Category Archives: Interviews

Whyfore Art Thou? – An Interview With Nate Taylor

Whyfore Art Thou? An Interview with Nate Taylor.

Pat: So what’s the best part of working with international bestselling author, philanthropist, and bon vivant Patrick Rothfuss?

Nate: Second-hand fame. I get recognized so long as I’m with you, but no one hassles me at renn faires.

Pat: What’s the worst part of working with the world-class hot mess, megalomaniac, sentient dumpster-fire known as Patrick Rothfuss?

Nate: It is pretty annoying when the other super-villains make a power play against you. I get caught in the crossfire, and ninja attacks get old real fast.

Pat: Tell me about it. They keep getting sucked into the engines of my private jet.

Okay, question time. Can you describe what your process is, as an artist?

Nate: Absolutely! It’s like going fishing. You craft a perfect lure, cast the line, and wait for the nibble. You struggle with the catch and reel it in only to find out you caught the wrong fish. Throw it back and try again. Sometimes it’s almost the right fish, and sometimes it’s an old boot. Sometimes the boot kicks you in the armpit and jumps back in the water. Eventually you reel in a glowing Omega Fish that makes you invulnerable for an hour and it was all worth it.

Pat: Is… Is the Omega Fish a finished illustration?

Nate: It is the final form of the Illustration Supreme, a glorious reckoning of science and artistry. So, yeah I guess it could be called finished.

Pat: Can you tell us a story about what it’s like to work with Rothfuss?

Nate: I did a full illustration a couple of years back to prepare for this book. It was of Bast “sneaking” up on the shepherdess. I got friends to pose for reference photos and rendered the illustration in this polished black and white style. It was pretty sleek. But when we started to really work on things together, you said, “This is first-date Nate. This is very careful and reserved. I think we want third-date Nate. Get comfortable and show off what you really want to do.” It was ultimately inspiring, but for two full days I laid on my back and wondered what the hell I really wanted to do.

Pat: Oh god. Did I really say that?

Nate: Pretty much. You even told me to go overboard a little, though not in so many words.

Pat: It was an amazing illo though. Mind if I show it off so folks can see?

Nate: Sure.

Pat: As y’all can see, this one’s from *way* back, before the Billion Revisions… (brief spoiler hidden)

Show

I wrote the first version of the story in just under a month, which is lightning fast for me. It turned out well, all things considered, but I didn’t get nearly as much time to fine-tune as I normally do. Plus that was nearly ten years ago, which is why there was so much for me to improve in this version.

Nate: Now extensive was the revision?

Pat: In terms of the text, I probably re-wrote about half of the original 20,000 word story. Then I reorganized a bunch of things. Added scenes, split some action up. Expanded on the main plot and the main relationship. Added the Embrils. By the end, the whole thing was about 15,000 words longer.

Nate: How long did it all take?

Pat: Between 4-8 months of pretty solid work, depending on how you count it.

Nate: So… it took 8 times longer to revise than it took to write the original?

Pat: Like I said, it depends on how you count it. That includes things like copyedits and page proofs that weren’t part of my one-month draft. It also includes all the art we developed.

Speaking of, how many versions of the shepherd do you think we did, trying to get it right?

Nate: (checks the archives) Five, plus two that were more subtle border illustrations.

Pat: Oof. And that’s not counting the different drafts and tweaks. Then, after everything, we skip it to focus on other images…

Nate: This one was my favorite concept, I think.

Pat: Seriously though. Why do you keep doing this to yourself?

Nate: Seriously then, and this is something I’ve told other artists and writers who have asked me similar questions. “Pat helps me do my best work.” It’s easy for me to fall victim to my own need for speed and call a piece finished just because the shading looks nice. You are good at pushing the details and the thought behind each choice in the image until it’s the best possible version of itself.

Pat: Is there an illustration we abandoned you really wish we could have made work?

Nate: So many. We cut at least 18 illustrations for one reason or another. I think the one I miss the most was a small portrait of Crazy Martin. I love that little portrait of the hulking madman.

Pat: I love doing character design with you. But yeah, I worried it would take too long. Plus, Martin doesn’t actually show up in the book. I know you did 3-4 versions of him though. Wanna show one off?

Nate: Sure.

Pat: Looking at this again, I don’t know what worries me more. The fact that it looks a lot like me… or the fact that it looks a lot like me but younger and probably more attractive.

Which illustration do you think changed the most while we were revising things.?

Nate: We spent a lot of time on Kostrel dancing. We tried Bast facing toward us, Bast facing away, Kostrel facing toward and away, Bast facing away but head turned toward us. Even after we figured all that out, we did so many versions of Kostrel’s angry face.

