Timewaster's Guide Archive
Local Authors => Brandon Sanderson => Topic started by: shadow9d9 on July 03, 2009, 06:45:01 AM
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I just discovered Mistborn and am mostly through the first book. Then I found out that he is going to be writing 3 WOT books. I have no interest in the series because it completely clashes with the style of books I like(long winded, overly descriptive).
Does anyone know if these 3 books will be readable and understandable for someone unfamiliar with the series?
If not, it is disappointing to me, but in a few years I guess he will get back to writing his own stuff again.
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Actually he's writing his own stuff at the same time. Dude is crazy multitasking.
I know he says he's changing up his writing style in some way or another to more closely match the existing style of the book, but I don't know what that really means, exactly... I guess we'll have to wait and see.
I generally trust he'll write something entertaining. He's not failed me so far.
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After reading the WoT series since 2 days after the release of Eye of the World (the first book in the series) back in 1990 (WOW, has it really been 19 years???) I can almost assure you that you will be completely lost if you just pick up AMoL without reading the previous books.
Then again...Brandon is a great author. Maybe he is working it in where you won't need it...I just don't see how he could possibly do it. Maybe that's why I'm not him, heh.
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Actually he's writing his own stuff at the same time. Dude is crazy multitasking.
I know he says he's changing up his writing style in some way or another to more closely match the existing style of the book, but I don't know what that really means, exactly... I guess we'll have to wait and see.
I generally trust he'll write something entertaining. He's not failed me so far.
Isn't he revising Way of Kings while writing Shifting Winds?
Having written some of my own fiction, I can assure you that when you hit the block on writing, revising is very easy to slip into, and taking advantage of having two stories at different stages is really good for your work. I had to develop a habit of scrolling right down to the bottom of my document when I wanted to write something new when I was doing novellas, because otherwise I'd start revising anything I hadn't posted online. :)
Still, I agree that Brandon has been working like a machine. Frankly I'd be impressed just at him writing and revising one WoT-sized novel in a single year, let alone adding revisions of WOK to that.
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Brandon may slip in a few plot catchup reminders where appropriate, but I can almost definitely assure you that you're not going to figure out the plot of the last 11 novels by picking up this one, and the significance of certain plot events in book 12 will be completely lost (beyond the fact that they're significant).
It would be an interesting experiment though. I'd like to see someone try it and report back their experience. I'm afraid, though, that it would be a rather academic exercise.
As for the style, I know that Brandon went more descriptive in his revisions. He's not trying to write like a clone of Robert Jordan, but you have to admit that his description in the past has been rather sparse at times. For example, we don't know whether Nightblood is completely plain or has any kind of designs, what kind of guard the hilt has, etc. If Warbreaker were a WoT book, those details are more likely to have been added.
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Didn't he have one of this publisher friends read the book and say they were completly lost because they hadn't read the previous 11 books?
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You are sure to be lost... I've read all 11 books a few times before and still I'm rereading them so that when book 12 is released, I'll be caught up with all the major and minor plot details.
I think it would be a true exercise in futility to read these books without having read the prior 11. You might... MIGHT, be able to get away with reading chapter synapsis on the likes of dragonmount.com, but you still might get lost
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Shard: Something like that, with Joshua, Brandon's agent.
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As for the style, I know that Brandon went more descriptive in his revisions. He's not trying to write like a clone of Robert Jordan, but you have to admit that his description in the past has been rather sparse at times. For example, we don't know whether Nightblood is completely plain or has any kind of designs, what kind of guard the hilt has, etc. If Warbreaker were a WoT book, those details are more likely to have been added.
Hahahaaa... "sparse". ::)
I can stand for him to be more descriptive. It makes things easier. At the same time, I understand why he leaves the details skimmed to the bare essentials... it's smart writing. It keeps his prose lean, and it encourages the reader to engage their imagination as needed in order to fill in where Brandon leaves things open. In this way, every reader feels a more personal association with the stories he writes, because they've engaged more of themselves in reading it.
