298 replies to this topic

[kcf]

Werthead, on 04 May 2012 - 02:13 PM, said:

The 3 prologues were all written by Jordan, as far as I'm aware, as they were supposed to be the super-prologue for the one-volume version of AMoL he was working on when he passed away.

That's not entirely true. Sanderson certainly had a hand in at least part of the prologues. For example, the part of the prologue for TGS where we see random farmer in Saldea - one of Sanderson's standard 'stump speaches' from that tour was a description of the editing process he went through with Harriet for that scene.

edit: and I was amused that the direction Harriet was taking things is almost the exact opposite of what we see these days - basically, more detail and description.

Edited by kcf, 04 May 2012 - 02:22 PM.

[Werthead]

Oh yeah, that's right. If I recall, the prologue had to be fleshed out (as split three ways it would have been too short for each book) by Sanderson. A lot of it was Jordan though.

[wolverine]

Werthead, on 05 May 2012 - 05:54 AM, said:

Oh yeah, that's right. If I recall, the prologue had to be fleshed out (as split three ways it would have been too short for each book) by Sanderson. A lot of it was Jordan though.

What is too short for a prologue?

[Werthead]

wolverine, on 05 May 2012 - 09:31 AM, said:

What is too short for a prologue?

'Traditionally', a WoT prologue is 70-100 pages long. There seems to have been a desire to keep things to the way Jordan would have done them, so the prologues still 'need' to be quite long (although they are shorter in the last two, IIRC about 50 pages each).

[Earth Boy]

I started reading the first book recently and am currently around page 100. I was impressed by the length of the series and since I'm all about epicness I decided to read it; but now as I read the first chapters, it seems sooo childish and incredibly obvius. It feels like i'm reading the beginning of LOTR/The Hobbit all over again, this meaning, that it would be a great book if I were 12 years old.

My question is, does it get more mature than this or does the story keep this pace for another 11 books? Because if so I won't waste my time. I'm guessing that maybe GRRM ruined other books for me.

Edited by Earth Boy, 12 May 2012 - 03:18 PM.

[Apathetic Minimalist]

Earth Boy, on 12 May 2012 - 03:14 PM, said:

I started reading the first book recently and am currently around page 100. I was impressed by the length of the series and since I'm all about epicness I decided to read it; but now as I read the first chapters, it seems sooo childish and incredibly obvius. It feels like i'm reading the beginning of LOTR/The Hobbit all over again, this meaning, that it would be a great book if I were 12 years old.

My question is, does it get more mature than this or does the story keep this pace for another 11 books? Because if so I won't waste my time. I'm guessing that maybe GRRM ruined other books for me.

It does mature a lot over the next 6 books, however if you are looking for something "adult" in the sense of swearing and sex then this won't be for you.

[Arthmail]

Or if by adult you mean adult interactions between male and female characters, look elsewhere. Or if you want books to go somewhere, plot wise, best to move on as well.

[Christine K]

I don't want to read all of the replies and get any spoilers, but I was going to buy book 1 of A Wheel of Time, so do you guys think I'll like it? Obviously I love A Song of Ice and Fire and that's my favorite series and then I also love The Lord of the Rings andthe  Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy

[Corvinus]

Christine K, on 12 May 2012 - 04:44 PM, said:

I don't want to read all of the replies and get any spoilers, but I was going to buy book 1 of A Wheel of Time, so do you guys think I'll like it? Obviously I love A Song of Ice and Fire and that's my favorite series and then I also love The Lord of the Rings andthe  Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy

If you love both ASOIAF and LOTR then I am pretty sure you'll love The Wheel of Time. It is a very long series, but it's almost at its end now, with the final book scheduled for January 2013. So I see no reason for someone to start reading this series at this point (unless you think the world will end in December ) Some people have stuck with it since the early 90s. I myself have been a fan of it since 2005, and I have no regrets.

Recently I have given some thought on which series is my favorite. At this point, I can say that story-wise, The Wheel of Time is #1 with A Song of Ice and Fire close behind it. But I love the world in ASOIAF more than the world in WoT.

[Christine K]

Corvinus, on 12 May 2012 - 04:58 PM, said:

Recently I have given some thought on which series is my favorite. At this point, I can say that story-wise, The Wheel of Time is #1 with A Song of Ice and Fire close behind it. But I love the world in ASOIAF more than the world in WoT.

