If you could ask King anything about the Dark Tower series...

[Bev Vincent]

Post your questions here. Can't guarantee they'll be answered. I'm curious to see what people would ask if they had the chance.

[Robert Fulman]

Is there any significance to the fact that, other than the word "The", four titles of the eight Dark Tower books have started with the letter "W"? None of his other books do, but maybe it's just a coincidence.

[Merlin1958]

I'd ask,

"Was dropping Jake under the mountain the reason Roland had to loop again. or was it some thing additional as well or totally different altogether"?

[Wuducynn]

I would ask "With your publishing an 8th Dark Tower novel are you re-considering re-writing other books in the series? If so, which ones and is this something you're going to be doing soon?"

[pathoftheturtle]

And when can we expect another Jack Sawyer book?

[Letti]

What a great thread.
'Which was the hardest part to write? Emotionally or technically.'

[blavigne]

Who was the "best" character to write and who was the most difficult (in the DT series)?

[Jean]

mild DT7 spoiler

when he was writing the Drawing of the Three, with Detta's special place - The Drawers - did he already know that later on there would be a moment of actual drawing, with a pencil? How much of those extremely fortunate mythology-forming words are a product of luck, mere chance, or happy coincidence?

[Storyslinger]

Can we expect the 8th Dark Tower novel to be the last direct tie to Roland and his ka-tet?

[pixiedark76]

I want to ask about the Low Men in Yellow Coats and Devor-Toi (Blue Heaven) that appeared in DT7. Since the battle with Roland and his Ka-tet, are the Low Men beaten or Destroyed? Will anymore breakers be taken? Will anymore children be brought to Blue Heaven to have their brains sucked out? Are the Low Men still a threat? (I hope not!) Could the Low Men ever "make a comeback" and start kidnapping innocent children again? Could the Low Men show up in other levels of reality or the Dark Tower?

[RolandLover]

Is is considering writing another DTseries where according to DT7 things will be different for Roland since he has the horn of the Eld?

[mtdman]

Would he ever consider writing a tie-in story about the other side of the Dark tower, or along the path of the other beams?

[Brainslinger]

I'm curious about the lads from 'Through the eyes of the Dragon' who were referenced Drawing of the Three. It was stated in one of the afterwords that we would probably see them again in the later books, yet we never did. I mainly wonder what happened when Roland first encountered them chasing Flagg, and curious as to why King changed his minds about including them later.*

Another question occurs (I know we're only supposed to have one) but I'm curious about the fact that Patrick was supposedly meant to save two men. Is this something that happened in his adventures before he ended up in Dandelo's bread and board, or did King originally intend Eddie to survive instead of Susannah? Or were the little Doctors (the little bald guys with the scissors, not the singing bugs) as asexuals being unable to tell the significant difference between men and women? ;)

*To be fair I think I already know the answer to this, - there just was no place for them in the end. - but I'd be interested in reading King's thoughts on this.

[Bev Vincent]

Regarding your question regarding Insomnia, I've always considered that book to be metaphorical rather than a literal Dark Tower book. There's a lot that the Crimson King does that doesn't make any sense in the context of what we later learn about him. According to DT7, it contains messages from King to himself--or to Roland--and is thus symbolic. That's my take, anyway.

[Empath of the White]

I would love to ask Mr. King what his initial plans for Randall Flagg were after he finished up Wizard and Glass. Second, I would be curious to know if, after finishing Wizard and Glass, he originally intended for Book V to take place entirely in Thunderclap.

[noal]

Would he ever consider writing about Gilead in its glory days or about the old ones(or great old ones)?

Fantastic idea for a thread by the way!

[Girlystevedave]

I know there's a separate thread for it, but what is the exact reason why Roland and Cuthbert scatter the bread crumbs at Hax's feet?! I feel like I almost grasp the symbolism to it, but can't feel certain about every explanation I come up with. :lol:

[Tik]

I really enjoyed the Revised edition of The Gunslinger and think its an improvement over the original. It also addressed the contradiction of Farson being refered to as both a town and a man. Another such contradiction occurs in the 3rd DT book (The Waste lands) in a scene where Roland and his Ka-tet are discussing his palavar with Walter. At one point, Roland mentions the Beast and Susannah muses that she's heard about Maerlyn but doesn't recognise this Beast. In future editions, would this ever be changed to bring it in line with the rest of the series? (Change references to The Beast to references of the Crimson King?)

