So I’m guessing some of you like stories….

Heya Everybody,

There’s a few projects we’ve been working on over here at RothCo. Some of them for years and years. The biggest of these is the website renovation. I’ve wanted a new website for 8 years, and we’ve been working on it for ages.

And now, believe it or not, it looks like we’re going to be able to launch it by the end of the year.

But here’s the thing. One of the big problems with the current website is that it didn’t really show off the blog properly. Because when we created the website, I didn’t know I’d be writing a blog. Or at least I didn’t know I’d be writing a blog as extensive as mine has ended up becoming.

Over the last decade, I’ve written stories I’m proud of. Some funny. Some sad. Some strange. I’d like to show those blogs off to people who swing by the new website, or to people who have only tuned into the blog in the last couple years, and have no way to find those old stories except to troll through

I have a few that I remember that I’m proud of, but to tell you the truth, I wrote a lot of them a long time ago. A lot of times, people say, “I love that blog you wrote about your dog,” and I honestly can’t remember writing it.

So if you have a blog you’re particularly fond of, could you let me know down in the comments below? Preferably with a link?

Thanks,

pat

This entry was posted in Achievement Unlocked!, blogging, calling on the legions. By Pat142 Responses

142 Comments

  1. mrswizzleswangle
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:15 AM | Permalink

    I enjoy reading your blogs! I don’t have any favorites that I’d like to see kept safe, but I do have one request for the new site. It’s always annoyed me that the first thing I see on your site is a review that somewhat compares you to Harry Potter. It’s not a bad review at all, but I dislike the fact that it’s the first thing we see on your website.

    I look forward to all of your future blogs or whatever comes next. :D

    • bookthree
      Posted November 3, 2016 at 12:12 AM | Permalink

      Pat, apologies if this is the wrong place to ask…

      When will we see the release of Book 3?

      Your fans eagerly hold their collective breath, in anticipation of that glorious day. :)

      • Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:57 AM | Permalink

        *Sigh*

        Yes. It’s the wrong place.

        • Rotaskall
          Posted November 3, 2016 at 12:54 PM | Permalink

          “Every bad situation is a blues song waiting to happen”

          Amy Winehouse

        • Karim
          Posted November 3, 2016 at 9:49 PM | Permalink

          I’ll post a proper reply later, but, considering the topic at hand and this mini-thread, I’ll mention that this blog post is a favourite. I think most of us are more curious than pissed. (And I hope this doesn’t come across as testy. I say this hopefully and with full support, fully realising you owe none of us anything and hoping/wishing you and yours happiness and health. Also note how I didn’t add a single semi-colon to this post. I had two carefully remove two.)

  2. Rhia
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:22 AM | Permalink

    There’s so many!
    But one that I really enjoyed, and that I still refer people to is this one: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/12/perils-of-translation-babelfish/ where you talk about issues tied to translation (I just pointed a friend to it two days ago when we talked about literary awards and how much translations can impact how much you enjoy a book).
    I’m a German working at an American Studies department, so going back and forth between two (sometimes three) languages is what I do on a daily basis, though in a different context of course. I thought this was an interesting glance at the work translators do and at the intricacies of their work. (I don’t teach translation classes, or I would already have assigned the post it as extra reading to our students…)

  3. Laitainon
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:24 AM | Permalink

    The blog posts I like the most are those either sharing fun stories from your life or shedding some light on the work behind the scenes.

    I loved the posts on translation:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/01/on-perils-of-translation/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/02/perils-of-translation-part-2/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/12/perils-of-translation-babelfish/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/08/fanmail-qa-why-does-it-take-so-long-to-translate-the-book/

    As a foreign reader, I also enjoy the posts where you talk about your foreign editions, for example:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/10/im-kind-of-big-deal-in-germany/

    Yay for a new website!

  4. BioLogin
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:25 AM | Permalink

    Please consider including this one: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/03/concerning-games-torment-and-a-sense-of-play/. It is bitter and sweet and sad and encouraging and tells much about you and your books and your characters.

    Thank you.

  5. Kthaeh
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:28 AM | Permalink

    So, so many! But the one featuring pictures of your mom is a recent stand out for me. Is that the same one with the phrase Bilbo it up came from? The fact that I can’t quite remember is no reflection on the quality of that/those posts. It’s more to do with the fact that I’m as yet uncaffeinated this morning.

    If at all possible, please find a space on the revamped blog for *all* the pieces you wrote for the Suvudu cage matches. I have gone to extraordinary lengths to retrieve those stories and clean up the ensuing formatting in order to share them privately with friends I have turned on to your work. They are gems that deserve a wider audience.

    I look forward to seeing the new virtual digs.

    • selvasol
      Posted November 3, 2016 at 2:51 PM | Permalink

      I’d love to see these too!

    • jenk0975
      Posted November 7, 2016 at 5:40 PM | Permalink

      Many people down thread have referenced “concerning cake” as the source of this – but it was actually posted almost two years earlier in March 2012 here:

      https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/03/consolation-prize-kvothe-vs-aslan/

      And I would love for that blog to be saved both as the original source of that info, and for the Kvothe – vs – Aslan story.

      This idea is so important to me – it’s WHY I read fiction. To remind myself that I CAN and SHOULD face my dragons because the struggle is worth the reward. I need stories so I don’t forget this because fighting dragons IS hard, and I’m NOT as cool as I’d wanted, and all of that DOES suck. But fighting, in and of its self, is still important. It seems to me most have forgotten that the dragon exists so that you can fight her and EARN your reward, NOT to keep you from trying.

