The fact that Sanderson wrote The Gathering Storm is Obvious

[Dagon Thyne]

I just started reading "The Gathering Storm" and I have found even in the prologue, that the difference between Sanderson's and Rj'S writing styles is obvious.  Even though Sanderson has his own style, he seems to sincerly wish to keep the final three books as faithful to RJ's vision as possible.  The fact that Sanderson was a fan of the series and idolized RJ made him a perfect choice to finish the series.

[DaughterOfNight]

At first I didn't notice the difference... but then I just recently re-read a few passages from an earlier book and I definitely could see the differences in writing styles.  Not that I mind, however, because I really enjoyed the sense of urgency in BS's writing -- he's getting us to the end finally.  I've always loved RJ's lengthy descriptions but after 12 books, I've had my fill and now I'm just anxious to get to the end.

 

This BS/RJ debate will go on forever but I think of it this way: BS is a good enough writer to finish this series and not ruin it.  We all know BS will never be RJ, nor will he ever be able to fill his shoes 100%, but he's giving us what we need and that is THE END. 

 

Cheers to that!

 

p.s.  But yes, I do hope he stays true to RJ's intent which I'm sure he is doing... but then again, I wonder how detailed RJ's notes were for the rest of the story leading up to the Last Battle.  I expect that the LB will be mostly, if not almost entirely, RJ's ideas if not word for word.

 

 

[CUBAREY]

I just started reading "The Gathering Storm" and I have found even in the prologue, that the difference between Sanderson's and Rj'S writing styles is obvious. 

 

Actually we have ben told that the prologue was prepared by Jordon. A recording of Jordon reading the portion of the prologue concerning the farmer was played at last years Jordancon.

[Noreallyjustsomeguy]

Generally speaking, people can and will see what they look for.  Reality is perception, since our perception is all that is real to us.

 

Therefore, despite the fact that "objectively" the prologue was written by Robert Jordan, Sanderson's style is obvious in it.  Now, lets all imagine ourselves happy and get on with life.  ;D

[Morsker]

Brandon's forward to the book says the writing style will be noticeably different. He also explained this to fans several times before the book came out. Forging another author's style is something professional ghostwriters do, with varying degrees of ability. Brandon is a real author, and it's not something he does; he makes stories.

[DocBean]

I'd say the prologue is much more Jordanesque then the rest of the book.

We must be reading different books.

 

What I noticed was how some of the characters were written Matt and Avienda mostly.

By the end of the book you won't even notice the differences.

 

It's a good book, on par with Knife of Dreams in my opinion.

[Tollieman]

While I'm not disputing who wrote it, the prologue (imo) wasn't that well written. Again, this is an opinion, I just didn't like it. The idea was cool, the execution not so much. In all though, absolutely loved the book.

[Majsju]

RJ wrote most of the prologue. Brandon had to add a little because RJ wrote a prologue for one book, Brandon split it for two books, but most of it is RJ.

 

As for the book, there is only one tiny detail that I know is Brandon, and that bothers me.

[alannalynn]

I'm trying to refrain from sarcasm, but to answer the title: "The fact that BS wrote tGS is Obvious"... Yes, because his name is on the cover.

 

On a more serious note, I actually really enjoyed Sanderson's writing, I feel like it had a bit more (is variety what I'm looking for?)... variety? Maybe? I dunno, my adjectives are lacking, but I liked his writing style, nonetheless.

[OptimusPrime]

Brandons favorite word?

 

Tempest.

 

Awesome book. As to who wrote what, some parts seem more Jordanesque than others, but however it worked out Brandon deserves a lot of credit. Rands arc really pulled me in, every single bit of it felt real, and true to everything that we know and expect of Rand was there, spot on. Im confident in saying that a considrable part of Rands arc was done by Brandon going off RJs notes, as I read somewhere that Brandon said writing Rand could be as draining as it was awesome.

 

If I was only able to give him one compliment, it would be that he can do Rands PoV very well.

[Fains nose]

I liked the prologue quite alot and ive read that it was dictated by RJ on his death bed. Chapter 1 of tGS is teribly, painfuly, shockingly bad and realy unacceptably poorly written, but the rest of the book i didnt notice a diference while in the flow of reading. Im just happy that someone is finishing this series in book form, because my love for WoT is such that i would be happy with a few dot points/paragraphs to find out what happens since the author is dead

[DaughterOfNight]

 

Oh man, TEMPEST annoys the me to no end.  I cringe every time I see that word and it seems like it's on every other page.  Definitely overused.

[bobothebarbarian]

this is from a different thread but fits right in here I think

I don't assume he wrote any chapters in the upcoming books, but it would be nice to hear that some were finished by Jordan.

