Questioner
What's the most unconventional weapon of Valinhall?
Will Wight
By accident, Valin once created a living whip. He was trying to improve on the whip, which isn't really a combat-capable weapon, by weaving together Nye cloth with threads from other Territories that he found could move independently. He ended up creating a squirming, wriggling length of leathery rope that indeed could end up killing someone in the right hands, but only if it was in a helpful mood. He tried various methods of increasing its intelligence, perhaps in an attempt to make it an advisor, but ultimately gave up. It's currently in storage.
Questioner
Tell us about the most dangerous piece of furniture or collection of furniture in the house of blades.
Will Wight
Never question the dominion of the Devouring Sofa, whose hunger is never sated and whose thirst for blood is never quenched.
Questioner
How do you actually make it to the end of a novel?
Will Wight
I ascend from Death to answer this one question, and this one alone, before returning to the grave.This is part of the process. I had many 20k stories before House of Blades, because that’s about the point where the inner critic kicks in and you realize what you’ve written isn’t as good as it was in your head. Now you’ve realized that the REALLY good story is a different idea entirely, or you’ve figured out that you can take the current story in a much better direction as long as you start over from the beginning.This feeling is not to be trusted. Those are lies whispered into your ears by Book Satan. If you switched ideas or started over, you would once again get about 20k in before facing the same situation.You cannot evaluate a story until it is finished. Give yourself permission to write a story that you feel is the worst thing ever. Finish it anyway. Push forward. This is where the hard work of writing comes in.Only when it’s finished can you actually start to judge whether it really is terrible or if it’s actually pretty good. You’re going to feel like it’s terrible throughout the whole middle of the process, and that’s natural. Just don’t let it stop you from putting words on paper.
Windrunner
What book or author would you recommend to someone who has read all of your books, preferring Cradle->House of Blades -> OKAK
Will Wight
I always have a difficult time giving recommendations. The only authors I recommend with no caveats tend to be very well-known. If you're not familiar with the wuxia / xianxia genre, that's what Cradle is, and there are some great examples over on WuxiaWorld.com. They're all fan translated and written daily, so there tend to be some difficulties with prose, but once you get used to it the stories can be off-the-charts hype.
Questioner
What is the most pleasant and painless iron body type to develop?
Will Wight
The Drifting Iron Body. It involves undergoing a process to weaken gravity's hold on the body, making you lighter. The actual transformation process involves being woven into a silken cocoon made by refiners from plants that grow among the clouds. It feels like being suspended among hundreds of pillows for several hours a day over many weeks.
Questioner
What's the biggest chain restaurant in cradle? Such as McDonalds.
Will Wight
Sungarden restaurants are all over a different continent. They have life artists that can grow tailor-made fruits and vegetables on command, so you're ordering from a menu of genetic options as much as a selection of dishes.
Questioner
Where do you go for the best food in Cradle?
Will Wight
In many places in Cradle, it's difficult to tell, but everything in the Blackflame Empire is ranked for your convenience.The #1 rated restaurant in the Empire is the Dragon's Breath, a grill that specializes in unbelievably exotic meats. There, you can taste spiced sea dragon, butter-roasted Cloud Eagle, slices of butter-soft sashimi from tuna longer than a man is tall, and thousand-year peach wine.It's appropriately expensive. Many of the customers bring in the creatures their families have captured and pay to have them prepared by the high-class artisans on staff.