He never leaves out important details. If he wants you to know how something appears, he describes it. But if it's not vitally important to the story or the understanding of a character, then it's all up to you and your imagination. Interpret as you wish, and know that best of all, your interpretation (as long as it doesn't contradict the written text) is as valid as anyone else's.
Very smooth. ;)
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I just discovered Mistborn and am mostly through the first book. Then I found out that he is going to be writing 3 WOT books. I have no interest in the series because it completely clashes with the style of books I like(long winded, overly descriptive).
Does anyone know if these 3 books will be readable and understandable for someone unfamiliar with the series?
If not, it is disappointing to me, but in a few years I guess he will get back to writing his own stuff again.
I don't know how you could enjoy the WOT's final three books without reading all of them. I remember when I started the first book Eye of the World, and I spent half my time reading the glossary and the other half reading the novel. In the first book they talk about Saidar, Saidin, ta' veren, Aes Sedai, Aiel, the Dragon, false Dragons, the Dragon Reborn, all those terms and more, and then you have to learn all the characters.
If you start on book 12, then basically, you'll be thrown in the middle of a huge battle w/ tons of different characters carrying on their own ongoing storyline, using terminology that may not be explained anymore.......I suppose if you're a fan of Steven Erickson this would be a dream come true (Just a lighthearted dig at an author I tried to get into, but could not get into)....
I would suggest finding a used book store, and picking up a copy of Eye of the World, and give it a try. Most people who complain about this series have been following it from the very beginning. It does bog down a little in the middle books, but the storyline as a whole moves pretty smoothly. I don't like gratuitous detail either, but this is still my favorite series. Give it a try if you haven't already.
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I definitely agree. If you pick up book 12 without reading the previous 11 you're going to have no idea what is going on. You'll have no idea who any of the characters are or why they are doing the things that they are doing, or even the significance of what they are doing. you'll have no idea about what their personalities are like or their motivations for doing what they do, or have no idea what their quirks are or where they came from. You'll hve no idea what's going on, why certain events are significant, why certain people are doing certain things. You'd probably read about two pages and say WTF then set it down and never touch it again.
like publius75 I too had to keep flipping to the glossary while reading the first book or three to figure out what all the terminology meant, and how to even pronounce some of the character's names correctly. Robert Jordan explains it, and at the same time doesn't quite explain it sometimes, and he's made up so many words and names and terms and things it's hard to keep them all straight at first.
I understand your dislike for long winded overly descriptive writing, and it WoT does tend to drag in certain places, or around certain characters you wish would meet with a horrible accident so you can get back to the part of the story that's more entertaining, *cough*Elayne*cough* but if you don't read the foundation for the climax of the series it'll be meaningless to you. It's not like it's going to be a completely different story independant of the first 11 books, Brandon is doing his best to make it so that you can't tell a difference between the writing style in his parts of the ending from Robert Jordan's. He's trying to stay true to Robert Jordan's vision and style, rather than hijacking the series with his own.
One thing I've found that helps with reading the Wheel of Time if you're really set on reading these last three books because they're being worked on by Brandon Sanderson, would be to get the audiobooks from the library and listen to them. It doesn't take as much effort and you can probably find them abridged too. That way you get caught up on the story without actually having to put in the effort to read it yourself. I have the whole series loaded on my Ipod and I listened to the whole thing in preparation of the next one coming out to refamiliarize myself with the characters the plots and the subplots while I was at work. no extra time taken out of my day, and I got entertained while doing one of the dullest jobs in the universe (mailman).
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By giving reasons not to read it you cheat yourself not to mention you may be lynched for your post... i know people who as a general rule feel the same way you do but then they liked some weird series completely against what they thought... sometimes you just have to RAFO a book to know if its any good
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For example, we don't know whether Nightblood is completely plain or has any kind of designs, what kind of guard the hilt has, etc. If Warbreaker were a WoT book, those details are more likely to have been added.
