Alagaësia Newsletter
October 31, 2006
Kvetha Fricaya! Greetings Friends!
A lot has
happened since my last newsletter!
Random House sent
me quite a number of foreign editions of Eragon and Eldest,
including an Icelandic Eragon and an Italian hardcover Eldest that
is just a bit larger than a mass-market paperback and is covered in shiny pink
foil. It's quite striking. The first line of Eldest in Italian is: Il
canto dei morti è il pianto dei vivi.
I learned that a
spoof of Eragon—written by Joey Luke Bandini—is being published in
Italy. The title is Aerosol, Il Fratello Furbo Di Eragon, which,
according to the translation Google gave me, means something along the lines of
Aerosol, the Clever Brother of Eragon. Assuming my Italian to English
dictionary is accurate, the book follows the adventures of Aerosol as he becomes
linked with a beautiful blue Musk Turkey and becomes one of the mythological
Poultry Riders. Just for the record, I had no part in the creation of this book.
Still, it seems amusing.
The link, if you’re
interested is:
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/hqGc0HWC4e0B5X0rq60Ef
On September 27,
Random House released the Limited Edition (LE) of Eldest. I'm very proud
of this book, as I put a great deal of work into it and because the wonderful
folks at Knopf and Random House did an extraordinary job with its design and
production. The front cover and spine are decorated with large swaths of gold
foil that make the book really stand out on the shelf. It contains a foldout
poster of John Jude Palencar's painting of the dragon Glaedr; two of my
drawings: one of Brom's ring, one of Thorn's eye; a complete list of people,
places, and things; a concise history of Alagaësia; and an excerpt from Book
Three. In my opinion, the LE is the version of Eldest, and I’m
delighted to have such a handsome frame for my story.
Another piece of
big news is that Fox unveiled several trailers for the Eragon movie. You
can find the US trailer at:
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/hqGc0HWC4e0B5X0rq70Eg
And the
international trailer at:
http://www.shurtugal.com/content/mandm/media/
2006/october/1/eragon_intl_trailer_hi.php
And here's a
high-quality trailer for the Xbox 360 Eragon video game:
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/hqGc0HWC4e0B5X0rrA0Er
And I've been
hearing about all sorts of interesting Eragon items, including swords
from the movie, clothing branded with the logo, a snowboarding competition, an
Eragon computer mouse, board games, trinkets, and much more.
Last month, I
flew out to New York City for an interview and photo shoot with Ed Speleers, the
actor who plays the character of Eragon in the movie. We had spoken over the
phone once before and had missed each other by a day at ComicCon, so that was
the first time we met in person. It was hardly a casual encounter, what with
agents, publicists, journalists, photographers, makeup artists, wardrobe
designers, and movie executives milling around, but we had a nice chat all the
same. He was genuine in his desire to portray Eragon to the best of his
abilities. During our discussion, he made a comment about Saphira that was so
close to my own concept of her, I felt as if he had put his finger on the
essence of her character. To paraphrase, he said that when he was acting across
from the neon orange tennis ball that represented Saphira on the set, he
imagined her being a combination of his mother and his best friend. What a
perfect way to describe her!
No doubt about
it, meeting the person who is portraying a character I have spent the better
part of a decade thinking about is an odd and exciting experience. I'm glad I
had the opportunity to visit with Ed, and I wish him the best, both personally
and professionally. From my own adventures, I know how it can be when life kicks
you into the spotlight.
A few days ago, I
flew out to New York City to attend the second annual Quill awards, as I was one
of the nominees. Readers from across the country voted for their favorite book
in each category.
http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/hqGc0HWC4e0B5X0rrB0Es
The ceremony was
a high-profile occasion attended by numerous celebrities, and which NBC filmed
and will broadcast on Oct. 28th. This year the Quills were held in the Natural
History Museum in New York City, an awe-inspiring location.
It was the first
black-tie event I’ve ever attended, and the first time I’ve had to stuff
myself into a tuxedo. I never realized getting dressed could take so long! My
suspenders did their best to strangle me, and as for my cufflinks, we are no
long on speaking terms.
To my surprise,
when the presenters for the young adult award announced the winner, I heard them
say my name. My heart was pounding so hard as I walked up to the stage, I
thought that I might keel over in front of six hundred people. I said then, and
I say now, that I am incredibly grateful and honored to know that you, my
readers, voted for me. Having started in this profession by hand-selling books
to people who, in many cases, didn’t give a hoot for some kid wearing a
medieval costume in a store, it means a great deal to me that people have
enjoyed my books enough to show their support.
Now I dive back
into Book Three.
May the stars
watch over you,
Christopher
Paolini
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