Thisguy's Topic on Brandon's Work

[The Fisher King]

Hes kinda just like his own interpretation of Mat - says one thing, does another, lol!! ;)

 

 

Fish

[Sid]

Saw this in the Q&A...

 

BS

And balancing when he's playing the fool, and when he's just being awesome is very hard to get that balance down, because you don't want it to be silly, you know he can play the fool a bit but he shouldn't be silly.

 

That to me is one of Brandon's largest missteps. He missed that balance by a wide margin.

 

This statement here makes it sound like he knew where he should be aiming, at least. The result reads like he not only missed the target, but was firing in the wrong direction. I honestly don't know what to say.

 

Maybe because Mat has to 'be awesome' Brandon's trying too hard. He could take a lesson from reading PoV's from TSR-KoD... from people other than Mat that he shares scenes with. See how he acts there. He's really not doing anything out of the ordinary or foolish, though he's a little rough around the edges. It often ends up being funny, though because of the person's inner thoughts and prejudices.

[TootThatHorn]

Saw this in the Q&A...

 

BS

And balancing when he's playing the fool, and when he's just being awesome is very hard to get that balance down, because you don't want it to be silly, you know he can play the fool a bit but he shouldn't be silly.

 

That to me is one of Brandon's largest missteps. He missed that balance by a wide margin.

 

This statement here makes it sound like he knew where he should be aiming, at least. The result reads like he not only missed the target, but was firing in the wrong direction. I honestly don't know what to say.

 

Maybe because Mat has to 'be awesome' Brandon's trying too hard. He could take a lesson from reading PoV's from TSR-KoD... from people other than Mat that he shares scenes with. See how he acts there. He's really not doing anything out of the ordinary or foolish, though he's a little rough around the edges. It often ends up being funny, though because of the person's inner thoughts and prejudices.

 

He put the Matty on a pedestal. Never put the Matty on a pedestal.

[Maleshub]

The problem is that writing Mat requires a fair amount of humor mixed with Mat's other traits: strong sense of duty, honor, and sacrifice. The type of humor that RJ mixed in Mat since LoC is very different from the humor Brandon wrote. Just from reading Brandon's WoT work, he's a couple of steps below RJ in writing humor.

[TheAngryDruid]

Excellent thread in the main, and a couple tidbits from me.

 

Regarding the criticism of Chapter 11 of aMoL, which I didn't like very much, I will come to the defense of one point, and that is Mat enjoying his time in the Rahad. One thing that did happen there, is his friendship with Birgitte blossomed. If he's looking back fondly on time in the Rahad, that has to be it. Them sitting around drinking, her pointing out hot chicks he'd like to look at. Discovering his first female friend.

 

And again, for me, the little things don't bother me too much (Avi's language), but the bigger inconsistencies, such as black sisters channeling at full strength in TAR with Elayne's copies of the ring/dream ter'angreal, or Nyneave traveling to Caemlyn but no one travelilng from it really bug me. As do the seemingly disjointed plot arcs and questions I fear will never be answered. Like, what in the world did Rand do for a month in ToM, as we only saw about 6-8 days? Why doesn't he do anything to save Lan, educate the Asha'man (and Aes Sedai) he has with him in the "deeper secrets of the One Power?" That would be invaluable to the world going forward, and in the LB. Will we ever know? I sense not.

 

And for the record, these types of things bugged me when RJ did them as well. Like Elayne, two AS, the Kin all forgetting the ability to link after LINKING to use the bowl? Ludicrous. Why didn't Domon and Egeanin just throw the bracelet over the side?

 

But it's just that, to me, it seems these things happened more frequently in the last two books.

 

Though I must say, for instance, RJ made his share of AS seem dumb to make Egwene seem smart. I don't know how many AS have vomited or fainted, but some of it was certainly doing RJ's writing (one sister when Egwene got the Hall to declare war). You don't see Asha'man reacting in that fashion, ever. I mean, really, and AS would throw up at that? Come on. So Brandon is hardly the only one to do it. RJ certainly had his share of incompetent Forsaken: Aginor at the end of the EoTW, for instance.

