With a bunch of successful novels under his belt and a Kingkiller Chronicles TV show in the works with none other than Lin-Manuel Miranda on the team, one might think every day for Patrick Rothfuss should be like living on 7th Heaven. However, as the author reveals in a candid roundtable on Twitch, he still has his struggles with mental health like so many others. Joined by a semi-anonymous friend, Thera, and Travis McElroy of the Adventure Zone and My Brother, My Brother and Me podcasts, Rothfuss speaks at length about his experiences with therapy and how it’s helped him understand himself and his emotions better.
Their lengthy chat (almost a solid two hours) has been archived below. There’s little that’s specifically geeky in it, aside from Rothfuss’ impressive bookshelf stocked with hardcovers and games, but the trio do discuss these issues in a way that’s very relatable to those of the geeky persuasion. Discussion points include combat theater, stand-up comedy, and creativity’s relationship with mental health. But even with heavy topics like depression and anxiety, the group keeps the discussion up-beat, being sure to laugh heartily, and often. One of their hopes is to de-stigmatize disorders, and make them less scary for everybody, and they’ve definitely made this an open and inviting chat. Watch on.
If this resonated with you at all, we encourage you to look into Worldbuilders. Rothfuss founded the organization to do good by allying readers, authors, and publishers. The site gets cool books, merch, and other swag, then offers it as raffle rewards for those who donate to Heifer International, an organization dedicated to ending poverty and hunger.
Did you appreciate seeing this side of Rothfuss? Share your thoughts in the talkback.
Featured Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons