Date: 2013-02-16
Type: Paraphrased
Location: Milford, NH
Reporter: Viper
Hi guys!
Quick intro:
I’ve been reading Brandon’s books for about a year, and a few months ago I noticed some stuff about his novels. I googled “Hoid” and “Adonalsium” and holy crap what did I find! It felt like I took a bead of what I now know is called “lerasium”.
So anyway, I had tried to read up on stuff on this forum and coppermind, etc, but I am still behind on knowing everything that’s ever been asked/revealed. That in mind, I went to a signing he had tonight in Milford NH (middle of nowhere, right?) and asked him some questions. I also asked if I could post the answers he gave me online, and am respecting his wishes as to what can be said. While there I also met another Sanderson nerd (San-nerd-son?) who I discussed some things with to get his view. I had a list of questions and wrote down Brandon’s answers. Forgive me if any of them have already been answered …
It took me 2 turns through the line to get all my questions answered. All statements are approximations and not direct quotes.
Hi Brandon. Thanks for this … I have like a billion questions so I’ll go through the line as many times as needed to ask them all.
No problem. Why don’t we try to answer some now?
Hah. So in Cosmere, does physics work the same way in the physical realm as it does in our world? Specifically, particle physics; and are atoms made up of protons and neutrons and electrons, and is light photons, etc?
Yes.
So what’s at the core of an atom of Atium? Ate-teum? Also how do you pronounce it? At-teum?
Yes. And the matter is just normal matter, but it’s wrapped in the spiritual. The Spiritual DNA [or something] is what makes it magical.
(Note: he might’ve said slightly more about this but I didn’t write it down and I don’t remember. Sorry for not bringing a tape recorder :(/> )
Ok. The gemhearts/stormgems/whatever that are grown inside the beasts in Way of Kings … is that the same as the way Atium is grown inside geodes in the Pits of Hathsin?
It’s similar. The pits are an area where there’s like a leak from the spiritual realm into the physical. That’s what happens there.
Ok real quick then I’ll get back in line again. There’s a bunch of people who follow this stuff online … I just found out about it … I don’t want to call them a cult, but … So anyway, at one point someone asked you if Seons were shards of—
Aona.
Devotion … yeah Aona, and you said that was close. My question is: are the Aons at the HEART of the Seons shards of Devotion?
No, but close.
But … I was sure … the floating Aon at the heart, that’s not a shard …
(taking pity on me) You’re close but a word is wrong. You’re using the wrong terminology.
SPLINTER. Are the Aons at the heart of Seons SPLINTERS of Aona?
Yes.
Can I post that online?
. . . Ok. That’s fine. It’s been long enough, they’ve earned it.
… Then I waited around 2 hours for another turn, this time with the other dude & his girlfriend. There was another girl there too, so the 4 of us were asking him questions. I don’t remember any questions other than the ones I came up with, so they’ll have to chime in with the questions they had.
Aons look like Arelon; soulstamps look like MaiPon. Aons get weaker when you get further from Arelon, right? That’s not just cause Elantris acts like a focus?
That’s right, it’s based on distance. That’s why there are no stamped objects in Elantris.
So do soulstamps get weaker further from MaiPon? If you left Sel via Shadesmar and went to another planet, would the soulstamp stop working?
That’s correct.
Could soulstamps be carved that used Arelon as a base form instead of MaiPon?
That’s very interesting, isn’t it?
You said that the Pits are a leak from the spiritual into the physical—
A necessary leak.
Ok. Are the spren a similar leak but from the Cognitive?
The next book is going to explore the spren a lot further.
Wyrn can see into the future … is he a follower of Dominion or of Odium? Cause Dominion is shattered, so …
Dominion.
Are we going to find out soon if the Parshendi are actually of Honor?
Yes. (You’ll find out.)
Hoid has a nugget of Lerasium and the Moon Scepter. Does he have a Breath?
It seems quite likely that he would.
This will probably be RAFO’d, but: Is Szeth bound to a spren?
No. He’s not. Haha, I didn’t RAFO that.
Question about timelines—Was Honor splintered BEFORE or AFTER the day of recreance?
You know, I’m going to RAFO that for now.
That was all that we asked him … he seemed tired, so we didn’t want to push it. Afterwards, I still had a few questions, but I didn’t want to be an asshole to him.
My theory now involves Szeth being bound to his oathstone the way Kaladin is bound to Syl; I believe Honor was splintered near Urithiru (which was built “to the west, near Honor”), and I believe that this may have been in Shinovar. That’s how he learned the lashings, etc. But we’ll see.
Ok, that’s it for now. I’ll let you know if I remember anything else …
Peace.
~Viper.
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