 

Look, i loved the series, particularly 1-6, but there have been issues throughout. I'm thrilled we get to have an ending. I'm grateful that Brandon agreed to finish it. I thank him and, most of all, Team Jordan for doing it. But I don't think that means we can't criticize certain aspects of the work, especially on a fan-site devoted to talking about the books.

[Sid]

Regarding the criticism of Chapter 11 of aMoL, which I didn't like very much, I will come to the defense of one point, and that is Mat enjoying his time in the Rahad. One thing that did happen there, is his friendship with Birgitte blossomed. If he's looking back fondly on time in the Rahad, that has to be it. Them sitting around drinking, her pointing out hot chicks he'd like to look at. Discovering his first female friend.

Just for the record, none of that happened in the Rahad.

[Luckers]

Sid got there before me. Mat and Birgitte did most of their bonding either watching the house where the Kin met, or in the Wandering Woman, all in Ebou Dar proper.

[john smith_17251]

With all the writing issues, I was wondering why do people here still continue to read WoT?

 

I mean that seriously. Because for me, it is not the writing. RJ was a good writer - if he was not I would have left WoT in the early stages (I have no idea how he stood relative to fantasy peers, as it is a genre I have barely touched but he was good enough to keep me involved). But if I now wanted to read good writing, I'd stick to Fitzgerald or Joyce. At this point, however, I just wanna know how the character arcs end - I knew through book 8 that I was in it for the long haul (because books 8 - 10 were pretty painful reading for me).

 

I want to see how Rand spanks the DO. See what Demandred has been doing. Figure how Rand's marriage works when in 30 years Avi & Elayne will still be attractive, and Min will be old. See who dies.

 

Guess the writing just is not as important - it is definitely annoying. Mat is written really badly. Cadsuane seemed slightly... off at times (the scene after Rand kills Semi doesn't really seem to fit into her wheelhouse - that she would shout at Rand after noticing Min's bruises? Her first thought 'insolent boy' opposed to 'Wtf?'. Maybe that was just me though.)

 

But at this point, I'm just too invested into the story. It is like Harry Potter, in a sense. I started reading it as a child, but by the time the ending came I was couple years past enjoying it for the writing, but I still had to know how it end. And that was still satisfying. Guess it is similar with WoT (except I'm concerned way more about a good plotline. And also, certain scenes have to be done well - Moiraine's return, Rand meeting Demandred, Rand facing Moridin etc.).

 

I'm not saying that better writing would not make the books better. Of course it could. But it does not make it a net negative experience for me.

 

Wonder what everyone else thinks?

 

(First post! Sorry if a bit convoluted, mind's a bit fried.)

[The Fisher King]

''Why do people read WOT?''

 

For me, first, it was the reviews that got me interested. Then the day I bought the book I got to meet Mr RJ. THEN it was the story and plot...then it was the characters...then, as I got a bit older, I began to fall in love with Jordan's (often mistifyingly underrated) writing and prose/trun of phrase.

 

 

Fish

[Suttree]

With all the writing issues, I was wondering why do people here read WoT?

 

I mean that seriously. Because for me, it is not the writing. RJ was a good writer - if he was not I would have left WoT in the early stages (I have no idea how he stood relative to fantasy peers, as it is a genre I have barely touched but he was good enough to keep me involved). But if I now wanted to read good writing, I'd stick to Fitzgerald or Joyce. At this point, however, I just wanna know how the character arcs end - I knew through book 8 that I was in it for the long haul (because books 8 - 10 were pretty painful reading for me).

 

I want to see how Rand spanks the DO. See what Demandred has been doing. Figure how Rand's marriage works when in 30 years Avi & Elayne will still be attractive, and Min will be old. See who dies.

 

Guess the writing just is not as important - it is definitely annoying. Mat is written really badly. Cadsuane seemed slightly... off at times (the scene after Rand kills Semi doesn't really seem to fit into her wheelhouse - that she would shout at Rand after noticing Min's bruises? Her first thought 'insolent boy' opposed to 'Wtf?'. Maybe that was just me though.)

