Gradual Interview
(answers from October 2007, as of Jan 11 2026, 11:34:15 PM)
www.StephenRDonaldson.com
© 2004 by Stephen R.Donaldson

Matthew S Brucato

Mr Donaldson,
     Thanks for your books and your wonderful gradual interview. On to my question.
     Other fantasy novelists have ventured into other creative avenues such as Roger Zelazny (RIP) creating Chronomaster ( A PC game from the 90's). Have you ever thought about broadening your horizons into video games. With the slow decline of interest in novels from this new generation it seems that video games are their main means of gaining creative and imaginative input. Do you play video games yourself? IF so what types?
   Again thanks for the great stories. Looking forward to FR.

MSB

No, I've never considered "broadening" my creative efforts.  I am a person who "digs deep" rather than one who "spreads wide"--if you see what I mean.  And I certainly don't have time to learn the mechanics (never mind the underlying strategies) of any new form of storytelling.

And no, I don't play video games.  I guess I satisfy that part of my nature by writing.

(10/01/2007)

Dave

Dear Stephen,
I've been a fan since I read LFB when I was all of 8 years old back in the 70's. Platitudes are easy to dish out, but anyway you've been by far my favourite author in any genre, not just Fantasy / SF. Obviously I'm mad with impatience for the next installment of Covenant, so a couple of questions - (i) In LFB I seem to remember that TC refers to Joan as a "breaker of horses" - I'm pretty sure this is going to hit spoiler territory, but does this in any way entail her interaction with the Ranyhyn in The Last Chronicles? (ii) - how come us Brits always have to wait an extra week for the release of your books? Every extra DAY is like a life sentence! :-)

i) Please.  There's absolutely nothing I can say about this that isn't a spoiler of *some* kind.

ii) Publishers plan their schedules far in advance.  My UK publisher could easily have nailed down some other book for October 9 long before D&A of "Fatal Revenant" (putting a book on the schedule *before* D&A is just plain foolish), which after all is being published rather quickly.  (Not as quickly as "The Runes of the Earth"--six months--but more quickly than the usual 12-18 months.)  But leaving such considerations aside, my UK publisher may have decided to wait a week in order to avoid competing with my US publisher for my "book tour" time.  Publishers naturally want the tour to coincide with publication as closely as possible; but even they realize that I can't be in two places at once.

(10/01/2007)

Captain Maybe

Thinking about it, this seems like an incredibly finicky question, but ... why choose 'last' instead of 'final' for the title of The Last Chronicles?

If I had to choose between the two I'd go for 'final' - rhythmically and phonetically it seems to me to fit better with the word 'chronicles'. What qualities does 'last' have for you over 'final'?

You say "finicky":  I say "subjective," ("Let's call the whole thing off"--if you'll forgive an obscure--not to mentioned strained--joke).  But here's how it looks to me.  I understand your point about the rhythm of "final".  To my mind, however, "last" asserts that there will not be any more "chronicles," whereas "final" suggests that there may not be any more of ANYthing.  In other words, "final" sounds more, well, *final* than "last" does.

As I say, subjective....

(10/03/2007)

Stephen L Wonders

Although I own plenty (15) of your books 'on dead tree', I haven't purchased a bound book in about seven years.  

I do purchase about twenty per year, however, as e-books. I bought Runes that way, as well Brooks' entire Shannara series to date and everything King has published since Riding the Bullet. (yes, I'm a geek, both professionally and privately, completely unabashedly. <smirk>)   

I'm hopeful that the impending release of your latest work to 'traditional' bookstores will be quickly followed by a downloadable e-book.  I understand that you have no control over such things, but I prefer not to wait more than a day or so more than the Barnes&Noble crowd.  Pass that on to your publisher if they don't 'get it' yet.  :)  

** Edit above at your discretion for GI**

Do you have any thoughts on bit-based books that you'd be willing to share?

According to my editor, releasing books in downloadable e-formats has become "standard practice"--at least for Putnams/Ace.  I don't know what the release date will be, but I'm confident that "Fatal Revenant" will be available from sites like ereader.com.

I can't read books on a computer screen--on or *any* screen--myself, so I'm stuck with "dead tree" versions (a fact which causes me some discomfort, since I love trees <sigh>).

(10/03/2007)

Perry Bell

Hello Stephen, 
 I was wondering about the attitude of the haruchai. It seems to me like they have either decided to act holier than tou or just plain arrogant (which can be interpreted as the same thing I suppose). What I guess I dont understand is, was there any one thing that made them become jerks?
Also, they remember everything, including her good and bad deeds, but after everything she has been through, why are the haruchai so disrespectful towards Linden?
Thanks,
Perry Bell

Since I both like and respect the Haruchai, I find it difficult to think of them as "jerks".  In fact, I'm not even confident that "arrogant" is the right word for them.  But they do hold themselves to inhumanly high standards.  And they do hunger to prove themselves equal to huge challenges, the bigger the better.  Sometimes they appear to place more value on the attempt than they do on whether or not the attempt succeeds.  At other times, they judge entirely on the basis of success.  One way to look at this discrepancy is that when they fail and remain true to themselves, they accept the consequences, but when they fail and do NOT remain true to themselves (Korik, Sill, and Doar with the Illearth Stone v Ravers and Lord Foul; Brinn and Cail v merewives), they judge harshly.  (From the view-point of the Masters, Stave falls into this latter category.)

Occasionally, however, I think about the Haruchai from a completely different perspective.  One thing has always troubled me about the Elves in LOTR:  why haven't they died of boredom?  They can live forever, they know virtually everything, and their lives are almost entirely static; so why haven't they collapsed from sheer ennui?  OK, OK:  maybe there's an explanation hidden away somewhere in their background or nature.  That's not my point.  My point is that the shared racial memories of the Haruchai pose a similar problem.  Individual Haruchai don't live as long as Elves; but since they all know pretty much everything that any Haruchai has ever known, why aren't they bored stupid?  Well, because they're driven to take on huge challenges, driven to push themselves past their known limits, driven to *strive*.  There's nothing static about the way they look at life.  Hence their present role in the story--and the passion (which may seem like arrogance) with which they fill that role.

As for their attitude toward Linden:  she undermines the *meaning* of what they're currently striving for.  If that didn't anger them--if they were so complacent in their convictions that they couldn't be angered--they really would be arrogant.

(10/03/2007)

Mark

Gee, thanks for answering my comment. I did not think that you were going to. I just wanted to tell you that the things that you said in your response made sense (though I think that #3 was inaccurate - perception does not necessarily define reality...it may be our only window into that reality, but it is still possible that there is an underlying reality that exists regardless of our perception, and we may even be able to learn that reality someday...I think that one philosopher who I don't remember called it "the view from nowhere"). I also was thinking about it on my own after I wrote the question, and I guess I can see that it would still at least be possible to argue that even if the Land is not real, there could still be a message in the books that would undermine the critics that think that fantasy is not worthwhile.

I think it's great that you respond to questions and comments on your website like this. Not everybody would.

It seems inherently reasonable that some form of "underlying reality" exists, even if that reality can only be discerned by "the view from nowhere".  But everything I've read and heard about modern physics in recent years supports the notion that "perception defines reality".  I can't actually wrap my mind around this in a "macro" sense; but on a "micro" level, I can't deny that my own reality is entirely defined by my perception of it.

