Glad you caught the show. Let me know what you think in the comments and I’ll reply as soon as I can. If you’re a regular listener and would like to show your support and gain access to exclusive talks with some incredible minds, check out the Coleman Unfiltered membership here: bit.ly/3B1GAlS
Denis Villeneuve: "I write movies for one audience member: myself." Paolini: "I never thought Eragon was going to be published. I was writing it for my own benefit." If you want to write something, this is excellent advice.
Am halfway through and have sent this to 5 people already. Fascinating and I know not your usual fare. Coleman, so am grateful for your going out on this limb. This is gold.
He’s a better writer than I am. Know why? Because he had an idea, put it on paper, and got off his butt and got it published. Which is more than I’ve ever done.
I was reading the Inheritance Cycle as they were coming out and I always liked the extensive language building (no doubt the most visible Tolkien influence). Great conversation about writing process and experience!
17:58 - I can so relate to that. I only write fanfiction (for now). But, what I quickly discovered about my own writing process is that I'd have an idea for a a scene, or a few specific scenes that I really want to write and share (just to get it out of my head/system) and everything else around those scene I end up having to write in-between to at least have a plot around it, as a support structure, to connect those scenes and have them make sense a part of the narrative and character development. And every sequel idea always starts with just a couple of such scenes that I then have to put into a dozen or more "episodes", as my "style", the way format I use most of the time, is "episodic", meaning the amount of plot/action/time that happens and passes equates (or would equate) to, like, a solid 20 minutes episode. And I write a whole season/volume, depending on the show. I have shorts, one-offs...etc.
Yeah, the feel is something you can’t teach. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is one of the best storytellers and writers walking this earth. If anyone wants to check her out, read “Half of a Yellow Sun.”
I have to say that I was shocked to hear you are such of a big fan of Paolini’s work. I tried reading Eragon when it first came out, while in my senior year of high school (this was in 2004). The book was trash then, and still is. I couldn’t even make it past two pages. You could tell he was trying to get a ton of detail in, like Tolkien did, but he did it through info dumps. It made the reading clumpy, confusing, and was also extremely cliché. I understand that he was 15 when he wrote it, but that was simply clear proof to me why nobody should write a book before passing both Writing and Grammer and English Composition 1 in college. I mention the struggle I had in reading it to a friend of mine, and she pointed out how the plot had been blatantly stolen from Star Wars, empathic bonding telepathic dragons (as well as the topography in the dragon battles) were stolen straight from The Dragonriders of Pern, the desert has the exact same name as one of the large deserts in Dune, and a quite a few names were ripped off from Lord of the Rings. I’m not quite sure if it’s a clear case of plagiarism, but definitely an unimaginative rip-off , and why books written by 15 year olds shouldn’t be published. I’m going to come back and listen to this conversation early in the morning and try to overcome my clear bias against Paolini as an author. I might even check out his newer work, and see if it’s any better. Again, I’m going to have to overcome my clear bias on that though, in order to make a good faith effort at reading it with charity.
I had to blink four or five times to be sure that (a) I was recognising the correct Christopher Paolini and (b) that this video isn't a giant meme. Isn't it well-documented that the Eragon books were astroturfed at the time and widely regarded as horrible? I tortured myself with them at the time and certainly thought so.
that the same as Eragon? Because if so, then yes. That book was just A New Hope in a different fantasy world. The story begins with a princess transporting something vital to the survival of the rebellion. She is ambushed by the Empire and in desperation sends the thing away where it is found by a young man living on a farm with his uncle because he's apparently an orphan. The Empire comes looking for the item. The boy seeks the help of a local hermit who used to be a part of an order of special warriors. Apparently the boy’s father was once of these but turned bad and hunted down the rest and now leads the Empire from a high position. The boy goes on a quest, the wise old sage is killed, he meets a rogue, they rescue the princess and take her to the rebel base before it is attacked by the Empire, etc, etc. I could go on. (To be fair, I read it over twelve years ago so I might be getting things wrong, but I'm probably forgetting other parallels as well) And there are still people who claim this is coincidence. I'm not saying such a derivative work, even a rip off, is inherently bad. But it should be called what it is
@@Ever23last I think authors can, generally, use plots and ideas from others and still create something new and interesting. This is common and almost inevitable. Have you ever heard the term "steal like an artist"? Nothing new is really created nowadays; "creators" or "inventors" use ideas from previously created works or projects, and books are not too different. Like you said, that isn't a bad thing, per se, because the new work could still be something distinct and potentially entertaining (in regards to fantasy books). This is true for Eragon. Eragon isn't Star Wars, it isn't any of Tolkien's books, it isn't the Bible, but there are similar plot points and ideas, some more major than others. I think a curt and inflammatory statement about Paolini's potential inspirations should be called what it is, and an apology on his behalf would be inappropriate. He created that world in Eragon, and that is admirable, and made even more so by his inspirations.
I think its too similar it follows every major plot point of star wars a new hope and his other books do not do this. Young kids are more easily influenced I still think you could say something like "As a young kid I wore my influences on my sleeve until I found my own voice," plenty of bands admit this and so can Paolini.
@@Ever23last speaking of that, dude was, like 14 - 15ish. What a useless apology, especially for a book that was made with recreational intent and then published surprisingly. I don’t know. Is George Lucas upset or is it just you? What do you get from an apology to something the author did when he was a preteen?
I'm a little appalled at this interview. Christopher Paolini is about the last person anyone should be interviewing about storytelling. His books are hot garbage and broadly plagiarised from far better works of fiction without sensitivity, style or even shame. The only reason Eragon ever got published in the first place was because his parents owned a publishing company and published it at a moment where fantasy literature was having a sort of resurgence and people were starved for fantasy books. It's genuinely one of the worst books I've ever attempted to read. This man has no credibility as an author whatsoever.
Lol. Are his books entirely original? No. But plagiarized? Come on. His first work, Eragon, is about the only thing you could even remotely say lacks originality, but the following books and works are definitely novel, pun intended. You're saying that his books are "hot garbage" and yet you haven't even read them, but "attempted" to read Eragon? If you're going to spew hate about something you've little experience with, how about you just keep your uneducated opinions to yourself. His parents were not skilled publishers, they created an LLC in order to actually publish it themselves because they had no money. They had not published a single written work before Eragon. Do some research maybe?
@@JakeBros3 Here we go. First things first: to my knowledge, Paolini's parents published at least two books before Eragon. They were also wealthy enough to send him on a massive book tour to 130+ schools on their own dime. They had plenty of cash to invest in this. Secondly, I read enough chapters of Eragon to recognise it for what it is, namely trash. I'm not spreading hate, I'm exercising discernment. Panning garbage for being garbage is necessary to uphold literary standards. Lastly, I'm far from the only person to recognise Paolini for what he is: a talentless hack at best and an unrepentant plagiarist at worst.
@@sentinel6059 He has said time and time again that he established a safety net by using the hero's journey. The first book of the Inheritance Cycle is derivative, but it is still a well-written interesting story and as the books continue, especially as one gets into the third and fourth, you can tell his writing, storytelling, and pacing ability has improved enormously. He was lucky that his family gambled their life and livelihood on the book because they saw the potential success in it. I see far too many people rail on him for using Star Wars and Tolkien as an influence (in the words of a user in this comment section: "Star Wars didn’t invent the Hero’s Journey and neither did Tolkien"). I would recommend reading To Sleep in a Sea of Stars if you want a more refined, more assured Paolini, out of his youth and fully realized.
While you are entitled to your opinion and I do not want to take that away from you, I'd really recommend you to read the later books from the inheritance cycle, or To Sleep in a Sea of stars if you are done with that series entirely. I agree, the writing is not professional level in Eragon and also Eldest but you can see him coming through in Brisingr and Inheritance (and also To Sleep in a Sea of Stars).
@@JakeBros3 I agree! Especially since he wrote Eragon to entertain himself and not to get published and famous whatsoever. Obviously his writing was not as skilled back then (he was a litera teenager) but he really refined that as his career went on. I really respect the effort he and his family put into self publishing the book and what he did with the series once it was picked up by Random House. I also think that it is (to a degree) okay to borrow story beats from other stories, for him Star Wars is the most visible one. No idea is unique or new anyways and I personally am more interested in what you make of those borrowed ideas than the fact that they were borrowed. In my opinion he did an adequate job with that, yes many parts of Eragon are not really original but they were made interesting enough for me to like them and all the other people who did so too. And if people did not like that, that's okay as well.
Glad you caught the show. Let me know what you think in the comments and I’ll reply as soon as I can. If you’re a regular listener and would like to show your support and gain access to exclusive talks with some incredible minds, check out the Coleman Unfiltered membership here: bit.ly/3B1GAlS
This was a great interview (and the Inheritance Cycle is woefully underrated.)
This is without a doubt the best interview of Paolini's I've ever seen. That ending got deep. Damn.
Denis Villeneuve: "I write movies for one audience member: myself."
Paolini: "I never thought Eragon was going to be published. I was writing it for my own benefit."
If you want to write something, this is excellent advice.
Denis Villeneuve is such a brilliant director. Love this quote.
Am halfway through and have sent this to 5 people already. Fascinating and I know not your usual fare. Coleman, so am grateful for your going out on this limb. This is gold.
This was incredible!!! So good to hear from the author of my favorite series
He’s a better writer than I am. Know why? Because he had an idea, put it on paper, and got off his butt and got it published.
Which is more than I’ve ever done.
I was reading the Inheritance Cycle as they were coming out and I always liked the extensive language building (no doubt the most visible Tolkien influence). Great conversation about writing process and experience!
Having read Brisingr x5, Eldest 4x, Eragon x2 and Inheritance x2.
I almost cried listening to him speak and I don’t know why
17:58 - I can so relate to that. I only write fanfiction (for now). But, what I quickly discovered about my own writing process is that I'd have an idea for a a scene, or a few specific scenes that I really want to write and share (just to get it out of my head/system) and everything else around those scene I end up having to write in-between to at least have a plot around it, as a support structure, to connect those scenes and have them make sense a part of the narrative and character development. And every sequel idea always starts with just a couple of such scenes that I then have to put into a dozen or more "episodes", as my "style", the way format I use most of the time, is "episodic", meaning the amount of plot/action/time that happens and passes equates (or would equate) to, like, a solid 20 minutes episode. And I write a whole season/volume, depending on the show. I have shorts, one-offs...etc.
did not expect these two names together haha
Yeah, the feel is something you can’t teach. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is one of the best storytellers and writers walking this earth. If anyone wants to check her out, read “Half of a Yellow Sun.”
38:26, for what it’s worth, you can like both the books and the movies
Woman in the Dunes by Hiroshi Teshigahara is one of the best films ever, everybody should watch it
Oh yeah, Eragon. I liked that book.
This conversation isn’t really complete without Slick Rick’s opinion on the matter.
I have to say that I was shocked to hear you are such of a big fan of Paolini’s work. I tried reading Eragon when it first came out, while in my senior year of high school (this was in 2004). The book was trash then, and still is. I couldn’t even make it past two pages. You could tell he was trying to get a ton of detail in, like Tolkien did, but he did it through info dumps. It made the reading clumpy, confusing, and was also extremely cliché. I understand that he was 15 when he wrote it, but that was simply clear proof to me why nobody should write a book before passing both Writing and Grammer and English Composition 1 in college. I mention the struggle I had in reading it to a friend of mine, and she pointed out how the plot had been blatantly stolen from Star Wars, empathic bonding telepathic dragons (as well as the topography in the dragon battles) were stolen straight from The Dragonriders of Pern, the desert has the exact same name as one of the large deserts in Dune, and a quite a few names were ripped off from Lord of the Rings. I’m not quite sure if it’s a clear case of plagiarism, but definitely an unimaginative rip-off , and why books written by 15 year olds shouldn’t be published.
I’m going to come back and listen to this conversation early in the morning and try to overcome my clear bias against Paolini as an author. I might even check out his newer work, and see if it’s any better. Again, I’m going to have to overcome my clear bias on that though, in order to make a good faith effort at reading it with charity.
Helpful thanks
I had to blink four or five times to be sure that (a) I was recognising the correct Christopher Paolini and (b) that this video isn't a giant meme. Isn't it well-documented that the Eragon books were astroturfed at the time and widely regarded as horrible? I tortured myself with them at the time and certainly thought so.
You're clearly envious of him. So much thinly veiled resentment of his success in your rant.
@@PeverellTheThird [Professor X has entered the chat]
@@UtarEmpire So, where's your best-selling novel? 🙄
CP seems like a good guy, but the whole child writer thing, that bordered on straight star wars-tolkien rip off, always rubbed me a little wrong
Star Wars didn’t invent the Hero’s Journey and neither did Tolkien
@@matityaloran9157 your right. Fine line between influence and rip off. Paolini just shaded a little to far to the latter in my opinion.
@@watcherofthewest8597 Fair. I disagree but I understand why you could think that.
Does he apologize for plagiarizing Star Wars in Eragon.
How did he plagiarize Star Wars?
that the same as Eragon? Because if so, then yes. That book was just A New Hope in a different fantasy world.