 

But at this point, I'm just too invested into the story. It is like Harry Potter, in a sense. I started reading it as a child, but by the time the ending came I was couple years past enjoying it for the writing, but I still had to know how it end. And that was still satisfying. Guess it is similar with WoT (except I'm concerned way more about a good plotline. And also, certain scenes have to be done well - Moiraine's return, Rand meeting Demandred, Rand facing Moridin etc.).

 

Hey Newuser, welcome to DM! Think you nailed it in that a number of people really want to see how things turn out and that is why they are sticking with it. They have invested way too much in the story to just stop reading. I know for myself I came to the series at a young age and RJ's writing would not have necessarily had the same impact if I had found it later on. His work of course does not hold up to the best outside of genre but along with the problems with characters I believe RJ's subtlety is the next thing missed. It would be nice if the plotlines in these last two books were better as well but they hold up somewhat for the first read at least. More than anything though we all want the end and should be grateful to Brandon for his work in finishing.

 

As an aside if you are looking for something in fantasy where the writing holds up outside of genre might I recommend R. Scott Bakke's "Prince of Nothing". IMO he is the most talented fantasy author out right now.

[Flipsaken]

With all the writing issues, I was wondering why do people here still continue to read WoT?

 

I mean that seriously. Because for me, it is not the writing. RJ was a good writer - if he was not I would have left WoT in the early stages (I have no idea how he stood relative to fantasy peers, as it is a genre I have barely touched but he was good enough to keep me involved). But if I now wanted to read good writing, I'd stick to Fitzgerald or Joyce. At this point, however, I just wanna know how the character arcs end - I knew through book 8 that I was in it for the long haul (because books 8 - 10 were pretty painful reading for me).

 

I want to see how Rand spanks the DO. See what Demandred has been doing. Figure how Rand's marriage works when in 30 years Avi & Elayne will still be attractive, and Min will be old. See who dies.

 

Guess the writing just is not as important - it is definitely annoying. Mat is written really badly. Cadsuane seemed slightly... off at times (the scene after Rand kills Semi doesn't really seem to fit into her wheelhouse - that she would shout at Rand after noticing Min's bruises? Her first thought 'insolent boy' opposed to 'Wtf?'. Maybe that was just me though.)

 

But at this point, I'm just too invested into the story. It is like Harry Potter, in a sense. I started reading it as a child, but by the time the ending came I was couple years past enjoying it for the writing, but I still had to know how it end. And that was still satisfying. Guess it is similar with WoT (except I'm concerned way more about a good plotline. And also, certain scenes have to be done well - Moiraine's return, Rand meeting Demandred, Rand facing Moridin etc.).

 

I'm not saying that better writing would not make the books better. Of course it could. But it does not make it a net negative experience for me.

 

Wonder what everyone else thinks?

 

(First post! Sorry if a bit convoluted, mind's a bit fried.)

 

I think yu've nailed it on the head NUN (oops anachroniming your username turned out somewhat unfortunate). RJ got us all hooked on the characters and the world and we all need that last fix, even if it's not quite the real thing. A bit like going to a Black Sabbath concert after Ozzy left. ;P

[he who comes with a bong]

I was talking with the wife last night about how Sanderson has been a let down and how the last few books have come across to me as fan fiction. She then says to me well duh it is fan fiction, she made a really good point that i never really considered. He was a fan of the series and he finished the books for us but it still is Fan Fiction.

[Werthead]

An interesting point raised elsewhere: it is difficult for Sanderson to produce his best work for WoT as it his not his story. He does not have control over where to go next in the plot and does not fully grasp all the nuances of the characters because they are not his characters. This, I think, combined with the general rushed nature (of ToM especially) creates a situation where Sanderson could not finish the final books to 100% of anyone's satisfaction (including probably his own). The biggest sacrifice is depth (or rather detail, which are not quite the same thing) and that was sacrificed due to Sanderson's much faster pacing. If RJ was still with us and had completed the series, I extremely doubt it could have been done in three volumes, and would probably have been four or five. On one level, with RJ's superior attention to detail, that may not have been a bad thing. But, with the hand we've been dealt, I can see the wisdom in ramping up the pacing and finishing the series more concisely.

