The Grishaverse discussion
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Leigh Bardugo Q&As
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LEIGH BARDUGO Q&A - 5/29 AT 3PM EST
Greetings, Ms. Bardugo! Thank you for doing this! =)
Okay, I know this isn't relevant to this particular book in the series, but as an artist who would like to draw fan art, what exactly does a kefta look like? Also on that note, what color of hair does Alina have?
In addition, why isn't Alina trying to prevent the Darkling's visits if she's as worried as she appears at first? Also, how does Alina not notice Mal's discomfort?
Out of curiosity, do you read the discussions on here?
Okay, I know this isn't relevant to this particular book in the series, but as an artist who would like to draw fan art, what exactly does a kefta look like? Also on that note, what color of hair does Alina have?
In addition, why isn't Alina trying to prevent the Darkling's visits if she's as worried as she appears at first? Also, how does Alina not notice Mal's discomfort?
Out of curiosity, do you read the discussions on here?
Sorry didn't finish my comment haha! Anyways, how long did it take for you to create this whole world? I always find it difficult to create a setting that flows so well and has a lot of depth and that's one of the things I admire about the world I the grisha books. Also, which character did you have the most trouble creating and making believable?
1. Is there a cure for the nichevo'ya?2. What happens if two Grisha have a child how does the child inherit the powers?
3.I find it strange that in the books Alina's eye color isn't mentioned?
4. Will we Find out the Darkling's past without the prequel?
Also thank you for this awesome series, thanks to it I met some really nice people!
Thank you so much for doing this Leigh!! Can’t wait for R&R <31. Was Rusalye really a prince? :)
2. Why does the Darkling name the nichevo'ya (nothings) that way? (Seems self-deprecating...)
3. Nikolai and the Darkling have a lot in common, especially in the way they think (and talk) about power and responsibility. Is this a coincidence or are their similarities important to the overall story?
4. When Alina first sees the Darkling in the Fold, it seems like wants to attack her with a knife. Did he intend to harm her or just frighten her? Is it his real self or a projection of sorts?
5. The next time Alina sees him in the Little Palace, their encounter is quite different. He’s no longer angry. Why? (What has changed?)
6. During this period, the Darkling and Alina spend a lot of time together. Alina mentions she sees him every day!! Why don’t we get to see more of their interactions during this time?
7. Also, Alina at some point comments that she sees him everywhere, including the Map Room where strategy was discussed… Was Alina being a spy for the Darkling without her knowing it?
(I am guessing we'll get to know more about how and why he's able to go to her in R&R, right?)
Thank you for your answers!!!
When you wrote the scenes between Mal an Alina, (or the Darkling and Alina) did you ever squeal or
Smiling like a kid on Christmas? I know I did! Also, it's my friend's birthday on the 30th and she's the one who introduced me to these books. If you could give her a shout out that would be fantastic! Her name's Blair btw. Thank you so much and you have such incredible books!!!
will we find out the darklings real name?
Twice in the book Mal touches Alina's wrist and Alina describes it as a "shock". Is that literal, so it means something, or mental, whereas she is just shaken back to the present?Hopefully this question makes sense! Thanks for taking the time to read our questions! Love your books ☺️❤️
how many main people will sue in ruin and rising?
1.Does the Darkling have any feelings whatsoever for Alina?♥2.Approx. how old is Baghra?
BTW,thanks for the Q&A!
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Will a grisha child inherit their parent's specific power?
Hi, Ms. Bardugo! I was just wondering if we were going to get an explanation about the volcra? Especially now that Alina can hear them cry. Also will we get more information on Tamar and Tolya's past? Their story seems really vague and fishy. Thanks for answering our questions!
When the Darkling came to Alina's room disguised as Mal, was that just an intense make out or very euphemistic… other things?Ahem.
Also, just to ask, near the beginning, when Ivan was bickering with Tolya and Tamar and decided to use his heartrending against them, he says "let's not get out of line, ye zho." What does "ye zho" mean?
I get very emotionally involved with characters in the books that I love. Does this happen to you when writing and how do you pull yourself out of their world?Thanks for this session :) can't wait for the book
I feel like we have grown to know Mal a little more each book installment. Will there be more Mal in the 3rd book? I want to know more about him.
If the Darkling is really old, does that mean he was around when Ravka was first founded/civilized? How did Grisha powers come to be? If it's just a science, then were people born with it or do they develop it? Is Zoya good or bad? Have you always known how the series is going to unfold or are you just winging it? What is the history of Ravka?
At the beginning of the book, Mal helps Alina kill the sea whip. So technically, doesn't that mean if he tried to give it to someone else, he would have control over their power. Or does he have to be Grisha for that to work?
Just a small thing but does Baghra have eyes and they are clouded over with shadows or have her eyes actually been removed?
Thanks Ms. Bardugo for doing this Q&A and for the wonderful trilogy you are giving us, our minds and our hearts, what a wonderful world it is.My Questions:
Are we going to find out who the Darkling's father is? Could it be Morozova?
If the Darkling is very old, did he lived in the times of the saints?
How did the Grisha get their powers in the beginning?
Those Mal's tracking has something more to it(like maybe he is an amplified tracker) like Alina thinks?
Looking forward to your answers.
Thank you so much for doing a Q&A!! I love your books so much, cannot wait for the last book!Okay, i know this is for Siege and Storm but I am a young author and have written several books.
Do you have any advice for me on writing?
How did you get the idea for Alina's world and how long did it take?
How long did it take you to write the book and get it published?
Is publishing hard?
Sorry, that was a lot, but thank you so so so much!
Hi Leigh!Which of your characters are the type to walk out on the page fully? Also, which of your characters are the type to slowly form in your imagination?
Which do you enjoy writing more, if you have a preference?
As well:
Alina's character development is just immense and great and epic. How was it like for you to write it as compared to your other characters'?
Thanks so much! :)
Hi Leigh, I'm very curious if you mostly agreed/disagreed with Alina's actions and decisions in S&S. Did you ever think she was exasperating at some points in the story, or did you think she was doing everything the way she should?
How did you feel about her taking command of the Second army while she was completely inexperienced and unqualified to do so?
Would personally you have done things differently if you were in her place?
Thank you to everyone who helped to make this happen - of course, especially Leigh! And also for allowing questions to come in so far in advance. If it were only a real-time Q&A, the chances of my having been able to participate were vanishingly small.We had a glimpse of the Suli at the Gritski mansion - is there anything else you can tell us about their culture (e.g., where they are from, why their language was described as "dead", etc.)
Is Baghra Suli or partly Suli?
If darkness never dies, how will the sun summoner change that?
Thanks for reading our questions Leigh! You have no idea how happy I was to see your response to my last ones. Hope you don't mind if I ask another ten ;)1. Does the Darkling have complete control over the nichevo'yas actions?
2. Did you always consider Zoya a good or bad guy when you started writing the trilogy?
3. Do other Grisha have extensions like Squallers summoning lightning? (Not the Cut)
4. Based off of the recent discussions for S&S, how did you react to the Alina-freak-out, Mal-bashing, the Darkling-missing, and the Nikolai-loving fan reactions? Did you predict it?
5. Do the Grisha have negative feelings for relationships with oskazat'sya in general/society, or is that just the Darkling's issue?
6. All those rarely mentioned, hard-working Alkemi and poisons... I don't mean anything like the Strangler, but was the one used on the Ravkan king made by them? Mwahaha...
7. What is Nikolai's preferred choice of weaponry?
8. Do all Corporalki have the potential ability to alter appearances like Tolya and Genya?
9. Was the Darkling's power to transport/disguise himself as a shadow one he already had or from the bite?
10. Did Genya know a lot of secrets from us/Alina in S&B/S&S about the Darkling or the Lantsovs from working so closely in the coup?
Thanks for reading and responding to our questions, Leigh! It really does keep the flailing, fangirling and freaking-out to a minimal until R&R comes out.From S&S: Will we ever see the Hummingbird again? Would you like to board it? Perhaps along as Sturmhond's winglady..?
From R&R: In terms of royal/grand events occurring in R&R, other than the great fights you had mentioned some time previously-- will there be any social/political gatherings say, like a
wedding taking place?
and one more: (Despite there not being so much time for this unfolding..) But will the idea and concept of marriages, settling in, having children, putting a ring on it, ever be
explored in R&R?