I would be interested to know whether future Dark Tower mythos stories (short stories akin to Ur or stories akin to Black House) might still be written if inspiration strikes?

[Merlin1958]

I really enjoyed the Revised edition of The Gunslinger and think its an improvement over the original. It also addressed the contradiction of Farson being refered to as both a town and a man. Another such contradiction occurs in the 3rd DT book (The Waste lands) in a scene where Roland and his Ka-tet are discussing his palavar with Walter. At one point, Roland mentions the Beast and Susannah muses that she's heard about Maerlyn but doesn't recognise this Beast. In future editions, would this ever be changed to bring it in line with the rest of the series? (Change references to The Beast to references of the Crimson King?)

I would be interested to know whether future Dark Tower mythos stories (short stories akin to Ur or stories akin to Black House) might still be written if inspiration strikes?

Considering TWTTKH has just been released I would say there's a good chance he visits TDT world again in the future in some way, shape or form.

[BigSchu22]

I would ask King if he pays attention to or considers forums like these when writing any of his stories. I don't think this forum existed when DT7 was published, but it would be interesting to see if he has any idea of the vast amount of knowledge contained here. I know he said that he referred to the companion novel that was written about the series sometimes so that he could keep track of it all. Perhaps in the future he might or could use a forum such as this?

Orson Scott Card specifically asked members of one of his forums to help him when he was writing later books in the Enderverse becuase some of them took place at earlier times in the series, like TWTTKH and he couldnt be bothered to re-read all of his own novels. He also knew that his fans would have a lot better/fresher insight into the serires. This forum could be a great reference for King if he continues to write more DT books!

[pathoftheturtle]

... I know he said that he referred to the companion novel that was written about the series sometimes so that he could keep track of it all. ...
Are you talking about this book? --
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/4682/trttdtavatar.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/138/trttdtavatar.jpg/)
:lol: The forums before this, existing before DT7 was published, were @ www.thedarktower.net
But after all, comparatively, Orson Scott Card is a little corny sometimes.

[BigSchu22]

... I know he said that he referred to the companion novel that was written about the series sometimes so that he could keep track of it all. ...
Are you talking about this book? --
http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/4682/trttdtavatar.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/138/trttdtavatar.jpg/)
:lol: The forums before this, existing before DT7 was published, were @ www.thedarktower.net
But after all, comparatively, Orson Scott Card is a little corny sometimes.

Why, yes it is that book! :)

Yeah, I'm not saying OSC is on the same level as King, but that he did leverage forums to make his later novels in the series better. Good idea for King either way I think. :)

[Bev Vincent]

The companion book (Robin Furth's Concordance) was created specifically for him to refer to while he worked on the final three books. It wasn't originally intended for publication.

He couldn't have referred to my book since it was published at the same time as DT7 (although he had a copy of the manuscript before that -- but DT7 was already written in first draft by then).

[BigSchu22]

I have your book as well as the Concordance on my Amazon wishlist, your avatar is so small that regrettably, I confused the two. Those are of course great references for King, but the forums tend to be more dynamic and King could ask specific questions or thoughts as OSC did, that's all I'm saying -- not to put down your work as I intend to add it to my own collection.

[BigSchu22]

In fact, I'm buying your book now, Bev.

[Bev Vincent]

Hope you enjoy it! I'm always pleased to see how well it is still selling nearly eight years later.

[BigSchu22]

I'm sure it will be a great read, I've been looking forward to it for a long while. I don't know why I waited this long to pull the trigger. :)

[Brice]

I have your book as well as the Concordance on my Amazon wishlist, your avatar is so small that regrettably, I confused the two. Those are of course great references for King, but the forums tend to be more dynamic and King could ask specific questions or thoughts as OSC did, that's all I'm saying -- not to put down your work as I intend to add it to my own collection.

