Wheel of Time Discussion - Spoilers(with book spoilers)

[Demetrios1453]

Jordan HAD an editor - his wife, and that was the problem.

She was by all accounts an excellent editor (acknowledged as the top editor at a fairly prestigious publishing house) - but she was just to close and couldn't edit as objectively as with a "regular" client.

Somewhere into the series she even acknowledged that while she was still the listed editor she basically let her husband do his own editing and while she might offer input she wouldn't force changes.

And as a result, having to cut things for a televised version of the series is something of a silver lining at times, especially in some of the middle books wheres there's plenty of room for pruning excess material...

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

And as a result, having to cut things for a televised version of the series is something of a silver lining at times, especially in some of the middle books wheres there's plenty of room for pruning excess material...

That's certainly something I'm looking forward to with the TV series -- some solid editing and streamlining (to be fair, ASOIAF really needs this in spades, especially post-ASOS).

I stalled out and crashed on the books about book 7 when long stretches of nothing happening but skirt smoothing, sniffing, and braid tugging happened. My wife and I eventually came back and listened to the entire series on audiobook on long trips, which made it more palatable,. I still think Brandon Sanderson was the best thing to happen to the series. Jordan set up the win, but he was not a closer -- Sanderson is a closer.

 

[Parmandur]

That's certainly something I'm looking forward to with the TV series -- some solid editing and streamlining (to be fair, ASOIAF really needs this in spades, especially post-ASOS).

I stalled out and crashed on the books about book 7 when long stretches of nothing happening but skirt smoothing, sniffing, and braid tugging happened. My wife and I eventually came back and listened to the entire series on audiobook on long trips, which made it more palatable,. I still think Brandon Sanderson was the best thing to happen to the series. Jordan set up the win, but he was not a closer -- Sanderson is a closer.

I think Jordan could have finished eventually...but it wouldn't have been as efficient.

 

[Maxperson]

I think Jordan could have finished eventually...but it wouldn't have been as efficient.

And given Rand's personality as Jordan wrote it, I sincerely doubt Rand would have ended things the way that he did.

 

[Parmandur]

And given Rand's personality as Jordan wrote it, I sincerely doubt Rand would have ended things the way that he did.

I dunno, I think that is how Jordan meant it to end (since IIRC that was 100% his text, no Sanderson), but he had some difficulty making the final connection.

 

[TheSword]

I don’t know why people think Jordan wouldn’t have finished. In Book 11 he moves the plot on extensively.

I really do think books 10-15 fly by.

Though I do agree with @Olgar Shiverstone that the audio books are a great way to enjoy the series.

 

[Parmandur]

I don’t know why people think Jordan wouldn’t have finished. In Book 11 he moves the plot on extensively.

I really do think books 10-15 fly by.

Though I do agree with @Olgar Shiverstone that the audio books are a great way to enjoy the series.

Given how desperate he was to have one final book, yet how.packed 12-14 ended up being, it's unclear how he would have ended it in the final tally. I think he would have, but it may have taken more time.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

It has been too long since I read one of his books (about 25 years) to agree or disagree on his characters, but I do remember being immersed and liking his characterization, for the most part. One of his well-known weaknesses was the saminess of his females, all sort of Polgara variants (and the infamous tugging of braids), but that is hardly unusual for male writers.

None of them are even similar to any of the others, and frankly I'm not sure any are similar to Polgara.

The braid tugging is down more to Jordan's interest in small details that a more pro writer, like Sanderson or Martin, might not dwell on. Jordan's stated influences were all 19th century authors, and sometimes it shows.

You might want to read up on James Oliver Rigney's other credits under other names and his other work under the pseudonym Robert Jordan, such as his many Conan works which are widely considered some of the best works by secondary authors, before calling either of those authors more "pro" than him.

I like Sanderson, but he is absolutely in Jordan's shadow in nearly every respect, and Martin is...fine, but overrated, and his impact is nowhere near that of Jordan's, nor is his body of work.

The small details are not a weakness, they're just a style of writing that you don't necessarily prefer.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

He, like Martin, needed an editor very badly.

He had multiple editors, one of which was his wife. Luckily, they understood the work, and that not every work needs to be zippy and concise.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

We all have things we do when nervous or angry, but we don't do them any times.

Every single real life human I have ever met puts lie to this claim.