LASTLY- Because I'm terribly curious-- has the Darkling been somehow able to wield Alina's light magic? Since she can make shadows appear now.... ;)
Thanks again Leigh! You are fantabulous.
Hi Leigh! Thanks for doing this! My only question is...How tall do you imagine Alina, the Darkling, Nikolai, and Mal to be, respectively?
A little trivial, I know, but it helps me picture the characters better in my head!
Thanks so much for doing these Leigh! So many good questions so far, hope I don't repeat any. :)1. Why did the Darkling have his nichevo'ya bite Alina? (If you can't answer, will we ever find out?)
2. Why did the Darkling choose an eclipse as his symbol? (Again, if not now, will we find out?)
3. I loved the "Darkling visit" scenes. Did you write more that didn't make it to the book? I wish we had seen more of those! :)
4. Can you share any playlist songs that inspired S&S?
5. What would happen if a human killed an animal that was an amplifier?
6. There's been some debate over what the Darkling could have done to Baghra and Genya instead of what he did. Do you think he could have, or should have, punished them differently?
7. Has Alina always possessed the ability to use the Darkling's power ever since the stag incident? Did the Darkling know that could happen?
8. Why does the Darkling pursue the sea whip, after Alina has proven she can't be controlled? He's very set on "you must have them all." Will this be answered in R&R, if not now? I always wondered why he seems so resigned that it must be all three.
9. I hope you can answer this one: was it the Darking's hand on Alina's cheek when she felt a hand withdraw after she said Mal's name on the ship?
10. Fun fandom question here. If the Darkling was the king in Westeros, who would he chose (GoT of any house and/or Grisha characters) to be on his small council? :)
So excited for Ruin and Rising!!
It might be a weird question, but I'm really curious - what kind of alcohol is kvas? I always assumed that it's some kind of vodka, but perhaps I'm wrong?And thank you very much for doing this Q&A!
Since you said the Darkling wasn’t “evil”, why did he mutilate Genya and Baghra when there were other means of punishing them that didn’t involve cruelty? Is there a convincing excuse or reason for every 'evil' act(e.g. torturing, mutilating, killing the innocent Ravkans to make a point in S&B, enslaving Alina, using Alina's power's against her will to expand the fold, I can go on...) the Darkling has committed in the books that makes him "not evil" as you say?
Since Mal helped Alina kill Rusalye, does he share a connection with Alina's powers now?
1. Can the Sweaty Duchess have a spin-off? 2. What place is best for Nikolai: Privateer or King?
3. I'm not gonna ask outright because you probably won't answer, so I'll speak in code:
OesDay LinaAay EtGay IthWay AlMay?
4. Fanfiction, do you read it? Because you ...probably shouldn't....
5. Do you ever revisit old projects and fix them up with the intention of publishing someday?
Maddie wrote: "1. Can the Sweaty Duchess have a spin-off? 2. What place is best for Nikolai: Privateer or King?
3. I'm not gonna ask outright because you probably won't answer, so I'll speak in code:
OesDay L..."
Nice code
Does Koschei the Deathless mythology ever appear in the series? If the Darkling had a ridiculous guilty pleasure pop song, what would it be? Is it sung by the spice girls?
How do you feel about fans that are little shits on tumblr and diffuse all tension with ridiculous fan predictions of the ending? (Love you)
Who is the Darkling's father? Evil? The Force?
Is there an ties between the amplifiers and the men in Alina's life? 3 amplifiers , 3 men and now 3 faces of Alina herself. Will the sets of three be significant to the story?
Will we find out in R&R how exactly it was possible for the Darkling to "visit" Alina in S&S? I would like to know more about the machanism of those visits...
If you could give a piece of advice to Alina, Genya, Mal, and Nikolai to get them through their arcs in Ruin and Rising, what would you tell them?
Mod
Why does darkness never die? OMG can we ta..."
Here we go, guys! Will get to as many questions as I can in the next hour. I'm starting early since I need to leave right around 1pm PST this time. I'll be skipping any questions that get into R&R spoilers or that expand too far beyond Alina's POV (i.e. the Darkling's true intentions ahemhem). Okay, let's do this thing!