Meanwhile, one of my several answers to "critics" who automatically dismiss fantasy from serious consideration is to point out the obvious fact that ALL literature is fantasy.  By definition, literature is an act of imagination:  if the writer didn't invent it, it wouldn't exist on the page.  It follows, therefore, with the pleasing inevitability of a syllogism, that the people who dismiss fantasy do so out of fear, rather than for any valid critical reason.

(10/04/2007)

Dave P.

So....  14 days left to publication of book #2.  How's work on book #3 coming.  (Sorry, no pressure.)

Verrrrrrry slowly.  Too many (inevitable) interruptions.  The time between D&A and publication is always complicated, even under the best of circumstances (which these are not).

(10/04/2007)

Robert Blackwell

Hello Stephen,

Perhaps you've never thought on this particular detail, but I'll take a chance and ask anyway:  Would a visitor from our world to the Land be able to recognize the planets, stars and constellations in the night sky there?  

I first started reading "Lord Foul's Bane" on a camping trip as a 13-year-old, and, after sundown, as my fired-up imagination chewed over what I had read, I looked up at our stars for hours and wondered if they were the same, and I hoped (at least a little) to see a red moon... 

Thanks for providing this gradual interview, and I'm so looking forward to "Fatal Revenant."

If the geography and continents are all different, and the moon can actually shine red for an extended period of time, why wouldn't the star constellations also be different?

(10/04/2007)

BAX

Hello Stephen,
Huge fan and have been for many years. I have a couple questions which I would like to ask. The Haruchai are an ancient race and gave up sleep to server the higher calling. Brinn Cail etc.. what real life race would you equate them too? Also I have noticed that not any earth-born animals have made the crossing. Is that by desin or by exclusion? I could see where a faithful black lab might change the chemistry in an encounter with the elohim. Also death or near death or infirmity of the mind seems to be a central requirment to join the "Land", is that by design or a subtle inferance to the creator's persona? As a huge fan I have followed the giants in your world and have to ask if you have ever listened to "home by the sea" by Genisis and pictured Foamfollwer and his kin in that song? (I certainly do). Also do you draw parallels between the rhanynn of your world with the horses of LOTR? They both seem to take on lordly roles. I thank you very much for answering these and understand if you cant due to your schedule.
-bax

You managed to squeeze several questions into a small space.  <grin>  But since I never base what I create for my stories on real people, real places, real situations, etc., some of your queries are self-answering.  The obvious exception is the Ranyhyn--but I got away with that (in a manner of speaking) because I personally dislike horses (having had many bad experiences with them), so creating "lordly" horses did not seem "real" to me.  However, I suppose I was influenced in a certain (negative) way by Tolkien's horses.  He never explained how his horses could run so far so fast so long without collapsing.  That detail probably pushed me in the direction of creating more overtly "magical" horses.

Since I virtually never listen to contemporary music, I've never heard of Genisis, or heard "home by the sea".

(10/05/2007)

John Blackburn

Following from the information that you are more successful here in the UK than in the US, I was wondering, when you come here to do the book tour (mentioned recently in GA), why not arrange to be interviewed on UK television? There are plenty of art shows on British TV where your work would fit right in. There is a long running arts program called the South Bank Show on ITV, where they interview people from a wide range of art/lit genres. They interviewed Philip Pullman a while ago. Why not ask your agent to contact them? You are important enough to be on TV! and your fans would certainly appreciate such an interview. Frankly some of the structured interviews on this site are not as good as they should be -- not your fault, but because the interviewers did not seem to know your work. It would be great to see a professional interview. A TV appearance would increase your sales dramatically especially among original fans of the Chronicals who are (still!) not aware of the Last Chronicals. Publicity for these has been near-zero in the UK. 

Just a thought, thanks for your great work!

A nice idea, but impractical.  My UK publicist is a professional:  he's already working his brain down to the white meat:  if he could get me on UK television, he would.  The last thing he needs from me is some backseat driving.  (I certainly wouldn't let *him* tell me how to do *my* job.)

(10/05/2007)

Steve,

I am learning to read/speak Russian and by chance have come across Mordant's Need in Russian. I am curious to know (if you know!) when these books were published in Russian, and how well they sell in Russia? I suspect they are not well marketed, and the sells might reflect as such...

Keep those fingers typing!!

Russia, like other countries from the former USSR, has had a curious history in relation to the rest of the publishing world.  For much of the 20th century, Russian publishers simply *took* the books they wanted:  no rights, no royalties (or payment of any kind), no acknowledgment.  Then Russia signed on to the international copyright agreements that guide publishing in (most) other countries.  Since then, the situation has improved somewhat.  These days, Russian publishers do pay advances so that they can publish foreign books "legally".  But they supply no accounting, and never pay any royalties.

"Mordant's Need," it seems, was released in Russia during the Bad Old Days.  This is the first I've heard of its publication there.

Recourse?  You must be joking.  Impenetrable bureaucracy has been a staple of Russian society for centuries.

(10/05/2007)

Andrew (drew)

Mr Donaldson sir,

Here is one of those anoying fan type questions, that is not really pertanant to the Covenant stories, but I'm going to ask anyways. I wasn't going to ask until I read a answer from you a week ago, saying that you did have SOME ideas in your head that you never put into the stories. If you don't have an answer, you could always just make one up on the spot...I'll never know the difference!!

The question regards Damelon, Loric and Kevin: When were they born? They all had long lives, so was Kevin actually alive during his great grandfather's time? Or did Berek (et al.) wait until they were older (much older-closer to retirement) before they decided to settle down and start families.

My own personal opinion (Probebly WAY off base)is that Damelon, Loric and Kevin weren't actually Berek's, Damelon's and Loric's genetic children, but more like prodege's who were more or less adopted.

What do you think?

Long life was an effect of devotion to Earthpower and Law.  Of the old High Lords, Berek was the only one to spend a significant part of his adulthood as an "ordinary" man.  Ergo he fathered Damelon comparatively early in his life--and Damelon didn't become High Lord until comparatively late.  But Damelon and Loric were in no particularly hurry:  they started their families (much) later in life.  It's conceivable that Loric knew his grandfather, and that Kevin knew his.  But I wouldn't want to bet on it.

(10/05/2007)

Mike S.

My brother is an aspiring author, and a one-time avid reader of science fiction and fantasy.  When I said I might like to take up the pen myself, he made a comment I thought I'd ask you about.  He said that once he started taking classes on writing, dealing with editors and publishers, etc. it took most of the joy out of reading for him.  Instead of simply enjoying a well-written tale, he now often finds himself thinking "that was an odd way to do that", or "I wonder how his editor ever let that through", etc...  He calls it his permanent "Sol Stein filter", and it makes it harder for him to simply read for the fun of reading.

So my question is this:  Are you an avid reader?  If so, do you find that your vocation as an author has affected your enjoyment of reading at all, whether it be positively or negatively?

Thanks,
Mike

PS:  Have you thought of writing any "writing" books of your own?