 

Something that I do firmly believe and have done since 2007 (when I suggested Brandon as the most obvious candidate for the job, before he was chosen) is that absolutely no other fantasy author could have finished this series as well as he has done. Yes, the timeline is shot to hell and gone in Towers of Midnight, and Mat frequently does not feel quite right (much moreso in Storm though), but on the other hand we got books that were readable, that took the story where RJ planned to and, most critically importantly, do not have the words 'Kevin J. Anderson' located anywhere near them :)

 

Something I do hope for, and I know that Sanderson has been pushing for, is for Team Jordan to release Jordan's outlines and notes at a later date so fans can read the raw materials and see for themselves what he had to work with, and if they disagree on what he's done, can disagree with all the facts before them. Christopher Tolkien did that by releasing all of his father's notes (in a massive twelve-volume series) so fans could see how he assembled The Silmarillion and, if necessary, disagree with him and come to their own conclusions instead, and I think something similar happening for Wheel would be a good thing.

[Suttree]

The biggest sacrifice is depth (or rather detail, which are not quite the same thing) and that was sacrificed due to Sanderson's much faster pacing. If RJ was still with us and had completed the series, I extremely doubt it could have been done in three volumes, and would probably have been four or five.

 

Strongly disagree here Wert. There is a ton of filler in TGS and ToM, RJ certainly woulnd't have finished in one as he claimed but I firmly believe it could have been done in two(possibly one very large book put out in two parts).

[he who comes with a bong]

An interesting point raised elsewhere: it is difficult for Sanderson to produce his best work for WoT as it his not his story. He does not have control over where to go next in the plot and does not fully grasp all the nuances of the characters because they are not his characters. This, I think, combined with the general rushed nature (of ToM especially) creates a situation where Sanderson could not finish the final books to 100% of anyone's satisfaction (including probably his own). The biggest sacrifice is depth (or rather detail, which are not quite the same thing) and that was sacrificed due to Sanderson's much faster pacing. If RJ was still with us and had completed the series, I extremely doubt it could have been done in three volumes, and would probably have been four or five. On one level, with RJ's superior attention to detail, that may not have been a bad thing. But, with the hand we've been dealt, I can see the wisdom in ramping up the pacing and finishing the series more concisely.

 

Something that I do firmly believe and have done since 2007 (when I suggested Brandon as the most obvious candidate for the job, before he was chosen) is that absolutely no other fantasy author could have finished this series as well as he has done. Yes, the timeline is shot to hell and gone in Towers of Midnight, and Mat frequently does not feel quite right (much moreso in Storm though), but on the other hand we got books that were readable, that took the story where RJ planned to and, most critically importantly, do not have the words 'Kevin J. Anderson' located anywhere near them :)

 

Something I do hope for, and I know that Sanderson has been pushing for, is for Team Jordan to release Jordan's outlines and notes at a later date so fans can read the raw materials and see for themselves what he had to work with, and if they disagree on what he's done, can disagree with all the facts before them. Christopher Tolkien did that by releasing all of his father's notes (in a massive twelve-volume series) so fans could see how he assembled The Silmarillion and, if necessary, disagree with him and come to their own conclusions instead, and I think something similar happening for Wheel would be a good thing.

 

I myself would love to be able to read the notes, I have 3 copies of the Simarillion all the way back from its frist print. Its more of a history book than notes though Tolkien wrote that before the Lord of the rings and the hobbit. I think that Sanderson is pushing so hard to get the notes printed out is so that he can say( see i had all these notes to work with and not a lot was there in certain things so i did the best with what i was givin ) I am pretty sure that he has said that before.

 

So the notes would be some type of justicefcation of how badly some of the last 3 books were wrote. All along the lines of yah i know they could of been better but they werent so sorry. BTW want to play Magic with me lol.