      Rothfuss, you have Worldbuilders, and two FANTASTIC novels under your belt, so I know you understand about fighting, even if you would use different words to describe how the process feels to you.

      I have my own projects. And it seems that everyone I ask for help and guidance can only see the dragon. They can’t see the GIANT pile of treasure she guards, or they don’t believe that together we can take it. So I get asked why I bother. I get told my efforts would be better spent elsewhere, or that the world really needs something different. I’m bluntly told to expect failure, that my goals are stupid, and a waste of energy. Or worse, I get told my ideas are good and worth while, before being pointedly ignored.

      I know these people are wrong because I have persevered in spite of them of time and time again. But I have only recently come to accept that those kinds of comments are part of my fight. A part of my dragon.

      Your quote above will help me articulate that it’s ok to be afraid. It’s ok to doubt. It’s ok to feel like a task is too big. And – more importantly – it’s ok to take it on anyway. It’s ok to try. It’s ok to work really hard for a really long time and not get very far. It’s ok to fight even if it looks like you can never win. That’s the whole point. The dragon isn’t the obstacle, we are.

  6. Prufrock
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:33 AM | Permalink

    The cage matches.

  7. ChaosAthena
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:40 AM | Permalink

    Remember that time you taught us about Eros, Filius, and Agape using pictures of scantily clad women surrounded by your book? The internet remembers, and it is glorious.

    Also, the book review of Road Dahl’s “Esio Trot” was excellent. I read your amended version to my nieces, and they love it. You put the link to the book review in a blog. So, I’m counting it.

  8. UrsulaK
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:40 AM | Permalink

    I really loved your post about the conversation you had with your friends about Scott Walker’s election. Also, I found your post about circumcision to be very thoughtful.

    So I guess for me it’s the posts about dicks that stand out. Huh.

    • pacifist
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:53 AM | Permalink

      we don’t Judge around here

    • Posted November 2, 2016 at 3:13 PM | Permalink

      Huh. I never would have thought that either of those would be anyone’s favorites. I caught a lot of shit for both of them….

      • UrsulaK
        Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:13 PM | Permalink

        ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Sassy Rothfuss is my favorite.

      • Jexral
        Posted November 3, 2016 at 9:02 PM | Permalink

        I want to poke my head in and second both of those choices. I actually think about your circumcision post pretty often, and I’ve shared it with more than a few people. It’s hilarious and thoughtful and shines a light on a thing that most people seem to just blindly accept.

        The Scott Walker one I only remember a little, but I remember it was great.

      • bishieaya
        Posted November 8, 2016 at 3:38 AM | Permalink

        Me too! You’re post on circumcision was very insightful,. Even the response you got was interesting (though unnecessarily harsh) as where I am from…I don’t think its that big an issue. People just don’t really do it, or aren’t that bothered about it, from my experience anyway. So yeah, you’re contriversial blogs should definetly be heard…I mean read :)

        I also vote for any about your parenting experiences and the one where you did the rhyming style from Dr Seuss.

  9. Bryni
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:49 AM | Permalink

    When I thought, “No power in the ‘verse can stop us”

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/02/an-open-letter-to-nathan-fillion/

  10. Vader
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:57 AM | Permalink

    It’s not a story, but the blog post I keep going back to was your list of reading suggestions from a few years ago.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/06/fanmail-faq-looking-for-good-books/

  11. Tamara
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:05 AM | Permalink

    There are so many,
    but one that comes to mind is this one about the punctuation. It really shows how much you care about the details. And details matter. Therefore I am willing to wait for the book 3 as long as you need.
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/04/punctuation/

    • knnn
      Posted November 4, 2016 at 10:52 AM | Permalink

      Came here to add this one. It’s just beautiful.

  12. Cee
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:16 AM | Permalink

    This is the one I have bookmarked. Concerning Love. It made me cry.

    I’m also quite partial to this post, in which you shared your dreaded high-school novel, which just straight up made my day.

    • Jsherry
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:37 PM | Permalink

      Concerning Love, for sure – I reference that or send someone to it every few months.

    • Rhia
      Posted November 4, 2016 at 5:32 AM | Permalink

      Concerning Love definitely should be carried over to the new blog!

  13. Carrie
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:23 AM | Permalink

    I still love how you escorted the ducks to the pond.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/?s=Escort+service&searchsubmit=Search

    • Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:02 AM | Permalink

      This is one of my favorites as well, especially because I think it’s the moment where Worldbuilders becomes a spark in your mind.

  14. Epidilius
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:26 AM | Permalink

    Have you thought about compiling your blog into a book? It could be like the College Survival Guide, where you add little notes on your writing.

    You could also add a ranking system, so the best stuff gets cycled regularly and changes over time.

    • Posted November 2, 2016 at 5:53 PM | Permalink

      I have thought of it. I’m not sure how much of an interest there would be though….

      • Seerow
        Posted November 3, 2016 at 9:35 AM | Permalink

        Do it and market it as “Patrick Rothfus’ Third Book” just to watch the internet explode.

  15. David H.
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:33 AM | Permalink

    I love this post because it shows how crazy you are about revisions: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/04/punctuation/

  16. LaMiss
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 7:51 AM | Permalink

    I really enjoyed the two Valentines Day stories, especially the first one: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    Here’s a link to the 2nd one: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/
    They represent such nice and fitting thoughts that add up well / clarify some musings I sometimes have myself on the topic of love(s).

