Tor Books seeks questions for Robert Jordan

[Jean]

From Dragonmount (http://www.dragonmount.com/):


Tor Books has asked Dragonmount to help collect questions to be submitted to Robert Jordan. They plan to launch a new Wheel of Time home page on their website. Part of this new website will include a "Question of the week" for Robert Jordan.
The deadline for submissions is December 15th, so hurry!

To submit a question, fill out our submission form by following the link below.

You can click here (http://www.dragonmount.com/News/news-2003-12.aspx#12-06-03_03) to go directly to the question submission page.

[Jean]

TOR Books is accepting new questions for their website's "Question of the Week" section. The deadline is June 8th, now's your chance to submit a question to RJ (http://www.dragonmount.com/Interviews/submit_question.aspx/).

[Jaric Mondoran]

Is there any prohibition against submitting more than one question?

[Thorbear]

I wonder how many who'll ask the most commonly asked question off them all.
"Who killed Asmodean?" Sure'll be many! maybe I'll ask him how many asked the question.
~wanders away while thinking about things to ask RJ about.~

[Jaric Mondoran]

I just submitted two questions. On the submission form they emphatically forbid you to ask the so called Forbidden Questions.

They have a whole list under Forbidden Questions, including Who killed Asmo, How many books left, Who's your favourite character etc.

All the old ones.

So you have to come up with something original.

Oh, and it cannot be a question with a Yes, No answer.

[Jean]

If you don't mind my asking, what kind of questions did you sumbit Jaric?

Oh, also, here's the url for the current questions that RJ has answered:

http://www.tor.com/jordan/questions.html

[GWINNA]

Shadar Canine: Hi RJ. Now, you know that Aiel that fell off the skimming platform....
RJ: Oh no, not you... if you ask me if we are gonna see him again.....
Shadar Canine: Well, will we?
RJ: NEXT!

[Karistina]

I asked two questions. The first was about how the Black Ajah recruits its members. The second question, I worded very carefully...

Which person or persons have masqueraded as Selene? If there was more than one, what were the motives of each in doing so?

Grammatically, it's a mess. But I think there's no way to weasel around it and still answer the question. :D

Edited to add: If anyone is curious as to the logic behind the Selene question, feel free to start a thread under Theories that mentions Selene in the title, and I'll get back to you in the morning. But for now... :zzz:

[Beowulf]

Ah, those were some interesting questions for the most part. The question about RJ's spirituality didn't really enlighten or interest me much though.

[Amelia Sedai]

RJ, all knowing and all powerful, how do you feel when people mock your beard? I think that its the source of all your power but others feel that it eats babies, which is it?

[Jaric Mondoran]

If you don't mind my asking, what kind of questions did you sumbit Jaric?

Oh, also, here's the url for the current questions that RJ has answered:

http://www.tor.com/jordan/questions.html


Well, all my questions related to channeler strength, surprise, surprise.

1.

Do the Forsaken vary significantly in terms of channeling strength? I don't mean the obvious strength difference between the male and female Forsaken.

For example among the males, would Demandred be stronger than Aginor and Arangar by some margin, since Aginor appeared quite nervous about confronting Demandred at the Forsaken meeting before the Cleansing. Similarly, there are some hints that Graendal and Cyndane are stronger than the other female Forsaken.
Is this the case, or do they all fall quite close together?

Later, I sneaked in a second question.

2.

Can you confirm that the Guide is written from a modern Aes Sedai perspective, and therefore wrong, when it states that Lanfear is the second most powerful of the Forsaken. Clearly Rahvin considers both himself and Sammael capable of overcoming her face to face. And it is almost certain that Demandred and Aginor are even stronger than Rahvin and Sammael. So at most Lanfear could be the sixth strongest of the Forsaken.

-------------------------------

As you can see, I am pretty obsessed with the Forsaken, and in particular their strength in the Power.

I am hoping that we can get some clarity on some of these issues from RJ himself!