[thisguy]

An interesting point raised elsewhere: it is difficult for Sanderson to produce his best work for WoT as it his not his story. He does not have control over where to go next in the plot and does not fully grasp all the nuances of the characters because they are not his characters. This, I think, combined with the general rushed nature (of ToM especially) creates a situation where Sanderson could not finish the final books to 100% of anyone's satisfaction (including probably his own). The biggest sacrifice is depth (or rather detail, which are not quite the same thing) and that was sacrificed due to Sanderson's much faster pacing. If RJ was still with us and had completed the series, I extremely doubt it could have been done in three volumes, and would probably have been four or five. On one level, with RJ's superior attention to detail, that may not have been a bad thing. But, with the hand we've been dealt, I can see the wisdom in ramping up the pacing and finishing the series more concisely.

 

Something that I do firmly believe and have done since 2007 (when I suggested Brandon as the most obvious candidate for the job, before he was chosen) is that absolutely no other fantasy author could have finished this series as well as he has done. Yes, the timeline is shot to hell and gone in Towers of Midnight, and Mat frequently does not feel quite right (much moreso in Storm though), but on the other hand we got books that were readable, that took the story where RJ planned to and, most critically importantly, do not have the words 'Kevin J. Anderson' located anywhere near them :)

 

Something I do hope for, and I know that Sanderson has been pushing for, is for Team Jordan to release Jordan's outlines and notes at a later date so fans can read the raw materials and see for themselves what he had to work with, and if they disagree on what he's done, can disagree with all the facts before them. Christopher Tolkien did that by releasing all of his father's notes (in a massive twelve-volume series) so fans could see how he assembled The Silmarillion and, if necessary, disagree with him and come to their own conclusions instead, and I think something similar happening for Wheel would be a good thing.

I agree with all of this except for the middle bit. I don't know how well anyone else would have done. Aside from that, I agree.

 

Yeah, like you and Bong say, I'd love a Lost Tales style book with RJ's notes, and not just for this. These books were a fantastic undertaking in my opinion and I'd love to see what RJ has to say about his source material, how he used it, and when he decided to go one direction or the other.

[he who comes with a bong]

I would also like to add that maybee if Sanderson spent all of his time on these books they would of been better. Follwoing his tweets and facebook updates, he was always doign so many other things. From playing Magic games to the various CONS that he did. And all of the other books that he is writing at the same time, that has to be hard to concentrate on one topic. He might not be that great of a multytasker. Seems to me that he wasnt. I know that when i am trying to do 15 things at once shit becomes hard to do.

 

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

As a writer he comes across to me as a young adult fiction writer, as in trying to keep the scope of things being able to relate to the younger readers who is his fan base i think not sure though.

 

One thing i really dont like about him is the fact that he has people sending him magic cards. I mean come on dude we as the readers have made you some decent cash im pretty sure you can go out and buy your own damn magic cards. Not like you cant afford it.

[Neophyte]

 

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

 

I'm fairly sure that if that had been one of their requirements, then he would have said "No thanks." As well he should have.

 

Look, Brandon was certainly compensated for doing this work, both monetarily and with a boost in fame/name recognition. But he also put a bunch of his own stuff on the shelf to finish another man's work. There is a kind of generousness in that act that deserves to be recognized.

 

There are very valid criticisms of his work, and maybe (thought this is much trickier) of his work ethic. But the idea that he should have taken this gig and shut off all of his own stuff is, in my opinion, an unfair one. He didn't become a writer in order to finish the Wheel of Time.

[capuga]

I would also like to add that maybee if Sanderson spent all of his time on these books they would of been better. Follwoing his tweets and facebook updates, he was always doign so many other things. From playing Magic games to the various CONS that he did.

 

Seriously? Do you work for 16 hours a day and sleep for eight. Or do you actually have a life and some leisure time? I didn't realize that Brandon should have been required to write every single minute he was awake. He was putting in long hours when working on the book. And the cons are part of the job. It's all part of promoting the book (and, again, everyone is entitled to some down time from their jobs).

 

And all of the other books that he is writing at the same time, that has to be hard to concentrate on one topic.

 

All the other books he worked on were in various states of completeness. He never took off from the WoT to completely write another book. Also, TOR requested that he give them a Sanderson book in between WoT books. And he frequently mentioned that working on various projects keeps him from getting burned out on any particular project. No reason not to believe that.

