Line #23 Trivia/MalazanBookOfTheFallen


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2	* AscendedFanfic: The setting began as a homebrewed ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' campaign, then switched over to ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}}'' when the system limitations became too strict. According to WordOfGod, about a fifth of ''Fallen'' was gamed beforehand.
3	* CreatorsFavoriteEpisode: Erikson names ''Literature/DeadhouseGates'', ''Literature/MidnightTides'', and ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' as his favorites in the series.
4	* DearNegativeReader: In the time leading up to the publication of ''Literature/TheCrippledGod'' there were voices heard questioning whether Creator/StevenErikson can pull off a satisfactory ending to his epic series and answer all the questions. When the last volume finally did come out, it contained a poem called ''The Malazan Book Of The Fallen'', supposedly written in-universe by [[AuthorAvatar the poet Fisher kel Tath]] which points out how some people's animosity is utterly misplaced, and that it would've been nice if his readers trusted him to deliver the best story he could the same way he trusted them to understand what there was to understand.
5	--> [...] Take what you're given\
6	and turn away the screwed face.\
7	I do not deserve it,\
8	no matter how narrow the strand\
9	of your private shore.\
10	If you will do your best\
11	I'll meet your eye. [...]
12	* {{Defictionalization}}: A number of the poems and songs appearing as chapter prefaces in the books have been set to music by Kit Soden and his band October Gold in the albums ''[[https://kitsmusic.bandcamp.com/album/like-a-dancer-unstrung Like a Dancer Unstrung]]'' and ''[[https://octobergold.bandcamp.com/album/bridge-of-the-sun Bridge of the Sun]]'', with the latter including "Gallan's Hope", an instrumental piece specifically composed for the album and referring to the in-universe important figure of the poet Gallan.
13	* DoingItForTheArt: While the series is profitable to the publisher nowadays, it took quite a while to get there. It took even longer for Creator/StevenErikson to even find a publisher who was willing to take the entire series as planned, because it was such a massive undertaking. Erikson is citing his frustration with the publishing system's aversion to risk taking in the preface of ''Literature/GardensOfTheMoon''.
14	--> Ambition is not a dirty word. Piss on compromise. Go for the throat. Write with balls, write with eggs. Sure, it's a harder journey but take it from me, it's well worth it.
15	* FandomNod: It is not exactly a secret that the series has some minor timeline inconsistencies, especially in the earlier volumes when the dates given don't always match up. Less positive but vocal opinions go as far as claiming that it makes no sense at all at times. This has actually spawned a fandom meme, namely "The timeline does not matter." -- to the point where this is one of the first things new readers of the series are confronted with. Along comes the ninth volume, ''Literature/DustOfDreams'', and captains Kindly and Skanarow discuss captain Ruthan Gudd's backstory. Skanarow's argument for not believing everything he tells them is that "his timeline makes sense".
16	* InspirationForTheWork: Erikson cites Frank Herbert's ''Literature/{{Dune}}'', Glen Cook's ''Literature/TheBlackCompany'', and ''Literature/TheIliad'' as his main influences.
17	* LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition: The Subterranean Press editions who come in numbered copies, with very nice paper and several specifically commissioned illustrations per book.
18	* LyingCreator:
19	** No, of course there aren't any Hounds of Light. What would make you think that? The fact that there are Hounds of Darkness ''and'' Hounds of Shadow? Nonsense. Cue ''Literature/TollTheHounds'' and a whole bunch of them frolicking about the city in the finale.
20	** There was also his claim that [[spoiler:Whiskeyjack]] was done with and would not feature in the story anymore. Uhuh, [[spoiler:''Whiskeyjack'']] doesn't. [[spoiler:[[MeaningfulRename Iskar Jarak]], on the other hand]], features quite prominently in the series' resolution.
21	* RealitySubtext: Erikson's father passed away shortly before he began writing ''Literature/TollTheHounds''. The book deals with themes of depression and death to a much larger degree than the others and Erikson even dedicated it to his father's memory.
22	%%* TeasingCreator:
23	* ThrowItIn: Parts of the books were gamed in homebrewed TabletopGame/{{Gurps}} campaigns. Most famous among them is the sequence at the start of ''Literature/HouseOfChains'', where a character that was supposed to be an important NPC -- and thus an important character later in the book series -- gets offed unceremoniously by a frustrated player, which Creator/StevenErikson equally unceremoniously transferred into the written story.
24	* WordOfGod: Despite readers finding similarities, Erikson denies basing Anomander Rake on [[Literature/TheElricSaga Elric of Melniboné]], having never read the books.
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Context Trivia / MalazanBookOfTheFallen