New R. Scott Bakker interview

[pat5150]

I see Bakker has dodged the question about how far he is with Unholy Consult, and has equally dodged the question of when he thinks it will come out. When he is asked about his plan for the next books to be published, he starts to ramble about the canlit novel that he's failed to get published by a small press and then proceeds to fully ignore what we actually want to read, namely what about TUC? Surely it wasn't lost on him that people want to know about TUC?

I'm inclined to take his silence on the topic as a bad sign. Meanwhile, Orbit has a new date for the book, July 2012. Fictive, I have to suppose.

Other than that, no comments from Bakker that are of interest with regards to plot or characters in the books themselves, so for this first part of the interview is a major disappointment. I am holding out for a meatier second part.

Which is not to say that I don't appreciate the three guys sending him questions, no one else on the net seems to either do it or attempt it. It's just that we now have Bakker showing us more of the same self again, and no info to work with.

Given the GRRM fiasco with AFfC, few SFF authors will go out on a limb and talk about potential release dates...

You know by now that Bakker has a visceral fear of spoilers. I believe he spend something like a week analyzing his replies to our questions before sending them my way.

And since the second part of the interview is about hardcore metaphysical stuff, I'm not sure what you can expect from his answers. I have a feeling he'll be unwilling to divulge much...

Patrick

[Calibandar]

You know by now that Bakker has a visceral fear of spoilers. I believe he spend something like a week analyzing his replies to our questions before sending them my way.

I know Pat. Furthermore, that doesn't surprise me at all, we have seen it before. And I continue to be at pains to point out that I am not blaming those posing the questions in the slightest.

I am just saying that it's rather boring this way to read his replies. To me anyway.

[Grack21]

Bakker is such a cunt. If the title of the third series was a spoiler, he should/could have just said he hadn't thought of a title for a third series because he never imagined it going to that many books, cross that bridge when he comes to it, sort of thing.

Instead he absolutely ensures that potential series titles will be actively debated, that trends in titling will be studied, particularly of the series as a whole, etc etc. He's being coy just to provoke discussion, I've always thought.

It's entirely possible the title is a "spoiler" in the sense that Half Blood Prince or Deathly Hallows is a spoiler or "the Judging Eye" or "White Luck Warrior" could be considered spoiler titles. Yeah, it's possible to consider them spoilers, but you have to read the damn book to find out what the in-world explanation of the title is.

On the other hand, the other two series titles did not require much of an inworld explanation, so perhaps the third will not as well, fans would not need the "the No God" "The Dead God" "The God Emperor" "The Resurrected God," "The Awakened God" "the Risen God," "The Self Moving Soul," "The Prince of Everything" "The Cannibal King". But non-fans would see such titles as equally pseudo cryptic as Prince of Nothing and Aspect Emperor. Common words in odd, oddly meaningful phrasing.

Still, it could go either way, but it obviously something Bakker wants us to speculate about. But there was no way for us to speculate what in the seven hells The Judging Eye meant before the release of that novel, so its entirely possible that there is no way for us to speculate what the third series title will be/mean either. In this case, Bakker is a gym teacher who enjoys seeing us get a good mental workout on his say so. :-p

I was talking about Twilight. :stunned:

[pat5150]

Second part of the Q&A here!

Enjoy! ;)

Patrick

[DrownedCrow]

Well, that was a hell of a lot more background information than I ever expected to get from an interview. Was there evidence from the books that Aurang was one of the Few? I don't remember that.

[lokisnow]

that was awesome. I like a Bakker that spouts clarity.

[DrownedCrow]

Yes. He threatens Inrau with "The Agonies," and Kellhus recalls Acha warning him that he may have to deal with glamours and such should he encounter him.

I'm sort of disappointed that the Inchoroi have sorcery. The relationship between them and the Consult would be more interesting if they had to depend on humans for sorcery while they controlled the tekne. Now Aurang can just tell Shaeonanra to suck his giant Inchoroi dick. Well, we all knew that the series wasn't going to end without at least one soul-crushingly graphic scene where an Inchoroi receives oral sex.

