Brandon Sanderson Discusses ‘The Wheel of Time’ Ending — An AMC Interview

Interview by AMC’s Clayton Neuman

When fantasy author Robert Jordan died, it fell to one of his fans to finish Jordan’s epic Wheel of Time series. Brandon Sanderson explains why he split the last novel into three — the first of which, The Gathering Storm, will be released this November.

Q: Were you ever reluctant to take on this project?

A: I spent a long time thinking, “Can anyone do this?” And my answer came out “No.” But if someone else can try, I wanted it to be me. My goal has been to get the characters to feel like themselves when you read them. But it’s like a different director directing the same actors and using the same script. You’re going to end up with two different movies.

Q: Did you have to change the way you write?

A: I didn’t want to imitate Robert Jordan’s style — I think that would turn into parody. But I needed to be more descriptive. The Wheel of Time books are lavish in their concrete sensory descriptions. And that’s had a strong influence on my own writing: I just sent a couple of pages of something else to my editor, and he wrote back and said, “Wow, you’ve changed.”

Q: Did you struggle with any aspects of the series?

A: The biggest struggle was the sheer weight of characters. I was working on Perrin’s viewpoint at one point, and Jordan’s editorial assistant sent me this file filled with dozens and dozens of names of side characters for him that had not even appeared in the book yet. It’s like juggling boulders, because there’s so much weight to each of them.

Q: Have you written the long-awaited Tarmon Gai’don (The Last Battle) scene yet?

A: That’s going to be the third book of the series. The first two books are about bringing all these plotlines that have spread out over 11 books back together. I’m working on the second third, so I’m at the point where you can spit across the line and hit Tarmon Gai’don, but I haven’t actually written any of it yet.

Q: Robert Jordan was adamant that he was going to write only one more book in the series. Did you ever wonder what he was thinking?

A: [Laughs] I have. I think that if he had been around, there’s a chance he might have been able to get it into one book. But only because of his illness. If he would have had all the time he wanted, it would have been this long. It was always intended to be huge, but for me it was easier to write it piece-by-piece.

Q: What are the biggest questions you wanted answered by the end of the series?

A: I was really curious about Moiraine and her plot line. Her disappearance was so open-ended. I wanted to see some meetings: Elayne and her mother, Tam and Rand, getting Perrin and Mat back together. I can’t say whether or not that happens, but I was looking at them. In some cases there were opportunities and notes for it, and in other cases… I’m not going to force it. Jim did include in his notes what happened to Asmodean, and his widow made the call on where to put it in the book.

Q: Universal has optioned the series. Do you think it’s possible to make a movie of this scope?

A: It’s a difficult project. The people who are producing it seem very focused on the series, and they’ve put some of my worries to ease. It seems impossible, but I would have said the same thing about The Lord of the Rings. Impossible things can come to pass. Universal wants this to be a fantasy tentpole, and if that’s really the case I can see them splitting books and giving this series the attention it deserves.

Q: Your next novel, Warbreaker, comes out in June. What inspired it?

A: I wanted to tell a story in a world where color was the magic. I like the metaphor of color as life — when something dies the color fades, and that became a magic for color bringing things to life. I also liked the idea of a god who didn’t believe in his own religion — somebody who was worshiped, but who did not accept that worship of himself.

Q: What do you have planned after you finish Wheel of Time?

A: My next series will be The Way of Kings, which is the start of a big epic for me. I’ve plotted it as ten books. Fantasy writers, we get into this business because we love the big epics. We grow up reading Brooks and Jordan, and we get to the point where we say, “I want to do this myself.”

Click here to visit Brandon Sanderson’s website, where you can learn more about Wheel of Time and all his other fantasy projects.

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EA Grabs Distribution Rights to ‘Wheel of Time’ Games

Correction:As per the just-released official press release, the deal only applies to worldwide distribution of the upcoming games. Red Eagle Games will still be responsible for publishing the titles.

The actual games are still a ways off, but Wheel of Timefans will be pleased to hear that all forthcoming videogame adaptations of Robert Jordan’s beloved series are now slated for worldwide distribution by Electronic Arts.

Now the bad news: The games themselves are being developed by Red Eagle Games, a division of Red Eagle Entertainment, the firm in charge of bringing the Wheel of Timebooks to movie theaters.

For those keeping score at home that makes all of these games — the MMO, the planned releases for "all consoles, computers, handhelds and wireless devices" — film tie-ins.

Wheelfans would be well-advised to keep manyfingers crossed for any game adaptations.

Image courtesy Tor Books

Source: GameLife

Universal Acquires Rights To ‘Wheel Of Time’ Series

Universal Pictures has acquired film rights to the late Robert Jordan’s best-selling Wheel of Time series of fantasy novels in a seven-figure deal, Variety reported.

Big-screen adaptations of the books will begin with the first book in the cycle, The Eye of the World.

Rick Selvage and Larry Mondragon will produce for Red Eagle Entertainment, which published graphic-novel adaptations of Jordan’s books. Read more

Chuck Dixon to Write ‘Wheel Of Time’ Comic Book

Dabel Bros. Publishing has informed ICv2 that the creative team for the company’s recently announced comic adaptation of Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time (see “Dabels to Adapt Wheel of Time”) will consist of writer Chuck Dixon and artist Mike S. Miller. Read more

‘Wheel Of Time’ Comic Book Adaptation Hits Later This Year

Dabel Brothers Publishing has announced the acquisition of the rights to create a comic book adaptation of Robert Jordan’s hugely popular Wheel of Time series of fantasy novels, which have sold over 14 million copies in North America alone (and more than 30 million copies worldwide). The first issue of the Wheel of Time comic book series will be released in December. The individual issues will be collected in graphic novel format and distributed by Del Rey, an imprint of Ballantine Books at the Random House Publishing Group.

Robert Jordan was a highly decorated Vietnam War veteran, who began his Wheel of Time series in 1990 with the publication of The Eye of the World. Jordan wrote eleven volumes of the series and one prequel, but died in 2007 before he was able to finish the twelfth volume. That book, A Memory of Light, will be completed by Brandon Sanderson and published by Tor Books in 2009.  The Wheel of Time is a truly epic fantasy series that spans the eternity of creation–the seven spokes of the wheel each represent a different age–and features the recurring battle the forces of light (led by the Dragon) and darkness (led by the Dark One, Shai’tan).

The Dabel Brothers published a comic adaptation of Jordan’s A New Spring in 2005 and worked closely with Robert Jordan, who provided them with extensive notes to be used in further publications, including character descriptions and other visuals. Jordan’s widow and editor, Harriet McDougal, cited that experience in announcing her decision to allow the Dabels to adapt Wheel of Time, Jordan’s magnum opus, noting, “Their work is splendid. Robert Jordan liked it enormously.”

In 2001 Wizards of the Coast published a self-contained d20 role-playing game set in The Wheel of Time universe.

Source: ICV2.com