  17. Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:04 AM | Permalink

    Not a particular post, per se, but I love scrolling through the tagged entries about your kids, seeing them grow, and seeing you as a parent. As long as those tags don’t go away, I’m set.

  18. Darcy
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:06 AM | Permalink

    In no particular order, here are my favorites:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/10/fanmail-faq-the-f-word/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/03/consolation-prize-kvothe-vs-aslan/

    There was also one about the difference between doing things that are supposed to be fun vs. things that makes you happy. Can’t find the link, but I remember liking the blog.

  19. peterlcoffey
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:14 AM | Permalink

    Your post on meeting Terry. Can’t read it without weeping like a lonely teenager locked in a bathroom reading Men at Arms for the fist time.

  20. howard
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:15 AM | Permalink
  21. Knightrous
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:20 AM | Permalink

    Oh heck, am I really going to do this? Point out an error to Patrick Rothfuss? Ack, what to do, what to do?

    GAH! I can’t help myself…

    It’s “trawl through”, there, I’ve done it. Now to be banished from this world…

    Sorry, had to do it, but it’s like when people write peek, or peak, when something “piques” their interest; you’re never quite sure if it’s an autocorrect or a misunderstanding, but you suffer from an irresistable urge to let them know what the right word is.

  22. gildedrain
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:34 AM | Permalink

    Concerning Cake, Bilbo Baggins and Charity caused a long moment of reflection for me and my wife. We ended up buying a goat (or a sheep).

    • HeatherTristan
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 4:19 PM | Permalink

      This. This post literally changed my life. And I don’t mean that in the way a lot of people say it. I mean, this post changed our family’s past times and traditions, inspired us to choose our vacations differently, and eventually spurred us to found our own 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that we use to bring attention to charities like Worldbuilders (and that is an unpaid full-time job). That is the power of a post like this. I just gave a copy of the name of the wind to a friend I walk my kids to school with this morning, and when they asked why they should read it I told them about this post. I still vividly remember the day I read it, and the phrase “Bilbo it up” is a household term over here. Please share this one.

  23. BakingViking
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:36 AM | Permalink

    I read both of these every so often to cheer me up and remind me that feeling things is good even if it hurts a lot of the time.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/

    I have both bookmarked along with David Foster Wallace’s Commencement Speech (http://web.archive.org/web/20080213082423/http://www.marginalia.org/dfw_kenyon_commencement.html) and a few other happy videos of cute baby animals and such. It’s my go-to when I’m feeling beaten down by the world.

  24. SJStanley
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:39 AM | Permalink

    My favorite story of yours, alas, is in video form. I’d like to see the story about showing your dorm overlords your “fish” transmitted to pithy text. The beard would necessarily be subtext.

  25. Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:48 AM | Permalink

    Hi Patrick,

    I like the old site and am sad to see it go, but if you and your team already made the effort, then I’m also curious to see the new website.

    By far my favourite blog post of yours was your participation in NaNoWriMo (which is, of course, running again as of yesterday) in 2011: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/12/nanowrimo-epilogue/

    Not only was it great to see you participate in NaNoWriMo before you wrote one of the peptalks over there, but your blog also introduced me to Veronica Belmont and (on subsequent investigation) Sword & Laser.

    All the best,

    Kai

  26. Zeke
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:51 AM | Permalink

    You’ll want the ongoing saga about the ARC of Stardust:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/12/a-familiar-story-about-a-well-loved-book/

    And the Photo Contests are a delightful introduction to your fans, especially once you’ve read the books to understand all the clever jokes they’re making:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/?s=photo+contest&searchsubmit=Search

    But without doubt, the two best entries for me are your treatises on love:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/

    The last comment on ‘Concerning Love’ is from me, and it’s still relevant. If you’re grouping your stories at all on the new site, I’d file these under “Painfully Beautiful Truths to Cut Your Onions To.”

  27. Whatsit
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:52 AM | Permalink
  28. Spexit
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:10 AM | Permalink
  29. tafyoder
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:16 AM | Permalink

    Last year, you wrote about your mom’s experiences in Haiti during the Worldbuilders campaign. (Link: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/12/a-story-about-my-mom-haiti-and-irresistible-math/ ) I really appreciated the deeply personal nature of that blog, and getting some insight into the neat stuff your mom did. (Also, the Trappist monk your mom met sounded exactly like Trapis who helped Kvothe. It warmed my heart to know there are people like him in our world.)
    I’d love to see a link to that story. And if you felt like sharing more stories from her experience (in all your spare time! ha) many of us would read them with relish.

    Thank you for all you do, Pat! Know your fans appreciate you!

    Warm regards,

    T.A. Yoder

  30. Brett
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:23 AM | Permalink

    My absolute favorite blog of yours was talking about why you started Worldbuilders and why it continues to be such a large presence in your life. You compared financial blessings and responsibilities to having cake and whether or not you share the cake or eat it all by yourself. It has since become my go to explanation for any time I want to explain why 1. I want to be better about charity in my life and help causes that make the world a better place and 2. Why my favorite author is such an awesome person and how that helps me feel even better about enjoying his books.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/01/concerning-cake-bilbo-baggins-and-charity/

  31. HerbChestnut
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:26 AM | Permalink

    Hey Pat,

    Have you considered creating a section on the new website that orders blog posts based on views/comments? Maybe let readers do a more in depth query based on content and popularity? Might be a good way for new(er) readers of the blog to quickly find some good entries.

