don't look at any comments until you watch the video

  • Evilsandwichman [none/use name]
    ·
    3 years ago

    At the risk of riling up his passive aggressive fanbase....his prose isn't that good. Are the stories good? No idea, I can't stomach reading any of his books for too long. Stephen King also churns out books like a printing press but he's got skill at prose. Branderson's writing makes me feel dead inside. Literature can be absolutely beautiful, and the last unicorn by Peter Beagle must've been one of the more beautiful things I've ever read. Stephen King is also a master of the craft, to the extent that in his novel misery whose protagonist is an author, you can read the fantastic prose of Stephen's versus the average, mediocre writing of his protagonist whose works is excerpted in the story (the contrast is brilliant).

    Branderson....can certainly pump those books out, but they lack the beautiful imagery and literary tools you can get from others. I've heard the novel Gormeghast (spelling?) was written by a guy who also paints and who used his knowledge of painting in his literature so I feel like I'd like to read that one day. One of the other issues is that Branderson is an avid gamer.....and in at least one of his novels you could almost swear you knew what he played before he wrote it. He's a big fan of magic systems, and in at least in 'way of kings' and 'mistborn', you could almost swear these would be great for video games. Heck, there's even limited mana-like qualities to the magic.

    But honestly for me the worst offender is the truly lackluster (basically non-existent) prose. I just can't read any of his stories all the way through.

    • Meh [comrade/them]
      ·
      3 years ago

      As a fan of his work, you're absolutely right. Sanderson himself is pretty upfront that he's not a prose focused author. I enjoy the stories he tells and the greater world he fleshes out but they're light reads. Which I don't think there is anything wrong with but is also something that people who like his work need to be realistic about.

    • discontinuuity [he/him]
      ·
      3 years ago

      You hit the nail on the head. I got about halfway through The Way of Kings before I had to put it down, there was just nothing compelling about it.

      You're right about it feeling like a video game. Portions felt like watching someone else play Dynasty Warriors.

    • anaesidemus [he/him]
      hexagon
      ·
      3 years ago

      Yeah, but his characters and the situations they face are enough for me. And those delicious plot twists at the end.

      I know there were some gripes from WoT fans after he took over the last three books, the story was finished in a respectable, workmanlike fashion but some of the magic of Robert Jordans prose was lost.