 

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

They could have if they thought it was important. Obviously, they didn't mind giving him the freedom to do a couple other things. And we still got these 3 books faster than any three we got from RJ in a long, long time. Hell, most people are saying they wish he spent longer writing and working on it.

 

One thing i really dont like about him is the fact that he has people sending him magic cards. I mean come on dude we as the readers have made you some decent cash im pretty sure you can go out and buy your own damn magic cards. Not like you cant afford it.

 

Again, seriously? Fans send him stuff. He's not out there begging for it.

[he who comes with a bong]

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

 

I'm fairly sure that if that had been one of their requirements, then he would have said "No thanks." As well he should have.

 

Look, Brandon was certainly compensated for doing this work, both monetarily and with a boost in fame/name recognition. But he also put a bunch of his own stuff on the shelf to finish another man's work. There is a kind of generousness in that act that deserves to be recognized.

 

There are very valid criticisms of his work, and maybe (thought this is much trickier) of his work ethic. But the idea that he should have taken this gig and shut off all of his own stuff is, in my opinion, an unfair one. He didn't become a writer in order to finish the Wheel of Time.

 

true true but he did in fact accept it knowing that it needed to be done. To me that would make sense to put my stuff on the backshelf for now and dedicate myself to getting it done then go back to my own thing. That makes far more sense to me that the other way around of trying to do so many things at once.

[Neophyte]

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

 

I'm fairly sure that if that had been one of their requirements, then he would have said "No thanks." As well he should have.

 

Look, Brandon was certainly compensated for doing this work, both monetarily and with a boost in fame/name recognition. But he also put a bunch of his own stuff on the shelf to finish another man's work. There is a kind of generousness in that act that deserves to be recognized.

 

There are very valid criticisms of his work, and maybe (thought this is much trickier) of his work ethic. But the idea that he should have taken this gig and shut off all of his own stuff is, in my opinion, an unfair one. He didn't become a writer in order to finish the Wheel of Time.

 

true true but he did in fact accept it knowing that it needed to be done. To me that would make sense to put my stuff on the backshelf for now and dedicate myself to getting it done then go back to my own thing. That makes far more sense to me that the other way around of trying to do so many things at once.

 

Thing is, Tor was already his publisher, so I guarantee he talked about and received clearance for the fact that he would not be putting his other stuff completely on the shelf. So, he did not, in fact, "accept it knowing that it needed to be done." The plan, for all parties involved, was to have him do this while continuing to work on his other stuff. Whether you think that is a good idea or not, that is the basis on which he took the job.

[he who comes with a bong]

I would also like to add that maybee if Sanderson spent all of his time on these books they would of been better. Follwoing his tweets and facebook updates, he was always doign so many other things. From playing Magic games to the various CONS that he did.

 

Seriously? Do you work for 16 hours a day and sleep for eight. Or do you actually have a life and some leisure time? I didn't realize that Brandon should have been required to write every single minute he was awake. He was putting in long hours when working on the book. And the cons are part of the job. It's all part of promoting the book (and, again, everyone is entitled to some down time from their jobs).

 

And all of the other books that he is writing at the same time, that has to be hard to concentrate on one topic.

 

All the other books he worked on were in various states of completeness. He never took off from the WoT to completely write another book. Also, TOR requested that he give them a Sanderson book in between WoT books. And he frequently mentioned that working on various projects keeps him from getting burned out on any particular project. No reason not to believe that.

 

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

They could have if they thought it was important. Obviously, they didn't mind giving him the freedom to do a couple other things. And we still got these 3 books faster than any three we got from RJ in a long, long time. Hell, most people are saying they wish he spent longer writing and working on it.

 

One thing i really dont like about him is the fact that he has people sending him magic cards. I mean come on dude we as the readers have made you some decent cash im pretty sure you can go out and buy your own damn magic cards. Not like you cant afford it.

 

Again, seriously? Fans send him stuff. He's not out there begging for it.

 

no i work 24 hours a day being a stay at home dad with no freetime or leisure time unless the kids are sleeping and i get maybee 3 hours a sleep a day if im lucky. And i did not say that he needed to be writing all of his time that he was awake, i know he put in long ass hours on writing the books didnt say he didnt. and as fas as saying he is begging for it he has a wishlist on amazon for cards and what not.