    -Herb

    • Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:21 AM | Permalink

      This is a good idea.

      AAAAMMMMAAAAANNNNNDAAAAA!!!!

      • Posted November 3, 2016 at 5:51 AM | Permalink

        I was going to suggest this. Ideally you can look at analytics to determine a few different metrics: most popular posts in terms of number of visits, posts with the most comments, and posts with the most shares or pingbacks. It depends on which platform you’re using.

        • Posted November 3, 2016 at 1:24 PM | Permalink

          Problem is, many of these blogs were published years ago, there’s really no way for people to find them other than if they’re already looking for them….

      • Amanda
        Posted November 3, 2016 at 11:09 AM | Permalink

        I wondered why I woke up in the middle of the night panicked that I needed to do something…

  32. mellysorensen
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:32 AM | Permalink

    This one about love is my favorite:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    Any of the ones about love are great, they’re very telling and truthful.

    • Ohley
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:37 AM | Permalink

      Thanks for posting that one! I must have read it right when it was posted since I recognized some parts. It’s still very touching.

  33. Djscman
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:38 AM | Permalink

    Hey Pat,

    I really enjoyed this piece from the last gasp of the Bush Administration. It’s awfully timely this week: PSA: Why You Shouldn’t Vote. You wrote the terrific line, “How can you tell if you’re uninformed? Here’s a tip: if you’ve spent more time planning your Halloween costume than learning about the election, you probably shouldn’t vote.”

    It might not have been fun for you, personally, but I also had a lot of fun working through your blog entries about why book two was late and getting later. This entry explained to us wonderful (if whiny) fans how even a dream job comes with a hefty share of misery: Everyone Hates Their Job Sometimes. I especially liked the Nathan Taylor illustration. “Push Button Once Per Day”. That still makes me giggle, almost a decade later.

    Thanks for blogging!

    • Amanda
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:53 AM | Permalink

      Fixed all the HTML for you!

      • Djscman
        Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:00 AM | Permalink

        [blink]Thank you very much![/blink]

    • Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:24 AM | Permalink

      Actually. That art is a Brett Hiorns original…

      • Djscman
        Posted November 4, 2016 at 10:33 AM | Permalink

        I happily sit corrected.

  34. Re'larDoll
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:32 AM | Permalink
    • Re'larDoll
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:38 AM | Permalink

      Sorry, wrong link….though i love Gaimans blog. I was trying to find one you wrote about Oot, i believe the gist of it was talking about what it is to be a man, or something similar.

  35. albertomartin101
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:46 AM | Permalink

    In case it helps these are the top 20 posts most shared in Facebook, which might serve as an indicator of the most popular posts:

    Hollywood News (2015-10); 24146 times shared in FB
    The News: The Slow Regard of Silent Things (2014-04); 19035 times shared in FB
    Concerning Cake, Bilbo Baggins, and Charity (2014-01); 11764 times shared in FB
    Slow Regard of Silent Things: The Touring (2014-10); 11439 times shared in FB
    Cards Against Humanity: Fantasy Pack (2015-11); 11107 times shared in FB
    The Slow Regard of Silent Things (2014-10); 9019 times shared in FB
    Tak: A Beautiful Game (2016-04); 7742 times shared in FB
    A Guy Game (2014-09); 7171 times shared in FB
    An open letter to Nathan Fillion (2011-02); 5917 times shared in FB
    The New News…. (2013-11); 5872 times shared in FB
    Doing What We Can (2015-09); 5866 times shared in FB
    A Beautiful Game (2015-11); 5582 times shared in FB
    Tunes From Temerant and Books From Pat’s Treasure Hoard (2015-12); 5477 times shared in FB
    Thirty years of D&D (2014-09); 3890 times shared in FB
    Concerning Love (2013-02); 3761 times shared in FB
    Temerant T-Shirts and Exciting News (2015-05); 3651 times shared in FB
    Slow Regard of Silent Things: Recapping the Tour (2014-11); 3525 times shared in FB
    Thoughts on Pratchett – [Part 1] (2015-08); 3491 times shared in FB
    Wherein I Start Reading Fifty (50) Shades of Grey (2015-03); 3297 times shared in FB
    For the Love of Books…. (2013-12); 3214 times shared in FB

    • Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:25 AM | Permalink

      Wow. That’s super helpful. Thanks so much.

      How did you gather this data, by the way?

      • albertomartin101
        Posted November 3, 2016 at 8:23 AM | Permalink

        I’m glad you found it helpful :)

        I put together a simple program to extract all the URLs of your posts, and then used https://www.sharedcount.com/ to get the Facebook shared count. I can send you the entire spreadsheet if you want.

  36. rj0303
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:59 AM | Permalink

    I saved a copy of your a href=”” Love Redux=”” entry of in a folder entitled Someday for the day when I found my first romantic love and could better understand your article and refer back on the type of love I’d like to aim for. Which makes me sound like a way bigger romantic than I like to consider myself, but it was just such a damn beautiful concept.

    a href=”” Concerning Cake, Bilbo Baggins, and Charity=”” is one I like to refer back to every once in a while, for a laugh, and reflection on how much cake I’m currently enjoying.

    • rj0303
      Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:01 AM | Permalink

      Thank you for continuing to write beautiful, life-touching things.

