The Wheel Turns
December 10, 2007 1:31 PM   Subscribe

Brandon Sanderson has been selected to write the twelfth volume in the Wheel of Time, having been chosen on account of his previous books Elantris and Mistborn
posted by ChrisR (27 comments total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
As much as the latest books of WoT have dragged on, I still really want to read see how it ends. I actually just read Mistborn by choosing a fantasy book from the just returned cart in the library and enjoyed it. I've never heard of Sanderson before than, but that one book gives me a decent impression of him.
posted by recursion at 1:38 PM on December 10, 2007


non-fans go here: WP: Wheel of Time
posted by unmake at 1:40 PM on December 10, 2007


Thanks, unmake; I should have put that in there, but somehow it slipped my mind.
posted by ChrisR at 1:44 PM on December 10, 2007


I was sure that series would end with Robert Jordan...

I wonder if it'll be better than the first 11.
posted by lunit at 1:46 PM on December 10, 2007


I know that whenever there is a thread on any aspect of popular culture, people will come in and crap on it and say why they think it sucks.

However, I love the Wheel of Time. I have been reading it since I was in 9th grade and I am now a university professor. I was sad to hear of Robert Jordan's death.

I am also a fan of Brandon Sanderson's books. I have really enjoyed all 3 of his books and I think he is a very interesting choice to finish the series. I am also excited that the series will be finished.

I have been following this news all day. Brandon has been posting to various message boards to answer a few questions. It sounds like he is in Robert Jordan's home and has looked at the materials and read the outlines. It is a big task to take on someone else's work, but I am glad they found someone who is talented and also a fan.
posted by bove at 2:01 PM on December 10, 2007


Holy shit, this is the first good WOT related news I've heard, well ever. Mistborn, especially the second book, is excellent.
posted by Skorgu at 2:01 PM on December 10, 2007


<-- another big WoT fan. Glad to see it's been picked up and being written by a good writer.
posted by Dantien at 2:09 PM on December 10, 2007


The series should have ended books and books ago, but frankly I'll take any ending I can get at this point.
posted by lekvar at 2:17 PM on December 10, 2007


The really good news is he plans to finally answer who killed Asmo and what happened to Moiraine in this book. Thank the Light!
posted by Dantien at 2:25 PM on December 10, 2007


I have a friends who really got into the Wheel of Time series, but for whatever reason it never much appealed to me, truth is I never got past the first fifty or sixty pages of the first book.

The same WoT loving friend of mine also was deeply invested in a series by Weis and Hickman, can't remember the name, and was pissed for months at its ending (in which, if I recall correctly, tanks came out of a magic wall and killed everyone) which he found most unsatisfactory. He never read another book my Weis and Hickman again, and always taunted our Dragonlance loving friends that "the tanks are coming".

I hope that the long delayed ending to the Wheel of Time series will be more satisfactory for the fans.
posted by sotonohito at 2:30 PM on December 10, 2007


I'm one of those WoT fans who thinks that the books only got better. I was actually quite surprised to discover that a lot of people think it trails off towards the middle/end of the series. I loved every single word of the Wheel of Time series and I was immensely saddened by Jordan's death. My only quibble with WoT is that the Seafolk characterization gets out of control at times (so many names that are effectively indistinguishable), but everything in the last few books aside from that caveat was spectacular as far as I'm concerned. Truly explosive literature from the hands of an amazing, funny, insightful, exceptional writer.

