ohhhh The interludes.

[TousenShadowForged he/him]

I like some of the interludes and I understand its needed to tell about others.

but darn it I hate every time I get drawn in on one persons story it gets good or intense  and i want to know more and wham interlude!!!!

 

each book I was like NOOOOOOOOO why???!!!!!! lol.   How do any of you feel about it?

[Toaster Retribution he/him]

I mean, some Interlude characters, such as Rysn or Axies are fan-favorites who a lot of people want to see more of. Others I don’t care about.

But it sucks that Axies won’t get much more page-time. 

[Ciridae]

The interludes are one of my favourite things about Stormlight. I love Brandon's worldbuilding, and so the interludes are always a treat. I don't love all of them, and I was actually a little disappointed that in OB they weren't as great as in the first two books. But it's great when the main characters talk about Reshi or Aimia, and a few chapters later we get to see what those places are like. Plus, a good chunk of the interludes contain the novella, and I really liked the Szeth, Eshonai, and Venli chapters. 

The interludes make Roshar feel huge, and Brandon has done such a good job of combining incredibly character driven stories with a diverse, interesting and completely strange setting. 

[TrдVψLшR 0115 he/him]

I totally know what u mean. I did the exact same thing. Even if it was something interesting, I was like I have to know what happens! I didn’t want to lose the momentum I guess. But now I storming love it for the same reasons talked about. They make the story and world feel huge. Like there is so much to explore

[Journey Before Pancakes]

They can definitely throw me off for a second.

That said, when Rysn had a scene in OB, I was pretty pumped to see where that was going.  Having reoccurring interlude characters is definitely something I think would be cool; but I'm not sure if it would fit the purpose of Brandon's interludes very well.  For example, I would love to see what our three friends from the Purelake have gotten up to; but it's not clear if they are still on Roshar.

[Willshaping Crasher]

While I agree that it can be jarring at times, I think the interludes provide more context into Roshar as a whole.  In addition, Rysn from interludes has already had an impact on the main storyline and Lift started as an interlude character.  I read them now wondering if any of the other characters will become important at a later point.

[cfphelps he/him]

With Sanderson at the helm I would almost be more surprised if they weren't important later on. 

[+Child of Hodor]

I love them just as worldbuilding short stories. Some of them are very important like Szeth's in WoK & WoR; Taravangian; Ym & Lift show off Nale and Lift is important. Rysn is an important side character and has the delightful Chiri-Chiri . Brandon has said Rysn may get her own novella Wandersail. 

Other interludes tease at future events. The Ardent who was executed in Kholinar in WoR hinted at the bad things happening at the palace. I think between the lightkeeper Puuli talking about people coming from the Origin "with light in their pockets" and Rysn getting a ship called Wandersail we are getting hints that something out there on the sea will factor in later. 

Likewise, the Kaza interlude where she goes to Aimia and is killed to protect whatever secrets are there. 

[Draginon he/him]

I love reading the interludes, they're almost like a commercial break when they come in. I love seeing what's happening away from the main characters with characters like Axies, Rysn and even the one off (as far as we know) characters like Ishikk, Geranid (the one with the two Ardents studying spren and food), Ym and Lhan, mostly because we see context for stuff not being shown in the main story or seeing the cause of something that does get talked about (like Szeth killing the leaders and seeing how that unfolds in his interludes in WOK)

[KallaVin Stormborn]

I also really want to know what's happening with the one persons story in the books, so I normally skip the interludes on the first read, and come back later to read them. That way it doesn't break the "intensity", etc of the main story, I can keep seeing what happens next to the characters I care most about, AND the interludes become a nice "one more page" fulfillment after I finish the main story.
I do enjoy them for all the reasons mentioned above, and saving them for last on the first read helps me enjoy the book more

[TousenShadowForged he/him]

oh im not against them just a bit annoyed when I get drawn in then bam interlude

its like in lotr two towers helms deep fight good intense action then  they kept going back to merry and pippin in the forest with tree beard

Edited October 6, 2018 by TousenShadowForged