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Main | The Books | The Author | Excerpts & Bonus Material | News & Appearances | FAQ | Livejournal
This isn't to say don't do it; if it pleases you, write anything you like for private use. After all, who can stop you, or should?
http://s9.invisionfree.com/The_Right_People/
I am a member of the community, and I do try to read threads and post fairly frequently.
I do also have a contract for three novellas (shorter works, in the range of 40,000 words apiece) with Subterranean Press.
I've gotten this one in an accusatory tone several times, as though overtly ruling the world is the only possible thing the magi could want to do with their time. I'm being a bad little author by expounding on this, especially since many things about the magi will be made quite clear in The Republic of Thieves, but consider-- if they don't rule the world, what might be holding them back? Is their power perhaps not as omnipotent as they'd have others believe? Or do they suffer from internal strife concerning the destiny of their organization?
The Gentleman Bastard Sequence
Under ordinary circumstances, yes. At the moment, no, because I've just moved, and have yet to set up a new filing system, PO box, or personal assistant here in Massachusetts. This service will probably be unavailable for a few weeks or months.
No. Don't send me stories, poetry, manuscripts, etc. Don't send it to me in electronic format, don't put it in the post, don't try to initiate telepathic contact. Don't send it at all. Period. There are two reasons for this-- the first is legal liability. I won't even open an envelope or file that I know to contain an unsolicited manuscript. I'll trash it, every time. The second reason is, I'm a writer. Not an agent or an editor. I have my own books under contract to write, and a very demanding schedule as a result. I don't buy fiction. I don't represent anyone else. You're looking for an agent or an editor, not me.
I find the thought immensely flattering. However, for liability reasons again, I won't hunt it down and read it, offer opinions on fanfic sent to me, or, in fact, even acknowledge its existence. It's probably best for all concerned if you don't point it out to me... that way I can maintain plausible deniability.
Within reason, fire away! Please be aware that my life can get madly hectic without warning and I may not always have the time to respond within seconds... or hours... or days... but generally, yes, I am willing and quite pleased to answer questions about my work or writing in general. Just remember those magic words, "within reason."
At present, the "official unofficial" forum dedicated to my work (started by the kindness of a reader) can be found at:
Yes. It's also the only name I've used online for many years now; whenever I post on a forum or another website, I'll use it in full, in some fashion.
Nope, that's this Scott Lynch.
Nope again, that's this Scott Lynch.
Why are people still debating this subject? Science gave us the answer years ago, and it's Raphael.
You can put this stuff on the web time and time again, and still nobody pays attention. ;) Ahem. The name of the series featuring Locke Lamora is the Gentleman Bastard sequence. Singular on the 'bastard.' Also, I frequently read that I have some truly ridiculous number of contracts that all happened overnight- that's not the case. I am under contract to Orion Books for six novels, no more and no less; five of them are Books I-V of the Gentleman Bastard sequence and the sixth is an unrelated work cleverly referred to as Untitled Lynch Number One. With two books delivered, I have four to go. These contracts did not all fall out of the sky simultaneously; they happened in steps over a two-year period.
No. White iron is an imaginary metal, found on Locke's world in conjunction with veins of gold. White iron is extremely stable and oxidizes very slowly and faintly (white iron rust is silver-colored).
The Therin people are a ruddier, more Mediterranean sort of folk; think anything from Portuguese to Italian to Greek. The Vadrans, who came in from the north as sea-raiders many hundreds of years ago, are Nordic/Germanic/Eastern European types, physically. The Therins have a religious system involving twelve (or thirteen, depending on who you ask) anthropomorphic deities, while the Vadrans worship water, especially in the form of the "Seven Holy Marrows," or the seven major rivers that divide their kingdom into its traditional cantons.
Also known as the Quarantine Guard; they're a small but heavily-armed and well-paid constabulary force. They're men and women who had the good fortune (if you can call it that) to survive a really hideous plague, like Black Whisper, when everyone else around them dropped dead. In Camorr, such individuals (if of common birth) are, by law, impressed into the Quarantine Guard, where their natural immunities allow them to work very close to quarantined areas and sick people.
Well, it's not just archaic chemistry; it is a magical process of a sort, one that the otherwise lethally jealous Bondsmagi of Karthain don't regulate. The trouble with alchemy is... well, to be more accurate, the trouble with alchemists is that the scientific method hasn't been delineated in Locke's world, and general cooperation between alchemical scholars is unknown. At best, local guilds and small circles of scholars exchange their lessons and secrets. This curtails progress significantly; it's hard to advance a science generation after generation when just about everyone has to discover on their own that, say, drinking silver nitrate is a bad idea.
Well, who says they don't? As if they'd be open about it.
Oooh, great questions. And if anyone ever finds out the answer, please write me! I'm eager to know myself.
Locke's first name is an homage to a character in SquareSoft's Final Fantasy VI, also known as Final Fantasy III in the United States. This game had a huge influence on me when I was in my mid-teens; I think it's one of the most brilliant and heartbreaking console roleplaying games ever created, a real work of art.
Well, the 'e' in 'Locke' is absolutely silent, which is rare and special. Nine times out of ten, an 'e' at the very end of a Camorri name is pronounced as '-ay.' For example, 'Nicovante' is 'Nee-coh-vaun-tay,' and 'Evante' is 'Ev-aun-tay.' 'Jean' is 'Zhaun,' in the French fashion, rather than 'Jeen.'
The Therin Throne was the common name of the empire that was once comprised of all the most powerful city-states on the southern half of the continent on which Locke lives. Throne Therin was its high courtly language. The 'contemporary' Therin tongue, as Locke speaks it, isn't actually descended from Throne Therin; rather, Throne Therin was a tarted-up version of plain Therin intended to show how elite and refined its speakers were.
With regional dialects and accents, sure.
Therin is an 'acquisitive' language, much like English, if not even grabbier. Its current form is cobbled together from several dozen languages that existed centuries in Locke's past; it's contained so many foreign phrasings for so long that they've become universally understood.