Thanks so much! I'll definitely read it then. You made me excited to read it!

[imladolen]

never mind, found my answer to the question that originally comprised this post

Edited by imlad, 12 May 2012 - 05:40 PM.

[jagilki]

I've never been able to answer on "favorite" book series or anything like that, but despite... or maybe in spite of it's problems, I'll always enjoy the Wheel of Time books.  Maybe it was more the sense of anticipation back when books 4-6 or so were just freshly getting ready to come out.  Either way, like I said this is a series I'll always enjoy in spite of it's problems.

*tugs braid, folds arms under moobs*

[Earth Boy]

Apathetic Minimalist, on 12 May 2012 - 03:31 PM, said:

It does mature a lot over the next 6 books, however if you are looking for something "adult" in the sense of swearing and sex then this won't be for you.

Arthmail, on 12 May 2012 - 04:41 PM, said:

Or if by adult you mean adult interactions between male and female characters, look elsewhere. Or if you want books to go somewhere, plot wise, best to move on as well.

I didn't mean I'm looking for swearing or sex, I know it's a fantasy book. I meant it just seems full of predictable characters and literary cliches.
Well i'll finish the first 3 books and see how it goes. Thanks for the answers !

[wolverine]

Earth Boy, on 13 May 2012 - 07:09 AM, said:

I didn't mean I'm looking for swearing or sex, I know it's a fantasy book. I meant it just seems full of predictable characters and literary cliches.
Well i'll finish the first 3 books and see how it goes. Thanks for the answers !

Literary cliches or fantasy cliches?

I have read the series for about 10 years now and I have no regrets.  Am I as enthusiastic about it now as I was at one point?  Probably not but I have still gotten a ton of enjoyment from the series.

[David Selig]

Earth Boy, on 13 May 2012 - 07:09 AM, said:

I didn't mean I'm looking for swearing or sex, I know it's a fantasy book. I meant it just seems full of predictable characters and literary cliches.
Well i'll finish the first 3 books and see how it goes. Thanks for the answers !

The first book (especially the first 150-200 pages which Jordan himself admitted are intentionally similar to LOTR) is the most cliched by far, after that things get much better in this regard.

[aryasthebomb]

Thinking about starting this series since its deemed such a classic, but a have a few questions.  Is this story worth the very long read? How is the writing as in is it hard to follow? Is it gritty? How is the violence handled as in is it like a grrm or sanderson novel or more in lines with tolkien? Any feedback would be greatly apreciated

[williamjm]

aryasthebomb, on 14 May 2012 - 12:46 PM, said:

Thinking about starting this series since its deemed such a classic, but a have a few questions.  Is this story worth the very long read? How is the writing as in is it hard to follow? Is it gritty? How is the violence handled as in is it like a grrm or sanderson novel or more in lines with tolkien? Any feedback would be greatly apreciated

Jordan's writing is easy to follow. It's not a particularly gritty story, and the violence isn't described as graphically as in GRRM's work. I'd say it was closer to Sanderson than GRRM (although I've only read Elantris and his Wheel of Time books out of Sanderson's work). Some elements are reminiscent of Tolkien (the start of the first book is deliberately meant to echo The Shire), but there's not much similarity in his writing style.

[Mikael]

It's too late to get the full experience really, but as far as fantasy goes I'd still say it's the series I've enjoyed the most.

[aryasthebomb]

Mikael, on 14 May 2012 - 01:13 PM, said:

It's too late to get the full experience really, but as far as fantasy goes I'd still say it's the series I've enjoyed the most.

what do you mean its too late? R u saying unless youve started the series way back when you wont enjoy it as much? That doesnt seem to make sense to me

Edited by aryasthebomb, 14 May 2012 - 07:28 PM.

[Werthead]

aryasthebomb, on 14 May 2012 - 07:26 PM, said:

what do you mean its too late? R u saying unless youve started the series way back when you wont enjoy it as much? That doesnt seem to make sense to me

I think they mean that the 'full experience' includes spending years between volumes of the series theorising over where the story is going next and what's going on (like with ASoIaF). However, the heyday for that in WoT fandom was a good decade ago or more. Now I think most people want to just read the ending.