Theoryland of the Wheel of Time

The Eternal Question: Mac or PC?

Joshua_Patrao

Brandon Sanderson

Joshua_Patrao

Brandon Sanderson

Joshua_Patrao

Brandon Sanderson

Joshua_Patrao

Brandon Sanderson

Joshua_Patrao

Brandon Sanderson

Yes. I use various Pandora stations for different moods.

Right now, it's one based on Tangerine Dream.

I usually have to listen to music. For some reason, I don't like the silence; I like something going. And so I usually...I generate Pandora stations based around different moods, and I'll turn them on for different sequences and different scenes. At some points, I will just pick out specific bands that I have music by, and I'll play that, depending on what I need to be writing. And so, yeah...there's a lot of different things, but it's often just Pandora-ish sort of backgroundy generic sort of things.

I do like...during my early years writing, I listened to a lot of what we call OverClocked remixes, because they were great. [cheers, applause] Game music—video game music—that were remixed into different orchestrations and stuff. And I was too poor to buy a lot of music, so I went and grabbed those, and so I still have many favorites among those.

Chris Wells

Okay, and then...just...because you two have created something so wonderful that has changed my life—it's my very favorite series—I made something for each of you. (holds up two necklaces) These are Amyrlin chains. They follow the seven colors of the Ajahs in the pattern of the Amyrlin's stole, and they are made from anodized aluminum. I made one of these for Harriet, and one for Brandon. [applause]

Brandon Sanderson

Thank you.

Harriet McDougal

Thank you!

Yes. I will use music to inspire me if I'm having a hard time or need a specific punch. Other times, I generally just have Pandora going on a station with lots of classical and electronica. I'm a huge fan of Daft Punk, however, and will use Alive (the live album) to get me in the right mood for some scenes. Soundtracks are great too. Anything by Michael Kamen can usually get me into the right mood for writing. Harry Gregson-Williams is another go-to composer for me.

Oh, and I almost forgot. I love OC Remixes as well. I tend to listen to a lot of them while planning stories while I run on an exercise Machine. One of my favorites is here.

Did you own Thriller by Michael Jackson in the 80s?

I did own Thriller, I can proudly say. Great album. I have a very distinct memory of my brother Jordan and I in the old house we had. I was younger than ten, and we were sitting at the kitchen table staring at a cassette player and listening to "Beat It". I remember the two of us just being in awe of this cool music. Mom walked in, tried to figure out what the lyrics were, and said, "What is this?" She was used to us listening to kids' music, and suddenly we'd discovered Michael Jackson! She was just kind of flabbergasted that her boys were growing up and discovering pop music. My brother went on to get the Thriller video for his birthday that year.

Hey Brandon once upon a time you posted Final Fantasy X song "To Zarkanad" on your Facebook page and said it was perfect for the scene you were writing in A Memory of Light, so tell me if you remember which scene was that?

It was the last few scenes I was working on, Perrin after the Last Battle and a few of the Loial sequences in the epilogue, which were parts I had a hand in writing as opposed to putting in what RJ had written.