  37. JasonEnberg
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:07 AM | Permalink

    The Thoughts On Pratchett was a great blog post about what it used to be like as sci-fi / fantasy fan.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/08/thoughts-on-pratchett/

  38. Baashterd
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:28 AM | Permalink

    This. https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    This is the blog post I show to people who for some reason don’t pick up your books even though I’ve recommended them to them.

  39. JessicaLL
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:47 AM | Permalink

    I still think about this one, more than 3 years later:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/

    Thank you for writing such lovely things.

  40. CountShrimpula
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 12:00 PM | Permalink
  41. Argaen
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 12:16 PM | Permalink

    The best blog I remember (and the one I have made other people read) is On the Making of Metheglin. Reading about potion brewing in real life is awesome :)

  42. Atuor
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 1:09 PM | Permalink
  43. Posted November 2, 2016 at 1:13 PM | Permalink

    A Paean for Gaiman So much so that I have some of it tattooed on my arm.

  44. Synapsis85
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 1:52 PM | Permalink

    MEAD!!!! I would love your mead recipe to be front and center. Second, I would add , and lastly, I would add this bit

  45. Synapsis85
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 1:55 PM | Permalink
  46. Posted November 2, 2016 at 2:13 PM | Permalink

    What if Kvothe died, someone revived him and he lost his abilities, just like on Lanre’s story, told by Skarpi, when his wife, who had great abilities with names and stuff, die and then is revived by his love. Then, Lanre seems to get her powers of naming. Note that even Selitos didn’t understood why Lanre had naming abilities out of nowhere. What if on Lanre story, Lanre got his wife abilities when revived her, and that’s what happened to Kvothe? That would explain why no one is searching for him (he is dead) and why he lost his powers.

  47. MereShadow
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 2:24 PM | Permalink

    All of them are great, and I’m sure I will think of others that I love more after I post this. However, these are the two that come to mind right off the bat…

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/09/on-the-making-of-metheglin/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/12/the-final-day-wherein-i-kiss-a-llama/

    I also liked the tak posts, and AMA post (was that here or in reddit? both?). However, there were multiples of those. Good luck with the new site! Can’t wait to see it!

  48. PurelyApplied
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 2:42 PM | Permalink

    Okay, so this is hardly going to be helpful until I can dig through the archives and find which post I actually mean, but I was really moved by a post you made a good while back that, if my memory serves, was about your family. I remember that it had three sections that from a stylistic point I really enjoyed, with each section starting with “A year ago […]”, “A month ago […]”, and “A week ago, […]”.

    I’ll spend some more time digging through the archives to find the particular one I mean when I get home.

  49. mxg312
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 3:39 PM | Permalink

    I love almost any of your posts on parenting. I have 2 girls roughly similar ages to your boys, and they always seem to express things I am going through in ways I never could have expressed them. Also, your post about your mom: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/05/not-your-usual-mothers-day-post/. I used that as a gateway drug to hooking my mom and wife on your books!

  50. DarrenTF
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 3:55 PM | Permalink
  51. LadyIsta
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 4:02 PM | Permalink

    Oh darn, now I have to read back through 9 years of Rothfussing to re-find my favorites. My life is so hard.

    The Valentines-love ones were the first I thought of – linked often above.

    Also the Chocolate Cake – why Worldbuilders thing.

  52. Josh
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 4:04 PM | Permalink

    All my other favorites have been said, but my absolute favorite hasn’t – I remember reading this and being completely unable to control my laughter: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/05/there-and-back-again/

    As an aside, I love that I now have this page as a reference for all the highlights of the blog. Going back through the archives now…

  53. mykle sparkle
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 4:27 PM | Permalink

    When I started reading your blog a few years ago you stopped posting as regularly as I wanted and so I went back through the archives and started reading from the beginning. My job was not a busy one.
    This post made my tear up at work and has stayed with me.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/06/evening-in-life/

    Thanks,
    mykle

  54. Posted November 2, 2016 at 4:50 PM | Permalink

    I don’t see any mention of Diogenes yet. That’s a post I remember fondly even after all these years:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/04/following-diogenes/

    I also remember your advice to “Live somewhere cheap.” There may be a pattern here:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/02/fanmail-q-advice-for-new-writers/

    If there is a pattern, the one concerning cake also fits into it:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/01/concerning-cake-bilbo-baggins-and-charity/

    One of your “Reccomendations” posts introduced me to Jim Butcher’s books, in inimitable style: “Stupid urban fantasy bullshit. Stupid looking cowboy wizard. Ooohh.. Look who has a staff. How dumb. Grumble grumble.” (You fixed the spelling of the Reccomendations tag? It had a certain flair.)
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/12/what-should-i-do-4-homestar-runner-and-friends/

    Oh, and your interview with Nnedi Okorafor:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2009/12/books-and-interview-with-nnedi-okorafor/

    Finally, there are some great pictures I would like to see on your shiny new site:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/09/what-happens-at-dragoncon/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/09/thirty-years-of-dd/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/03/wherein-i-start-reading-fifty-50-shades-of-grey/

    Confession: I have yet to read Shades of Grey despite grabbing one of those through Geeks Doing Good 2015. I left it behind when I moved overseas.

