Interview – Fantasy Literature

I can’t remember if I mentioned this before, but a little while back, FantasyLiterature.net picked my book as the Best Book of 2007.

Now we’ve done an interview too, because we looove each other….

Enjoy,

pat

This entry was posted in awards, InterviewsBy Pat23 Responses

23 Comments

  1. marky
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 12:02 PM | Permalink

    Dr. Rev. Rothfuss does have a certain ring to it.Very good interview. Great questions.And there was me thinking you were a sneaky musician but no. You’re just a liar.And a damn good one!

  2. Steve
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 2:27 PM | Permalink

    Pat, I have to call you out just a little bit. On your list of things to not have in the books you say that “no one is trying to destroy the world”–Umm hello? Lanre anyone? In his transformation into the dark lordesque figure he becomes isn’t his goal not to pretty much purge the world of all life before he get’s all named and banished?

  3. roseneko
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 2:43 PM | Permalink

    Great interview! It’s always nice to know I’m not the only one with such eclectic reading tastes.So, what kind of quest do my boyfriend and I have to perform in order to convince you to officiate at our wedding? ‘Cos that would be, like, the best thing ever. And we promise not to schedule it for the same weekend as Comic-con. =D

  4. lovesmasher
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 4:12 PM | Permalink

    We should have had this talk a long time ago. Billy… sometimes, when a man and a website love each other VERY much, they do an interview.

  5. Robert
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 4:23 PM | Permalink

    Hmm. In a few of your interviews, they use that photo of you in front of a blackboard… and what *looks* like a map of the University campus.You wouldn’t happen to have a copy around, would you? =p

  6. logankstewart
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 5:36 PM | Permalink

    I’m pretty sure, Pat, in regards to the previous post, that there are only a handful of photos of you out there in the world. Faster than a running train, Pat is just too hard to catch in a still-frame. Great interview, too.

  7. Steve
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 6:00 PM | Permalink

    (Different Steve from above)Great interview. One of my favorites–just enough insight sprinkled with wit. Interesting to see you mention Joe Abercrombie. I stumbled upon his trilogy and I’m waiting for the third book to hit the states. I’ve really enjoyed it so far.Thanks!

  8. Mary J.
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 6:33 PM | Permalink

    Word of the day: frangible! I’m not ashamed to say I had to look it up. :-)This one was great. I had someone at the NOTW book discussion on Monday night ask me the musician question too. They were just as hard to convince.

  9. Kellye. L. Parish
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 6:36 PM | Permalink

    I dunno. I think Master Reverend Rothfuss has a pretty cool ring too.That interview was great. I love a glimpse into the mind of the master. >:)

  10. Fe2O3
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 7:52 PM | Permalink

    All hail master…(<>Oh, wait…<>)Great interview Pat, I understand your reticence in tackling the question of “How do you do it?” You need to be a musician if you want to make, or teach how to make, music, but you don’t need any musical training to write about a musical experience that rings true. A good imagination, or being a good liar as you put it, is the key. I like that you can put rules and bounds to your imagination so as to avoid those fantasy cliches. I know what you mean about <>Wild wild west<> and the patterns that can develop if care is not exercised.I especially appreciate that you can revisit your stories as often as you do to revise and tweak. That’s the mark of a good craftsman: writer, actor, musician, smithy, etc. You’ve got to revisit and revise with fresh eyes. That allows us to spend more time reading and rereading; exploring your world and Qvothe’s story.Keep it up, because I know it will make WMF just that much more enjoyable. Remember, you’re not a liar, you’re a story teller. A liar says things like, “My second book will be out in Spring of 2008…”(Ah, now that was offsides now, wasn’t it?)

  11. wibiti
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 8:30 PM | Permalink

    Rev. Rothfuss, reading your book aloud, I appreciate the extra polish you put into writing. My listener tends to interrupt me with questions, and I’m often able to answer her by reading the next sentence rather than using my own clumsy words.Myself, I appreciate your avoidance of common fantasy tropes and cliches. Effective as they are to newer readers, to fantasy fans they just take us out of the story by reminding us of a hundred other books.Keep the great lies coming!

  12. Plucky
    Posted August 6, 2008 at 8:36 PM | Permalink

    Steve. In a way you are write about the destruction of the world but remember that Pat uses stories within the book to both inform and express the difference between legend and reality.So we don’t yet know the hole story only a vague legend which will prove to be based on some vague facts. P.s. 100 Revisions wow. Pat you ever revise something to sound better only to realize latter that ever word was already well thought out and you had to go back and un-revise?

  13. Summer
    Posted August 7, 2008 at 5:29 AM | Permalink

    I’m glad the Reverend Rothfuss revises. I’m sure you come up with some pretty snappy prose first thing, Pat, but it’s what makes your work unique, like a river-smooth stone. A particularly shiny one, mind.

  14. danna
    Posted August 7, 2008 at 7:19 AM | Permalink

    ” I mean, nobody comes up to me and says, “Wow, you do such a good job of explaining what it’s like to be starving on the streets of a pre-industrial city. I’m sorry you had to live through that.” “I laughed so hard at that. You’re brilliant, Pat!

  15. Captain Joe
    Posted August 7, 2008 at 10:05 AM | Permalink

    No fireballs!?Probably for the best. We do have leaping through fire, and flame-haired heroes, and fire-breathing dragons, and towns burning down… pfft, what’s cool about fireballs anyways?Awesome interview. You can <>so<> do magic, Pat.

  16. Schimpfinator
    Posted August 8, 2008 at 4:01 AM | Permalink

    Are you a Christian? Did you need to be to become a “reverend” through whatever method you used to become a reverend?I only ask this because a few passages in your book “Name of the Wind” sounded influenced by Christian thinking. A Christian “twang” if you will.

  17. Anonymous
    Posted August 8, 2008 at 8:44 AM | Permalink

    Only a Christian would ask and notice that.

  18. marky
    Posted August 8, 2008 at 11:06 AM | Permalink

    If you haven’t already, I suggest everybody watch http://www.atom.com/funny_videos/legend_of_neil_3/It’s Felicia Day again. This time playing a horny fairy. I won’t spoil it for anybody, but it is really funny and a bit crude. So no kiddies viewing it please!

  19. Captain Joe
    Posted August 8, 2008 at 11:35 AM | Permalink

    Ha, Marky, you’ve just destroyed my innocence. Good job.Legend of Zelda is all I remember of my childhood.

  20. Jessica
    Posted August 9, 2008 at 12:31 PM | Permalink

    Favorite line: You think it’s easier to guess at the mindset of an adolescent girl than a musician? Have you even met an adolescent girl?No kidding. At that point, I didn’t even know my own mind. Wait, I still have that problem sometimes. Dang! Great interview, as usual.

  21. Anonymous
    Posted August 10, 2008 at 1:14 AM | Permalink

    This is off topic, but it must be said: This is the best blog on the interweb. Seriously, I RSS this thing and watch anxiously for the next posting. I’m not doing a whacky fan-love thing here… I just have to say it’s an interesting/entertaining blog… and I hate blogs.

  22. arcaneja
    Posted August 10, 2008 at 6:13 PM | Permalink

    I’m burning with curiosity to know how many emails you’ve now gotten with the bit about “…starving in the streets of a pre-industrial city…” contained within. Or other details from Kvothe’s life inserted instead.

  23. Chris
    Posted August 11, 2008 at 4:06 AM | Permalink

    You kick ass when it comes to interviews, Reverend.

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