Psh, well, *I* know that Nightblood has ornate rune symbols carved all over it.
But yeah, I just picked up book 1 of WoT so I could get caught up. I've avoided it for the famous reasons, and plan on buying the rest of them off Ebay so i can be in good shape by the time the paperback comes out.
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Was afraid of that. But considering book 10 got 1500 1 stars out of 2400 reviews, and he is a known padder, it just doesn't make sense for me to waste my time reading 1000s of pages of description just to enjoy more sanderson books.
Oh well.
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Was afraid of that. But considering book 10 got 1500 1 stars out of 2400 reviews, and he is a known padder, it just doesn't make sense for me to waste my time reading 1000s of pages of description just to enjoy more sanderson books.
Oh well.
You'll never know unless you try it for yourself. Book 10 may not be his best book but it's ALOT better then some books I've read and wish I had NEVER read.
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Book 10 got a raw deal from Amazon reviews. That was the mass frustration of people who had waited years to read it. But if you read it right after you read book 9, and then go straight to book 11, you'll have a much higher opinion of book 10 than that.
I also recommend the audiobooks. They're a good way to spend your commute if you've got one of any length.
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Was afraid of that. But considering book 10 got 1500 1 stars out of 2400 reviews, and he is a known padder, it just doesn't make sense for me to waste my time reading 1000s of pages of description just to enjoy more sanderson books.
Oh well.
I don't want to be one of those people who get insulted because someone doesn't like a book that I do, but I think that these books are worth giving a shot. Don't worry about what people say about book 10 because you'll know long before that whether or not this story interests you.
Robert Jordan did a great job of writing a large story that won't overwhelm you. In book 1 your introduced to all the main characters, and they stay together for a few books then gradually separate into their own POV's. Each character then meets other characters and by around book 7 or 8 there are so many POV's that not all the character are in each books. That's about the time that the story appears to slow down a little Brandon talks about the change in writing style and why it was made somewhere, but I have no idea where I read it. Perhaps someone out there knows, and will link to it.
I was able to read books 1-10 straight through, and I didn't notice most of the complaints that people had with the later books. But then I didn't have to wait 3-5 years for the next book either, and I suspect that was the major reason for the complaints. Other than the change in writing style, the story as a whole, moves along pretty smoothly if your able to read all the books one right after the other.
I strongly suggest going to your library and reading a little of Book 1: Eye of the World. It won't take you 1,000's of pages to find out if your interested in the story or not. Actually, the prologue in EotW is what hooked me on the series!
Of course if you're not interested then you're not interest, but I thought I'd post this just in case I could persuade you. :)
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I agree Publius75, it's the waiting for the next book that really hurts the books. When I first read the later books, after having to wait 2-3 years I really didn't care about the minor characters, I saw them as keeping me away from the characters I DID want to read. Now with that waiting out of the equation it IS alot easier to appreciate books 8-10.
shadow9d9 your really going to miss out on a good series and it's a shame you don't have enuogh faith in Brandon's judgement to complete this series. Do you think Brandon would waste his time on a series of books that he didn't think worth finishing?
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Seems how it is one huge story with character development from book 1 through the end it would be impossible to read. If you just picked up one of the later books and read Rands parts you would be very confused. I have known alot of people who are not into RJ because of his winded style. If you don't like to read the style I would suggest audio books of them. The detail tends to fit in better with the audio books.
As for having to wait for his books to come out after WOT, you don't have much to worry about there. He stated he is going to try and keep releasing his own books at the same time. I know his site currently states he is 90% done with revisions for Way of Kings. Last week that was at 75% so he is actively working on that. I think he will finish that before diving heavily into Shifting Winds.
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I agree Publius75, it's the waiting for the next book that really hurts the books. When I first read the later books, after having to wait 2-3 years I really didn't care about the minor characters, I saw them as keeping me away from the characters I DID want to read. Now with that waiting out of the equation it IS alot easier to appreciate books 8-10.
There are no minor characters in WoT, just people that readers pay less attention to.