 

Nate: There were so many versions of the different embrils too, and the Lightning Tree itself… You know what? I think the axe in the stump was the only one I nailed on my first pass.

Pat: Actually, I made us go back to that because I was worried the laces on the neck of his shirt hanging off it might interfere with visual continuity.

Nate: True, one change. That still puts it way ahead of the curve.

Pat: It also provides further proof that I am, in fact, a monster.

Nate: My turn for questions. Why do you keep doing this to me?

I mean, what’s your favorite part of working with Nate Taylor?

Pat: I could go on and on. I’ll keep it to three things though.

  1. You have never once choked me even though I’m always asking for another, another, another ANOTHER revision. You’ve never even gotten notably salty.
  2. When I explain what I imagine for an illustration, or what I’m hoping to change or tweak in the next draft, you for-real understand what I mean. Almost every time. That’s so rare.
  3. When you add some twist or detail, it’s not just something that fits. Not just something I love. It’s usually something I wish I would have thought of first. I feel guilty knowing people tend to assume the clever idea in one of the pictures is mine, when the truth is, it’s actually the pure child of your beautiful brain.

Nate: I feel my head swelling, so help me keep an even keel. What’s the worst part of working with Nate? And you can’t say he’s too perfect.

Pat: I worry that you’ll get tired of my bullshit and find easier work somewhere else. Or that someone else will realize how amazing you are and steal you away…

Nate: I’ve seen what happens to artists when they only work for people who think they poop gold-pressed latinum. I need a challenge. Speaking of, when are you going to tell readers that Bast is Kvothe’s real dad?

Pat: Nate… Don’t tease the poor people.

Nate: Sorry. When do you reveal Bast is Kvothe’s step-dad?

Pat: Book four. Right after the chapter where Elodin punches the moon.

Nate: What was your favorite illustration from this book?

Pat: Oh man. It really changes. The one with the kitten cracks me up. Same with little Pem. You *nailed* the one with Rike and Bast making their deal, too. Your idea for making the dividing lines look like shattered ice was brilliant. I can’t believe you pulled that off.

Nate: I became a student of ice for a week. What’s a book you’d love to have Nate illustrate?

Pat: This feels like a cop-out answer, but I’m really excited to put a bow on our graphic novel of The Boy That Loved The Moon. Does that count?

Nate: Of course! I’m looking forward to showing that to the world. How about a book not written by you though?

Pat: Something Wicked This Way Comes. You’re so good with Characters, I’d love to see your take on the boys in that story. To say nothing of Cooger and Dark’s Pandemonium Shadow Show.

Nate: You got to show off the area around Newarre for the first time. Was it modeled after a real place?

Pat: It’s not based on a place. But it does have a bit of a Midwestern small town feel though. Mostly because that’s where I’ve always lived.

The old men at the bar always remind me of the Norwegian bachelor farmers from Lake Wobegon though. I remember we were going to take a stab at illustrating those, but we nixed that fairly soon because that one illustration would require doing 3-5 sets of character design for what are, at best, tertiary characters.

Pat: I think that’s all the space we have. Thanks again for chatting, Nate. And thanks for all the hard work you put into this. I’m really excited for people to finally get to see what you’ve done now that they can pick up the book…

Nate: I’m beyond thrilled for people to finally see what we’ve made. Let’s talk more tonight!

Pat: I’m really looking forward to it. You wanna show off some of the new illustrations on the stream tonight?

Nate: New illustrations and old ones too! Though, I should hold some back for later. Don’t want to art dump *too* much.

Pat: That’s fair. And since it’s the first day still, we’ll be keeping the stream spoiler-free. You good with doing some Q&A too?

Nate: I’ve never seen a Q that could stand up to my sculpted A. Sorry, I meant thoughtful A.

Pat: You heard it here folks. Tonight Nate Taylor will tell you all his secrets and teach you how to become a successful illustrator, guaranteed.

Nate: I just found this old wardrobe in an empty room and walked through it —

Pat: No backsies! Talk to you soon!

*     *     *

Nate Taylor has illustrated the books “The Slow Regard of Silent Things,” “The Princess & Mr. Whiffle,” “Sometimes the Magic Works” by Terry Brooks, and the graphic novels “The Briar-Sword Monk” by Shawn Speakman and the upcoming Temerant tale “The Boy Who Loved the Moon.” He has also done art for the games “Button Men,” “Tak,” and “Lords of Vegas: Americana.”

He now lives with his family in the Pacific Northwest where he freelances as a human illustrator, cartoonist, and portraitist.

