Radiance Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 So I am a new Brandon Sanderson reader, and have only fully read one book of his; which was Steelheart. I have just started reading The Way Of Kings, I have the second Stormlight Novel and I also have Elantris. I am only on Chapter 7 of TWOK and I understand don't get me wrong but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. This is my first epic fantasy novel of this size and I am sort of having a information overload. I will read a chapter and than feel like I missed something important. Should I take notes? Is this normal? Am I weird? haha * not the place for this so ignore if you want but I heard about Sandersons Cosmere... Is the TWOK okay to read if I havn't read any of the other books in the cosmere? How do I know when Hoid is in the books or anything along the cosmere lines? * Also are these random quotes before very chaper important at all because I am making no sense of them atm... 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elenion Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 2 minutes ago, darceymckelvey said: I am only on Chapter 7 of TWOK and I understand don't get me wrong but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. This is my first epic fantasy novel of this size and I am sort of having a information overload. I will read a chapter and than feel like I missed something important. Should I take notes? Is this normal? Am I weird? haha Most long high fantasy works feel overwhelming at times, especially to readers new to the genre. Taking notes is one option, but another is just to reread right after you finish. By then you'll have an intuitive grasp of character names, motivations, magic, etc. that will allow you to focus on the smaller details. 3 minutes ago, darceymckelvey said: * not the place for this so ignore if you want but I heard about Sandersons Cosmere... Is the TWOK okay to read if I havn't read any of the other books in the cosmere? How do I know when Hoid is in the books or anything along the cosmere lines? * You're totally fine with reading WoK without reading other Cosmere works. Cosmere knowledge isn't essential to the story, but is helpful in finding little easter eggs, as well as understanding the significance of some of the interludes. 5 minutes ago, darceymckelvey said: Also are these random quotes before very chaper important at all because I am making no sense of them atm... The epigraphs are not essential to the story. You will understand them more once you identify the significance of the source material (each SA book is like this). What they are good for is for Cosmere theorists to pick out tiny world-details with, as well as showing sample passages from the quoted work to the reader. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magestar Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 (edited) 7 hours ago, Elenion said: Most long high fantasy works feel overwhelming at times, especially to readers new to the genre. Taking notes is one option, but another is just to reread right after you finish. By then you'll have an intuitive grasp of character names, motivations, magic, etc. that will allow you to focus on the smaller details. I reread WoK two days after I read it the first time, after I finished WoR. It really helped. I, personally, would at least read Warbreaker before reading WoR. Just because of a little easter egg that I absolutely loved. Apart from that, I think that the reading order is really what you feel like. Mistborn is a good series as well. Also, as this appears to be your first post, Welcome to The Shard! Have a cookie, and an Upvote. Edited August 27, 2016 by Magestar 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxal Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 10 hours ago, darceymckelvey said: So I am a new Brandon Sanderson reader, and have only fully read one book of his; which was Steelheart. I have just started reading The Way Of Kings, I have the second Stormlight Novel and I also have Elantris. I am only on Chapter 7 of TWOK and I understand don't get me wrong but I am feeling a bit overwhelmed. This is my first epic fantasy novel of this size and I am sort of having a information overload. I will read a chapter and than feel like I missed something important. Should I take notes? Is this normal? Am I weird? haha * not the place for this so ignore if you want but I heard about Sandersons Cosmere... Is the TWOK okay to read if I havn't read any of the other books in the cosmere? How do I know when Hoid is in the books or anything along the cosmere lines? * Also are these random quotes before very chaper important at all because I am making no sense of them atm... If you aren't used to reading large epic fantasy books, then this perfectly normal My advice it don't sweet it and do not take notes or try to remember every single details. Just read and enjoy the ride: it will all fall into places eventually. Do not stress out about the Cosmere either, you can go back to this bout afterwards if you are interested. For now, just focus on the story you are reading, focus on the elements you enjoy, the particularity of each plot lines, the distinctive voice of the various characters, not the small tiny elements you may not catch on. The story, it is all about the story, so let is draw you in. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torrieltar Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 This is absolutely normal, and you're definitely not alone there. I remember being really confused at the beginning of The Way of Kings. What's a spren? What's a chull? Why are there so many disconnected viewpoint characters, and why are there so many time-skips? What do Kaladin, Dalinar, and Shallan have to do with each other? Now, I can say that The Way of Kings is my favorite book, bar none. With that in mind, here are a few tips that might help you out. First, and most importantly, you're not expected to remember all of the information that you're being presented. A huge chunk of the information about the world and characters in The Way of Kings is there more to set the tone and atmosphere than to provide plot-relevant details--this applies to things like the epigraphs (the random quotes at the beginning of each chapter) and the Interlude chapters, which mostly feature one-off characters who don't impact the narrative in a meaningful way. It's meant to just sort of wash over you. It's OK not to understand everything that's going on, and it was intended to be that way. It's a lot of fun to go through these things with a fine-toothed comb on a re-read, but in my opinion taking notes on all of those things on your first time through would be detrimental to your reading experience. (This also applies to anything related to the Cosmere--it's interesting on a re-read, but definitely non-essential to your enjoyment of the story.) Related to the first point, the things that are important to the plot are things that will come up often enough over the course of the story that you'll remember them when they matter. Most of the time, I didn't realize they were clues at all when I read them, but I definitely remembered them. Just focus on Kaladin, Shallan, and Dalinar, and you'll be fine. Third, The Way of Kings is a bit of a slow starter, even in the realm of epic fantasy. Sometimes, it'll feel like nothing at all is happening, but everything is build-up for the awesome climax at the end. And it really is AWESOME! Definitely one of the most satisfying endings I've ever read. Lastly, just trust Brandon to tell a good story. He often says that The Stormlight Archive is something that is intended for readers who already trust him, which is why he can take liberties and add things like all of the epigraphs and Interludes. If it's really not coming together for you, then I would suggest you put it on hold for a little bit while you read a some more of Brandon's other books to build up that trust. Good luck! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+hwiles Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 Welcome to the forums! I got hooked on the Cosmere by starting with WoK after reading Sanderson's work on helping to finish The Wheel of Time series, so I can tell you without hesitation that starting with the Stormlight Archive is absolutely feasible. I've included a chart of stories in the Cosmere; you sound genuinely interested in plotting your course through this complex world, so I'd recommend giving it at least a quick look through to get a feel for how things connect at the macro level. I strongly recommend against taking notes on a first, or even second, read through. If you feel inspired and like you really want to, that's a different story. If you miss something or get confused, which isn't crazy or unusual, I'd put the book down, try a different one, then start over. The Cosmere won't be finished for...I think Sanderson's last estimate was 20+ years...so you got some time to chill and take breaks as needed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maple Duke Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 I'm in total agreement with everyone here, SA has totally ruined epic fantasy for me because no one else can write a story as well as Brandon Sanderson. That said, I would recommend that, if you can't seem to figure out what's going on, read some of Sanderson's other books to get a feel for his writing style. Chulls, chasmfiends, spren, and all that other stuff you will figure out. I sent the longest time thinking chulls looked like oxen with shells. The thing with his world building style is he literally lets the world build. In my opinion he gives you just enough information to form a seed of his worlds and as you read more that seed will grow and it will be trimmed and eventually it will be as real as the chair you curl up in as you read his books. You just have to give it time and keep reading. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ARARITA Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 I read the Mistborn trilogy first - I would recommend that followed by Elantris and Warbreaker - definitely read Warbreaker prior to WoR Welcome ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The One Who Connects Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 Brandon has said multiple times that he wants to keep his different worlds as separate as he can so that people can just pick up one and not be missing important stuff from a different series. That doesn't stop him from having a few people make cameos if you can recognize them, but easter eggs are fun As for taking notes, if you read a few theories on here you'd know that we forget details all the time. That's normal Last thing is that Way of Kings is ~1,000 pages of story. You're going to get confused and lost now and then. If you feel like writing down what chapters lost you so you can reread them afterwards, that's fine 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argel Posted August 27, 2016 Report Share Posted August 27, 2016 44 minutes ago, The One Who Connects said: Brandon has said multiple times that he wants to keep his different worlds as separate as he can so that people can just pick up one and not be missing important stuff from a different series. Especailly SA. He wants it to be able to stand on it's own. Mistborn may be the series with the most spillover (at least as it ties into the main story), but still mostly stand-alone, at least so far. Since Mistborn Era 3 will be a modern setting and Mistborn Era 4 will be Sci-Fi there is plenty of opportunities for him to slip more Cosmere stuff in and I would not be surprised if some bigger Cosmere events eventually play a part. For example, with FTL (Faster Than Light) travel, they will presumably go to other worlds, which opens up all kinds of possibilities. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Radiance Posted August 28, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 28, 2016 20 hours ago, darceymckelvey said: Thanks so much for the helpful replies I was not expecting this actually. I'm am glad I have found out about these forums. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argel Posted August 28, 2016 Report Share Posted August 28, 2016 It's also worth noting that epic fantasy is meant to be overwhelming because of the deep world building. Tolkien started it with the deep world building. Then Robert Jordan started the Wheel of Time, which added the "insane number of books" aspect, and tons of plot threads to the mix. Being a pioneer of sorts, Robert Jordan made soem mistakes, letting the story get away from him (plus pacing issues, most noticeable in CoT). After Robert Jordan passed away, Bransdon was chosen to wrap up the Wheel of Time. On the one hand, this significantly delayed the SA, but it was also a huge learning opportunity for Brandon and is a large reason why the books have a strict structure. The Interludes stand out to me the most on this front because they are a great way to solve the problem of too many characters, too many interwoven plat threads, etc. The epigraphs are another way to slip information in without derailing the story. They are also a good way to imply that more than one read-through is a good idea. As a side note, the opposite approach can be seen in Steven Erikson's Malazon Book of the Fallen, which drops the reader right into the middle of things with very little explanation, time jumps around hundreds of thousands of years, introduces a whole new cast part way through the series, and all kinds of other crazy things. We only have two books in SA, but based on those I would say it's one of the most accessible epic fantasy series due to the structuring. Malazan Book of the Fallen is probably the least accessible and should only be read after a healthy dose of other fantasy series out there. Anyway, welcome to the 17th Shard! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugsy Posted August 28, 2016 Report Share Posted August 28, 2016 Welcome to the forums! Have an upvote! Oh, and don't take the cookie, it's dangerous. My personal strategy for reading epic fantasy is to get it as a kindle book, so I can do quick searches for character names Other than that, I agree with everyone else; just try to immerse yourself in the story, and it'll work out. After you finish reading WoK, I'd suggest reading Warbreaker and Emperor's Soul, then doing a reread of WoK, and then finally starting WoR. It'll help you with some of the WoR concepts, hopefully 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts