Ask the Author: Brent Weeks
Answered Questions (60)
Brent Weeks
Yes! I was just talking with my editor a couple days ago about a proposed deadline for a Night Angel world book, which I probably shouldn’t tell you anything about at this point.
Chicken is chicken, but beef really depends on what beef you’re talking about. I take mine with Kobe steak, naturally.
Tricky subliminal assertion that they don’t have enough funding yet?
Chicken is chicken, but beef really depends on what beef you’re talking about. I take mine with Kobe steak, naturally.
Tricky subliminal assertion that they don’t have enough funding yet?
Brent Weeks
I think having Gavin Guile charm him into it and make him think it was his own idea might be a better tactic.
Brent Weeks
I would choose Paul of Tarsus for the readership and master of compound complex sentences; Ernest Hemingway to rein in Paul of Tarsus and bring the party; and Brandon Sanderson to make sure we met our deadlines!
Brent Weeks
Fresh ingredients. Not too much sauce. Courage. The kind of passion Tom Cruise has for his elevator shoe collection. And it has to be responsible for the same number of deaths as a modest medieval plague. And it has to come from a city that starts with the letter N.
Brent Weeks
Is your childhood arch-nemesis Joe Abercrombie?
Brent Weeks
Where you should start depends on if you like lighter or darker stories, and how much fantasy you've read, and how much you can tolerate waiting for the last book of a series. The Night Angel Trilogy is darker, but gets going faster, and is simpler. It's also finished. Lightbringer is more complicated, more polished, and not yet done. I think I'm a lot better writer now than I was when I wrote Night Angel, but that story still has a rawness and power that many readers still prefer.
If you disagree that these are the most amazing books you've ever read, you won't have to do anything. Your daughter-in-law will do it for me!
If you disagree that these are the most amazing books you've ever read, you won't have to do anything. Your daughter-in-law will do it for me!
Brent Weeks
Ah, new fan! Lovely, lovely. Welcome to the fold. The alms box is right over there. Confessions are available at a low, low rate.
I'm a few quid shy of the $100 million I would need to personally finance a Night Angel TV show or movie, so at some point you sign the papers and you hope for the best. A very few authors are able to retain any creative control at all. But those authors aren't just bestsellers, they're mega-bestsellers. Am I interested though? Sure. If they came along and told me the right lies, and signed a large enough check, I would probably convince myself that I believed them.
My favorite wrestler is, of course, Big Show. He's the only one who let my daughter play with all of his TV remotes!
I'm a few quid shy of the $100 million I would need to personally finance a Night Angel TV show or movie, so at some point you sign the papers and you hope for the best. A very few authors are able to retain any creative control at all. But those authors aren't just bestsellers, they're mega-bestsellers. Am I interested though? Sure. If they came along and told me the right lies, and signed a large enough check, I would probably convince myself that I believed them.
My favorite wrestler is, of course, Big Show. He's the only one who let my daughter play with all of his TV remotes!
Brent Weeks
Glad you're enjoying my work!
I've actually got a writing advice column over here, which you may find useful. http://www.brentweeks.com/extras/writ... Good luck with your writing!
I've actually got a writing advice column over here, which you may find useful. http://www.brentweeks.com/extras/writ... Good luck with your writing!
Brent Weeks
Yes I do have other stories! In fact, I almost posted the beginning of what may be my next novel. But my assistant told me that would be a bad choice. Yes, always lots of ideas rattling around. It's more a question of making the decision of which one to pursue.
The dirt clod incident comes from my brother's early dabbling in astrophysics, wherein he was attempting to see if his right arm had sufficient power to propel an eight ounce dirt clod into low earth orbit. The experiment was, sadly, a failure.
The dirt clod incident comes from my brother's early dabbling in astrophysics, wherein he was attempting to see if his right arm had sufficient power to propel an eight ounce dirt clod into low earth orbit. The experiment was, sadly, a failure.
Brent Weeks
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)
Brent Weeks
I love chick lit! I suggest Jane Eyre, or Anna Karenina if you're looking for a good cry.
Brent Weeks
Yo Patrick,
Are you the guy I met at that thing? You know, where George was? Or was that a different Lachner?