 

 

But to each their own on their own opinions mine are mine and your's are your's ill stick to mine and you stick to your's im not here to argue

[Werthead]

Strongly disagree here Wert. There is a ton of filler in TGS and ToM, RJ certainly woulnd't have finished in one as he claimed but I firmly believe it could have been done in two(possibly one very large book put out in two parts).

 

Absolutely not. Jordan's writing style can best be described as 'relaxed'. I have no doubt he would have started moving things faster, as we saw towards the end of KoD, but even that is slow as hell compared to Sanderson's pace throughout the last two books. There were filler moments in the last two books, but compared to the first half of KoD, all of CoT and most of PoD and WH? There is no comparison.

 

Note that this is not necessarily a good thing, but Sanderson is a much pacier writer than Jordan, and brought this series to a close more quickly than Jordan would have done. Unless Jordan was planning to simply omit a huge amount of the action in the final three books and maybe come back to it later as side-novels, I can't see any way he'd have done it faster.

 

I have 3 copies of the Simarillion all the way back from its frist print. Its more of a history book than notes though

 

Indeed. But Christopher Tolkien did not have access to all of his father's notes when he assembled The Silmarillion out of all the various chunks his father had left behind upon his death. When he did go through them in exacting detail later on, he discovered he'd made some mistakes and errors with regards to his father's original intentions (for example, we know Tolkien was planning to change some of the names of Feanor's children around in the final version of The Silmarillion but never got round to it). Rather than sit on that, it became one of the motivations to do The History of Middle-earth series, to share all of Tolkien's notes and materials from 53 years of writing Middle-earth material into one collection so other scholars and fans could study and critique it and come up with their own interpretations.

 

I would also like to add that maybee if Sanderson spent all of his time on these books they would of been better. Follwoing his tweets and facebook updates, he was always doign so many other things. From playing Magic games to the various CONS that he did.

 

It is death for any creative project to spend all of your time on it with no time to chill out and relax. Sanderson spent hundreds of 8-12 hour (and apparently sometimes more) days across a period of five years working on Wheel of Time and produced three novels, each over 800 pages in hardcover, in that time, which is an extremely impressive rate of production.

 

And all of the other books that he is writing at the same time, that has to be hard to concentrate on one topic. He might not be that great of a multytasker. Seems to me that he wasnt. I know that when i am trying to do 15 things at once shit becomes hard to do.

 

Sanderson himself was always exacting in telling us via his blog when he was taking time off to do other things, and produced Alloy of Law in something like two months, which is crazy. Way of Kings was long, but also very fast, as it was a book he'd already written once in draft and he just had to produce the final draft for it.

 

I think that when they asked him to finish the series for us they should of made it plain and simple that he wasnt able to write anything else until the books were done, to concentrate on this one thing. Kinda like a contract clause.

 

You are aware that it was Tor Books themselves who asked Sanderson to get new solo novels set in his own multiverse out whilst working on WoT? Sanderson himself was planning to dedicate the time fully to WoT, but Tor didn't want him to neglect his own fiction for the time period that took.

 

But he also put a bunch of his own stuff on the shelf to finish another man's work.

 

Now we know the scope of Sanderson's plans for his multiverse - a complex strand of multi-entwining storylines spanning multiple series across potentially as many as 40 novels - I think it's even more impressive he'd put his career on hold for five years to work on WoT instead. If Sanderson wants to complete his own mega-series whilst he's still relatively young and can work quickley, he really needed to get a move on with that.

[he who comes with a bong]

Hell im just going to go back to not posting that much. i cant keep track of things anymore when it comes to this. I try to make my case in point and the kids or something else always comes up and my train of thought gets derailed then it takes for ever to get back on track. That and the fact that i have been trying so very hard not to swear lol to keep in the pg13 rules hahahah. and yet again the kids interupt me on this so hell im out lol.

[MarkDiLillo]

I am totally confused as to why some people are still defending Brandon Sanderson at this point.