Relationship between Cosmere and enjoyment of Brandon's work

[yahas he/him]

So this is something that's just bothered me - I saw a comment on reddit recently that essentially said that reading Brandon's other novels is not really that essential for someone who wishes to enjoy the Stormlight Archive.

 

This bothered me primarily because my own opinion was quite different - the Easter Eggs to the other Shardworlds were as interesting to me as the worldbuilding for Roshar itself - I think I may not have enjoyed the books as much if there weren't Elantris references in tWoK and Warbreaker references in WoR.

 

Another aspect of this is Hoid/Wit. I think Wit would not have the depth of characterization that he has for me presently if I didn't know who/what he was - if I was Cosmere unaware, I'd just be confused and think he's a Herald of some sort. With the knowledge of the Cosmere, Wit really becomes a much much more interesting character, at least imo.

 

Furthermore, it's interesting to note that I enjoy and wait for Cosmere novels far far more - with the exception of the Rithmatist, I don't enjoy Brandon's non-cosmere (Steelheart, Alcatraz and Legion) anywhere near as much as I enjoy the Cosmere novels, and even Rithmatist I didn't like enough to reread more than once (in contrast to, say Cosmere stories, most of which I've read upwards of five times). If Brandon decided, for example, that he wasn't going to get Alcatraz 5 published, I really wouldn't care all that much - if he decided not to publish the Mistborn modern/sci-fi trilogies instead? I would freak.

 

So essentially, my question is where do you guys fall in the spectrum? Are you closer to me (wherein Cosmere is integral to your enjoyment of Brandon's work) or are you closer to the random reddit commenter (wherein you don't think the Cosmere references are worth enough to read books you may not be interested in), or are you somewhere in between?

[Khyrindor he/him]

By themselves, they are still great books. Before I was Cosmere aware, I loved them and read them over and over. I think of it as enhanced reading, similar to going to a 3D movie as opposed to a regular one. But I do agree, for me, when I became Cosmere aware, I was obsessed.

[Tien'sPetLurg she/her]

It's an interesting question. I enjoyed the books very much before I had heard of the Cosmere. Once I became familiar with it, it added another layer of depth and complexity to an already rich experience. 

I wish I'd seen a particular interview with Brandon before I read Alloy of Law. I was just buying books without any research into the author and his thoughts, goals, etc. To be honest, that's how I usually live. I don't normally become a fan in the sense of visiting an author's site or consider going to book signings, conventions, etc. So when I read Alloy of Law, a part of me thought of it as almost a throw away novel. I enjoyed humorous nods to the "past" and the story itself was pretty good, but it was such a departure from the 3rd book in the Mistborn series. (Of course the 3rd book in that series was a huge departure/mental leap from the 1st book and my mind had been sufficiently blown.) It wasn't until the end, when an old character (avoiding spoilers as best as possible for anyone reading) was mentioned that I thought "It just got interesting!" and it was over. LOL But the interview Brandon did mentioned he wanted to write some kind of quick reads that could stand alone as stories. This made sense to me. I enjoy that he challenges himself as a writer to play with the complexity of story and language to suit readers of different ages, interests and attention spans. I see that he is constantly challenging himself to see just what all he can do rather than fall into a lazy pattern of doing what seems to work for him and come naturally. Or maybe all of this comes easily and naturally. If that's the case, WOW- That's talent.

So, to get back to your question, my experience has been enriched by learning more about the author and the Cosmere. There are parts of WoK that probably don't make a lot of sense if you haven't heard of the Cosmere. I suppose the casual reader might just gloss over those parts? I think he's writing more and more so that readers will need to hear about it. (letters to Hoid, etc)  

[Kobold King he/him]

Well... I personally think that knowledge of the Cosmere increases enjoyment. Whenever a character gazes up at the night sky, I happily think "We as the readers have seen worlds around those stars. This truly is a vast universe unfolding before my eyes."

 

Hoid also becomes infinitely more interesting, if a little frustrating. You read through the books, reveling in the mystery, soaking up any clues you can possibly gather. Then Hoid comes along, and you realize "This man knows all the answers. This man is important, and the sheer scale of his importance transcends the very book he appears in." Hoid's story will not be completed in Stormlight, or the first three Mistborn novels, or Warbreaker, or any of the other books we've seen him in. When we read the about the exploits and quirkiness of Hoid, we catch a glimpse of a much vaster storyline.

 

WoR spoilers:

NIGHTBLOOD! I can't imagine what it would be like reading that chapter of WoR without knowing exactly who and what Nightblood is. His single line is shocking and surprised me more than anything else in the whole novel. Some of the impact of the revelation is lost to someone who isn't familiar with the character in the first place. It's like... reading The Wheel of Time and seeing Conan the Barbarian pop up unexpectedly and teaming up with Lan. It is awesomely epic and surprising.

[Iredomi]

Yahas I agree with you in that I enjoy Brandon's Cosmere work a heck of a lot more than his other books. I started Rithmatist and thought it was interesting but had no motivation to continue. Alcatraz just fell flat for me, was humourous but I think I need more than that. Finally Steelheart... I read like a couple of chapters and just couldn't keep going. It has got to be the worst thing Brandon has written by a mile. I was shocked at how much I disliked something by my favourite author but there you go. Umm of course I think it's not due to his Cosmere work being Cosmere that makes them better, I just think that the stories he writes in the Cosmere tend to be of a type I enjoy more. So without the overarching story and connection I would still enjoy those books.

 

Edit: Having the Cosmere stuff only enhances the stories though.

Edited June 24, 2014 by Iredomi