So in The Magic Of Recluce/Death of Chaos it’s mentioned a lot about how the grandfather of the Emperor of Hamor was an exile from Recluse, which I had always though was Rahl from the Natural Ordermage books. However, during a recent reread I realized that during his training in Nylan it was mentioned that Fairhaven still existed (although Ceryl was mentioned as long gone)… which means that was before Justen melted the town, and then he lived 200 years after that to the time of Magic. So I don’t think that grandfather can be Rahl. So my question is, do we know anything about who that grandfather was? Was he ever mentioned in a short story or something?

That’s a story I never got around to writing, alas. As you may have guessed, I’ve often mentioned things in various books that could be stories or novels,and some of them… I just didn’t get to… or haven’t yet.

As I seclude myself in Recluce until 2028, I find that you might be some sort of puppet master???? As I read the news and the merchants, warriors, and “rulers” fight over “golds”, I wonder.

I’m far from a puppet master, but I’ve spent a long time in the political world and/or observing it, and certain patterns do have a tendency to prevail, which is one of the reasons I write about them.

Thank you for writing the Magic of Recluce series. I stumbled onto the series about 7 years ago now. I have managed most of the original set in paperback but for series I truly enjoy I try to get it in hardcover. Magic of Recluce has become one such series. I currently have the entirety of the series thanks to my work, Goodwill, and some bargain bookstores along with sites like thriftbooks. I however have not been able to get a hold of The Magic of Recluce. Is there any chance you will/can bring some of these original books to print once again. If not, is it possible to get permission,if you retain copyright to find a way to print the book in hardcover personally. As more and more time passes I suspect it will be harder and more cost prohibitive in attaining this volume. I would prefer getting an original but the ability to print your own hardcovers has become somewhat more cost accessible.

Because The Magic of Recluce is available in print (i.e., trade paperback) and in ebook format, Tor still controls the publication rights, and it’s unlikely that Tor will reprint in hardcover any book first published more than thirty years ago. I obviously wish it were otherwise, but it’s not a situation I control.

I’ve noticed that all of the Recluce series are either set outside Recluce or concern someone who leaves Recluce and tends not to come back (even Dorrin kind of founds his own version, rather than returning to Recluce-proper). We therefore tend to see how Recluce functions only through the eyes of exiles or enemies. What’s the reason for not having a novel set inside Recluce itself?

As Lerris observes in The Magic of Recluce, when things are functioning well in Recluce, they tend to be boring. Boring doesn’t make good stories. But, if you read Recluce Tales there are quite a few stories set within Recluce. Also, the last third or more of Towers of the Sunset is most definitely set in Recluce.

If you read: https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/02/social-media-literacy-crisis/686076/ What do you think of the concept that how humans think depends upon how they communicate? In 1974, NASA, in collaboration with scientists from the Arecibo Observatory and Cornell University, sent a radio message into space aimed at the globular star cluster Messier 13 (M13), about 25,000 light-years away. In light of this article, should NASA send a new message now (or every 100 years or so)?

I have no doubt that human communication methods affect the way we think. Even before the findings cited in The Atlantic, I saw plenty of examples of that in everyday life, which scientists would term anecdotal, but massive anecdotal evidence amounts to statistics. That said, I doubt that messages sent 25,000 lightyears away — unless intercepted by star-spanning intelligent aliens — are anything but a gesture, since I have doubts that humanity can maintain a high tech society for that long, not unless our intraspecies communications skills and perceptions increase significantly.

Two questions: 1. We have not had a sci-fi one shot since Quantum Shadows in 2020. Are you working on any new sci-fi novels? 2. I seem to recall from an interview that before you published any of your sci-fi short stories, you had published some of your poetry. Can you tell me where you poetry was published?

At present, I’m not working on any SF novels, partly because I haven’t had any good ideas that I found personably workable and partly because my publisher isn’t all that enthused about singleton SF novels (at least from me). My poetry was published in VERY small magazines that may not even exist today, including Jean’s Journal, Konglomerati, The Red Balloon, Poetry Today, and the Fountain Valley Literary Review, all in issues published before 1979.

I’ve read most of the Grand illusion series, and wanted to know if there is a specific reason or connection to the Argentinian – inspired (Buenos Aires, really) elements? Not really important but since I am from there it was kinda noticeable and got me curious.

I hadn’t thought of Guldor as Argentinian-inspired. I just had a mental picture of the culture, but given my background and historical research, in hindsight, I can see the parallels.