Tamora Pierce AMA

[Ganiel]

Tamora Pierce AMA!

For en gangs skyld har vi klaret at få opsnuset, at TP holder AMA på Reddit FØR end det er færdigt! AMA betyder egentlig bare "spørg og jeg vil forsøge at svare".. Derfor vil vi gerne høre jer! Har I nogle spørgsmål, som det kunne være rart at få afklaring på i forhold til Tortall-universet? De må rigtigt gerne blive formuleret på engelsk, men føler du dig usikker, så skriv på dansk og så oversætter vi. ^^

Vi forventer at samle spørgsmålene (og måske sortere lidt i dem) og så poste dem til hende og forhåbentlig få svar Selve AMA'et vil komme til at foregå i en post i dette forum først på aftenen (I AFTEN) og så nogle timer frem: www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/

Sidste gang hun holdt dette, så var der en limit på to spørgsmål pr bruger, så vi kunne måske godt finde på at prikke et par af jer til at lægge spørgsmål op, hvis nu vi ender med at have mange, rigtigt gode spørgsmål!

De spørgsmål vi lige selv har på tungen er:

• How do you become a black robe mage and can you become one in Tortall?
• What is the knight equivalent in Carthak?
• How fast can you travel from Caynn to Tusaine following the Great Eastern Road on horseback?
• Is the Doi magic restricted to only that group of people, or are they just the only ones we know of? Are their abilities hereditary? What are their abilities precisely?
• If a man marries a female ruler of, or heir to a fief.. Does he take her family-name, do they keep each theirs or does she still take his?
• When someone uses the Gift. Is it's colors then visible to everyone? Or just to people who has the Gift themselves? Or just to people like Alanna who have something along the line of the Ember Stone?
• In your opinion.. Can the Gift in Tortall be put into categories as we do in the Emelan Universe? Plants, fire, illusions, protection and so on..? So that it is possible to study a specialty of the Gift?
• What is considered normal for everyone with the Gift to be able to do?
• Is the Sight hereditary? Are the two gifts mutually exclusive? Is it there by instinct or do you have to train it, like you do with the Gift?

Skulle vi være så heldige at få svar, så poster vi selvfølgelig svarene her i tråden ^^

[Ganiel]

Ja... Som mange sikkert kunne fornemme i boxen igår, så fik vi jo rent faktisk svar fra TP *fangirl-squee!* Først vil jeg lige overbringe en hilsen fra TP til alle hendes danske fans (yes, that means you).. Svarene kommer her:

How do you become a black robe mage and can you become one in Tortall?

• You can become a black robe mage, or be acclaimed as one, by three university schools for mages, the one in Carthak, the one in Corus, and the one in the City of the Gods. Mages of red robe and black robe rank recommend a candidate for black robe status, and the candidate's worthiness is debated in closed discussions, and by letter or mirror or crystal with the other two Academies and qualified mages who are on the road, until a 3/4 majority decision of the qualified mages in the Eastern and Southern Lands is reached. These discussions are held in utmost secrecy; all parties to them are sworn to silence. They may not break that vow unless a Black Robe Mage is named and they wish to congratulate him/her. Only think how devastating it would be to know you were considered and rejected! So it's all hush-hush.
  A rare few black robes have turned the decision down, not feeling worthy or being too shy to have people poking into her/his life. Also, they don't care for the hostility and jealousy that comes their way with the title. A few black robes have never been found to be notified, because they were off on some mysterious search.
  

What is the knight equivalent in Carthak?

• Carthak has knights, but by and large these days they concern themselves with guarding their home lands or forming ornamental guards for the imperial family at public occasions. The army is too big; there aren't enough knights to lead it, so professional soldiers have that job. Some knights are perfectly happy to become professional soldiers, although their families aren't always happy about it.
  

How fast can you travel from Caynn to Tusaine following the Great Eastern Road on horseback? Or some other basic visual to get a grasp of Tortalls size geographically.

• From Port Caynne to the Tusaine border it's about 14 days on horseback, given a good horse going at a walk, not too much traffic, and good weather all the way. Things slow up considerably when the river splits south to Whitethorn, and again as you approach Corus; winter is always a bad season in which to travel, and the time of the summer and harvest fairs means there's a lot of traffic, from fairgoers and the merchant caravants.
  

Is the Doi magic restricted to only that group of people, or are they just the only ones we know of? Are their abilities hereditary? What are their abilities precisely?

• It isn't that there is a kind of magic restricted to one people or another--it's how the people have shaped the magic that is part of all things according to their beliefs, needs, and perceptions of the world and of the gods. True, the mainstream magical teaching of the Eastern and Southern Lands treats the more common form of magic, the easiest to use, as what the Circle folks call academic magic and other kinds, like Daine's and the magics used by nomadic and tribal people as hedgewitchery, but that's a social distinction, not a matter of actual power. Outsiders can learn Doi magic, or Bazhir magic, or the magics of the Yamani court and of the Yamani tribes, or of the various tribes of Carthak, if their minds are flexible enough and, of course, if they work really hard at it (and if they can find a willing teacher). Some of the Doi specialize in fortune-telling; others in medicine; others in weather prediction and the manipulation of fallen snow or rain (they can find people trapped under snowfalls and redirect floods and avalanches to a certain extent). Some can light fires. There are other skills--they tended to develop their magic to fit where and how they live.

If a man marries a female ruler of, or heir to a fief.. Does he take her family-name, do they keep each theirs or does she still take his?

• It depends on the fief's charter. If the sex of the heir and lord (or lady) is not specified, then a man marrying the lady who rules there may choose to change his name or hyphenate. The children, of course, will bear his lady's family name.
  

When someone uses the Gift. Is it's colors then visible to everyone? Or just to people who has the Gift themselves? Or just to people like Alanna who have something along the line of the Ember Stone?

• I think anyone can see the colors of the Gift.

In your opinion.. Can the Gift in Tortall be put into categories as we do in the Emelan Universe? Plants, fire, illusions, protection and so on..? So that it is possible to study a specialty of the Gift?

• No, the Gift is pretty general. A mage or a hedgewitch may be better at some things than others, and absolutely terrible or incapable at others, but everyone can light fires, cast some basic illusions with a bit of study, do basic healing and protective shields (again, with a bit of study). The strength of their Gifts determines if they become mages (and a lot of study), and then they may choose to specialize in particular areas, such as medicine, or battle magic. You'll learn a LOT more about mage training in the next book, coming out next year, which covers Arram/Numair's 10th - 17th year at the Academy for Mages in the University at Carthak!
  

What is considered normal for everyone with the Gift to be able to do?

• Most people with the Gift can light tinder or candles, heal minor scratches and scrapes, detect water that's close to the surface and tell if it's safe to drink, know the direction without a visible sun or night sky, and stay afloat in a river, lake, or ocean.
  

Is the Sight hereditary? Are the two gifts mutually exclusive? Is it there by instinct or do you have to train it, like you do with the Gift?

• The Sight and the Gift tend to run in families, but they also pop up out of nowhere in families that have never shown a sign of either before. They aren't mutually exclusive. You don't need training for the Sight, though it helps you understand the finer points of your visions if you train.