Oops sorry automod.

Here is the interview: http://spigana.spektore.lv/2015/04/22/so-i-went-to-berlin-to-see-patrick-rothfuss/

This part in particular: **So, I went to Berlin to see Patrick Rothfuss 22 Apr

(Šeit ir pieejams arī šī raksta tulkojums latviešu valodā.)

Foto: Spīgana It started as a bit of a joke. In his blog I read that Rothfuss is going to Germany for a reading and Q&A tour so I jokingly told myself- well, Germany isnt that far from Latvia, why dont you just go and get your book signed by your favourite writer? About an hour and half later I had my bus tickets to Berlin and a shadow of suspicion that 20 hours on the bus isn`t all that comfortable. But anyway- it felt like awesome idea.

And then it somehow escalated to an epic thing that stole me at least a weeks worth of sleep (my brain simply wouldn`t shut up because of all the excitement). Because I managed to arrange a meeting with His Wordship (twitter joke, moving on) and I had a chance to interview Patrick Rothfuss!

Of course, everything was going on so great that I was quite sure- Ill mess up something. And I did. The first half of the interview wasnt properly recorded, it wasnt recorded at all. This is when I understood the meaning of an emotional rollercoaster. Imagine this- Ive just had one of the most awesome conversations in my life and I`m totally going to own that on my blog and then I realize that half of that conversation is not recorded. Damn.

But its lucky that I checked the recording right away, so I just wrote down everything I remembered Patrick saying immediately after that and in the end I think I didnt butcher that interview as much as Id feared. Also, Patrick was kind enough to edit the interview I had written down and now its all proper and beautiful stuff.

So, this is a longish story in three parts. First one is the interview. In the second part I retell the interesting bits from that evening`s Q&A. Third part is me generally blabbering all over the place about how amazing the whole thing was.

Part 1. The Interview.

Foto: Spīgana

Can you tell a secret- how did you persuade Auri to let you into her world?

I have an access to that world, you know.

But it`s actually harder with Auri than with Kvothe. Kvothe is telling us his story, he’s showing us things. But that’s not the case with Auri, she doesn’t know she’s in a story, we’re peeking into her private world in this new book.

Do you have a favorite place in Temerant? Maybe somewhere you go when you`re tired of this world?

I think Id go to the Eolian. Sometimes Ive even thought about building Eolian in this world, that would be fun. But on the other hand, even though Id like to visit it, I dont think I would go there often. Generally speaking, I’d prefer someplace quieter, like the Waystone Inn.

When I read your books, I was thinking how liberal the magic is- basically everybody who wants to learn and have the means to pay can learn the magic. But still there are people who scoff at the University. Why is that so?

In this world or in my world?

In Temerant.

There is more than one reason, I think.

First, going to the University is a huge luxury and not everybody can afford that. Basically the nobility have this privilege to go and study, and that means that the University, for the most part, is full of rich kids. And a lot of times those folks end up spoiled and entitled, not the nicest guys. Like Ambrose, for example.

Second, going to the University isn’t seen as being particularly practical. If you train to be a carpenter, everyone can see how they can make useful things. They build houses and tables and chairs. But some kid who spends years and years in University learning history? People don`t really see the practical point for it. It seems frivolous.

Of course, it would be nice if everybody could afford to have the education and I dont see any reason why a carpenter shouldnt learn sympathy or drafting to make his work better. But mostly the University is seen as expensive and unpractical luxury for idle rich kids.

Think of it from the carpenter’s point of view: with the time and money they would spend going to the University, they could build three houses. And that person wouldn’t be wrong. The truth is, we need both carpenters and historians. But I think it’s a shame to think everything in the world fits into two camps: Either practical things or the arts. The truth is, these things are often complementary.

But Kvothe does make practical things in the University.

Exactly.

Do you plan to write more books that tell us about characters other than Kvothe- like you did with Auri? Maybe Bast or Felurian?

There is a story about Bast – „The Lightning Tree”. It`s the one I wrote for the anthology.

Its fun to write those smaller stories – I don’t have to worry about orchestrating a huge, complex plot. So yes, I think Ill do more of these.

Maybe one for Elodin. There’s a lot about him that nobody knows. And Denna, there’s a lot of her story that nobody sees.

Oh, we would like to know her better. Actually, she is one of my favorites.

Its nice to hear that. You say „we would like to know more”, but some people wouldnt, some people really, really don`t like Denna.

Yes, I`ve seen that a lot and that makes me wonder- why?

Honestly? I think it happens for different reasons.

Some people who don’t like Denna are women that have a little bit of a crush on Kvothe: They think: “I wouldn’t treat him like that! I’d be better for Kvothe him than she is.” Theyre kinda jealous. Either that or theyre like an over protective big sister, sure that no woman is good enough for him.

But that’s just a narrow slice of readership. I think the main reason is much bigger than that.

The truth is, our culture has a huge problem about how we view women. They are not treated well, and they are not thought of in healthy ways. This is certainly true in the US, and I’m pretty sure there are similar things happening in most western countries.

This affects Denna because stories are a reflection of our culture, and traditionally, our culture teaches us that the purpose of a woman is to be… well… kind of a reward for a man. She’s something he strives for, like the princess you save at the end of the video game. She’s the damsel in distress in the folk tale. If you save my kingdom, you shall have my daughter’s hand in marriage.

A lot of stories, especially fantasy stories, treat women like treasure. Their primary purpose in many stories is to be objects of affection for the hero.

So along comes Kvothe, and he’s adventurous and proud, and he loves this woman and she does not immediately fall at his feet, she does not go out of her way to adore him. She doesn’t bend over backwards to make herself available to him. I think people resent that, because some part of them has come to believe this thing they’ve heard in stories again and again and again. They think a woman should make herself available to a man just because the man wants her.

And that is a very unfortunate thing, and its a very creepy thing. Its bad enough when a man feels that way, but it scares me when a woman feels that way. When a woman hates another woman, even a fictional woman, for not making herself available to a man just because he wants her- that shows me something very dangerous is happening in society.**