99 Reader Reviews on the Wall, 99 Reader Reviews...

5/20/2015

Take one down, pass it around...

On second thought, please don't take one down.

But hey, we're currently showing ninety-nine combined Amazon reviews of the Elder Empire books! That's awesome! And coincidentally, there are 699 Likes on my Facebook page! THE ERA OF THE NINETY-NINE HAS BEGUN.

Thanks for your support, and to honor that, I promise I'm working as hard as possible on Of Dawn and Darkness / Of Darkness and Dawn. Honestly, I'm feeling slightly guilty over the time off I've taken to write this blog post.

So before I get back to writing, I wanted to remind you that I did something a little special for the first 25 and 50 reviews. For twenty-five, I posted an early draft of Shadow's original prologue, starring everyone's favorite global Emperor. For fifty, I wrote a cliffhanger-y teaser chapter involving Valin and Simon.

So...we're one away from 100.

Any suggestions?

21 Comments

Nikk

5/20/2015 05:14:48 am

Another adventure like in Tower of Winter/Gardens of Mist/The Lightning Wastes. I loved all 3 but I liked the one with Leah and Simon the most. I wonder where their relationship will go, if anywhere? Maybe give a little update- what are Simon and/or Leah up to? What is Simon's next goal? How about the other people in the House of Blades? (Or something similar, I know other readers love other Territories)

Will Wight link

5/20/2015 07:27:20 am

That was certainly the most fanfiction-y (and also fanservice-y) of the stories, but I did have fun writing it.

I'm...almost certain I'm not going to write another one of those short stories right now, though. They take too much concentration to write, during a period in which I need to be focused on Of Dawn and Darkness.

For one thing, I would have to spend some time getting back into the Traveler's Gate world and into Simon's head, and then making some decisions about where I want Simon to go post-trilogy.

Nikk

5/21/2015 02:51:42 am

Ok, then how about you track down, capture and interrogate the mystical creature named 'Will Wight'. I had always wondered how the writing process works for a writer. Do you sit down someplace silent and ideas just flow? Or go someplace noisy? Do you run out into oncoming traffic, get hit by a car, and find divine inspiration? Do you sit for days with nothing going on in your mind, then all of a sudden at 3AM you wake up and have to write stuff down before the voices in your head make you forget?

Aaron J.E.

5/20/2015 06:42:43 am

Glad to see you are still alive out there. Shocked to see I was not one of those 699, so I remedied that immediately. Keep fighting the good fight!

In terms of the special short - I choose to be pleasantly surprised.

화이팅!

Will Wight link

5/20/2015 07:25:46 am

You know, if you actually yelled FIGHTING! at most Americans, they would have no idea what you meant.

You're a lucky guy, Aaron. An alternate-universe version of me may have thought you were challenging me to a Korean duel.

Kevin

5/22/2015 06:53:09 am

How about Kai earning the iron scroll? I would guess that would be too focused a project right now as well, but a guy can dream right? I miss him.

Will Wight link

5/23/2015 12:31:09 am

I really do want to write a Kai story, at some point. I'm considering writing another story about him in the future.

Jonathan

5/23/2015 12:15:19 am

How about the story of how when the "unknown wanderer" interacted with the consultant guild? Or possibly a story about the emperor before he started the rebellion against the great elders.

Will Wight link

5/23/2015 12:32:29 am

A story about the Emperor, you say...

I might actually have something for that. Currently, it's part of the flashback story for Dawn and Darkness, but it actually stands on its own as a short story. Hmmmm...

Derek

5/23/2015 10:49:00 am

A scene with the Elders maybe. Prequelish, I liked the short stories you did about the different territories, and for some reason the elders make me think of the Founders of the territories.

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:31:04 am

There's a chapter like that in Of Darkness and Dawn, in which you follow the Emperor before he became the Emperor.

As a matter of fact, it stands on its own pretty well. I could release it a little early...

Aaron J.E.

5/23/2015 03:10:00 pm

Ah, just thought of something. The Regents - I believe we already met one or two in one of your preview shorts, and I know they will deal heavily in the coming books. What I am interested in is either stories from the past with the Emperor or something more contemporary; like the sheer amount of culture shock you would have after being in stasis for 1500 years to wake up to a world of gunpowder and steel. Or, he'll, just how they managed to be in stasis for 1500 years in the first place.

I'm guessing you danced around them so much in the first cycle that they are building up the suspense for some big introductions - but I will take whatever I can get.

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:34:27 am

Okay, here's the thing about the Regents.

I'm a big fan. We get to see one or two onscreen in the next book(s), and you'll get a little bit of your answer to how they adapt. It's a little easier as a Reader; you get used to technological changes faster because you can basically sense what an object is for and how it's made just by touching it.

But the linguistic and cultural changes are a little more awkward. The Emperor sounds relatively normal because the Imperial language is more or less BASED on how he speaks, but language still drifts and shifts over time.

All of that said, I have a really cool idea for a series of scenes in which Estyr Six keeps waking up in a progressively stranger and stranger world, and the whole time she's trying to come to terms with the fact that she's effectively immortal and she doesn't want to be. It's an interesting cycle, and I'm REALLY trying to find a place for it in book(s) three.

But if I don't, I may have to write it anyway.

April

5/24/2015 06:27:13 am

Going off of Nikk's second suggestion, what about another Reddit q&a?

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:29:43 am

I actually have to sign up for those well in advance, but I could do a similar-style thing either here or on Facebook.

Jim

5/25/2015 08:30:40 am

My vote is either for a backstory on Cheska (Navigator Guild) or Urzaia (our Champion thus far). I think both would be interesting to hear more about. I'd say Bliss, but we know she is a feature in the next book...

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:29:11 am

I think I could come up with some cool stuff for Cheska's backstory. And Bliss' backstory actually wouldn't be a spoiler, since she doesn't heavily feature in the flashbacks next time. Just the present storyline.

Urzaia's backstory, though, is coming in Of Dawn and Darkness. Stay tuned!

5/27/2015 02:27:38 am

I reviewed to make sure we get 100!!

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:27:50 am

You weren't the only one! I went from 99 to 104 in about two days. I didn't see that coming, actually, which may have been stupid on my part. I only thought, "Oh man! We're at 99, which means we'll hit 100 soon. I should do something on my blog before that happens."

And then, naturally, we just blow past it.

Brian S

5/27/2015 10:27:58 am

How about a short about one of the Emperors artifacts that got away? We have the key, the quill, the crown, and I"m sure their are dozens more.

Will Wight link

6/2/2015 12:28:20 am

I really like that idea, Brian. I have some cool ideas on that front.

In which we ramble on.
And by we, I mean me.