Well, "most of the joy"?  I wouldn't want to say that.  It's true that my intensive and painstaking study of literature has made me harder to satisfy.  I'm no longer truly able to read uncritically.  So I suppose you could say that I'm no longer truly able to "lose myself" in books.  But it's also true that my "joy" when I *am* satisfied is greatly enhanced.  The sheer delight of observing a master at work is not to be underestimated--even when I can't stop thinking things like, "I wonder why he did it *that* way?" or, "Wouldn't it read better if she did it *this* way?"  I'm sure there are (a few) exceptions; but in general I'm confident of two things:  you can't really be a writer if you aren't an avid reader; and you can't really be a writer if you prefer not to *think*.

I'm a storyteller.  I don't want to do anything else.  If you held a gun to my head and said, "Write a book about writing," I think I would ask you to just shoot me.  Never mind the fact that everything I might say on the subject would be *wrong* since--as I've stated many times--there *are* no *right* answers:  every writer, like every writing process, is unique.

(10/05/2007)

Matthew Verdier

I'm rereading Runes to prepare for Revenant in a couple of weeks.  I noticed that several characters comment that Vitrim created by the Ur-Viles doesn't taste good.  However I don't recall the Vitrim created by the Waynihm in TWL or WGW being described as tasting bad.  Does Ur-Vile Vitrim taste unpleasant because "evil" creatures made it and Waynihm Vitrim taste better because "good" creatures made it or am I just making more of this than is necessary?

You're right:  in "The Second Chronicles," vitrim is described in milder terms.  But I didn't intend the stronger language of "The Last Chronicles" as a comment on the ur-viles--although it makes sense that their darker lore would produce less palatable results.  Rather I was thinking about the greater discernment of health-sense (restored--if in temporary bursts--in "The Last Chronicles," mostly absent--with the obvious exception of Linden--in "The Second Chronicles").

(10/06/2007)

"The One Tree" outselling "The Wounded Land" by 5 to 1 seems pretty unexplainable!  
Question:  Are books purchased schools and libraries included in the overall sales numbers for a book and are authors compensated in the same manner for these type of sales?

Actually, the explanation is pretty simple.  A lot of people who waited for the paperback of "The Wounded Land" got excited after they read it--and couldn't/didn't wait for the paperback of "The One Tree".  Hence the huge increase in hardcover sales.

(10/07/2007)

REED STEPHENS

What do you think you are doing taking credit for my detective novels? It is an outrage. I am left with no choice but to notify El Senor. I wouldn't like to be you when he finds out. R S

Bring it.  You--and el Senor--have no idea with whom you are messing around.

(10/08/2007)

Bernard

Mr. Donaldson:
As to the upcoming release of Fatal Revenant, how do you spend your anticipatory days?  Certainly you want the book to be successful and appreciated but you are closing in on another milestone for yourself and the readers alike.  Can you describe your inner machinations as to gradations of anxiety, excitement, achievement and possible dread?  I'm sure there is no despair inside you as the book approaches public release. <rueful grin>

Thank you for enriching my intellect.

How do I spend my days?  Working on the GI, mainly.  Or so it seems.  At this stage, I can't concentrate well enough to make much progress on AATE.  My dominant emotion is dread, but that has more to do with book tours than with the release of "Fatal Revenant".  Despair comes later.  <grin>

(10/08/2007)

Phill Skelton

Hi again,

[message pruned to save space]

The 'What has gone before" section is interesting in that it puts a somewhat different angle on some events from the previous chronicles. It says that the Elohim put covenant into his coma-type thingumie to prevent him carrying out Vain's purpose, and not, as they say claim, because he is too dangerous since he isn't the sun sage. I don't recall anything in the second chronicles that suggests that at all (although it does fit: Covenant after all destroys the banefire - essentially undoing the sunbane - despite not being the sunsage, so it can't have been *that* important that the ring wielder and sun sage were the same person). It also doesn't make sense to me in one way. They are worried that the sun sage and ring wielder are not the same person. But it is only when they are the same person that Vain's purpose can be accomplished. Covenant doesn't have the guiding earth-sight to enable him to make the new Staff of Law (I assume), so Findail is only doomed when Linden takes the ring herself. Yet the Elohim are trying to make her take the ring, since Covevant is too dangerous to the arch of time. Is this a case of changing your conceptualisation of the past in the 'what has gone before' bit to set something up for the story, or has your idea of the Elohim's motives and goals been fixed and I've just misunderstood (and given how much I seem to have missed in the first few chapters of ROTE above, that seems quite likely). It seemed to me before that the wielder-sage discrepancy created a dilemma (or paradox) for the Elohim (seems like a suitable theme to crop up in a Covenant book somehow) in that they need the wielder to defeat the Despiser, but also must oppose him since he can destroy the arch. The solution is to have the ring in the sun sage's hands, so she can see well enough to use the power without threatening the arch. But they don't want *that* because it will make Vain's purpose achievable. (Shame that they get the worst of all possible worlds. Covenant beats Foul and saves the arch despite not being the sun sage, and Findail is still screwed). So, yeah, getting back to the question. Have you 'tweaked' the Elohim's motivations to fit in with what you are doing next, or have you always understood their actions before as being directed against Vain rather than for the good of the land (or at least trying to do both at the same time)?

<sigh>  I suppose I should admit up front--if I haven't done so already--that I hate writing things like "What Has Gone Before" (which is why my editors did the job for me throughout the first two "Covenant" trilogies).  So I don't really try to be thorough--or even textually exact.  My goal is to provide the reader with what he/she needs to know for the up-coming book, not to write an "ideal" (or even approximately ideal) synopsis of the previous books.

That said:  you make a perfectly valid point about the Elohim/Findail/Appointment/Vain/Linden/Covenant/white gold/etc..  However, the explanation I gave in WHGB is also valid.  One does not contradict the other.  Or so it seems to me.  I think you'll find that both explanations "work".  Just keep in mind that trying to squeeze such long stories down into such a short space requires any number of compromises.

(10/08/2007)

Paul Mitchell

I was wondering if it is you or your publisher that decides that a chapter list should be included in the TC books? I always flip past this page as I don't want to get any intimation of what is coming ahead of time (not that I would do a particularly good job of predicting the content from the title). It seems to me that the chapter list is slightly at odds with the 'read on and find out' approach you normally take here, which makes me think it is a publisher-thing rather than an SRD-thing. Right or wrong?!

Another quickie: I saw your mention of Plan B...handing over the reins to your children should things go awry and it turns out that you are not immortal. Do you think their writing skills are nature or nurture related (or a bit of both)? Is there a genetic basis for certain skill sets (whether writing, art, sport) or is it more the childhood environment and transfer of 'skills' from parent to child? 

Thanks very much!

Paul  

I like chapter lists ("tables of contents") myself, so I always provide them--when I'm writing a book in which the chapters *have* titles.  (Otherwise there's no point.)  Sure, a table of contents can be seen as a "spoiler".  But it can also be seen as a "tease".  Or as an "appetizer".  On a much more mundane level, however, Lester del Rey would have insisted on chapter titles and a table of contents if I had neglected to supply them:  he considered such things important to the success of fantasy novels.

I'm not wise enough to figure out the (hugely) complex interrelationship between nature and nuture, talent and desire.  I'm inclined to think that talent can be nutured, but cannot be created by nurture--and that desire can *only* be the result of nuture rather than of nature.  However, that's pure speculation.  And I may think differently tomorrow.