The story begins with a princess transporting something vital to the survival of the rebellion. She is ambushed by the Empire and in desperation sends the thing away where it is found by a young man living on a farm with his uncle because he's apparently an orphan. The Empire comes looking for the item. The boy seeks the help of a local hermit who used to be a part of an order of special warriors. Apparently the boy’s father was once of these but turned bad and hunted down the rest and now leads the Empire from a high position. The boy goes on a quest, the wise old sage is killed, he meets a rogue, they rescue the princess and take her to the rebel base before it is attacked by the Empire, etc, etc. I could go on. (To be fair, I read it over twelve years ago so I might be getting things wrong, but I'm probably forgetting other parallels as well)
And there are still people who claim this is coincidence. I'm not saying such a derivative work, even a rip off, is inherently bad. But it should be called what it is
@@Ever23last I think authors can, generally, use plots and ideas from others and still create something new and interesting. This is common and almost inevitable. Have you ever heard the term "steal like an artist"? Nothing new is really created nowadays; "creators" or "inventors" use ideas from previously created works or projects, and books are not too different. Like you said, that isn't a bad thing, per se, because the new work could still be something distinct and potentially entertaining (in regards to fantasy books). This is true for Eragon. Eragon isn't Star Wars, it isn't any of Tolkien's books, it isn't the Bible, but there are similar plot points and ideas, some more major than others.
I think a curt and inflammatory statement about Paolini's potential inspirations should be called what it is, and an apology on his behalf would be inappropriate. He created that world in Eragon, and that is admirable, and made even more so by his inspirations.
I think its too similar it follows every major plot point of star wars a new hope and his other books do not do this. Young kids are more easily influenced I still think you could say something like "As a young kid I wore my influences on my sleeve until I found my own voice," plenty of bands admit this and so can Paolini.
@@Ever23last speaking of that, dude was, like 14 - 15ish. What a useless apology, especially for a book that was made with recreational intent and then published surprisingly. I don’t know. Is George Lucas upset or is it just you? What do you get from an apology to something the author did when he was a preteen?
I'm a little appalled at this interview. Christopher Paolini is about the last person anyone should be interviewing about storytelling. His books are hot garbage and broadly plagiarised from far better works of fiction without sensitivity, style or even shame. The only reason Eragon ever got published in the first place was because his parents owned a publishing company and published it at a moment where fantasy literature was having a sort of resurgence and people were starved for fantasy books. It's genuinely one of the worst books I've ever attempted to read. This man has no credibility as an author whatsoever.
Lol. Are his books entirely original? No. But plagiarized? Come on. His first work, Eragon, is about the only thing you could even remotely say lacks originality, but the following books and works are definitely novel, pun intended.
You're saying that his books are "hot garbage" and yet you haven't even read them, but "attempted" to read Eragon?
If you're going to spew hate about something you've little experience with, how about you just keep your uneducated opinions to yourself.
His parents were not skilled publishers, they created an LLC in order to actually publish it themselves because they had no money. They had not published a single written work before Eragon.
Do some research maybe?
@@JakeBros3 Here we go. First things first: to my knowledge, Paolini's parents published at least two books before Eragon. They were also wealthy enough to send him on a massive book tour to 130+ schools on their own dime. They had plenty of cash to invest in this.
Secondly, I read enough chapters of Eragon to recognise it for what it is, namely trash. I'm not spreading hate, I'm exercising discernment. Panning garbage for being garbage is necessary to uphold literary standards.
Lastly, I'm far from the only person to recognise Paolini for what he is: a talentless hack at best and an unrepentant plagiarist at worst.
@@sentinel6059 He has said time and time again that he established a safety net by using the hero's journey. The first book of the Inheritance Cycle is derivative, but it is still a well-written interesting story and as the books continue, especially as one gets into the third and fourth, you can tell his writing, storytelling, and pacing ability has improved enormously. He was lucky that his family gambled their life and livelihood on the book because they saw the potential success in it. I see far too many people rail on him for using Star Wars and Tolkien as an influence (in the words of a user in this comment section: "Star Wars didn’t invent the Hero’s Journey and neither did Tolkien"). I would recommend reading To Sleep in a Sea of Stars if you want a more refined, more assured Paolini, out of his youth and fully realized.
While you are entitled to your opinion and I do not want to take that away from you, I'd really recommend you to read the later books from the inheritance cycle, or To Sleep in a Sea of stars if you are done with that series entirely.
I agree, the writing is not professional level in Eragon and also Eldest but you can see him coming through in Brisingr and Inheritance (and also To Sleep in a Sea of Stars).
@@JakeBros3
I agree! Especially since he wrote Eragon to entertain himself and not to get published and famous whatsoever.
Obviously his writing was not as skilled back then (he was a litera teenager) but he really refined that as his career went on.
I really respect the effort he and his family put into self publishing the book and what he did with the series once it was picked up by Random House.
I also think that it is (to a degree) okay to borrow story beats from other stories, for him Star Wars is the most visible one.
No idea is unique or new anyways and I personally am more interested in what you make of those borrowed ideas than the fact that they were borrowed.
In my opinion he did an adequate job with that, yes many parts of Eragon are not really original but they were made interesting enough for me to like them and all the other people who did so too. And if people did not like that, that's okay as well.