#herdazians

But I don't think it is chance. I think the fact that a large majority of the Herdazians chose to live in the war camp of one alethi high prince that is inn common law marriage to a Herdazians dark eyes is a strategic choice.

Sabarial's camp is not a great place if you want to die to avenge an Alethi king, but it's a great place to make money as a merchant or farmer but don't have a store or land, and it's a great place if you want to sell Sabariel's mistress all the comfort of home.

Those rich merchants selling luxuries, will are more likely to employ other Herdazians for any job from trusted clerk to chamber pot scrubber. Those employees want simple food from home, childcare that speaks thier native language, and probably thier own Ardents. As more and more Herdazians come, they settle with kin. And the small community would have grown fast over the corse of five years.

I'm sure there was still discrimination and harassment for Herdazians in sabarial's camp from Alethi. But there were probably also a lot more people in Sabarial's camp willing to pay a Herdazian a fair days wage, or sell or buy Herdazians food and ingredients, or even learn to speek a bit of of the Herdazian language.

However, I get the sense that you are aware of the implications, which makes me really curious to see how it all unfolds.

Brandon Sanderson: I'm quite aware, and it's intentional. However, some of the most controversial (and in some cases straight up racist) pieces of storytelling done in the modern era were done by well-meaning, but at the same time oblivious, white people trying to tackle the topic. (see Save the Pearls or the current kerfuffle about "The Continent.")

So writing a series where racism and class-ism are major themes--and an entire minority population has not only been enslaved, but had their cultures stripped away and their souls partially stunted, preventing them from thinking--is a dangerous thing. It's entire possible that I'll stumble on this, and make a big offensive, embarrassing mess.

So let's just say it's something I'm watching very carefully. The Herdazians, to a lesser extent, are ones that I'm walking a line on. Where do some Hispanic cultural markers--like big families and feeding visitors--stray from being a fun and accurate representation into, instead, being offensive stereotypes? I have to be careful. They're in the books in the first place because I noticed that I couldn't think of many Hispanic-inspired fantasy cultures that weren't Aztec exaggerations. But I wouldn't want to instead turn this into something that is essentially fantasy blackface or caricature.