Christopher Paolini
From The Inheritance Encyclopedia
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| About the Author | |
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| Name: | Christopher Paolini |
| Birthday: | 11/17/1983 |
| Age: | 25 |
| Location: | Paradise Valley, Montana |
| Job: | Writer |
Christopher Paolini (November 17, 1983) is the well-known author of the popular Inheritance Cycle. Only 25 years old, he has been on numerous book tours and interviews for his creation of the land of Alagaesia, and now has many fansites devoted to him. While his books have recieved criticism, his books have become New York Times Bestsellers.
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Overview
Christopher Paolini was born on November 17, 1983 in Southern California. Aside from a couple of years in Anchorage, Alaska, he spent his entire life in Paradise Valley, Montana, where he still resides. He lives with his parents and younger sister, Angela, in a rustic two-story farmhouse on the banks of the Yellowstone River. They have two pets, Otis, a black and white cat, and Annie, a frisky cocker/Australian shepherd mix.
Tall, jagged Beartooth Moutains rise on one side of the Paradise Valley. Snowcapped most of the year, they inspired the fantastic scenery in Eragon. A few years ago, Paolini hiked to the top of one peak and could see the Grand Teton mountain range, 100 miles to the south.
Paolini was home schooled by his parents and was able to obtain a high school diploma at age 15. He often wrote short stories and poems in attempt to put his thoughts into words. He made frequent trips to the library and read widely. Some of his favorite books were Bruce Colville's Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, Frank Herbert's Dune, Raymond E. Feist's Magician, and Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials, as well as books by Anne McCaffrey, Jane Yolen, Brian Jacques, E. R. Eddison, David Eddings, and Ursula Le Guin.
Paolini grew up listening to a variety of music, but classical music fired his imagination and helped him write. He often listened to Mahler, Beethoven, and Wagner while writing Eragon. The final battle of Eragon was written while listening to Carmina Burana, by Carl Orff.
As released in an Alagaesia Newsletter, Paolini explains how his dog, Annie, influenced much of Saphira's characteristics. His family took Annie in their home in 1994, and she was treated like one of the family instead of just an ordinary pet for her next 14 years. Sadly, she suffered of a stroke on Thursday, April 10th, 2008, so the least the family could do would be to relive Annie of the pain. In his April 11th, newsletter, Paolini wishes he had gotten more scars from her to remember her by. To all of us, we'll remember Annie by continuing to read about Saphira and her journeys with Eragon in the Inheritance Cycle.
Eragon
Story Basis
The story of Eragon began as the daydreams of a teen. Paolini wanted to try his hand at telling a story that included all the things he enjoyed in other fantasy novels. The project began as a hobby; he never intended to be published. He took a month to plot out the entire series, then sat on the sofa and began writing in a notebook. When he reached sixty pages, he gained enough confidence to transfer his work to his Macintosh computer, where most of Eragon was written, although he sometimes found that the story flowed better when he wrote by hand. Most of the central characters are inspired by characters from the works that inspired the story, except Angela the herbalist, who is loosely based on his sister.
The Task
It took him a year to write the first draft of Eragon. When Paolini first read the manuscript he was appalled to discover how poorly it was written. The story was there, however, so he took a second year to revise the book and then gave it to his parents to read. They were astonished by the quality and unique voice of his work, and decided to help him release the book through the family's publishing company. A third year was spent with another round of edits, designing a cover, typesetting the manuscript, and creating marketing materials. During this time Paolini drew the map for Eragon, as well as the dragon eye that appears inside the hardcover edition. Finally, the manuscript was sent to press, and the first books arrived.
Publishing
The Paolini family spent the next year promoting the book themselves. Beginning with the presentations at the local library and high school, they then traveled across the U.S. In all, Paolini gave over 135 presentations at libraries, bookstores, and schools in 2002 and early 2003. He did most of the presentations dressed in a medieval costume of red shirt, billowy black pants, lace-up boots, and a jaunty black cap.
In Summer 2002, Carl Hiassen, the author of Hoot, brought Eragon to the attention of his publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, who subsequently acquired the rights to publish Eragon and the rest of the Inheritance Cycle.
Eldest
Release
In Summer of 2005, Eldest, the second book of the Inheritance Cycle, was released. Paolini took a tour throughout Europe with Random House and his sister after the release, going to many book signings and events throughout Europe. He says that he thoroughly enjoyed the trip.
Limited Edition
The Eldest Limited Edition came out in October of 2006. This limited edition includes a fold-out copy of Glaedr that John Jude Palencar drew for the second volume of the Japanese edition of Eldest. It also includes Paolini's drawing of Brom's ring and Thorn's eye, as well as a complete history of Alagaesia and a list of characters. The cover is truly eye-catching, with a golden frame around the usual drawing of Thorn. Gold also outlines the spine of the book and the back.
Brisingr
Paolini is currently continuing his work on Brisingr. Inheritance fans learned that Paolini plans to publish the novel on September 20, 2008.
Book Four
Also on October 30, Paolini revealed that his plans to split what was thought to be the final book into two - changing the Inheritance Trilogy into the Inheritance Cycle. Says Paolini, When I finally delved into Book Three, it soon became obvious that the remainder of the story was far too big to fit in one volume. Having spent so long thinking about the series as a trilogy, it was difficult for me to realize that, in order to be true to my characters and to address all of the plot points and unanswered questions Eragon and Eldest raised, I needed to split the end of the series into two books.” Michelle Frey, Paolini editor for the past two and remaining two books notes that the overall storyline has not changed with the split.
End of Inheritance
Once the cycle is finished, Paolini plans to take a long vacation, when he will ponder which of his many story ideas he will write next.
Criticism
Though Eragon and Eldest have become New York Times bestsellers, Paolini's works are not without critics. The magazine Entertainment Weekly, in fact, gave Eldest a D . [1] Commonsensemedia noted that it was "engrossing," but the plot was "straight out of Star Wars by way of The Lord of the Rings."[2]