[Amberly]

I sent in the question

At the begining of book 2 when Verrin meets up with the party looking for the Horn she says that Moriane sent her but at the end of that same book Moriane says she never sent Verrin. Which one of those two was lying?

if that even gets an answer it will be RAFO

[Beowulf]

For my two cents... As one of the answers from RJ states, Aginor was always more of an experimenter and researcher who is now in an Age without his tools, his talents aren't in challenging others of his calibur, but in creating um... monsters. Demandred was always an all around badass and you don't mess with someone like him unless you're as formidable as he is and sure you've got the upper hand.=$0.01

And Verin is totally shady, I think she could wriggle her way into justifying being in their company. I think any dubiousness was definitely on her part, just look at her track record. Fishy fishy from day one. I really like Verin because nothing escapes her and she's probably got TONS of tricks up her sleeve and her motives seem to be her own.=$0.01

total..... $0.02!

[Jaric Mondoran]

Jean, I know the closing date is 8 June, but do you know when this interview will actually take place, and when the results will be posted?

[Jaric Mondoran]

TOR states that the deadline for question submission has passed, and that they received a total of 773 submissions.

They did say that some of those submissions had more than one question, so they estimate the total number of questions at around 1000.

I must say, that is less than I expected, considering RJ's worldwide fanbase. There could have been 10 000 or 100 000 questions for all we know.

Which kind of gives you hope, if you submitted a question.

Apparantly they will now choose 30 to 40 questions out of all of these submissions, and present them to RJ to answer as he gets time.

So lets say there were 1000 questions. At least half of these will probably be from buffoons who ask questions that will either get a RAFO, or be similar to something asked in the past or covered in a previous interview. After all, there are a lot of idiots out there, and not everyone is as knowledgeable about the books as we are. How many people have really sifted through each interview that RJ has done?

That leaves say 500, which the guys at TOR will have to rank in terms of probability of getting an answer. Now remember, a lot of these questions could be on the same topic, or very similar in nature.

After all, the people submitting them would have no idea whether someone else asked the same question. So that may narrow down to field even further, to the low hundreds or even below.

After all, just how many different questions can there really be?

So let's say there are 150 good questions, that warrant RJ's attention. Now it depends on how the TOR people evaluate both the quality of your question, and the general interest that there may be in the answer.

So now it just comes down to how good a question you have submitted.

If you consider your question to be well thought out, and generally of interest to other readers, I reckon you have a good chance of having it included among the 30 lucky questions that will go to RJ himself.

[Jean]

Last time he answered one question a week for 4 months, so there probably won't even be 30 questions answered. Cross your fingers that someone from wotism will get his or her question answered. :)

[Karistina]

*crosses fingers AND toes*

[shinote]

umm... yeah he's already answered all the questions.... there were 16 total and you can find them

http://www.tor.com/jordan/questions.html

there...

I wasn't to impressed with it, other then the knowledge of two more prequels that I hadn't know about, (hey I was gone such a long long time.)

[Jean]

Actually this submission was for a new round of questions. No news on when the new questions will be posted though.

[Jaric Mondoran]

The news is all over the net that the next question has been posted on Tor's website.

A link to it is even provided on wotmania. However, when I go there, I just see the 16 old questions.

How do I find the new one?

I see it is already being discussed on some sites, but I cannot even find out what the question was.

[Shadow Dweller]

tor com/jordan/questions html
here is the link. Replace spaces with "."'s

[Jean]

It's the very first question at http://www.tor.com/jordan/questions.html

Question:

The Dark One has promised his followers immortality and power above all others on the Day of Return. In previous interviews you have said that this is within his power. My question is, will he? I mean, he doesn't seem very loyal or trustworthy to me. If (Light forbid) he breaks free, will he remember the "little people" or just destroy all the puny humans when he remakes the world in his own image?


