Theoryland of the Wheel of Time

Brandon Sanderson - /r/books AMA March 2015 (Verbatim)

Highprince Sando,

Thank you for the hundreds of hours of entertainment you've provided me with your works. I am currently fascinated by your decision to alter the ending to WoR. I understand it was especially necessary for you considering how intent and self realization are inherently tied to the surgebinding magic system. It must have been a tough decision to move forward with a mass change like this nonetheless. What are the logistical implications? Do you know the time frame or if it will be possible at all to change the audiobooks? I'd think at the earliest those wouldn't be possible until the third book comes out (since Michael Kramer and Kate Reading will already be in the booth) but I'm just guessing at this point. How will the roll out of WoR 2.0 proceed?

Thanks!

It was a tough decision. I think Lucas has ruined doing things like this for a lot of people, and I was certain many readers would dislike it. (Turns out, there have been fewer voices against it than I'd assumed.)

One of the things I'll be doing is making sure Book Three works with either version of the ending. I consider the changes minor. The big reason I made the swap, however, was that (I hope) these books will be read for years to come, and I wanted to get the right ending.

It shouldn't be TOO bad logistically. Remember, the changes shouldn't matter too much for the story as a whole. We will be changing the audiobooks if we can, however, but you're probably right--book three will be when it happens.

I don't plan this to be a common occurrence, but at the same time, I was increasingly certain I wanted this tweak made. So I did it for my own peace of mind, though I figured the majority of fans would rather I not.

words of radiance edits,

Brandon Sanderson - /r/books AMA March 2015 (Verbatim)

Hi, Brandon, I read Mistborn last year and now you're my favorite author. Thanks for writing books that make me go "hell yeah this is awesome!". Also, your video lectures are great. I have no writing aspirations myself, but it is really cool to know all that inside info on the craft and the publishing industry. So, the questions...

1. You recently changed up the text of Elantris and Words of Radiance. Do you feel like you need to change something about the Mistborn trilogy? I think it's perfect
2. Will we ever see you write a series with a non-rigid magic system? Not that there's anything wrong with allomancy etc. (they're pretty cool to be honest), but I would be really interested in seeing you handle something vague.
3. On Scadrial, humans were created as the result of deal between Ruin and Preservation. But what about the rest of the humans on the other worlds of the Cosmere?
4. Do you think Kelsier could defeat Miles one on one?
5. I recently started the Wheel of Time (2 books down), and it is quite fun. What would you say is your favorite book a. among the ones written by Mr. Jordan? b. Among the ones written by you?
6. What can you tell us about your new book, Rampart? ;)

1) I've expressed that my one regret with Mistborn is the climax of Book One, where I think I bring in drawing upon the mists too early in the series without enough foreshadowing. That said, I'm not planning to revise it, even if we do a 10th anniversary edition like with Elantris. The problems with Elantris created continuity issues; the problem with Mistborn is more of an artistic choice, making it similar to the problem in WoR. The difference here is that I'm still working on Stormlight, so it is considered to be an open book in my head--while Mistborn is done, and it's time to leave it alone.
2) I understand exactly what you mean, and I've played with some, but they don't work as well in the Cosmere. I think I might be able to slip one in, or, do something non-Cosmere.
3) It's split. Some predate the shattering; others were created. The humans that existed before were always a model, which is why they're so similar to one another.

words of radiance edits, brandon on writing, shattering,