(10/08/2007)

Marc Dalesandro

Hello Mr. Donaldson,

I have an observation, and a question. I'd welcome any comments you may have.

Recently on the GI you answered a question about how Lord Foul could influence the fanatics in Runes of the Earth. You said "The barriers between realities are breaking down, thanks to LF's original abuse of Drool and the Staff of Law."

The fact that something from the First Chronicles so deeply affects the Third is very satisfying. It makes re-reading the First Chronicles even more fun, because when the reader gets to these parts, it seems something truly momentous is happening. A lot of what happens in most fantasy novels is dishearteningly "throwaway".

Now, a question: what, exactly, did Gibbon see as the outcome of his confrontation with Covenant? Even if the wild magic had run out of control and destroyed the Arch of Time (as Foul no doubt intended) would not Gibbon be destroyed as well? I would think the one thing a failed Covenant would do, even as the Arch fell, would be utterly destroy Gibbon. 

The issue you raise about Gibbon sounds familiar.  Surely I've discussed this before?  In any case....

As I see it, Lord Foul has long since subsumed the individual identities of the Ravers.  They are no longer distinct "characters" with their own agendas:  they are "minions" pure and simple.  So they don't ask questions like, Gee, what happens to *me* if you win?  Long ago, of course, LF may have made any number of "promises" (e.g. I'll take you with me when I escape Time) to seduce the Ravers.  If so, those promises ceased to have any meaning (or even any necessity) centuries before Our Story begins.

(10/08/2007)

Bernie Miller

Any Regrets?  As odious as this question may appear, do you have any regrets writing TC as such a 'human' or 'conflicted' person?  From a writing perspective, his personality characteristics and unwavering leprosotic stoicism have obviously aided the storyline yet disenfranchised potential readers.  Thomas Covenant, the literary character has (my opinion and anecdotal observation only) limited wider surface area readership.  I have encountered a number of people (yes I live in the US where everybody wants the swashbuckler to save the damsel in distress ending) who have only read LFB or the first trilogy and then walked away with a bitter taste in their mouths.  They have retorted to my astonishment by stating that no one could read a book whereby the hero is such a 'prozac downer'.  Now do not get me wrong, I have read and reread the TC Chronicles  directly because of his functional imperfections.  Personally, I could care less as your TC books largely played as the primary catalyst for my personal intellectual quest.  Yet I wonder whether the crafting of your main character has in some way lessened sales.  As far as I'm concerned, you should have twice the profits of both King and Rawley.  I'm sure this observation is of limited importance to you but your fans truly want you regaled.
Thank you,
B.

Judging by what sells these days (and not just in sf/f), it seems likely that the kinds of characters I write about (significantly?) reduce sales.  And there's no doubt that my ego and I would be better off if my books were more widely read.  But *regret*?  What would be the point?  I can't change who I am, or how my imagination works.  Nor do I want to:  I would be bored blind if I tried to write, well, let's call them "simpler" stories.

(10/08/2007)

Allen

Nine days until Fatal Revenant.  The Wait is becoming terrible.  I've not yet reached the writhing in agony on the floor stage yet but my limbs are twitching.

This question concerns Esmer, my favorite of your new creations.  My oh my what a curious critter he is.  I'm wondering if you'd be willing to share something about the inspirations behind his personality.  Or would that fall under the spoiler category?  Please don't say yes.  Bearing in mind that I'm a suffering individual until your dread book comes out.

Ah well.  Thank you for your consideration.

Allen

Hmm.  A non-spoiler comment about Esmer?  Well, there's this:  as I've gotten older, I've become increasingly aware of the manifold ways in which human beings in general, and I in particular, are internally conflicted.  More and more, I find it axiomatic (never mind transparent) that human beings work against themselves much (most?) of the time.  They suffer from opposing desires, opposing fears, opposing comprehensions.  So why not write about a character who *personifies* internal conflict?  And where else could I write about such a character, if not in a fantasy novel?  Especially a fantasy novel that has always been about *paradox*?

(10/08/2007)

Greetings Mr. Donaldson,

Thank you for the opportunity via the GI to express my appreciation for the wonderful characters and stories you have created. Discovering LFB thirty years ago as a young buck in his early twenties, I have continued to enjoy your writing throughout the years.

Questions and speculations concerning the Last Chronicles I have by the score. For the sake of brevity, and your sanity, I ask your indulgence with a profound revelation concerning LF's true nature and reason for being.

In TROTE, LF was *helping* Linden find hurtloam when he said, "Men commonly find their fates graven within the rock, but yours is written in water." The last part of that quote bears a striking resemblance to the poet John Keats self-authored epitaph on his tombstone, "Here lies one whose name was writ in water."

Since you have (at least in my mind) LF paraphrasing Keats, I humbly request your enlightenment concerning LF's true nature.

Is LF, like Keats in his lifetime, really an angst-ridden and under appreciated...poet?!?
<grin>

With best regards,
Michael Loftus

Sure, Lord Foul was helping Linden--for his own oblique purposes (if she's, well, let's call it "restricted" by the Masters, she won't be of any obvious use to him).  But his paraphrase of Keats is intended as a put-down.  "Your actions are too trivial, too ephemeral, to have any lasting meaning."  Which may be what Keats meant about himself.

In any case, the paraphrase was definitely unconscious on my part.  I've spent too much time studying Keats to pretend that I've never read his epitaph before.  But I had (consciously) forgotten all about it when I wrote "The Runes of the Earth".  I did not intend to imply that LF is a kind of "lost Keats".

(10/09/2007)

Christopher

Hi Stephen,

This is a followup question to a question/response posted 5/07/07, about Thomas having a green gold, rose gold, etc.ring and how it would have affected him in the Land if he had one.   Maybe you answered it, and I wasn´t clear, but for me it begs the question: So (strictly within the story) does that mean white gold is only relevant in the Land because that coincidentally happens to be the type of wedding ring he happens to have?  So if he had a platinum ring, for instance, instead of white gold, then platinum, (or whatever substance) would have had the same effect in the Land as white gold "currently" does, because the Land has this "organic connection" to him?  

To put it another way: those rings were chosen years before TC enters the Land, so does that particular choice of Tom and/or Joan allow for him to have power in the Land, or was there some other power (like the old man) which "helped" them settle on that particular material, or does it really not make a difference, and Thomas would have ended up doing what he did no matter what?  

Thanks for taking the time to answer all these questions (it seems you have written another book just through these responses).  I hope I'm not just asking something that has been hashed before. Best of luck!  

Probably the best answer is the extended quotation from Douglas Adams which appears, oh, a couple of months ago in the GI.  But my instinctive reaction is:  ????  You appear to be looking for some way to distinguish between the Land's "reality" and Covenant's "reality".  But there isn't a way to do that.  It's all fiction:  I made it all up.  And I made it all up at the same time.  No part of it is any more or less "real" than any other part of it.  And since I'm always striving to create an organic whole rather than a clutter of independent (and ultimately gratuitous) parts, I wouldn't waste my time trying to create a fantasy world and a protagonist that didn't *belong* to each other in every conceivable way.  Asking me if one part of the story *would* have been different if another part of the story *had* been different is like asking me why I didn't write a completely different story.  I have no answer.  I believe that the internal logic of "The Chronicles" is consistent.  What else is there to say on the subject?