Robert Jordan Answers:

That's the big question for the Forsaken, isn't it. Can they trust the Dark One? You're right; he isn't very trustworthy or loyal. Greed leads people to believe strange things, to excuse the most abhorrent behavior on their parts-just check out the nightly news for confirmation-and at the root, that is what motivates the Forsaken and, in truth, most Darkfriends. Greed for power, greed for immortality. That makes them believe, because they want to believe. So will he grant these things? Maybe. After all, he gains more willing followers, more eager followers, if he is seen to give rewards. But will he care whether he has any followers at all in a world where he is all-powerful? Flip a coin and check which way the wind is blowing. Maybe you can find the answer there.

[Jaric Mondoran]

Thanks Jean!

For some strange reason, even when I click on the link you have provided, I still only see the 16 original questions. There is no new Week 1 above Week 16. Must be something wrong on my side.

Thanks for including the question too.

[Amberly]

if you read the top of that page there is a link that will let you ask your question.... but I dont think they're accepting new questions right now

[Jaric Mondoran]

Anyway, regarding the question, I think it is a bit disappointing.

Both the question and the answer.

The question related to a hypothetical situation: If the Dark One breaks free.

And the answer was very vague, as if RJ had not really thought about it that way, since he was never going to allow the Dark One to actually break free in the first place.

The way RJ answers the question, he kind of implies that no, the Dark One probably will not honor his promises, but the Forsaken are too stupid - in his words "blinded by greed" - to realize this.

Once again, it seems as if the Forsaken are growing less and less important in RJ's view of the story.

Human bad guys seem to be taking the back seat to inhuman dark manifestations - Shaidar Haran - or crazed, Saa-ravaged True Power addicts.

Inhuman villains are never as involving, since you cannot share their point of view as readily as that of a human villain, who is driven by human emotions, evil as they may be.

And the less emotionally involved the reader is with the antagonist, the less interesting the story becomes.

This trend is a pity, in my opinion.

After all, which story grabs your attention more:

A hero fighting a villain who is driven by emotional motives like vengeance, jealousy and sadism,

or a hero who is trying to overcome a totally unfeeling natural force like an earthquake, landslide or hurricane.

Human involvement always inspires more conflicting emotions.

Similarly, a malevolent natural force like the Dark One is to me less dramatic than evil human beings, who could be you or me, if we were just slightly twisted.

That is why I wish the Forsaken could be less dependant and subservient to the Dark One, and play a greater role in the climax of the series.

Instead, they seem to be declining in stature, to positions that are little more than "Strong Darkfriends".

One of the saddest events to me, was Alviarin's witnessing of Mesaana's humiliation. In fact, it now seems as if Alviarin is higher placed than Mesaana, in the ranks of the Dark. At the very least, she has lost all her awe for her former mistress, and with that the Chosen as a group have lost some of their former sense of menace and mystery.

This is unfortunate, from a dramatic point of view.

[Jean]

The next question is up, for those that can't access the page, I'll post it here. :)


Question:

The other big murder mystery - Ispan and Adeleas. Have you given us sufficient clues in the books that you think we should be able to figure out this one? Any hints on where to look?


Robert Jordan Answers:

No, I haven't given you enough information to solve the murders of Adeleas and Ispan, but they will be solved in Knife of Dreams. How's that for a hint?

[Jaric Mondoran]

His answered it!

He says the Hint is Knife of Dreams!

Knife of Dreams.

Who is the knife of dreams?

Slayer.

Great stuff!

[Amelia Sedai]

And the answer was very vague








RJ? Being vague? NOOOOO!!!!! :D

[A N T I]

just a tad unspecific

[Jean]

Finally the next question is up, for some reason they skipped last week. Thanks to Jaric for the reminder. :D


Question:

How do the Seanchan Ogier cope with the Longing, given that their duties in the Deathwatch Guard take them overseas? Are there many Steddings in Seanchan?


Robert Jordan Answers:

There are many more stedding in Seanchan than there are in the part of the world where the story is taking place, and that is why the Seanchan Ogier don't suffer from the Longing. Because there are so many more stedding, they were able to find them more easily even during the Breaking and therefore never had the very extended separation that Ogier on this side of the Aryth Ocean had, though they seldom were able to settle in one for very long until the Breaking ended.

