to a few planets, highly supervised by his babsk.

Question (Paraphrased)

So what planet is she [Iyatil] from?

Brandon Sanderson

Well, that's kind of a hard thing to say. She has three planets she's "from". For example, she's living now on Roshar, but then she's from a different planet, but that's not the planet that her people are from.

Question (Paraphrased)

So there was a mass exodus to that planet?

Brandon Sanderson

Not exactly. If you were to find a Japanese American, where would they say that they are from? Her people did not have a mass exodus.

Question (Paraphrased)

Have we seen mass exoduses before?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, there are some in the cosmere. There's a mass exodus that is mentioned in one of the interludes in The Way of Kings.

There are not a set number, I know all the main ones though.

Question

But you are not going to [audio obscured]

Brandon Sanderson

You'll know them all better by the time you have read more books.

You'll have to ask her, just somehow get to the planet and you can hang out.

Question

Okay, tell me how to do that?

Brandon Sanderson

Well... you've got to get one of the magics or find one of the Perpendiculars-- the Perpendicularities...

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Question

And does it have to do with Connection.

Brandon Sanderson

Ah… [sigh] Yes, but not the way you’re thinking. I’m wiggling out of... Yes, it has to do with Connection, but so does a dog. Cause a dog is Connected to things. [laughs in the audience] You said “does it have to do with”! The answer is yes. [more laughs]

Djarskublar

They are a gold Twinborn, so they can tap a lot of gold...

Brandon Sanderson

They can tap a whole bunch, that's true, they can do that, but simply having it is not gonna create a spren because the spren is from a different god, right, a different Shard.

Djarskublar

So if they had Regrowth cast on them, would that do it?

Brandon Sanderson

hems and haws for a second.

Djarskublar

A really, really big Regrowth like in the middle of a Highstorm.

Brandon Sanderson

Hmmm, this, you are getting to the realm of plausibility at that point. I still don't think gold is the way to do it. I think you just get all that Investiture. It would become sapient by you sticking a whole bunch of Investiture, and then you can bond to that. But it's not like people gain what you would have done. Does that make sense? That's just what's going to happen, is you're gonna, you can create a, potentially create a spren that way, but you are more likely to end up with something like Nightblood. But you could potentially create a spren, but I mean you're just gonna end up...

Djarskublar

So there are more optimal ways to do that?

Brandon Sanderson

Yes, go bond a spren. (evil grin of course)

Djarskublar

But you can't easily bond multiple, and if you did this you could maybe get multiple.

Brandon Sanderson

Nyeaaahhh... The spren still has to choose. If you want to be a Surgebinder, the choice is being made. You can't fake your way into it. Decision and Honor are too much a part of Surgebinding for you to be able to fake your way into that. Other magics you might be able to do that. Other magics that don't require, like, Surgebinding works because a piece of Honor or Cultivation or a mix has chosen you specifically. There is will from the actual Investiture involved in it in Roshar.

Djarskublar

Okay.

Brandon Sanderson

So it's not something you can cheat your way into, right. But cheating your way into Breath might be easier, right.

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