(10/09/2007)

Jim

Hi,

I just want to iterate, like everyone else, I absolutely love your books, all of them. Of course, I came to your work through the Covenant series which is the best fantasy series in the history of ever, in my opinion. I got tired of all the “puny good guy goes up against invincible bad guy with no chance of winning but somehow finds a miraculous way to win in the end” fantasy series, and then I read Covenant. I loved the fact that it was unpredictable and the hero wasn’t really all that good. And when the attempt to gain part of the One Tree to make a new Staff of Law failed, I cheered. At last, a fantasy series where everything doesn’t always work out for the good guys!

So I love your work.

My question is, I have seen in a couple of places where you talk about innocence and purity as being inhuman, but more than that, you talk about innocence and, especially, purity in negative terms. Not only is it unattainable, but it is undesirable as well. You said, in one of the structured interviews, that “Purity leads to innocence, to naiveté, to stupidity”. This was in response to your comment on Siegfried being “too stupid to live”, which also made me think of Parsifal. Did Parsifal influence your thoughts on this? I was thinking that Wagner makes Parsifal a fool in the opera, and it seems, if I recall correctly (I haven’t seen it or listened to it for a while now), that his foolishness was necessary in order to regain the Spear. But then I seem to recall he lost his foolishness, but I don’t remember whether this was necessary before he could regain the Spear or whether it happened after he regained the Spear. I think he lost his foolishness after regaining the Spear, and maybe losing his foolishness was necessary before he could heal, what was his name, Amfortas? But I don’t know. Just wondering.

And also, why can’t innocence be desirable? I am not denying that innocence often does lead to stupidity, but is this a necessary consequence? Is it not possible to be innocent (or maybe pure is better) and wise at the same time? Mhoram seems to fit this for me. And of course, there would be Christ who many consider to be a counter-example. I just don’t see the necessary relation between innocence and stupidity, and I would even go so far as to say that innocence and stupidity are diametrically opposed. One cannot be innocent/pure if one is stupid. Then it isn’t purity; it’s ignorance. But I don’t know. Interested in your ideas. This one has struck me for quite a while now.

That’s enough rambling. Thanks again for the opportunity to talk with you. I absolutely love your books.
Jim

I'm not sure we can discuss this unless someone is willing to hazard a defintion of "innocence"--or of "purity".  I'm aware that my thinking on the subject is skewed by my childhood immersion in judgmental theology.  "Original sin" is only one of the many distortions that I was programmed to accept without question.  Since then, I've learned to think in ways that would doubtless horrify my parents (or at least my mother); but the templates underlying the beliefs I was raised to share still influence me.  So I find it difficult to think of things like innocence or purity as being either viable or desirable.  Hence my rather assertive comments on the subject in other contexts.

But I could be wrong.  If you have definitions in mind that don't rely on some specific belief system....

(10/10/2007)

Dangerous Dave from Denver

You've mentioned throughout the interview that you limit your use of the Internet. I was wondering, what primary sources do you read/watch for news and current events?

Newspapers, mainly.  Occasional scraps of broadcast news.

(10/10/2007)

Doc

Mr. Donaldson,
          About 20 years ago your story "What Makes Us Human"  was published as part of an Anthology ( I belive it was called "Berserker Base" ). 

1) How did this collaboration come about? Did Mr.Saberhagen request that other Authors write stories in His " Berserker Universe"? How were the Authors chosen?

2) Would you ever consider "opening up" one of Your "Universes" to other Authors?

1) The late and lamented Fred Saberhagen was entirely responsible.  He approached an assortment of his friends and colleagues (how he picked them, I have no idea; but he and I--and Roger Zelazny, now that I think about it--were friends at the time) and asked them to write "Berserker" stories.  The only requirement was that the Berserkers had to fit Fred's description of them.  (You may have noticed that the word "Berserker" never occurs in my contribution.)  The writers were not asked to consult with Fred, or with each other.  The gimmick of "Berserker Base" was that Fred would then take the resulting stories--over which he had exerted no control whatsoever--and somehow weave them into a simulacrum of a novel.  As a result, "Berserker Base" was not a "collaboration" in the usual sense of the term.

2) Nope.

(10/10/2007)

A Nony Mouse

"Fatal Revenant" is almost here! Then we can begin counting down the days to "Against All Things Ending"!

I had some questions regarding your taste in other author's works. I noticed your favorable comments about David Drake's "Lord of the Isles" on the book's back cover. Have you continued to read and enjoy the rest of that series?

Also, you've said in past GI answers you enjoy and/or admire the work of Terry Pratchett and Fred Saberhagen. I love Pratchett myself and have more recently discovered and enjoyed Saberhagen thanks to you.
They are both highly prolific authors; do you have a particular favorite book by either of them out of the many to choose from?

Speaking of Fred Saberhagen, I was very sorry to hear about his recent passing. He definitely left behind a great legacy with the Berserker novels and his other works.

I really am looking forward to "Fatal Revenant" and seeing what you will pull out of your hat of literary genius this time.

As I've said on any number of occasions, I'm a very slow reader.  There's no way that I could keep up with all of David Drake's books, or Terry Pratchett's, or Fred Saberhagen's.  But I'll take this opportunity to mention one of Pratchett's novels, "Reaper Man," and two of Saberhagen's, "The Holmes-Dracula File" and "A Matter of Taste".

(10/10/2007)

Lynne

Hi Steve --

I *know* you can't do anything about where you go on your book tours, and I would hate to make them longer for you (thereby pulling you away from getting started on the next book).

But honestly, does Putnam believe that nobody east of the Rockies reads fantasy fiction?  All your US tour dates are in the West.  Same thing happened for the "Fatal Revenant" tour.

To whom at Putnam do we complain?  Maybe we can convince them to reroute things for the Book 9 tour, at least....

Thanks!

As soon as I say this, you'll find that you aren't surprised.  It's all about money.  I live in the West myself, so sending me on Western tours is cheaper than sending me anywhere else.  In fact, I haven't been east of Colorado and New Mexico on tour since 1980.

(10/10/2007)

Richard

Hi Steve, 

I just read your comments from last year about ebooks being the way of the future, and I was sitting down just moments ago to read the first chapter of Fatal Revenant (coincidentally, the spell-check on Firefox does not recognise "revenant" - sigh) having finished re-reading RotE in preparation for it.  Only, upon opening up the PDF I found it to be impossible to read; somehow I lost the connection to what was on screen.  Words were words and signified little else.  I suspect that this was for numerous reasons: a) it reminds me horribly of being at work and stuck in front of a computer staring at Word files and PDFs by the gallon; b) it lacks any form of personal warmth; c) I just want to be slumped somewhere pleasant (not in some stiff backed chair) when I read, I wish to feel at ease.  

Anyway, to reach a semblance of 'the point,' I was wondering if you'd had any further thoughts as to where the future of bookselling is to go?  Only I cannot imagine that it will ever change all that much, as reading, browsing novels, the feel of bound paper is infinitely more intimate than, say, buying and owning CDs or DVDs.