Folks can find him on Instagram @natentaylor and view his portfolio site natentaylor.com

Also posted in Nathan Taylor, Nathan Taylor Art | By Pat34 Responses

Ain’t no Party like a Worldbuilders Party ’cause a Worldbuilders Party don’t….

Hey there everybody!

Yesterday, on the final day of the Worldbuilders Fundraiser, we crossed the line into a million dollars. For real.

Despite the trash fire of 2020, this year’s fundraiser has been our most successful in years. (It’s even possible it’s our most successful *ever* but I won’t know that until I’ve gone back and looked carefully at all the numbers.) And, of course, the day isn’t over yet, there’s still time to jump in….

All this success is because you folks, of course. Y’all have stormed in, donated, boosted our signals, and told your friends.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Last year we did an experiment that went quite well. So this year, we’re turning it into a tradition.

You ready?

(Bam!)

Or, for those of you who prefer more info in your info-graphic:

Simply said, today (December 16th) we’re going to celebrate this year’s amazing success by doing a bunch of livestreaming. We’ll have guests stopping for discussions, I’m going to play Minecraft with the boys, we’re going to show off videos for the stretch goals we’ve achieved, and tell some old, beloved stories…

…and talk about the amazing things Heifer does, like turn poop into fuel.

And we’ll show off some of the amazing donation incentives that are available in this year’s prize draw, like the Wyrmwood tables…

Wyrmwood Asset

And our unlocked stretch goals/prizes.

After Party Unlocked Stretch Goals

And our other more different extra double prizes…

After Party Splash Image 2020

(Did I mention there’s a lot of prizes?)

There’s even more prizes over on the page, and as the donations keep coming in, I keep pulling more stuff out of the vault and offering it up.

There’s already a favor ring in the mix, by the way…

If you just want to jump on over and see what we’re doing, here’s our rough schedule:

Pat's 2020 EOY Fundraiser After Party Schedule

If you just want to head over to the stream, here’s the link…

The reasons we’re doing the Afterparty are manifold, but here are the main two:

1. Tradition.

Those of you who have been following Worldbuilders for a while know that our end-of-year fundraiser used to look a lot different than it does now. For one thing, it used to be exclusively run off of my blog, and it used to run for an entire month.

Except it didn’t. For years and years, we ended up extending the fundraiser out past our initial ending date. Sometimes it was because we had a last minute sponsor we wanted to showcase. Sometimes it was because some chaos or catastrophe threw us off schedule. Once it was because we got offered some matching money and we couldn’t bring ourselves to say no to that. Once things got so out of hand we extended *past* Christmas and the whole fundraiser spanned over seven weeks…

And some times we did it just for fun, or because we’d gotten into the habit.

This year, we’re deciding to continue the tradition in a different way. We’re taking one final day just to appreciate how lovely this community is. To put a bow on it. To show off some of the lovely things people have done. To relax and have fun and enjoy our success.

And, of course…

2. To give the latecomers one last chance.

What usually happens the day after the fundraiser is that I go into a deep, healing Odinsleep. When I emerge, I peek on social media and I invariably see dozens of people saying, “Oh no! Worldbuilders is over?!? Did I miss it? Can I still donate?”

And I get that. This is a busy time of year. Finals. Holiday planning. Family travel. Or maybe you’re just like me and tend to put things off to the last minute and then kinda forget about them.

But still, it breaks my heart to see those messages.

So. One extra day. If you were meaning to donate. Now’s your chance. If you were going to tell your friend about us, you’ve got a few more hours. If you were going to spread the word on social media, now you can use this amazing gif to do just that.

(Ooontz Ooontz Ooontz Ooontz Ooontz.)

* * *

So yeah. C’mon over and take one last chance to win fabulous prizes while making the world a better place…

Remember, every $10 you donate still gets you a chance to win all manner of coolness. And if you donate on my team page, you’ll be eligible to win even more.

Hope to see a lot of you over on my livestream tonight.

pat

 

Also posted in cool things, Oot, Uncategorized, Worldbuilders 2020 | By Pat9 Responses

We all need Something To Look Forward To…

Hey there!

You’ve known it was coming, and now it’s here.

A heaping helping of Worldbuilders EOY goodness.

That’s right. It’s time for the Worldbuilders Fundraiser.

The Fundraiser is running from Dec 1st to Dec 15th, and it’ll be an all-out sprint complete with death-defying obstacle courses, feats of strength, and livestream festivities, and fabulous prizes.

I’m kicking things off with 14 hours of straight livestreaming on my twitch channel.