  55. Barbarian of Seville
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 5:20 PM | Permalink

    Dearest @PatrickRothfuss: Thank you sooooo much for taking the necessary steps to make sure that your ending to the Kingkiller Chronicles is as wonderful as we all know it’s going to be. Really. When all is said and done, and the book is released to the masses, the time it took to write is completely immaterial to the universe (although I’m sure NOT completely immaterial to you).

    Sorry if this is a double, but please save your adventurous journey to kiss an alpaca / llama.
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/category/worldbuilders-2014/

    Ooh, ooh, ooh, and the video of you reading Tom Bombadil:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7woFa2afqFE

  56. Saketh
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 5:29 PM | Permalink

    Is there not an option wherein you make sure that all the blogs you wrote from the start make an appearance on that new site? I wasn’t actually a reader from the start but I did read the whole of your blog after I read the books and I think most people who loved your books would like nothing more than to “troll through” the whole thing from the beginning.

  57. karmic wheel
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:04 PM | Permalink

    This one please:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/02/our-story-thus-far/

    And something similar for Wise Man’s Fear when the time is right. :)

  58. Hedgehog
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 6:20 PM | Permalink
  59. Manda
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 8:13 PM | Permalink

    These two blogs made me realize I was working more hours than I needed to, earning money that wasn’t necessary to my happiness. I was already living frugally but it took the phrase, “outmoded protestant work ethic,” for it to sink in: I could choose to work part time and it didn’t make me a terrible human being. I’ve never been happier. Thanks.
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/02/fanmail-q-advice-for-new-writers/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/page/97/

    I also really love this one:
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/01/concerning-cake-bilbo-baggins-and-charity/
    (You were right. There’s still money leftover for charity.)

  60. LeopardessMoon
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 9:30 PM | Permalink

    Cake! it is the blog that got me actually following your blogs!

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/01/concerning-cake-bilbo-baggins-and-charity/

  61. jasperflint
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:11 PM | Permalink

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/10/fanmail-faq-the-f-word/

    Or basically anything that comes in the “fanmail q and a” tag. This one is an example of, what I think, is your best type of blog; where you explain, ramble, and educate.

    The lack of this recently is why I have stopped reading your blog religiously.

    Also, if you were going to do a “best of the blog” bit, you should pick one where you tell one of the stories about your kids. They are brilliant and feel like they show the core of you as a person.

    I love you, and everything you do.

    • jasperflint
      Posted November 3, 2016 at 6:53 AM | Permalink

      https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/06/the-opposite-of-fathers-day/

      Someone posted this one below and I remember reading it at the time. It’s one of my favourites.

      And for the record, the two blogs this year that weren’t promoting stuff for charity or selling stuff (the David Bowie memorial and the beehive one) were really good! And I get that you are unendingly busy and a very charitable person, and that a good blog takes a lot of time. Bit if you are going to promote the blog more, maybe going back to what made it so good would be good?

  62. tarrans
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 10:55 PM | Permalink

    It was your story that related Trapis to a real life person and a story about your Mother.
    I was moved to action by a simple story and words. Very powerful!

  63. Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:13 PM | Permalink

    I absolutely loved the “turd in the cereal” metaphor in this post, and have shared it with dozens of friends. Yes, friends. Totally not random people on the internet who were kvetching about you. Definitely friends. Ok, some friends, and maybe a *few* of those others.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2009/02/concerning-release-of-book-two/

    Change a few dates, make it say book three, and wham: relevant again.

  64. TheLazarus
    Posted November 2, 2016 at 11:31 PM | Permalink

    The ultimate chalupa, when anyone asks me what they should read to get a smile I tell them to read this.

  65. bookthree
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 12:13 AM | Permalink

    Pat, apologies if this is the wrong place to ask…

    When will we see the release of Book 3?

    Your fans eagerly hold their collective breath, in anticipation of that glorious day. :)

    Thanks!

  66. thesissy
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 5:41 AM | Permalink

    One of my favourites is your Valentine’s Day fo 2014, I guess – when Oot what small and taken ill, and you went for flowers and a bottle of Gatorade…. I’ll try and find the link.

  67. yoriagami
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 6:35 AM | Permalink

    Registered just to answer: this one definitely takes the crown IMHO:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/06/the-opposite-of-fathers-day/

    Cheers,
    Jose

  68. Jezdynamite
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 8:36 AM | Permalink

    I really liked this one:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/05/a-different-sort-of-interview/

    The interview you gave was brilliant. Thank you again for doing that (4 years ago). It was so much fun taking part in the reread, and very kind of you for answering our questions.

  69. radynski
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 10:03 AM | Permalink

    Perhaps it would be helpful to create a rating system for the blog posts? That would allow the most popular blog posts to float to the top.

  70. Posted November 3, 2016 at 10:08 AM | Permalink

    Someone else mentioned revisions – but they went with a completely different post. I love this one. It’s an honest question, and you do your best to lay out what goes into your process. But what I really, really love about it is the way you take the original question and apply your process to show exactly what goes into your style of writing. I loved this so much.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/08/fanmail-qa-revision/

  71. Thayet
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 1:48 PM | Permalink
  72. martoud
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 2:01 PM | Permalink
  73. quirkyclover
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 2:37 PM | Permalink

    The most distinctly memorable posts for me are the on-target words you put to eye-opening, microscopic observations you have over very “soft” topics (hard to describe to others, but seemingly innately understood). For me, those observations and microscopic point of view really came out in Slow Regard.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/05/not-your-usual-mothers-day-post/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/04/punctuation/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/08/fanmail-qa-why-does-it-take-so-long-to-translate-the-book/