And also, didn't Aurang (or possibly Aurax) mention at one point seeing Earwa from space? How did he do that if he was born after the Inchoroi came to Earwa?

[Werthead]

I'm sort of disappointed that the Inchoroi have sorcery. The relationship between them and the Consult would be more interesting if they had to depend on humans for sorcery while they controlled the tekne. Now Aurang can just tell Shaeonanra to suck his giant Inchoroi dick. Well, we all knew that the series wasn't going to end without at least one soul-crushingly graphic scene where an Inchoroi receives oral sex.

And also, didn't Aurang (or possibly Aurax) mention at one point seeing Earwa from space? How did he do that if he was born after the Inchoroi came to Earwa?

Tekne-grafted memory? Would seem a logical development of the technology.

I may have completely missed this, but was it revealed earlier in the books that the Tusk is of Inchoroi manufacture? I can't remember hearing that before but at the same time it wasn't a surprise.

EDIT: Scott gives us (or the ASoIaF fanbase) a shout-out of thanks here. Cool :)

[Curethan]

Tekne-grafted memory? Would seem a logical development of the technology.

I may have completely missed this, but was it revealed earlier in the books that the Tusk is of Inchoroi manufacture? I can't remember hearing that before but at the same time it wasn't a surprise.

EDIT: Scott gives us (or the ASoIaF fanbase) a shout-out of thanks here. Cool :)

Grafting suggests that the brothers McInchie were not born post-Earwa-landing but were redesigned, perhaps to the point of new identity but retaining some memories. Remember the inchies were moribund before the C-I wars.

Re: tusk=inchies - I been banging that drum for a while. Mebe my crazed theories are lodged in your subconcious Wert.

And now we can start calling the whole series TSA, I think.

[kuenjato]

Tekne-grafted memory? Would seem a logical development of the technology.

I may have completely missed this, but was it revealed earlier in the books that the Tusk is of Inchoroi manufacture? I can't remember hearing that before but at the same time it wasn't a surprise.

EDIT: Scott gives us (or the ASoIaF fanbase) a shout-out of thanks here. Cool :)

That's never been mentioned. I was actually a bit shocked by this. Looks like Bakker is giving us a sneak peek of the next book's uber-appendix.

[Sci-2]

Wow. Tusk revealed. I find it interesting that the rest of the beliefs are of the tribe, with a nugget snuck in for Inchie purposes. Definitely a parallel for scriptures of the world.

Glad to read the Inchie information as well. I don't quite get what Scott means about Wutteat not being wracu, or that stuff about metres...

[Sci-2]

I think what he is trying to say is that they had one "prototype" which was Wutteat. But it wasn't until the wars with the Nonmen until they decided to reproduce that prototype and start creating dragons en masse. I admit that it's a little confusing though. Perhaps the ones that followed were a bit different than Wutteat as production went underway.

Perhaps this is why they can't wear chorae. That and it would ruin the plot.

[BakkerFan]

Wow, this was HUGE. Not a spoiler per se, but more of a compendium explaining Earwa's history and metaphysics.

Quick Synopsis:

1) Slight expounding upon damnation. Right and wrong are not relative in Earwa. They are absolute. But WHO is right and who is wrong...to be determined in Unholy Consult!

2) Puskhe - started with Fane.

3) Inchoroi use grafting to not only to extend their life, but also to gain abilities...including *sorcery*!!! So does this mean that Simas (Skin-spy sorcerer from TTT) was NOT a mistake as believed by Maithanet? Does this mean there's an army of sorcery-wielding creations being held back by the Consult? The mind boggles.

And the fact that the Inchoroi first experimented on their own, before turning to Men was very interesting too...

4) Wutteat explanation...dragon or not? More of the template FOR dragons. Interesting.