Kickoff Livestream Schedule that shows what Pat will be doing on 12/1

Also? Special guests!!!

You read that right: I’ll be streaming for 14-straight hours. Swing by and hang out with me and some friends, or head straight over to the fundraiser and help us make the world a better place.

Did I mention we have matching money? We do, so if you head over now, your donation is going to get doubled.

See y’all soon….

pat

Also posted in Acts of Whimsy, being awesome, cool things, Geeks Doing Good, Heifer International, Me Interviewing Other Folks, Uncategorized, Worldbuilders 2020 | By Pat8 Responses

Five Sentences, Three Events, Two Videos, and a Bag of Chips….

Heya everybody,

It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to get a solid blog up, so I thought I’d remedy that today, especially as there’s some news that’s a little time sensitive….

First and foremost, I’ve got a few readings and Q&As coming up in places I don’t visit very often.

  • Charleston, West Virginia

This Saturday (October 29th) I’ll be in West Virginia for the West Virginia Book Festival.

I’m going to be giving a talk on the importance of reading. (Where hopefully I’ll find something to say other than just shouting DUH! really loud.) I’ll also do some Q&A, and then have a signing for everyone who’s interested.

And if that isn’t enough for you, I’ll even be introduced by Justin McElroy, West Virginian and co-host of the awesome podcast “My Brother, My Brother, and Me.” It’s one of my newest loves, and if you don’t listen to it, you should. It is a source of genuine delight.

Here’s all the info for the event itself:

October 29, 2016 at 3:00 PM
Charleston Civic Center
Little Theater
200 Civic Center Dr
Charleston, West Virginia 25301
Facebook Event

If you’re in the area, come say hi. And if you happen to be in a different area…

  • Madison, Wisconsin

Despite the fact that I only live a hundred miles away, I’m doing my first event in Madison in years. Even better, I’ll actually be doing *two* different events, both with some Q&A and books available for purchase, though the first is primarily a reading and Q&A, and the second is primarily a keynote speech.

The first one is next week Thursday…

November 3, 2016 at 5:00 PM
Reading and Q&A
Agriculture Hall, Room 125
1450 Linden Dr
Madison, WI 53706

And the second is going to be on Friday night…

MADISON, WI
November 4, 2016 at 7:00 PM
Talk and Q&A
272 Bascom Hall
Madison, WI 53706

Both events will have books for purchase from A Room of One’s Own, one of my favorite bookstores in Madison. So if you’re all signed-book-wanty, this would be a great place to get one without paying shipping costs from our online store

For those of you who aren’t in West Virginia OR Wisconsin, there’s some cool internet things I’ve been up to as well….

  • Moana Screening in New York

And a couple weeks ago, his happened. For real.

I’ll probably gush about this more in the future. But the short of it is that I got to see an early version of Moana, and it was stunningly good.

More than that. Honestly? I think it might be the best Disney movie I’ve ever seen. Though honestly, with Lin Manuel Miranda involved, that shouldn’t really be a surprise.

Super good, folks. Seriously.

 

  • Podcast: “I’m Not Here to Judge You Chickenf*ckers.”

The most recent episode of Unattended Consequences is up, and it was a pretty good one. We recorded it live at NerdCon: Stories,  and the audience did a good job reining us in. We even said some not entirely stupid things.

Give it a listen if you’re so inclined. And be aware some of the stories I don’t have time to write up on the blog these days end up on the Podcast instead.

And finally, here’s the most time sensitive of the announcements:

  • A  delightful kickstarter that will help you friendship better.

Yesterday, I agreed to write five cards for Jenn and Trin’s Friendship Postcards Kickstarter Project:

You should really check this out. It’s a wonderful idea. The campaign includes cards like “Wow, that thing you did to your hair is super cool!”, “You make the internet a happier place,” and my favorite, “I said some shitty things (That’s not really how I feel, and I’m sorry.)”

782a6bde35266775fcadc2a84c8a34d3_originalWhen I saw this project, I actually emailed Trin and Jenn to tell them they were awesome, and to offer my help if they needed it.

I don’t talk about it a lot on here. But I have a hard time making and maintaining friendships these days. It used to be so easy for me. You just met people, they came over to your house. You watched movies and played games. You were friends.

Then I got published. I got busy. My friends moved away to pursue jobs and relationships. And I wasn’t in college any more. Wasn’t teaching any more. Wasn’t meeting people socially any more. Which means that friends don’t just happen to me any more. Which means… for about a decade now, I really haven’t had a lot of close friends.