I'm not saying King wouldn't use our forums, his own, or some other for reference (I honestly don't know), but I'm pretty sure he doesn't want the direct interaction with fans that you suggested here.


I am rather certain I won't be getting any "what do you think" PMs from him either.

[pathoftheturtle]

Well, I don't blame him: unfortunately for the rest of us, some of his fans are seriously unmanageable.

[BigSchu22]

Well, I don't blame him: unfortunately for the rest of us, some of his fans are seriously unmanageable.

Yes, it is unfortunate that King does have some of the more difficult fans that he does and obviously some of his novels, especially in the late 80's, were a response to this. It's too bad because like I said, it worked well for other authors, and there is obviously a great resource here. :)

...and not necessarily a PM or anything that personal.

[ICry4Oy]

Are there any other incarnations of Roland?



...as with multiple Jakes and Flaggs and in the finale as with
Eddie/Jake/Oy...


Or is he a beam of the Tower maybe?

[Brice]

I think Roland is a singularity.

[pathoftheturtle]

I think Roland is a singularity.I don't.

Does sound like a pretty good question for the author.
(Not that SK necessarily grasps the scientific elements.)

[CyberGhostface]

1. Will you ever explain in a later book some of the unanswered questions from DT, like what happened to Dennis and Thomas or Rhea?

2. Why did you give Flagg the ending that he ultimately got? Was this planned from the beginning? In regards to Flagg's origin in the comics versus the novels, how do you reconcile the two?

[Tatts4Life]

I would ask him if this is true what I read on Wikipedia


King views The Dark Tower as a first draft, and plans to rewrite the entire series.[6] The revised edition of the first volume, The Gunslinger, was published in 2003. King is considering removing his fictionalised self when he rewrites the later volumes.

[CyberGhostface]

I would ask him if this is true what I read on Wikipedia


King views The Dark Tower as a first draft, and plans to rewrite the entire series.[6] The revised edition of the first volume, The Gunslinger, was published in 2003. King is considering removing his fictionalised self when he rewrites the later volumes.

It comes from the interview with Neil Gaiman:

http://journal.neilgaiman.com/2012/04/popular-writers-stephen-king-interview.html

[Desmond Toren]

I would ask if he would like to edit the series and then release them as a definitive collection. fixing errors and mybe expanding some points. things like why roland remembers a guy named Desmond when he thinks he reached the tower in book 2, also why only in the begining of book 4 does the "thankee-sai" greeting have tapping on the breastbone with the left hand for men, but then not used for men at all through out the rest of the series. and other little things like that.

[Random321321]

Regarding your question regarding Insomnia, I've always considered that book to be metaphorical rather than a literal Dark Tower book. There's a lot that the Crimson King does that doesn't make any sense in the context of what we later learn about him. According to DT7, it contains messages from King to himself--or to Roland--and is thus symbolic. That's my take, anyway.

Yeah, but, was it originally intended that way, or did it just become that way as the later car crash-influenced story did not mesh with his original vision of the DT saga?

[CyberGhostface]

Yeah, but, was it originally intended that way, or did it just become that way as the later car crash-influenced story did not mesh with his original vision of the DT saga?

Honestly? I think King was just writing as he went along and didn't know what his plan was. I'd be willing to bet when he wrote Insomnia that he intended for it to be canon--I don't think he would know "I'm going to end up saying that most of this doesn't matter in the long run."


I would ask if he would like to edit the series and then release them as a definitive collection. fixing errors and mybe expanding some points. things like why roland remembers a guy named Desmond when he thinks he reached the tower in book 2, also why only in the begining of book 4 does the "thankee-sai" greeting have tapping on the breastbone with the left hand for men, but then not used for men at all through out the rest of the series. and other little things like that.

King has talked about revising the entire series although who knows if it will happen.

[Empath of the White]

In what way was Insomnia not important? In TDT, the King's fear of Patrick was pretty well justified....

I would ask King if he decided that the Territories were set in Mid-World as of Black House.

[pooloftears]

I'd say why the hell did you end it like that, did you just run out of ideas, and whether he'd change it if he could.


http://www.worstpreviews.com/headline.php?id=24766

[pooloftears]

I'd say why the hell did you end it like that, did you just run out of ideas, and whether he'd change it if he could.

[BigSchu22]

This is trivial, but I would ask him why Patricia was blue and Blaine was pink? Was he trying to say something about duality?

[Brice]

I wouldn't ask him a thing. :)

[CyberGhostface]

In what way was Insomnia not important?

I didn't say that it wasn't important, I said that much of the story no longer matters after the final Dark Tower novel.

As Bev says, much of the story doesn't make sense anymore. King goes out of his way to disregard much of what Insomnia presented as fact; that the Crimson King is locked at the top of the Tower, that Patrick Danville must die saving two people important to the Tower, etc. These are all major details of the book.

And what I said was, I don't think King intended that when he initially wrote Insomnia, that he would end up saying "This story is not what you think it was, it's not meant to be taken literally."

[Tik]

I didn't say that it wasn't important, I said that much of the story no longer matters after the final Dark Tower novel.

As Bev says, much of the story doesn't make sense anymore. King goes out of his way to disregard much of what Insomnia presented as fact; that the Crimson King is locked at the top of the Tower, that Patrick Danville must die saving two people important to the Tower, etc. These are all major details of the book.

And what I said was, I don't think King intended that when he initially wrote Insomnia, that he would end up saying "This story is not what you think it was, it's not meant to be taken literally."
I disagree here, the story matters very much to the Dark Tower series. I mean, what is actually disregarded from Insomnia?

The Crimson King being locked at the top of the Tower? Well, Insomnia doesn't actually say this (its implied through a childs picture) but even so, all you need to do is read Black House to know why it's not contradicted (and throw in DT 4.5 and DT 5 for confirmation on Black House's info).

Or Patrick dies saving two people important to the Tower? We know how fickle prophecy is via Mordred's prophecy in book 7 (which if anything is even more fickle than the one in Insomnia). After all, the one in Insomnia actually says only one of the two people is important and it states no time limit - Patrick can save the other guy and die well after DT 7. It states he dies after these people are saved, not whilst they are being saved.

The main point of the novel, that Patrick must live for the Tower to stand, is very much an important aspect to the Dark Tower mythos.

[Brice]

I concur wholly.

[CyberGhostface]

If that was the case, then King didn't need to devote entire pages in the last novel to how we shouldn't take Insomnia at face value and that its meaning is more metaphorical than literal events that are important to the story or that King's message was "muddled" when he wrote it and that he often lapses into "gibberish" when writing about the Dark Tower.

He could have just established it as actual events like Callahan's or Brautigan's backstories and mention that the prophecy could be changed or etcetera. I.E. Brautigan recapped what happened in Hearts and continued from that, it wasn't "You shouldn't take this story on face-value, it could just as easily be gibberish."

It's still important but clearly it's not intended to be taken as-is anymore.

[Empath of the White]

Your idea about the Wizard's Rainbow being used to defeat Flagg is neat, Cyber.

I'd like to ask King if he ever realized that, in creating Mordred and Dandelo, he provided two contenders for the role of the "Beast" that was erased from his revision of The Gunslinger. One was literally a guard in the way, the other was a key to entering the Tower.

I'd also ask if his idea about the children and the Forge in Black House was something he'd been tossing around as an inclusion in the later books before Straub expressed interest in tying the Jack Sawyer novels to the Tower Cycle.

[Tik]

If that was the case, then King didn't need to devote entire pages in the last novel to how we shouldn't take Insomnia at face value and that its meaning is more metaphorical than literal events that are important to the story or that King's message was "muddled" when he wrote it and that he often lapses into "gibberish" when writing about the Dark Tower.

He could have just established it as actual events like Callahan's or Brautigan's backstories and mention that the prophecy could be changed or etcetera. I.E. Brautigan recapped what happened in Hearts and continued from that, it wasn't "You shouldn't take this story on face-value, it could just as easily be gibberish."
It's clear from the passage that the only two things that were cast in doubt about Insomnia were the Red King's position on the Tower and the prophecy. And the Tet corp is saying this before they get their hands on key info from Black House, Wolves of the Calla, and Wind in the Keyhole, all of which reinforce Insomnia's implication about the Red King.

Remember, this scene wasn't addressed to one book alone, it was addressed to ALL of Kings books, before focusing on Insomnia. So any of your concerns about the literal events of Insomnia are actually repeated for other books such as Salem's Lot and Hearts in Atlantis. And, as you point out, we know from the Dark Tower series that these books occurred as we read them. So what is actually different about Insomnia? Nothing.

Lets see what else is discounted in Insomnia:

Is it the short-time/long-time/all-time cosmic system? No, because Mia makes reference to becoming a short-timer in Song of Susannah. Is it the auras and deathbags caused by the bald doctors? No, because Stephen King has a deathbag around him in DT6 and 7. Is it Patrick himself? No, for obvious reasons. Is it the other characters? I'd say no, because they are referenced in the DT series itself (eg "Patrick, Son of Sonia"). Is it Patrick's importance to the quest? No, for obvious reasons. Etc.

Later in the same book Rando Thoughtful states that all the worlds Stephen King writes about and touches with his mind are real. He makes no exception for Insomnia.

The Tet scene was telling us that any info in these books is not necessarily going to be helpful to Roland's quest because it is masked or means nothing. For example, in Insomnia we get all this info about the different levels of reality....but it means nothing to Roland, it has no bearing on his quest. The prophecy from Insomnia means nothing because it is masked, as Mordred's prophecy was in DT7. The Dark Tower stuff in Rose Madder is masked (we dont know who or what Rose Madder is, only she/it is in Mid-World) and ultimately means nothing to Roland's quest.

But this doesn't mean these events didn't happen. It just means that what we have learned is ultimately useless for Roland (being the practical man that he is).

In fact, this might be a very relevant question for Stephen King :) .

Regarding the scene in DT7 with the Tet Corporation, does this mean the events of Insomnia take place or not? Equally, as the scene is about all works of Stephen King, do any other non-Dark Tower novels take place or not?

[CyberGhostface]

Again, my impression from DT7 is not that the events didn't happen, just that they didn't occur in the reality of DT as they did in the book. I.E. the Crimson King still tried to kill Patrick Danville, Ralph Roberts dies, etc but various details were muddled when King "transcribed" them. I'm pretty sure that King would say the same thing.

But my initial point was that Random321321 asked if King intended it to be that way, and my answer was, no I don't think he did. I don't think when King wrote Insomnia he knew that A.) the Crimson King wouldn't be stuck on the top of the Tower and B.) that Patrick wouldn't die after saving two people.

[Random321321]

Of course not. I phrased my question poorly. What I really want to know is: what was the vague outline that King had in mind in which the events of Insomnia would be fully correct?

Once he called Insomnia a "mind-trap", I knew that he had just given himself permission to alter the story however he wanted to, and any time I spent thinking about the details in Insomnia was essentially wasted. I still think that car crash might have been the worst thing to happen to the Dark Tower.

[pathoftheturtle]

OMG :rolleyes:

Remember what he wrote into the books about people begging and cajoling "How's it going to end?! How's it going to end?!" And yet even now we're saying "Well, how would it have ended, if things had been different? Huh, Mr. King?! Huh?!"
:doh:

[Brice]

I fhe reads this he will be mortified. :lol:

[Tik]

Again, my impression from DT7 is not that the events didn't happen, just that they didn't occur in the reality of DT as they did in the book. I.E. the Crimson King still tried to kill Patrick Danville, Ralph Roberts dies, etc but various details were muddled when King "transcribed" them. I'm pretty sure that King would say the same thing.

But my initial point was that Random321321 asked if King intended it to be that way, and my answer was, no I don't think he did. I don't think when King wrote Insomnia he knew that A.) the Crimson King wouldn't be stuck on the top of the Tower and B.) that Patrick wouldn't die after saving two people.
Ah, I should apologise. I thought you were meaning that all the events were discounted from canon. Got the wrong end of the stick there and cry your pardon.

