Brandon's Wheel of Time Reread on Twitter - 11/12 January 2011[]
Brandon on Twitter - 11 January 2011 I'm now onto the last part of EotW. I've mentioned before that I, personally, find this the roughest part of the entire series.
Felix Worse than books between LoC & WH? Really?
Brandon Yes, honestly. I've mentioned before I don't have the problem with those that others do.
Dovi Joel Do you mean roughest as in not well written? I love that part, I find it so epic (especially when the Creator talks to him).
Brandon None of it is poorly written. In fact, some of the scenes--such as the ways--are wonderful.
Brandon It's just that it seems like we have a different book, with different goals, starting on us here.
Brandon The climax for EotW doesn't completely click for me. I like the Ways, I like the Blight, but the entire package feels too sudden.
Brandon We spend the entire book with Tar Valon as our goal and Ba'alzamon as villain. Now, the Eye is the goal and two Forsaken are villains.
Brandon Personally, I think this is due to RJ planning books 1-3 as one novel, then discovering it was too much and creating a break-point.
Brandon To be fair, I feel I had some of the same problems at the end of Mistborn. Powers manifest that I could have foreshadowed better.
Brandon One of the great challenges as a writer, particularly in fantasy, is to learn that balance of foreshadowing vs. pacing.
Bonzi And I would think, foreshadowing effectively vs. giving away too much.
Brandon Yes, exactly.
Brandon
For those curious, I'm reasonably sure books 1-3 were one novel at first. Tom D., CEO of Tor, told me in detail of RJ's WoT pitch.
Brandon He pitched a trilogy, but the first book ended with Rand taking the sword (that wasn't a sword) from the Stone (that wasn't a stone.)
G. Michael Reynolds The sword in the stone!!! How on Earth did I miss that? :shame:
Brandon Lol. I missed it the first time too. And things like Caemlyn, Egwene, Gawyn, Galad, Merrilin. I at least got Artur Hawkwing...
Michael Ever feel like RJ removed any possibility of borrowing from any mythology ever again? He seemingly hit 'em all buffet-style.
Brandon Actually, I've felt that very thing.
James Powell I'd heard that one reason that WOT is so long is that Tor asked RJ for "more books", and he thought they meant "more WOT".
Brandon That's not actually true, from what I know. Tor never pushed RJ for more books. He was allowed to what he wanted, as he wanted.
Brandon People are noting GRRM expanded ASOIAF also. RJ and GRRM are similar types of writers: http://bit.ly/e59ox0 Search for 'gardener.'
Brandon I'm am more of an architect than a gardener. I do more 'gardening' on character, but I plan world and plot very extensively.
Felix Did RJ have a cluster of concepts, themes or concepts written down in his notes? Mindmaps? To create his story's "garden"?
Brandon Yes, many.
Brandon
You know, Lan's backstory is a lot like Superman's.
HBFFerreira Isam = Bizarro?
Brandon Lol.
sleepinghour Does Lan still have the locket from his mother? It was never mentioned again after TEoTW.
Brandon That is an excellent question.
Brandon on Twitter - 12 January 2011 "I'd like being your Warder." Rand to Egwene, near the end of EotW.
Brandon It's interesting to see how much Loial adds to these scenes. His personality is a balancing factor; calm, knowledgeable, not arrogant.
Shivam Bhatt And yet, Loial disappears in the end game. Please bring him back for the finale!
Brandon The Wheel Weaves as the Wheel Wills, and I do as I must.
Kyle West Is it hard for you to still enjoy the series now that you are "behind the scenes"?
Brandon I think I enjoy it more, now, actually. Though I am a little sad not to be able to read new WoT books when everyone else does.
Brandon Reading about the Green Man makes me think of the Jordancon costume contest. Look for him in these pics: http://bit.ly/fovZdi
Brandon One of the Forsaken attacks Lan. Nynaeve's response: Charge in with a knife. That always amused me.
Brandon Also, the foreshadowing in this sequence is brilliant. The Green Man speaks of things that become important thousands of pages away.
Brandon No, I'm not going to tell you what the VOICE at the end of EotW was. Lots of people like to ask, though.
Brandon Rand, at the end of Eye of the World. "Oh, I won't ever touch it again. Not if I have to cut my hand off, first."
Brandon The book ends with a short Moiraine viewpoint. That makes four VPs in this book by my count. Rand, Nynaeve, Perrin, Moiraine.
Jeff Edde Can Rand channel Light & Power as a result of touching the EotW, or does he have access to it because he is who he is?
Brandon It was the power in the Eye, so far as I know.
Non sequituri
Thomas Grossnickle What philosophies have influenced WoT? I feelt a bit of the Hindu Creator, Preserver, & Destroyer ...
Thomas ...with LTT an avatar of preservation and Rand the Destroyer...
Thomas Who destroys the world when it is beyond preserving, only to create it anew.
Brandon I see a lot of that too. I'm convinced RJ blended something from most major philosophies and mythologies into the books.