But this last year, I’ve made a really good friend by the name of Thera. She’s better at being a friend than I am. And she’s taught me a lot about how to be a good friend as an adult (As opposed to just being a sort of an older maladjusted post-collegiate manbaby.)

So we’re writing these cards together. Me and my friend. Not only does this make me happy. Not only does this mean they’ll be better than if I did them myself. But it also means they’ll probably get done on time….

Here’s the downside, the project ends Thursday, October 27 at 1:00 PM CDT.

Yeah. Today. There’s just a few hours left. So if you want a set of postcards you should hop to it.

Be good to each other,

pat

Also posted in being awesome, conventions, cool news, cool things, geeking out, Link salad, panels, podcasts | By Pat19 Responses

Pontificating on True Monsters

A while back, the some folks contacted me and asked if I’d like to talk about monsters and stories and mythology and stuff for a show they were putting together for the History Channel.

(I’m paraphrasing, of course.)

It wasn’t a hard decision. I’m all about talking about stories and mythology. Stuff is right up my alley, too.

And… Ah… who are we kidding? I just like to talk. If I didn’t have access to the internet, I’d constantly be pulling Ancient Mariner bullshit on people.

Anyway, the first episode went up last week Friday. Here’s a little teaser.

You can watch the entire episode right here. Brandon Sanderson is there too, better dressed and more articulate than me.

Before you rush over there and get your hopes up, I’m not in much of the episode. Part of this is because I didn’t have much to say about things like the Jersey Devil or Hel (The Norse Hel).

But a contributing factor is the fact that I have trouble talking in soundbites. Anyone who has seen me on panels at conventions knows this. When I’m asked a question, your best case scenario is that I’m going to talk a paragraph at you. More often my answer will probably be a little story of its own with its own distinct narrative arc. It’s the only way I really know how to talk. That doesn’t translate well onto camera.

Super impressed with my shiny name

Also, I was so impressed with how shiny my name was that I wore this expression all the way through the interview.

Seriously though, I spent most of my interview telling stories, making jokes, and cussing with extravagant flamboyance. Which, in retrospect, probably wasn’t what they were looking for. Though I do remember getting good laughs off the camera crew…

There are going to be 3 more episodes. I’m particularly curious about how #3 turned out: Gods and Monsters. I remember talking at some length about Loki fucking a horse. Which… now that I’m thinking of it… they might not put that in the episode either.

Blowing it off 2

Anyway, here’s the schedule:

  • Cannibals and Killers – Friday, October 16th, 2015 at 10pm EST / 9pm CST
  • Gods and Monsters – Friday, October 23rd, 2015 at 10pm EST / 9pm CST
  • Giants and Beasts – Friday, October 30th, 2015 at 10pm EST / 9pm CST

You could make a drinking game out of it. Every time they put me on the screen – take a drink. Every time I give a Midwestern pause in the middle of a statement – two drinks. Every time I laugh at one of my own jokes – three drinks. Every time they have to bleep me – do a shot.

That’s all for now, folks. Share and enjoy.

pat

Also posted in Achievement Unlocked!, appearances, videos | By Pat23 Responses

Invisible Interview Questions….

I do a lot of interviews. I used to post up links to them here in the blog. Though lately most of them end up getting posted on facebook or twitter.

The thing is, what you guys end up seeing is the final version of the interviews. The pretty finished versions that have been tidied up. Edited. Expurgated.

For example, when I’m doing interviews, a lot of time, people ask questions like:

Them: If you’d never been published, what do you think you would be?

Me: An unpublished author.

Them: [Laughing.] I’m sorry, what I mean is, if you weren’t a writer, what other job do you think you’d be doing now. What are you suited to do?

Me: Oh. In that case, I think I’d be a hobo.

Them: What we’re looking for is something more along the lines of your dream job.

Me: Still hobo.

Them: [Long pause] I think being a hobo is actually the opposite of a job.

Me: [Thoughtfully] That’s a good point. It’s more of a calling, isn’t it?

Them: Yes?

Me: What you’re asking is if I wasn’t a writer, what would my perfect career be?

Them: Yes. [Obvious relief.] That’s it exactly. What’s your dream job?

Me: Batman.

The moral of the story is this: I am a pain in the ass to interview.

In related news, here’s a link to a recent interview I did with the A.V. Club. For those of you who haven’t seen it.

Later,

pat

Posted in Interviews | By Pat40 Responses

Interview: Triangulation

I did an interview about a week ago over on Triangulation.

A good time was had by all. You can watch it over here if you like.

pat

P.S. I think this might be my shortest blog ever….

Also posted in the craft of writing, videos | By Pat29 Responses
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