5) The Tusk and the Inchoroi's involvement. Two things - a) It's in fact the Inchoroi who gave Men the Tusk in the first place. (WOW!!!) and (b ) It was the Inchoroi who added the bit about hunting down the "False Men" (I'd ALWAYS wondered about the reason for this). Incredible reveal.

The 2nd part of the interview was about 1000 times better than the first. Great, great, great stuff (without actually spoiling anything).

[jurble]

3) Inchoroi use grafting to not only to extend their life, but also to gain abilities...including *sorcery*!!! So does this mean that Simas (Skin-spy sorcerer from TTT) was NOT a mistake as believed by Maithanet? Does this mean there's an army of sorcery-wielding creations being held back by the Consult? The mind boggles.

4) Wutteat explanation...dragon or not? More of the template FOR dragons. Interesting.

3) No, look at the interview, most of the Inchoroi who they tried to give the ability to see the Onta died, only six survived, out of unknown hundreds/thousands. Similarly, Simas might be the only one Skin-spy that survived the procedure.

4) He is a dragon, but he's special HE IS THE FIRST. THE FATHER.

[BakkerFan]

3) No, look at the interview, most of the Inchoroi who they tried to give the ability to see the Onta died, only six survived, out of unknown hundreds/thousands. Similarly, Simas might be the only one Skin-spy that survived the procedure.

What are you saying "no" to, exactly?

Edit: Oh, you're saying that there CAN'T be an army of sorcery-wielding Tekne creations. Just because it was very difficult to create the initial sorcery Graft doesn't mean one can conclude the Inchoroi haven't succeeded with others. Sure, it may be very difficult, but clearly it's not impossible.

4) He is a dragon, but he's special HE IS THE FIRST. THE FATHER.

Well Bakker just said he's not "just" another Dragon. But I guess it's fine to call him "THE FATHER" since Bakker called him the prototype for Wracu.

[Curethan]

And that's why Wutteat dont take orders from the Black Heaven.

But Wutt does he Eat?

[BakkerFan]

From the TTT entry on "Fanimry" (pg 441)

"The Central tenets of Faimry deal with the solitary nature and transcendence of the God, the falseness of the Gods, the repudiation of the Tusk as unholy...."

So based on what Bakker revealed in this interview, we know the Fanim got at least one part right...

I get the feeling Fane's story is going to play a pretty pivotal role in revealing Earwa's metaphysics in the last book.

[BakkerFan]

And also, didn't Aurang (or possibly Aurax) mention at one point seeing Earwa from space? How did he do that if he was born after the Inchoroi came to Earwa?

From the interview:

"The Grafting that produced Aurang and Aurax was also devised during the age-long C no-Inchoroi Wars, one of many failed attempts to biologically redesign themselves to overcome the Nonmen."

I don't think Bakker was saying Aurang and Aurax were born on Earwa. He's saying that the current incarnations of Aurang and Aurax are a result of Tekne Graftings. They weren't always like they are now.

[Happy Ent]

That was great!

Even in death, Ser Patrek delivers.

Kudos to myself for asking a precise question about the locality of damnation, in order to settle once and for all that I was right.

It turns out that I was completely. And utterly. Wrong. I hang my head in a simulacrum of shame.

But now we know. Back to the drawing board for me.

[BakkerFan]

Yeah, I feel that there was much more to chew on in this one. Big reveals about the Psukhe and the Inchies.

My crackpot theory (well, certainly I'm not the first nor the only to espouse it, so it's not "mine") that the Cishaurim/Fanim are more correct than other nations seems strengthened by this.

Agreed. I think it's now clear that Fane was on to something with the Solitary God stuff. I think Inri Sejenus was also onto something similar when he tried to emphasize a "one God of Gods" view of religion.

Now I'm trying to think back in the TJE if anything was revealed with Mimara and her Judging Eye. I think the only people she saw were damned, but I can't be sure without a re-read.