[Amberly]

omg did RJ really just strait up answer a question!!!!
*dies*

[Byrn]

But that one was simple. The Breaking was the Worst at Shayol Ghul. I'm betting Shara and Seanchan were not destoyed as completely as the Main area in WOT. Which would be a bad thing since in the big book of WOT, it tells you most of the world was in control of the Dark One.

[Jean]

There have been 2 new questions posted. There doesn't seem to be any consistency in posting one every week, so I never know when to check his site. :blush:

Question:

In "New Spring" you mentioned that the Blue Ajah taught Moraine and Siuan secret weaves upon their raising. Do other Ajahs have secret weaves, and if so, what are they? Could you share a few of them with us?


Robert Jordan Answers:

Yes, other Ajahs also have secret weaves, though a few of those secrets are actually known to more than one Ajah, each of which believes that it alone knows. That's always the problem with secrets, isn't it? You can never really be sure that somebody else doesn't know too. I could share, but if I told you, then I'd have to kill you. I may yet use one or more Ajah secret weaves in the books, so I'm afraid the answer here is RAFO.

Question:

Will Hurin the Sniffer return in any of the remaining books? Please? We miss him. Could you share some insight as to why you decided not to use him after The Great Hunt?


Robert Jordan Answers:

He'll turn up again. He hasn't reappeared earlier because the part he had to play was a sidelight to the main story. You should be able to glean some of what he was doing, what effect he and the news he brought was having, from the news that came out of the Borderlands in the books following The Dragon Reborn, though.

[Jaric Mondoran]

Week 6 question submitted by: Debbie E
Hometown: Bristol, UK


Question:

How were the Gholams made? Were they created or bred like the Trollocs? How exactly are they controlled if they are immune to the One Power?


Robert Jordan Answers:

The gholam—singular and plural are the same—were created, not bred. Supposedly their creation involved making them so that they would be obedient to the Chosen, whoever they might be at any given time. This was an attempt at copying something that had turned up in Myrddraal, which seem incapable of disobeying one of the Chosen, possibly because of the use of the True Power in creation of the Trollocs, the parent stock of the Myrddraal. Even Aginor, who created the Trollocs, and thus indirectly the Myrddraal, was uncertain about the actual cause. (Becoming one of the Forsaken involves receiving a mark from the Dark One in return for your oaths; this mark is invisible and cannot be sensed by another human being, even another of the Forsaken, but it can be by certain non-human creatures, including Myrddraal and draghkar among others. This may play a part in the Myrddraal's obedience but doesn't explain it completely.) This element in gholam has some flaws, however, as we have seen in a small measure. In any case, if I were you, I wouldn't try giving orders to a gholam unless I were one of the Forsaken.

[Warder Trained]

So is Rand a non-human creature? :)

[Dj_ez]

Nahh, who wants to f#$k with the Dragon reborn? Even the Gholam knows it would be screwed if it tried...

[Thorbear]

His answered it!

He says the Hint is Knife of Dreams!

Knife of Dreams.

Who is the knife of dreams?

Slayer.

Great stuff!
Actually, Knife of dreams is book 11.
just so you know...

[Jaric Mondoran]

Dang! You're kidding me...

Seriously though, if you look at the entire answer by RJ, there is more than a hint that he used Knife of Dreams with a double meaning.

He said that it will be revealed in Knife of Dreams. But he also insinuated that he had actually answered the question in full with this statement. So the second meaning for Knife of Dreams would be that that is the identity of the killer. Slayer.

So, if in the next book, Slayer is revealed as being the killer you can start the ass kissing with me!

[Karistina]

I have my doubts that Slayer = Knife of Dreams. That's far too simplistic for RJ.

[aan'allein]

Dec. 15, what year? I've got plenty of questions to ask if it's not past the deadline.

[Karistina]

Psst...

*points at date of last post in thread other than yours, which happens to be mine*

You're several months too late.

[aan'allein]

aww. crap.