I wouldn't be surprised if Orbit does some sort of combined edition or boxed set at least of Lightbringer. More likely, a boxed set. You may have noticed that The Lightbringer books have been a smidge longer than The Night Angel books were. With The Night Angel Omnibus (all three books in one), when I wanted to add a glossary, the production people had to check if adding those 50 pages would break the spine. Literally.
The Night Angel books were 155K to 170K words, The Lightbringer books have been 200-300,000 words. I just passed 165,000 words in The Blood Mirror, and I hope I'm halfway done. So... putting all of those in one volume may not be quite feasible. (Also, they never ask me about these things.)
Sriracha. Mostly because of how it's spelled.
Like my hero, Shakespeare, according to Dr. Johnson, I "know little Latin, and less Greek." ;)
Are you the guy I met at that thing? You know, where George was? Or was that a different Lachner?
I wouldn't be surprised if Orbit does some sort of combined edition or boxed set at least of Lightbringer. More likely, a boxed set. You may have noticed that The Lightbringer books have been a smidge longer than The Night Angel books were. With The Night Angel Omnibus (all three books in one), when I wanted to add a glossary, the production people had to check if adding those 50 pages would break the spine. Literally.
The Night Angel books were 155K to 170K words, The Lightbringer books have been 200-300,000 words. I just passed 165,000 words in The Blood Mirror, and I hope I'm halfway done. So... putting all of those in one volume may not be quite feasible. (Also, they never ask me about these things.)
Sriracha. Mostly because of how it's spelled.
Like my hero, Shakespeare, according to Dr. Johnson, I "know little Latin, and less Greek." ;)
Brent Weeks
I was going to come to Canada, until I read this question. I heard you were nice. Now I'm frightened.
Brent Weeks
Being beaten. I find there's nothing quite like having an older brother. I highly do not recommend it. (Kevin, if you're reading this. I didn't mean it at all, I swear. I don't know who typed this. Maybe my assistant?)
Brent Weeks
Dear Brendan,
I hate you. Please keep reading.
Thank you,
Brent Weeks
I hate you. Please keep reading.
Thank you,
Brent Weeks
Brent Weeks
First, I'd bring J.K. Rowling as my civilian financier. (Why didn't Harry ever use HIS bank account to help his friends? Would you let your best buddy Ron use a defective wand for a year? Really, Harry?) After all, doesn't a fantasy party really only need 4 members?
Tolkien would be my Gandalf. Sam Sykes would be my Barbarian Berserker. Brandon Sanderson would be my Illusionist, make of that what you will. And I, of course, would be the Rogue, who mostly hides during the fights and backstabs the others -- I mean, the enemies! -- whenever possible.
Tolkien would be my Gandalf. Sam Sykes would be my Barbarian Berserker. Brandon Sanderson would be my Illusionist, make of that what you will. And I, of course, would be the Rogue, who mostly hides during the fights and backstabs the others -- I mean, the enemies! -- whenever possible.
Brent Weeks
I attempt to write the best, truest story I possibly can. If during the edits or rewrite phases of crafting a novel I see that particular elements of my story have tripped up readers I respect -- my agent, my editors, certain beta readers -- at that point I take a good hard look at what I was trying to do versus what it seems I've actually done on the page. A story is a collaborative effort, so if the blueprint that I've drawn for readers to build their story-house with is terribly confusing to them or nonsensical, then I do take into account that the blueprint might be flawed. Other times, I'll decide to stick to my guns and believe that though some readers couldn't make sense of the blueprint, the blueprint itself was still good, and will allow many to make the most satisfying story-home for themselves possible. There's an odd balance that must be stricken between confidence and humility.
Brent Weeks
I will be at Imaginales 2015 in Epinal, France on 28-31 May 2015. Other than that, I hope to be invited to various European conventions and book tours in the coming years. Because my focus is on writing, I will probably only say "yes" to one every other year or so. (It's very difficult to write while traveling, and though such travel enriches my writing in the long term, it does take away several weeks of productivity in the short term. The balance is something I'm still trying to figure out.)
Brent Weeks
Well, sure. Not that there's anything wrong with people voting for the book they loved best this year! I do the best work I can, and hope that readers enjoy it and share it with others. :)
Brent Weeks
I have roughly 60 pages of this on my webpage. Go to writing advice on brentweeks.com
TL;DR Keep writing and reading. Finish your stories.
TL;DR Keep writing and reading. Finish your stories.
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