And, to segue inelegantly into a second (sorry!) question.  I've seen quite a lot in the GI about the influence of music and literature on your work  but I was wondering if cinema and/or(the better end of)TV has influenced you at all.  Only, sometimes I have been spurred on to write, whether it is some casual nuance of a scene or something more encompassing (i.e. the overarching effect of a certain film) by the visual arts (and I guess in saying the visual arts, to be more complete, I would include the infuence of painting, sculpture, etc.)

Thank you again for your time.

Like you, I'm stuck with books.  I can't *read* in any other form.  I write at a computer:  I've learned to rewrite at a computer:  but I can only *read* books.  (btw, I'm even worse when it comes to audio books.  I can't absorb stories AT ALL that way.)  I like to pretend that I can't read e-books because computer screens (even laptops) are too bulky to carry around conveniently, and with all other displays the print is too small for my failing eyesight.  But the truth is that I'm just not willing to learn how to change on this point.

I have no particular insights on how technology will affect the delivery of text from writers to readers.  However, my agent--who pays much more attention to these things than I do--believes that e-books will never be more than a "niche" market.  The future, in his view, belongs to "print on demand," books that aren't manufactured at all until someone places an order.  The publisher will simply program an entirely computerized (and doubtless web-based) printing process and then wait for someone to place an order.  Each individual order will be met by the printing of one book.  This will keep publishing alive as a business by eliminating vast amounts of overhead and waste.

My question--if my agent is right--is:  where and how are people going to *browse*?  Personally, I find the web far too unwieldly for browsing.

As for your second question:  I don't doubt that movies and tv have exerted some subliminal influence on me; but I'm not conscious of it--much.  As I keep saying, I'm not a visual person:  what reaches me is what the characters *say* (plus the sound of their specific voices).  But dialogue is becoming increasingly irrelevant to movies and tv; and once words are eliminated, I'm no longer influenced.

(10/14/2007)

John

Hello…

I just wanted to respond to all those people who say that your books are taking too long to come out. I want to give some different points of view about that, if I may.

1. It takes time to absorb your books properly. I’m obsessed with your books, and have been for the last 20 years, and every time I reread them, they mean something different. If your books come out too fast, I won’t be able to take advantage of the time it takes to absorb a good book, because I won’t be able to stop myself buying the next book! I think 3 years between books is enough time for me to think about the whole thing before delving into the next one (I’m not being sarcastic).

2. Once the next 6 or 7 years are gone, I won’t be able to look forward to any more good books coming out. This means in 6 or 7 years, there may not be a good book around! Not only that, but at least now, we are having the almost unprecedented privilege of talking with you and thinking about your answers in the context of the meaning of the books (or however we choose to do so). What’s going to happen when you’re not around anymore? 

3. Patience is a virtue :) 

Thanks!  I'm a little worried about your mental and emotional well-being.  <broad grin>  But I'm glad that at least *one* reader isn't vexed with me for taking so long.

(10/14/2007)

Stephen L Wonders

Mr. Donaldson, 

Thank you for answering my previous question regarding e-books.  I carry about seven books with me everywhere I go, in a device smaller than a pack of cigarettes.  I'm never bored, yet unencumbered.  :)

I do purchase 95% of my books through ereader.com (formerly palmpress.com, formerly peanutpress.com, I can't believe my account - and my e-bookshelf - has survived all their permutations, but I'm grateful.  I re-downloaded and am re-reading The Runes of the Earth in anticipation of the next).

I notice however that offerings from Stephen R. Donaldson there are limited.  Runes, of course, but only two of the 'The Man Who' series.  But no earlier works.   

I would (re)purchase The Gap Cycle from ereader.com in an instant, just for the pleasure of delving headfirst into its entire opera one book after the other in succession with no painful waiting in between.  

I believe the same could be said for the First and Second Chronicles.  Especially if offered as bundles, featured 'new' titles, recently re-released, etc.   Your following is still HUGE, I presume, but this is a market where your past work, regardless of its uniqueness at the time versus today, could have just as great an impact my daughter's generation as it did on me.  I read Lord Foul's Bane when I was not much older than she is now.

I understand that I may be in the minority as an early e-book adopter.  However, I'm also certain that the bit-to-pulp ratio will stedily increase.  I'd love to include the (First) Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever on my daughter's required reading list when I give her that first e-book capable portable device.

 - Steve

First, let me say that the absence of the other two "The Man Who..." books from ereader.com is sheer sloppiness on the part of their publisher.  My agent is trying to correct the problem, and he'll probably succeed.

But moving backward in time:  my contract with the publishers of the GAP books gives them the "electronic" rights:  they could do e-books legally.  But their publishing methologies in the early and mid 90s did not automatically generate e-versions of the text.  Therefore they would have to Spend Money in order to create e-books.  And they've already lost so much money on the GAP books that they aren't willing to spend more.  In fact, I'm lucky that they keep those books in print at all.

Meanwhile, back in the days of the first six "Covenant" books (and "Mordant's Need"), no one thought about e-books.  Therefore those rights aren't covered by my contracts.  Therefore--in theory--those rights belong to me.  So one might think that *I* could release those books in e-formats myself.  But no:  this falls under the "competing editions" clause of my contracts.  Those publishers cannot do e-books themselves because they don't own the rights; and *I* cannot release e-books because I'm not allowed to compete.

As it happens, DEL REY/Ballantine *might* be willing to publish e-versions of the "Covenant" books.  But they are decidedly NOT willing to Spend Money to obtain the rights.  And my agent and I, as a matter of professional principle, are not willing to give rights away free.  Impasse.

Sadly, the issues I've just described will never be resolved unless virtually all of my books experience a MASSIVE increase in popularity.

(10/14/2007)

Michael from Santa Fe

So, I was glancing at my book shelf and noticed something I hadn't noticed or thought about before.  Each of your "Man Who" books has gotten longer with each volume, with "The Man Who Fought Alone" at 461 pages (for my hardcover version).  Now, not to get ahead of ourselves, and I have no idea if you have even an inkling of the plot for the next "Man Who" book, but can we expect a 600+ page mystery "epic" to finish the series?     

I can't tell you what to expect from a "The Man Who..." book which may never exist.  But I can (sort of) explain the steadily increasing length.

When I began with "The Man Who Killed His Brother," I was striving to emulate what I perceived to be the stylistic conventions of the genre.  Good discipline for me as a writer who always strives to improve his skills.  But with each new book in the series, I've become less and less interested in the conventions of the genre, and more and more interested in trusting my instincts as a storyteller.  Put another way:  each new book in the series is less a "mystery" novel and more a "Donaldson" novel.

This hasn't increased my readership at all <sigh>, but it has increased my personal satisfaction.

(10/14/2007)

Brian Herbst

If white gold is not available in the Land, I assume someone else from "our" world or somewhere else had to appear in the Land before Covenant for the knowledge and legends of white gold and its wild magic to exist. If Covenant was indeed the first, then the internet debates about the Land existing only in Joan's mind seem possible, especially since striking her head/mind with her wedding band created the time traveling tornadoes. So.. where did the Land's knowledge of white gold originate? 