 

RJ  said many times that he knew how the story ended when he was still working on tEotW. The question is did he actually write the end? I am sure he would have at least finished the very last 2 or 3 chapters when he started getting sick

 

No one at Team Jordan is saying how Brandon wrote verses how much Jordan wrote, or which parts were done by who. They'd like us to be able to enjoy the story without nitpicking the writing to death. It's possible that after the series is completed, Brandon might post annotations on his website like he does for his solo novels. However, that is up to Harriet.

that would be kinda of cool my first read through was so fast i didn't notice to much difference but I read it 2 times already when my son and I got to meet BS in Scottsdale AZ

If memory serves, didn't Harriet make a comment regarding this issue shortly after the release date of tGS?  I vaguely remember reading that she found it amusing that the majority of the parts of the book that folks were sure were written by Brandon, were in fact written by RJ...

I am sure I heard that also

I could be wrong of course; I'm not getting any younger (but I still have all my hair, and my... parts all function well within normal operating parameters).   ;D

 

My two coppers.

well I only have about 2/3rds of the hair but I am sure all my parts will keep functioning[move] well beyond [/move] normal operating parameters for a long time to come

::)

[Ramzrie]

One thing that stood out for me is that there was alot of sentences like:

 

"Yes," Cadsuane mused, "I am the most obnoxious character aside from Faile."

 

"No," Egwene said, "I am a complete suck up in every possible way."

 

This type of sentence structure is something that at least in my perception, RJ did not use a whole lot of.  One word ____ said  then the rest of the statement.  But in the grand scheme of things, no matter who wrote what the book was excellent through and through.  Although they probably will never say who wrote what, I would like to know just because I am sure that somethings I think RJ wrote Brandon did and vice versa.

[Fains nose]

It would be really nice if RJ had written the very last scene of aMoL, the one he said he'd had in his head since he started writing the first book, i think he definately would of done it when he knew he wasnt gonna make it. I reckon therel be a foot note in aMoL like what was in tGS, saying that RJ wrote the very final scene

[johnnycomelately]

I didn't want to start a new thread for this, as I'm sure there are already plenty, but I can't find them. This one seems like a pretty good fit.

 

I just finished re-reading KoD to catch up for TGS. I've only read the prologue and first chapter of TGS so far. No matter who wrote what, the flow seems different to the point of distraction. Specifically, the sentence structures seem blunter than in previous books and certain characterizations with Rand seem more direct (in ways that kind of alter the character a little). I keep thinking to myself, "that doesn't sound like Rand." I know, it's a different author. I try to both keep that in mind and forget about it while reading, but I'm afraid that in doing so I might be making myself hyper-sensitive to those differences. Also, I read somewhere that the first chapter isn't so hot, so maybe I've only seen the worst of it. My question is, are these differences as glaringly obvious as they seem or is it just me? Should I maybe wait a little while before reading TGS so that RJ's writing style (in KOD) isn't so fresh in my mind and the differences will be less jarring? Or is it all in my head and I should just get on with the book? It might seem nit-picky, but it has always been the characters, even more so than the story, that I've loved about WOT.

[cortezthekiller]

It's nitpicking, pure and simple.

 

Everyone has their own image of the places and characters in tWoT, all sculpted by Jordan's spectacular writing, but the sense that we 'know' these characters seems somewhat disillusioned.  If Sanderson's name wasn't on the cover, nobody would be looking for these inconsequential differences in writing style.  And if you compare Sanderson's style to Jordan's you are inevitably going to delve into an inescapable debate.

 

I thought the prologue and first chapter were great, whoever wrote the prose is only valuable to me in the sense that it makes me want to read more of Sanderson's books.

 

 

[PatsNats28]

First of all, the pace is much faster, which I did enjoy, because while I would have loved RJ to write it, we all know that half as much would have happened and the series needs to end soon - at his pace, it would have taken another 5 or 6 books. I had just one question though - was the Mat Zombie scene RJ's idea or Brandon's? It didn't seem very much like an RJ type of thing.

[DaughterOfNight]

First of all, the pace is much faster, which I did enjoy, because while I would have loved RJ to write it, we all know that half as much would have happened and the series needs to end soon - at his pace, it would have taken another 5 or 6 books. I had just one question though - was the Mat Zombie scene RJ's idea or Brandon's? It didn't seem very much like an RJ type of thing.

 

Definitely agree with you; it was refreshing that Brandon's writing had a sense of urgency and quick to the point.  At first I didn't really notice the difference in writing styles and besides, I devoured that book in days.  Also, I didn't really care much about the differences until I joined this forum and began reading others' criticism and citing specific passages.