  74. Lucero
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 2:53 PM | Permalink
  75. Ron
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:00 PM | Permalink

    Hey Pat, you sure ask difficult questions…
    While I love reading the blog in general there was this one post that was really meaningful to me.
    A Guy Game was probably my favorite by far.
    P.S: I’m really happy that you’ve decided to update the site, it was due for a face lift for quite some time :)

  76. InsertCoolBandName
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 3:31 PM | Permalink

    I’ve gone back to this one more than once so that I could try to explain Elutheria to people.
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/

  77. Rh3nnthyl
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 4:18 PM | Permalink

    First thing that comes to mind is ” beaten to death with a bag of kittens”. Think it was a valentine blogpost and about Sarahs karma level going through the roof by simply being with you. Loved that one.

    • Rh3nnthyl
      Posted November 3, 2016 at 4:21 PM | Permalink

      https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/02/from-archives-v-day/

      “What it boils down to is this, if Sarah had, say, beaten a nun to death with a bag of kittens in a previous life, she could have worked that off in about three weeks of putting up with my endless bullshit. In fact, after six years of living with me she’s built up so much good karma that she’ll most likely reincarnate as a transcendent being composed entirely of white light and multiple orgasms.”

      There it was :)

  78. Slidingtoke
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 5:05 PM | Permalink

    After a quick Google search I found the one about revisions (pre WMF).

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/08/fanmail-qa-revision/

    Really liked how you give us a tiny window into a day of revisions for you. Best of luck with the revisions for book 3 :)

  79. Tubusy
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 5:21 PM | Permalink

    Please, you must keep all the old blogs online somewhere, they are so precious!

  80. Karim
    Posted November 3, 2016 at 10:07 PM | Permalink

    Concerning Love, which I read at a difficult time of my life.

    The things Oot has taught you. Even if I’m not keen on John Green’s explanation of what’s happening in Syria (a mere 80 kms away…mm…), I do love the storytelling in the post.

    A moment of Oot’s compassion, because I feel there’s so little compassion in my life sometimes.

    The great kiss. Though I hope the llama kiss isn’t in your favourites.

    50 Shades of Grey, for the pun. (I did think of this one myself, actually. Great minds, Pat.)

    Your take on Watchmen. “Overall portrayal of Ozymandias” is something I think of a lot. And it’s always nice to see good writers contemporary artwork, despite the professional politeness expected.

    “30 Years of D&D” is just good storytelling.

    But there is one favourite:

    It’s about how long a story takes to tell. Not long. But long.

    Hope these help, Pat (and Amanda),
    Karim

  81. Incarnadine11
    Posted November 4, 2016 at 12:12 AM | Permalink

    These are the ones that stuck out to me.

    My absolute favorite blog is Oot wanting to play “A guy game. Because we’re both guys”: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/09/a-guy-game/

    Baby ducks: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/07/pat-rothfuss-escort-service/

    Book recommendations: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/06/fanmail-faq-looking-for-good-books/

    Fun story about you walking around in a cloak: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/05/circadian-spring/

    “Day in the life of a writer” posts, where you talk about details of your work
    Revising: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2010/08/fanmail-qa-revision/
    The process of negotiating with Lionsgate: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/10/hollywood-news/
    Translating: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/08/fanmail-qa-why-does-it-take-so-long-to-translate-the-book/
    More translating: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/12/perils-of-translation-babelfish/
    And more translating: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2008/02/perils-of-translation-part-2/

    Suvudu cage match stories
    Felurian vs Death: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/04/suvudu-cage-match-felurian-vs-death/
    Kvothe vs Aslan: https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2012/03/consolation-prize-kvothe-vs-aslan/

    Also, would it be possible for you to have some sort of archive for your tags? Then, for instance, clicking “Achievement Unlocked!” on that list would bring me here, or “a beautiful game” would bring me to several posts, since you use that tag fairly frequently.

  82. Posted November 4, 2016 at 6:23 AM | Permalink

    Reading the blog from the beginning like, “First came Chael, who shaped me in fire for an unknown purpose.”………..

  83. cookieleib
    Posted November 4, 2016 at 9:27 AM | Permalink
  84. surelyurjoking
    Posted November 4, 2016 at 10:32 AM | Permalink
    • surelyurjoking
      Posted November 4, 2016 at 10:34 AM | Permalink

      By Skarpi, I mean Trapis

  85. wardenshotrun
    Posted November 5, 2016 at 8:27 PM | Permalink

    A friend and I are currently working through your list of book recommendations from 2011, found here https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2011/06/fanmail-faq-looking-for-good-books/

    We’ve been reading one per week and discussing them, as their own work, but also how we think they have influenced, or relate to, or compare to your work. It’s been fun. And since it’s been 5 years, I imagine you’ve read at least a couple more books since then, it might be interesting to see if the list has changed at all in that time if you wanted to revisit it. Thanks for the books!

  86. Alexandre93
    Posted November 5, 2016 at 10:02 PM | Permalink

    If I could only ask for one blog to be kept (even tho I love every single one of them, especially Oot/Cutie/Story-ones in an irrationally wonderful way) it would be this one:

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/08/thoughts-on-pratchett/

    The interview you have there is a treasure by itself. I actually quoted part of the interview in a presentation I did last year in college. I’m 90% sure the grade I got happened because the way my teacher looked at me when I started reading Pratchet’s words about Fantasy. If you add to that your thoughts on what been a fantasy geek was back then… It needs to be saved (I obviously have a copy just in case).

    This is the first one that popped up. If any other comes to mind I will search them and edit this same message so you don’t gt a trillion messages more. You know, tying to keep it simple for Amanda (whom I think must have a pretty good amount of work because of the web migration).

  87. A Sunny Moo
    Posted November 6, 2016 at 1:29 AM | Permalink

    Sir, I must mention your writings on love. They have helped me to translate a powerful abstract force into something I could understand and consider. Thank you.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2013/02/concerning-love/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2014/02/love-redux/

  88. grib
    Posted November 6, 2016 at 6:20 PM | Permalink

    Not to go all private eye on this thread, but does anyone else typically associate big web site refreshes with… other marketing-related events that might drive new traffic to a site, like big announcements…?!?

  89. AuriMoonlight
    Posted November 6, 2016 at 11:59 PM | Permalink
  90. michael.h.tritter
    Posted November 7, 2016 at 6:00 PM | Permalink
  91. Liam
    Posted November 8, 2016 at 2:21 PM | Permalink

    I don’t think you’ve actually written a blog post on this before, but I’d really love to see one on mental health some day.

    I know that it’s a hard thing to talk about, especially publicly. But as someone who struggles with depression and anxiety myself, I know just how important it is to hear about this issue from others to help people realize that they’re not the only one fighting in this struggle. This is doubly so with people as eloquent and well-spoken as yourself, who are infinitely more capable of accurately describing things that our society has neglected to develop good language to discuss.

  92. Zoot2007
    Posted November 8, 2016 at 7:25 PM | Permalink

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2015/09/using-your-words/

    Using Your Words – rang so very true with my husband and I, having our own little guy.

  93. Zoot2007
    Posted November 8, 2016 at 7:34 PM | Permalink
  94. hiringel
    Posted November 11, 2016 at 5:16 PM | Permalink

    So, I begun reading the blog from the beginning, after spending a little time trying to export it to my kindle with no luck.

    I made a list of the good stuff from early on, alltough I haven’t read that far.

    ###### Entire Posts worth bringing over.
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/03/losing-my-anonymity_15/
    Excellent feel and rythm, this is going to be good.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/03/on-becoming-review-connoisseur/
    “In some ways I’m jealous of these people who get to read by book for the first time. They get to see the book from the outside. That’s something I’ll never be able to do.”
    Cool to see your thoughts about the book in the time around publishing

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/03/my-misspent-youth/
    Books, history in the making! Woop!

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/my-first-signing/
    “Honestly, I was kinda relieved. With less than ten people the potential for looking stupid is greatly reduced. And since everyone was either a friend or a relative, I could trust that they’d already seen me humiliate myself on a far grander scale than anything I was likely to achieve tonight.”

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/im-off-to-norwescon/
    Hahaha, all that stuff and so well written.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/back-from-convention/
    More Pat vs The World. I’m getting the feeling that this is going to be a theme.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/when-will-book-two-be-out/
    “The second and third books of the trilogy should be coming out fairly quickly, considering how long they are and the fact that I’m fairly obsessive when it comes to my writing. That means book two should be out about two years from now. Book three will be a year or so after that.” – April 2007. Oh boy.
    Don’t get me wrong, I am enjoying the wait, it is giving me something to look forward to.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/quick-heads-up/
    Haha, loughed out loud at the fake review. Not the usual non-committed cough or slight exhalation, an actual audible chuckle.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/06/productive-shame/
    “Once, when I was enjoying the warm summer sun on a parkbench, I took nodded off for a nap. When I woke up, there was several dollars worth of loose change in one of my shoes. That’s what I look like.”

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/06/new-review-at-strange-horizons/
    A cool review

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/06/evening-in-life/
    Holy shit. Well written and emotional. This one got my highest possible decoration “Shared on Facebook”

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/07/science/
    Second audible sound of enjoyment.

    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/09/they-are-not-all-good-days/

    ###### Q&A’s
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/03/ask-pat-1-agents/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/03/ask-author-2-first-step-to-publishing/
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/04/ask-author-3-dark-poetry/

    ###### Good bits
    “So I drive the remaining 90 miles home on the back roads. I saw two skunks, a possum, and 23 deer. Seriously. 23. It was actually kind of fun because it gave me an excuse to honk the horn a lot. And honking your horn is kinda fun if you’re sleep deprived at three in the morning. Or if you never really grew up in the first place and just enjoy honking it. Or both.”
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/05/minnneapolis-makes-me-sick/

    “In practical terms this means that at Wiscon you’ll have fewer people standing too close to you, interrupting you when you speak, or following you around explaining why Squire of Gothosis personally, very important to them. The trade off is that people at Wiscon are more likely to use words like, “hermeneutic,” and “appropriation” and “trope.”
    I score this as a point for Wiscon, as I kinda like the word trope.
    Trope.”
    https://blog.patrickrothfuss.com/2007/05/wiscon-part-i/

  95. Posted June 24, 2018 at 9:12 AM | Permalink

    I’ve curated a list of 25 of my favorites on my website. I read through your entire archive to find them– aaahahaha. I’m actually planning a follow-up post with 25 more because I couldn’t narrow it down to less than 50.
    Enjoy.
    http://www.christinetyler.com/25-best-blog-posts-by-patrick-rothfuss/

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