I'm really glad to hear that somebody with talent is finishing the series, it certainly deserves a conclusion. I've already gone through about 20 different endings in my head, and none of them just quite match up the way they should.
posted by baphomet at 3:04 PM on December 10, 2007


The same WoT loving friend of mine also was deeply invested in a series by Weis and Hickman, can't remember the name, and was pissed for months at its ending

That was the Darksword series, which started off well, but blundered into all the awful rot and bullshit and garbage that the Dragonlance series did.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 3:19 PM on December 10, 2007


Wow, that's really interesting. I am behind a couple books on the WoT series (like others I got fed up with it after a while) but might have to catch up now that I know there is an actual end in sight. I really liked the Elantris, I hope Sanderson will wrap up WoT well.
posted by CwgrlUp at 3:49 PM on December 10, 2007


I've never read the guy, but I'll certainly give him a chance if it means closure. I always enjoyed WoT, but for a few of the latter books which suffered for lack of editing. The books got larger and larger, but without really adding anything beneficial than a whole lot of words that didn't add anything necessary or productive. It often felt like I was running in place while reading those books, which is the reason I really enjoyed the last couple if only because they really began advancing the plot and other such things.
posted by Atreides at 3:51 PM on December 10, 2007


I've heard there's a lot of spanking in the books. Is that true? If so, what is it like? Do you think Sanderson will continue that aspect of the stories?
posted by Crabby Appleton at 4:25 PM on December 10, 2007


Sanderson is well-respected in the fantasy community. He's shown up on a few boards to answer questions from fans and dish on the writing of his books. A solid and inventive writer with better prose than many, his taking over WOT probably will be greeted with a sigh of relief by most fans.

Sanderson is also a practicing Mormon but doesn't seem to a far-right fanatic. He recently posted his thoughts about the narrow minds who are sending mass emails urging a boycott the Golden Compass movie.

All-in-all this is good news.
posted by Ber at 4:47 PM on December 10, 2007


I guess I can put the shovels away and send the voodoo priest home then?
posted by JaredSeth at 6:47 PM on December 10, 2007 [1 favorite]


The story of Rand is really a part of my life now (for some reason I feel a strong connection to this character). I have enjoyed the entire series and I'm really happy to read this news. I know most people think it trails off at some point, but I don't. I love it the more complex it gets, the more depth added to existing characters, the more adventures and experiences they have.
posted by Danila at 6:49 PM on December 10, 2007


Awesome.
Sanderson seems to be a great guy, and I've thoroughly enjoyed his first 3 books. He's in the new vanguard of sf/f genre writers that interfacing with their fans on the internet (along with others like Daniel Abraham, Joe Abercrombie, David Durham, etc.). I am thoroughly content with this decision.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 7:16 PM on December 10, 2007


"Sanderson seems to be a great guy"

Sanderson is a great guy. He's also a very good writer, which for the purposes of finishing the Wheel of Time saga is even better.
posted by jscalzi at 8:16 PM on December 10, 2007


Thread about this on the A Song of Ice and Fire (GRRM) forums where Sanderson pops in to chat.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 4:49 AM on December 11, 2007


I intend to wait for the series to be completed... then not read any of them.
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 7:12 AM on December 11, 2007


Will this be the same tedious suck that the last, oh 8 books are so abundantly full of, or will this guy bring new suck to this streaming pile and stretch it out to absurd lengths as well?
posted by kjs3 at 1:15 PM on December 11, 2007


Would anyone here recommend that I, a 37 year old with a nerd streak, start the WoT novels?

Just wondering what the general feeling is towards the WoT books, and taking on such an immense amout of reading that I know almost nothing about. I've been looking for a good fantasy novel.
posted by jeff-o-matic at 12:09 PM on December 12, 2007


If you haven't read anything in the genre recently I'd suggest George RR Martin's series. It's the best thing going.
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 12:46 PM on December 12, 2007


i_am_a_Jedi Dunno. I finished the first one just a few days ago and thought "meh, its ok". I'm not at all sure I plan on reading any more. Mind, I'm not really a fan of fantasy, so obviously I'm not the target audience for that author or series.

Still, if I were writing fantasy even if my middle two initials really and truly were "R.R." I wouldn't use 'em, it seems too much like a "hey, look, I'm kinda like Tolkin" ploy.
posted by sotonohito at 1:33 PM on December 12, 2007


Jeff:

Jump on WoT if you rate your reading pleasure purely by volume, not on quality. Once you slog through that, you can start on Battlefield Earth.
posted by kjs3 at 5:32 PM on December 12, 2007


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