Should I read the Way of Kings Prime?

[Cone Slice]

I'm not yet done with the Stormlight Archive, but once I'm finished reading all of the Stormlight books, including the novellas, would it be worth it to read the Way of Kings Prime? I will be sad when I finish it 

[Frustration]

I like Prime more than the published Way of Kings

[Treamayne]

This is very much a YMMV* question, as it at least partially depends on how much you enjoy alternate versions and/or seeing "could-have-beens."

If you are unsure if that is something you might enjoy, may I suggest possibly taking a look at Altered Perceptions - an anthology that supports Mental Health Charity and was put together by Dan Wells (in support of his brother Robison Wells - and others struggling with mental illness). Sanderson was a contributor - and excerpts from WoK Prime were his contribution (CH 1, 3, 5, 12, 17, 22), so you can read some excerpts and see if it is something you might enjoy or not.

Excerpt from the Introduction:

Spoiler

Introduction

By: Dan Wells

When my brother Rob and I were little, I used to play a game I called “See How Easy It Is to Bug Him?” This is the kind of thing that older brothers do. The game was simpler than you probably think: just go into a public place and attract attention. That’s literally all it took. There we’d be, waiting for the bus or walking through a store or even just sitting in our front yard, and I’d start to sing really loudly or stand on one foot or whatever, and someone would turn their head to see what was happening, and Rob would fly into a rage.

<snip>

This anthology, in a weird kind of way, is about that difference in trajectory. Just like people, some stories grow up one way and some stories grow up another way, and in slightly different circumstances one story could go in any number of different directions. When we set out to put together an anthology to help raise awareness of mental illness, we decided to focus not on the illness itself—most of these contributions are not stories about mental illness—but on the subtle differences that can send a story, or a life, down a completely unexpected path. Most of the stories you’ll read here are alternate versions of stories you’ve read in other forms, but seen through a slightly different lens; you’ll find deleted scenes from bestselling books, or early drafts where beloved characters make different and sometimes very surprising choices. Think of it as a glimpse into an alternate world, to things that might have been but aren’t.

In another way, this anthology is about itself: about the need to raise awareness of mental illness. Every story in here is accompanied by a brief note or essay from the author, explaining their own personal connection to mental illness.

<snip>

If there’s one thing that my brother’s experience has taught me, it’s that mental illness is not weird. It’s not rare, it’s not creepy, and it’s not a sign of personal weakness. The medical community estimates that one in four adults has a quantifiable mental disorder—that’s not rare, that’s more common than blond hair. That’s ten times more common than green eyes. Look around the room right now; think about your family, and your friends, and your coworkers: one quarter of the people in your life are suffering from a mental illness. If you don’t know who they are, it’s your job to find out. Don’t let them suffer alone. You can give help and love and support to so many people who need it, who might not have anyone else who’s paying enough attention to give it to them. So let’s do better. Let’s recognize mental illness, and do what we can to fight it, and help others to be more aware of it both in our individual circles and in our society as a whole.

Let’s do this.

Contents:

Spoiler

Shannon Hale - Ravenous
Seanan McGuire - Cybernetic Space Princess from Mars/Third-person draft chapter from InCryptid
Mary Robinette Kowal - The Nature of Masks/Deleted scene from Valour and Vanity
Jessica Day George - Playing Cards with the Corley
Howard Tayler - “No. I’m Fine.”
Sandra Tayler - Married to Depression
Bree Despain - The Author and the A-Word/Deleted epilogue from The Lost Saint: Aftermath/Alternate first chapter from Into the Dark: The Shadow Prince: Haden
Lauren Oliver - Sections from the first draft of Pandemonium
Jacqueline Novak - Notes from a Depressed Humor Writer as She Works on Her Humorous Book about Depression
Larry Correia - Deleted scene from Swords of Exodus
Shawn Speakman - Unused chapter from The Dark Thorn
Annette Lyon - Excerpt from Song for Anna
SJ Kincaid - Original chapter one from Vortex
J Scott Savage - Early chapters from Farworld
Robison Wells - Epilogue to Feedback: Supernova
Dan Wells - Free-write prologue to I Am Not a Serial Killer
Luisa Perkins - Seeing Red
Nancy Campbell Allen - Bonus chapter from Beauty and the Clockwork Beast: Marie
Sara Zarr - Family Portrait at the Kensington Manor Hotel
Aprilynne Pike - Three stories from the world of Wings
Kiersten White - Womb
Brodi Ashton - The first three chapters of The Echo Lives in Blackfoot
Josi Kilpack - Book 8, which became Tres Leches Cupcake
Brandon Mull - Bonus excerpts from Beyonders book 2: Oracular Interviews
Jennifer Moore - Deleted scene from Becoming Lady Lockwood
Sarah M. Eden - From Longing for Home and Hope Springs: Farewells
Erin Bowman - Prewriting from the Taken Trilogy
John C. Wright - Lunar Sacrament of Conciliation
Claudia Gray - Deleted chapter from A Thousand Pieces of You: Station 47
Brandon Sanderson - Deleted scenes from the 2002 version of The Way of Kings

 

 

 

*Your Mileage May Vary

Edited June 27, 2023 by Treamayne

[Aismeen]

The Way of Kings Prime is definitely an interesting read, especially in trying to guess what parts of it will actually make it into the canon series. I would recommend it, but keep in mind that it is a completely different story than WoK (it focuses mostly on Jasnah and Taln, for example).