 

I just began my 420th re-read of the series but not from the beginning nor in order, and within moments of opening the book I immediately notice RJ's unique writing style and realized the big changes in how tGS was written. 

 

As we all know, this topic has been discussed ad nauseam and I am almost certain I'm repeating myself by posting this reply but ehh whatever... new members join all the time so this won't be old news to some at least, haha.

 

Anyway, like many others, I love RJ's lengthy and detailed descriptions.  I loved the fact that I could totally visualize the characters, the scenes and Randland in general.  He is so detailed, in fact, that some artists' fan art of the characters is so right on and almost always how I imagined the characters to look like. (Like that guy, Seamus Gallagher.)

 

Although I will always love and appreciate the details, I do have to admit that after a while I started to skip over some of the parts so I could get to the meat of the story, especially with characters I'm not very interested in; it's crazy that his elaborate details take up several paragraphs, if not entire pages! 

 

One thing of RJ's writing that annoys me: it can be tedious, redundant and excessively wordy. (Not that I have room to talk!) I mean, do we still need to be 'reminded' six books deep about what the Five Powers are or how a ter'angreal works?  Sure there are details we'll forget occasionally but damn, RJ must have thought we were brain-dead and incapable of retaining the most basic principles!  ::)

 

I've been reading (and re-reading) WoT since I was 15 and the series will never grow old to me.  I want to read every scrap of story I can get my hands on -- even the boring stuff -- because I just can't get enough!!  I know that ten years from now I'll look back and think about the raw anticipation I felt waiting for the next book, not to mention endless hours of reading forum discussions. 

 

A lot of us have read the series multiple times and it's not like the story changes the second time you read it so there must be something that makes us want to read thousands of pages again. I personally love reading the books over and over because it seems like I'm always finding nuances, foreshadowing and such; applying later knowledge to the earlier books always yields a discovery or two.  How many other books would you reread and enjoy doing so?

 

We all want to get to the end of the story but I know I'm not alone when I say that I'm going to miss these days when it's all said and done.  No more books to look forward to... no more debates dissecting The Big Unnoticed Thing...  no more unsolved Asmodean mysteries... no more embracing the source... and no more sniffing! 

 

Let's appreciate and enjoy what we have -- BS is doing us a monumental favor by completing this series and has certainly exceeded my expectations -- because I'm sure we'd all rather have a finished story than to be left hanging.  Forever.  :-*

 

[PatsNats28]

Good words, but that just made realize, there won't be anything left to discuss about WoT by 2012 :(

[Duskfire]

Good words, but that just made realize, there won't be anything left to discuss about WoT by 2012 :(

 

There is still the Encyclopedia, and that will probably have information not covered in the books. So that'll be something to discuss at least. And no doubt a few things will be left open-ended and we'll spend the next decade talking about them.

 

But your right... its kind of sad its coming to end. I want to see it happen, yet at the same time I dont. Been reading WoT now for over half my life; not wanting for the next book will just feel so weird and alien.

[firstfishman]

It's the conjunctions. RJ never used them. BS uses them constantly..

[cortezthekiller]

I think you are thinking of "contractions" and not RJ, but this guy:

 

 

[farthammer]

It became obvious to me when I picked up the book and it said BRANDON SANDERSON in giant letters like an exploding neon dirk diggler sign.

[Charlz Fel]

I think that part of the issue with the prologue may be that RJ's "rough draft" was not revised enough (remember, RJ used to do a lot of revisions before he would let anyone see his work).  There were definite difficulties in comparison with RJ's normal (finished) style; for instance, I cannot imagine RJ would not have told us which of the four Borderlands we were in in the first scene.  I also think that Grandael's PoV had far too many exclamation points, compared to her earlier PoVs; the most likely answer here is that Brandon actually wrote this scene, and did not get Graendal "quite right", but unlike Aviendha, she was not such an important character that Harriet noticed.  However, I am fairly tentative with this last theory, since I would never have imagined that Cyndane would have as many exclamation marks as she did (although to be fair, we had never had a Lanfear PoV, so far as I can recall).

 

Chapter One, I actually thought was an improvement (and thus was glad they released it before the prologue); there were definitely places where I thought "Jordan's Rand would never have thought this," but the style was sufficiently Jordanesque that it was not terribly distracting.

 

If there is one word that I think Sanderson overused, its "hesitated," typically as the verb in a two-word sentence (e.g., "Egwene hesitated.")  In Mistborn, there are places where every other paragraph contains the sentence "Vin paused."  I think that "hesitated" was Sanderson's attempt to make this less noticeable to Jordan readers (especially those who have also read Mistborn), and I think he succeeds in making it less noticeable, but not invisible.