Interview with Patrick Rothfuss

What was the initial inspiration that drove you to write these books?

A: Hmmmm. "Initial" is hard. I've wanted to be a writer as long as I can remember.

A lot of the reasons I wrote these books the way I did is because I was sick of a lot of the cliché fantasy conventions. Too many dragons and goblin armies and elves with bows. It was all seeming so samey to me, so I decided to see if I could tell a different sort of story, one that left a lot of those conventions behind.

Which characters have changed the most from your original idea of them to how they've appeared on the page? I got it totally wrong last time I tried to guess an author's response, but Denna ...?

A: Denna hasn't changed so much as she has evolved. She started as the unattainable love interest, but that ended up being another cliché that I wanted to avoid.

However, when I brought her into the spotlight she showed elements of her personality that weren't visible before. She had a lot more facets than you could see when she was at a distance, but she was still the same fundamental character....

No, I have to say that most of my characters haven't changed much from their original conception, they just grow. They're like seeds. A seed doesn't change into something new, it just becomes a more fully realised version of itself. Does that even make any sense?

That said, some of the seedling characters have ended up developing into things far and away more interesting than I could ever have hoped for. Auri was one of those. She is a pure delight to write. I never expected her to be so much fun.

Makes perfect sense, and Auri is very cool! From all the names Kvothe has (something that fantasy is quite fond of) it seems like you sat down and wrote out a whole list of variations on the same theme, but then made them you're own, subverting and twisting, etc. Was this the case, at all?

A: Hmmm.... I can't think of an answer to this one. Can you ask it in a different way?

I can't play any sort of instrument even halfway decently. I can't even read music. I've got a pretty good singing voice though...

You've said that after this trilogy you still have more books planned in Kvothe's world. Is there anything planned outside of it? Fancy turning your hand to science-fiction...?

A: I don't think you'll see me in Sci-fi for a while, though someone recently called my book science-fantasy because the main system of magic people use is was regimented and logical.

I do have an idea for a book-length modern day faerie tale. And another idea for a series of humorous urban fantasy novels set in a college. I think I'd have a lot of fun writing those.

I also have a not-for-children-children's book coming out next year. That's going to be cool seeing it in print. I'll be posting more news on that at my website once we have the papers signed.

Thank you for taking time out of being eaten by a grue to take part in this Q&A! Really hoping The Name of the Wind goes OK for you, over here in the UK; it deserves every success. [Of course, it's now December so you know it's done very well, but I have to maintain the illusion of living in the past.]

A: Wow. Extra points for the Zork reference. I knew you were my sort of guy.