1. Yay fanart!!! It's pretty much my favorite thing. Alina's eyes are brown, as is her hair until well, you know. For kefta and inspiration and more, please check out my pinterest boards: http://pinterest.com/lbardugo
2. Alina isn't sure what the Darkling's visitations are at first Is she hallucinating? Has the acquisition of the second amplifier and its power pushed her into madness? It's only in the chapel that the Darkling confirms that they were visitations and not simply visions.
3. Sometimes we don't see what we don't want to. I imagine Alina sensed Mal's unhappiness, but that he initially tried to hide it from her and she initially tried to pretend it wasn't there because she didn't know what to do about it.
4. Nope. I try to avoid discussion about my writing as much as possible. It tends to have a negative impact on my creativity.
Thanks for the great questions!
what advice do you give to aspiring authors?
Mod
Thank you! That's a tough question because there's no point when the world is simply finished. You're always discovering new corners and questions. I think it's dangerous to get bogged down too heavily in the creation of your world before you begin a story. It can become an excuse, a way of avoiding the actual task of writing the book. So, my best advice is to write the first draft as if you're telling the story to yourself, working out the questions and problems and places of your world as you go. This is the draft no one will ever see and chances are you won't know how all of the rules function and how you NEED them to function until you get to the end. Hope that helps and best of luck!
Hi Leigh!I had this incredibly silly theory involving the herring. So, in politics, when someone uses a different issue to distract someone else from the issue at hand, it's called a "red herring," right? So was the Darkling's choice in food reflective of his deceptive tendencies? I feel like I'm being ridiculous. I came up with this theory at three in the morning, and I apologize in advance.
Hi Leigh, thank you for doing this :)In her dreams/memories while being abducted on the "Darkling's" ship, some interesting themes come up: marriage (as a tie chaining the woman down), the bird not feeling its wings' weight, the girl becoming the bird and being able to fly and not to be burdened by the salt slips, etc...
Does Alina remember any of it?
Mod
2. What happens if two Grisha have a child how does the child inherit the powers?
3.I find it strange that in the books Alina's eye color isn't mentioned?
4. Will we Find out the Darkling's past without the prequel?
Also thank you for this awesome series, thanks to it I met some really nice people!
1. If you mean is there a way of healing the scars the Nichevo'ya leave, in Siege and Storm I mention that neither Corporalki healing nor traditional medicine can do much for them.
2. Two Grisha have a better chance of having a Grisha child, but there's no guarantee. Also, Grisha sometimes have trouble conceiving.
3. I think I do mention it :) Her eyes are brown.
4. You'll definitely learn more about the Darkling's past in Ruin and Rising!
Glad you've met nice people. I've actually made some great friends who started out as readers and I certainly met amazing people through the GoT fandom. xo
Aww I love the GoT fandom, I heard you're friendly with the Brotherhood without Banners!! Off topic really but who's youre favourite GoT character? or family?
Hi Leigh!Do we find out more about Mal's ability to track at any point? Specifically on why he can track mythical beasts from seemingly out of no where? And can you say it's from parentage or just natural ability?
Mod
1. Was Rusalye really a prince? :)
2. Why does the Darkling name the nichevo'ya (nothings) that way? (Seems self-deprecating...)
3. Nikolai and the Darkling have a lot in common, especially in the way they think (and talk) about power and responsibility. Is this a coincidence or are their similarities important to the overall story?
Okay, I'm going to tackle the first few of these because then we get into off page and intention type elements.
1. Rusalye's story lies somewhere between myth and truth. One day, I'd like to tell it in a short story like "The Witch of Duva."
2. In a way, they're a part of him, but they're also something utterly expendable and without any kind of free will. And remember, the Darkling rarely does anything without purpose. A name like "nothings" might work to mitigate the fear they inspire even in his closest allies.
3. I think those similarities are important because throughout the trilogy Alina is think about how SHE wants to wield power as a Grisha and as a ruler. How does one inspire loyalty? How does one maintain control? How does one balance strength and empathy?
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Why does darkness never die? OMG can we talk about Sturmhond? Do your characters give you all the feels too?
Ask away and Leigh will answer tomorrow!
And for anyone asking questions about the end of Siege and Storm, please include a little spoiler alert for fans who haven't finished yet. Thank you!