Yeah, I think it was written in to get around any discrepancies that readers may not be able reconcile. Thats not to say they cant be though but such theories are for different threads :) .

[beam*seeker]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

[Random321321]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

Yet another cop out along the lines of "the world has moved on" so such and such wasn't a continuity error.

[mattgreenbean]

I'd ask what was before the tower?

[pathoftheturtle]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

Yet another cop out along the lines of "the world has moved on" so such and such wasn't a continuity error.There is a Tower which stands at the nexus of time. The serpent swallows it's own tail. I mean, seriously: how can you measure a work of fiction with conventions of pop culture traditions such as crossover continuity when it happens to be a work created for the clear purpose of measuring those very conventions?

[Random321321]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

Yet another cop out along the lines of "the world has moved on" so such and such wasn't a continuity error.There is a Tower which stands at the nexus of time. The serpent swallows it's own tail. I mean, seriously: how can you measure a work of fiction with conventions of pop culture traditions such as crossover continuity when it happens to be a work created for the clear purpose of measuring those very conventions?
Yes, that's what King wants you to accept. It's a clever move, but I ultimately feel it's just laziness in disguise. It's not even original, Cervantes pulls the same move in Don Quixote part 2 to explain a continuity error in part 1: oh these are translations of accounts of non-reliable witnesses, etc... And of course, the whole story is about fiction and it's affect on reality.

[CyberGhostface]

Some other questions:

1. Do you plan on exploring Flagg's character in greater depth in any future works? (like his backstory as Walter Padick)

2. What were Marten's feelings for Gabrielle? Did they go beyond using her and/or lust?

[Rolandofmosheim]

The one that has bugged me since reading SOS, is Why does Roland Tap his throat three times before crossing open water?

[Tatts4Life]

Why did Flagg have such a pussy death?

[beam*seeker]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

Yet another cop out along the lines of "the world has moved on" so such and such wasn't a continuity error.There is a Tower which stands at the nexus of time. The serpent swallows it's own tail. I mean, seriously: how can you measure a work of fiction with conventions of pop culture traditions such as crossover continuity when it happens to be a work created for the clear purpose of measuring those very conventions?
Yes, that's what King wants you to accept. It's a clever move, but I ultimately feel it's just laziness in disguise. It's not even original, Cervantes pulls the same move in Don Quixote part 2 to explain a continuity error in part 1: oh these are translations of accounts of non-reliable witnesses, etc... And of course, the whole story is about fiction and it's affect on reality.

I am truly split between deciding if it is laziness, a plot device, or some cosmic comment on the nature of reality in general...

[BigSchu22]

How can anything be canon when there are infinite worlds?

Yet another cop out along the lines of "the world has moved on" so such and such wasn't a continuity error.There is a Tower which stands at the nexus of time. The serpent swallows it's own tail. I mean, seriously: how can you measure a work of fiction with conventions of pop culture traditions such as crossover continuity when it happens to be a work created for the clear purpose of measuring those very conventions?
Yes, that's what King wants you to accept. It's a clever move, but I ultimately feel it's just laziness in disguise. It's not even original, Cervantes pulls the same move in Don Quixote part 2 to explain a continuity error in part 1: oh these are translations of accounts of non-reliable witnesses, etc... And of course, the whole story is about fiction and it's affect on reality.

I am truly split between deciding if it is laziness, a plot device, or some cosmic comment on the nature of reality in general...

The cynical side of me wants to say it was laziness and part of his rush to finish the last books and be done with the series as a whole, but I think that even with Bev and Robin's books, it would be hard for him to maintain every single strand of continuity, especially with constant readers like us paying attention.

I think he realized this difficulty early on (after the several year gaps between some of the books) and wrote this concept in as a way to address all the continuity problems. He may continue to address some of these issues with re-releases, like he did with the Gunslinger, but I'd almost prefer he didn't so we don't go down the George Lucas road. :)