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Author Patrick Rothfuss Turns Conflict Between Work And Fallout 4 Into Charity Drive
Patrick Rothfuss loves Fallout. There’s just one problem. As much as he wants to play the game, he’s got fans hounding him for the third book in his Kingkiller Chronicle series.
This is no mean conflict, as readers are getting antsy after four years since the last book. But to truly understand how much of a dilemma this presents for Rothfuss, you must first understand his desire to explore the Commonwealth.
“Eventually I found Fallout and Fallout 2. They became the yardstick I use as an example of how good a game can be,” Rothfuss writes. He explains that he’s missed a number of recent big releases because of work, family, and his commitment to WorldBuilders. The latter is a charity effort that mobilizes authors, publishers, and readers to donate to Heifer International, an organization dedicated to ending hunger through sustainable agriculture and commerce in communities.
“This is to give you some context so you can realize how big a deal it was when I heard Fallout 4 was being released,” Rothfuss writes on his blog. “I marked it on my calendar. I watched the trailers. I had someone build me a new computer so I could play it, because my current compy is about 8 years old… Then I realized Fallout was coming out on November 10th. The same time Worldbuilder’s Big Yearly Fundraiser starts.”
This all leads to Rothfuss identifying the less than friendly pleas he receives from some aggressive fans waiting for book three. Ultimately, the author has decided to leverage the conflict between using his free time to play Fallout 4 and writing more than he typically would in a day to support charity.
Anyone who donates to WorldBuilders will get to vote on how Rothfuss spends his personal time that day. The donations will be tallied each day, and he’ll commit three hours of his personal time to the winning option. If Fallout 4 wins out, you’ll be able to watch him stream it.
Note that this doesn’t mean Rothfuss won’t be writing anyway. The voting is to determine what he does with three hours of his personal time, and if fans want, that means an additional 180 minutes working on the book. Right now, that’s not what fans seem to want.
This will go on for two weeks starting today. You can read the full details on Rothfuss’ blog and learn more about WorldBuilders on the official website.
Snapshot taken at 9:30 a.m. Eastern, November 12.
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