Brandon Sanderson is renowned not only for his prolific output in fantasy and science fiction but also for his refreshing candor regarding his creative process—including which projects make the cut and which ones are relegated to the vault. Among his long-gestating concepts is a contemporary fantasy tale about a necromancer, originally titled Death by Pizza!, which first surfaced in his public musings back in 2010.
Following a series of dramatic narrative pivots—most notably transforming the protagonist from a pizza courier into a heavy metal musician—Sanderson eventually found the right creative partner to bring the vision to life. Songs of the Dead, co-authored by Sanderson and Peter Orullian, arrives on June 16. Orullian recently sat down with Polygon to discuss the mechanics of their partnership.
Image: Saga Press“Brandon typically limits his collaborations to projects where the other person brings a unique expertise he doesn’t possess himself,” explains Orullian. “Having toured as a musician, I had the firsthand experience with rock and metal culture that he had been aiming to capture.”
The two writers connected at the Life, The Universe, & Everything symposium in Utah, sparking a friendship that led to Sanderson supporting Orullian’s early work. During their brainstorming, they refined Sanderson’s “thanaturgy”—a system of necromantic magic—and bonded over a shared frustration regarding the reductive tropes often used to characterize heavy metal fans.
“There is a profound sense of kinship within the speculative fiction community, largely because readers have often felt marginalized or labeled as outsiders,” says Orullian. “At its core, this book explores characters unified by their music and subculture. It serves as a stand-in for any ‘found family,’ whether you’re a fan of fantasy or country music.”
Set in London—the historic cradle of heavy metal—Songs of the Dead centers on Jack Solomon, a vocalist who stumbles upon a chilling truth: his favorite venue serves as a threshold to “the Strata.” In this subterranean realm, “thanatists” and corporeal spirits known as semblances wander through fragmented echoes of the city’s past.
Image: Tor“The Strata aren’t perfect historical replicas; they are constructs shaped by memory, and memory is inherently fallible,” notes Orullian. “That abstraction gave us a degree of creative freedom that traditional historical fiction wouldn’t allow.”
Because these realms are fueled by collective memory, they face the risk of eroding as people fade from public consciousness. Jack soon discovers a malevolent thanatist plotting to preserve a stagnant past by eliminating modern musicians and replacing them with undead puppets. To save his circle, Jack must determine if an ancient, long-forgotten melody is a tool for liberation or a catalyst for destruction.
“Music possesses a unique, unifying language,” says Orullian. “While our antagonist attempts to weaponize that power to reshape culture, I prefer the idea that music allows individuals to connect and empathize, bridging the gaps created by differing ideologies.”
Image: TorThough the concept began as a dark comedy, Songs of the Dead has evolved into a deeply sincere and often grim exploration of trauma. Jack’s history of loss and abandonment informs his struggles, with music acting as a vital outlet for his internal pressures.
“Jack finds sanctuary in his friends and his craft,” Orullian observes. “Music becomes a healthy coping mechanism for the anxieties and pain he carries—a path many people walk in real life.”
Songs of the Dead serves as the foundation for The Strata Wars trilogy. Should the series resonate with readers, Orullian hopes to explore other historically rich urban landscapes in future installments. Sanderson, meanwhile, has concluded his contributions to the series, shifting his focus back to his expansive Cosmere mythos and various high-profile adaptations, including the upcoming Mistborn film and the Skyward television project.
“Brandon is thrilled with how the book turned out and is confident in its trajectory,” Orullian adds. “He trusts that I understand the soul of this world just as deeply as he understands his own.”
Source: Polygon