Ah, yes.  You "assume".  And "When you assume, you make an ass out of u and me."  Or, as I prefer to put it, "When you make an assumption, you make an ass out of u and umption."  (I *wish* that were original, but it isn't.  It's from a Geena Davis/Samuel L. Jackson movie, the title of which escapes me at the moment.)  If we can do so without reference to what I choose to call the Douglas Adams Fallacy, let's discuss this when I've finished "The Last Chronicles".

(10/14/2007)

Firus Mazlan

Hi Mr Donaldson..

Do you have any plans to write more sci-fi stories in the future (not necessarily in the GAP world)?

Now that the question is out of the way (this *is* the GI after all), I'd like to mention that I thought Mordant's Need was your best work (the first paragraph in A Man Rides Through is pure class, btw), until the GAP series where you more or less outdid yourself. I can't imagine how "die-hard" fans could miss these (not so) little gems entirely.

As to the Last Chronicles, I also found myself in the same boat as Tracy G (September GI). I had no idea that there was a new Covenant novel out until early this year! My first sight of it was in softcover, and I'm a bookstore prowler so you can imagine my surprise since I know all hardcover fantasy titles by their first names, and saw no such thing bearing the name TROTE. Now, being in Malaysia, maybe this is not so critical a situation, but I must say that I am quite disappointed with your publisher. You mentioned that they could not avoid marketing "to the genre", but I think even in this they have not done a very good job, considering the plethora of bad writing that are using up all the shelf-space waiting for some unfortunate victim to pick up. Unles I'm blaming the wrong people here?

Here's to many more years of Covenant and friends!

As I've often said, I have no plans to write *anything* after "The Last Chronicles".  I don't mean that I intend to quit writing:  quite the opposite.  I mean that I've never tried to plan my writing life ahead of the story I happen to be working on at the moment; and I don't intend to start now.

Like almost every writer I know personally, I'm inclined to think that my books aren't promoted very well.  Naturally I should be a household name in every civilized country.  Isn't that The Way Life Is Supposed To Be?  <grin>  But honesty compels me to admit that if I were Putnams/Ace, or Forge/Tor, or Bantam/Spectra, or Ballantine/Del Rey, I wouldn't be able to do any better.  I have absolutely no idea how to promote books effectively (especially in a society that secretly hates intelligence)--and I suspect that my publishers share my dilemma.  If, say, my editor at Bantam/Spectra, or my editor at Putnams/Ace, could make my books better known by sheer force of will, they would do so in a heartbeat.  They *believe* in what I'm doing.  But lacking that power, they do what they know how to do, and then (metaphorically) throw up their hands.  As I would in their place.

There is, of course, the problem of "market over-saturation"--but who do we blame?  Editors who choose to publish junk?  Or readers who make bestsellers out of junk?  As long as junk continues to sell better than intelligent and imaginative storytelling, we really can't blame publishers for doing what they do.

(10/14/2007)

Michael from Santa Fe

I just finished reading "Daughter of Regals and Other Tales". I read it once a long time ago, so I didn't remember any of the stories very well.  I think my favorite was "Mythological Beast".  In the intro you say it has "a theme I happen to feel strongly about".  I thought the whole "1984" aspect was great and how society had changed due to fear.  Are you sure you didn't write this after 9/11 and use a caesure to go back to 1978 and publish it as a warning?  Hope this question finds you perfectly safe and perfectly sane...

I remember being perfectly sane once:  I think it was in 1543.  But of course no one is ever been perfectly safe.  <grin>

(For those of you unfamiliar with the reference, the idea of being perfectly safe and perfectly sane is sort of a mantra in "Mythological Beast".)

(10/15/2007)

Brian

This question has been hidden since it is listed in the following categories:

Spoilers - Fatal Revenant

To include this question in the downloaded file, you must change your preferences in the Options screen.  Go to www.StephenRDonaldson.com, click on "from the author" and then "Options."  The question can also be viewed online.

(10/15/2007)

Dr Andrew Josey

I was 14 when 'LFB' came out. My father was a strict Fundamentalist preacher and I was only able to read your books because they had 'comparable to Tolkien' on the back cover, and he didn't realise they might contain 'adult themes'... To say your work had a profound effect on me is an understatement.
   The Chronicles seemed full of an almost pagan 'nature magick' whilst acknowledging a 'Biblical theology'- an understanding of the possible reedeeming nature of suffering and loss. 
  But I always concentrated on the 'witchcraft' elements of the Land; the healing in stone and earth and wood. The title 'The Illearth War' still seems so potent as an allegory of what this planet is suffering now - and I have never been able to separate your work from what is actually happening in 'The Real' (as I can do with other fantasy). I think you are a truly great and gifted writer who is deeply tuned into the Zeitgeist. I just wondered what you thought of 'nature magick/Wicca/paganism?'
  I teach in a High School and I try (with the librarian, who is also a fan) to promote your work to the kids - as we consider them to be as worthy of their interest as Phillip Pullmann or old J.K.R.
  Thanks for your time.

Although I can easily relate to your personal journey, I find questions like yours difficult to answer.  And I also find it difficult to explain *why*.  But it seems to me to be an important part of what I call my "creative ethic" that I need to withhold my personal allegiance from any particular point of view--or set of beliefs.  As I've said from time to time in this interview, I see myself as the "servant" of the story ideas that choose me to write them.  As such, I need to be as, well, *flexible* as possible in my thinking, so that I can "serve" each character and story as I think they deserve.  So when people ask me what *I* believe, I'm at a loss.  When I reply that "I believe storytelling should be done as selflessly as humanly possible," or, "I believe the world can only become a better place through selfless storytelling," my answers don't convey much in the way of useful information.  <sigh>

I wish I had a better answer.

(10/15/2007)

Terry

My husband has been reading your books for years. I have never seen him read any author beside you. He just loves the books. I cant talk to him when a new book is released. He just finished the new book in 1 1/2 days.. Now he is going to be grumpy until 2010.. Help me!! I wish these books can be released sooner....

You don't wish it any more than *I* do.  <sigh>  Now if I wrote by Divine Inspiration instead of by Divine Intervention....  <rueful smile>  Sadly, I resemble Linden in at least one respect:  sheer inadequacy to the task slows me down.

(10/18/2007)

Steve,
I have more of a comment rather than a question. I have been reading Fatal Revenant this week and something occured to me.  Your introducing of profanity into Covenant is similar to Foul introducing the Sunbane in the second series. You have utterly corrupted what was quite a legendary place. (The Land DOES exist in our minds). So, you have actually BECOME a living embodiment of Lord Foul.  Ironic, isn't it? Becoming the very thing you loathe.  I want you to know that I have been hard at work with a white-out pen making Fatal Revenant a "proper" Covenant novel.  Don't bother responding to my submission either.  I am not interested in your fancy explanations. It just is what it is. Base disappointment after 20 years of waiting.

I'm entranced by the self-righteousness of this message.  And I can't help noticing that the people who post such comments never sign their names--or risk leaving an e-mail address.  I suspect that there's a link between self-righteousness and cowardice.  And yet this person keeps reading...!

(10/18/2007)

Will you be in Portland OR any time, other than Oct 12th, this year or possibly for your next tour?  Our wedding anniversary is on the 13th and we're normally not in the area then.  It would be great to attend one of your book events.

Thanks for the depth of entertainment you've created with the TC series.  Quite enjoyable!

I guess it bears repeating that I don't choose where my publishers send me--or when.  It's their money:  they have the right decide how to spend it.

(10/18/2007)

Marshall

Not really a question, but...

The movie with the "u and umption" quote is "The Long Kiss Goodnight".  A pretty good movie that is full of some pretty good lines like that, though it ultimately stops short of being a great movie.  

Good luck with the book tour.  I'll be looking forward to reading the book, and maybe some day I'll actually ask a question in the GI that I've been so enjoying...

Onward - 

- Marshall

Thank you.  And thanks to the other readers who posted this information.  You're right, of course.  How could I have forgotten?

(btw, this seems like as good a place as any to mention that I'll be away from the GI for at least a couple of weeks.  My time in England will probably not let me answer questions.)

(10/18/2007)

Andrew

I have a comment and two questions, which are not related.

The first is thank you for the GI.  Among other things, it kept me coming to your website, which is how I found out about the publication of Runes and Fatal Revenant.  

The second question comes from my reaction to learning the sad news of Robert Jordan's death last month.  On the one hand, I suppose that it is possible to see other writers as competitors, on the other hand to the extent that the genre itself expands and succeeds (which its seems to me is happening), the wider the potential audience is for your work.  How do you see this?

My last question is a reaction to Michael Drout's (Chair of English Dept at Wheaton College) criticism of  the First Chronicles in his course on the Modern Scholar.  (He does, by the way encourage the student to read the First Chronicles, to read WA Senior's study, and to visit your web site.)  But he  also criticizes the First Chronicles for a lack "linguistic consistency."  

I am troubled by this because I disagree with the premise, i.e. that good fantasy literature requires the use of words of consistent linguistic heritage in order to create a strong secondary world.  I frankly do not believe that most readers notice, except perhaps in extreme cases.  How do you see that issue?  And, as a follow up, how does it feel for your work to be put into context of literary history when it is not even done yet? 
 
Thank you,

Andrew

I do firmly believe that writing is not a competition.  But *publishing* seems unavoidably competitive, in part because editors simply don't have time to give equal attention to every possible writer, and in part because shelf space in bookstores is severely limited (of course, Internet outlets like Amazon have theoretically unlimited "shelf space," but they are less able than bookstores to *feature* particular books, and they're pretty useless for browsing).  In that respect, the sheer glut of titles hurts the accessibility of any individual title.  Back in the days when I was massively popular, there were very few other books on the fantasy shelves.  Now many readers are completely unaware that I'm still alive:  my work seems to drown in the flood of other books.

On top of that, it's possible to argue that a plethora of choices *inhibits* rather than encourages readers.  Having too many choices certainly has that effect on me.

In my personal opinion, Drout is out of his mind.  He's assuming that there can be only one valid model for a "sub-creation" (Tolkien's linguistic expertise)--*and* that everyone who tries to create a fantasy world MUST have the same goals and priorities that Tolkien did.  Such assumptions are patently false.  Different writers create different "realities" for different reasons--and those reasons *demand* different methologies.  In addition, it seems to me that the multi-racial nature of my cast of characters more than justifies any lack of "linguistic consistency."

(10/18/2007)

Bizzaster

Hello Mr. Donaldson,
As so many others before me have expressed, I would like to thank you for bringing us all of your wonderful stories. I think this GI is great and this is my first time submitting.
My question is in regards to the Appointment of Findail in the Second Chronicles. Earlier in the GI, you mentioned that the ideal situation for the Elohim would have been for Linden to possess White Gold. “[The Elohim’s] true desire is that Linden should have and use Covenant's ring. They believe that because of her nature, her health-sense, and her commitment to healing, she could stop Lord Foul (and the Sunbane) without risking the Arch--and without bothering them.”  In another response, you went on to say, “So for [the Elohim], plan A was that Linden has the ring, therefore doesn't need a Staff of Law; she beats the shit out of Lord Foul, and no one else has to worry about it.” Does this mean that Linden could have fought and defeated the Sunbane without using the Staff of Law? My impression was that the Staff was a necessary tool in allowing Linden to redeem the Land- that the corrupted Earthpower was absorbed by her and then funneled through the Staff to find its rightful order. 
Another question is in regards to the Creator. (I know you’ve sworn off Creator questions, but…please?) It seems to me that it was foolish of him to offer Covenant a place in the Land after defeating Lord Foul. As the Creator, should he not have foreseen the possible need for Covenant in the far future when Lord Foul returned? Covenant himself admits that Lord Foul is not gone, simply diminished, “I’ve beaten the Despiser- this time. The Land is safe- for now”. Essentially, my question is whether the Creator truly thought that he was ‘finished’ with Covenant. If Covenant had chosen to end his days in the Land, would the Creator have selected an entirely new individual to meet the current threat to the Land? (Linden seemed to have been chosen to complement Covenant, but would have been unable to conquer the experience alone) Does the Creator, like the Elohim, ‘appoint’ an individual to meet the ‘doom of the age’ and simply counted on having to select a new hero if danger arose in the Land again? (This might be spoiler material) Has he done so before? Also, why wasn’t Linden given the choice to end her days helping Sunder and Hollian? Did the Creator anticipate her to return to the Land?
Finally (Sorry for packing in the questions, feel free to answer all or none!), in the GI you mentioned that Lord Foul did not come to the Land until the Lords were powerful enough to be of use to him, which is why the Lords had no knowledge of him. Yet, the story of Kelenbhrabanal seems to place Lord Foul in the Land and heckling the Ranyhyn far before the Lords came into being. I imagine the Ranyhyn had to have told the Ramen about the Render when they enlisted their help as tenders. Would not the Ramen, or the Ranyhyn through the Ramen, have warned the Old Lords that Fangthane existed and was a source of Despite and malice in the Land (or had been in the Land). Even if they did not readily recognize Lord Foul when he appeared, shouldn’t they have at least been aware of his existence? Also, of what use was the Ranyhyn to Lord Foul? Was his actions towards them a simple exercise in despite (like Llaura and Pietten) or were their unique abilities (revealed in ROTE) a direct threat/aid in his struggle?
Thanks again for the GI and keep up the good work!

I'm going to keep this short because I'm supposed to be packing.  <sigh>

1) You appear to assume that the Elohim care equally about defeating Lord Foul and quenching/repairing the Sunbane.  I'm not sure that such assumptions are warrented.

2) Come on.  The Creator in this story is supposed to be a humane guy.  We know this because he does things like offer Covenant a life in the Land--and because he doesn't *Appoint* anybody (he doesn't deprive people like Covenant, or the people of the Land, of their right to make their own choices).  He didn't pick Covenant:  Lord Foul did.  If Covenant is enabled to live out his life in the Land (complete with white gold), LF would eventually have to come up with entirely new strategies, strategies in which the Creator might have no "say" at all--and I would be writing an utterly different story.  The Creator certainly wouldn't go around *Appointing* new champions.

3) You appear to underestimate the importance of the Ranyhyn.  You also appear to be making some very broad assumptions about time-lines (e.g. that the Ranyhyn and Ramen were present in the Land early in the history of the High Lords) as well as about the nature of the communication between the Ranyhyn and the Ramen.  It's significant, after all, that the Ramen have never participated in a horserite.

(10/19/2007)