Prologues always make me wary. I have yet to see a prologue that neither dumps loads of ominous references to names and events on the reader, nor needs to be relabeled Chapter One for its lack of temporal and/or spatial separation from the rest of the book. There's no middle ground between them, apparently, and this particular prologue cements itself neatly in the former end of the spectrum.
We begin with the aftermath of some horrific catastrophe, which left behind broken stone and earth and bodies, and it's pretty neatly described as far as visual imagery is concerned. It could have utilized the other senses more, given a more three-dimensional feel to the scene with the scent of charred meat and such, but the visuals give a pretty good idea of the scale even though they're confined to this single palace. (I think it's just the palace, anyway. It doesn't indicate that anywhere else went through "the mind-twisting", though I wouldn't be surprised if a huge earthquake-like event affected more than one area.)
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
About This Blog
Hey there! Have some info about what you're about to read.
Being encouraged to try reading the Wheel of Time series again, I decided to vent my frustrations at its problems through a blog. I remember reading the first two books last summer, only to give up for a variety of reasons which I can no longer remember. (Actually, all I remember about them is that they're way too long and all of the female characters are annoying.) With this blog I'm planning on giving readers a entertaining experience (hopefully) while trekking through this epic tale, rather than simply trudging through on my own.
In addition, however, I'm also interested in writing fantasy novels, yet impatience and writer's block consistently prevent me from getting any actual writing done. What I want to do is get in some more sit-down-and-typing, and that's where this blog comes in: it's also a kind of exercise to get me thinking about world-building, character development, and just how writing works in general. And I get to write a lot, of course.
I may get around to analyzing other books in the future, depending on how long and time-consuming Wheel of Time turns out to be. Does that make this series a test run? I guess so. Time to crack open The Eye of the World, take a deep breath, and start this little test.
Happy reading!
Being encouraged to try reading the Wheel of Time series again, I decided to vent my frustrations at its problems through a blog. I remember reading the first two books last summer, only to give up for a variety of reasons which I can no longer remember. (Actually, all I remember about them is that they're way too long and all of the female characters are annoying.) With this blog I'm planning on giving readers a entertaining experience (hopefully) while trekking through this epic tale, rather than simply trudging through on my own.
In addition, however, I'm also interested in writing fantasy novels, yet impatience and writer's block consistently prevent me from getting any actual writing done. What I want to do is get in some more sit-down-and-typing, and that's where this blog comes in: it's also a kind of exercise to get me thinking about world-building, character development, and just how writing works in general. And I get to write a lot, of course.
I may get around to analyzing other books in the future, depending on how long and time-consuming Wheel of Time turns out to be. Does that make this series a test run? I guess so. Time to crack open The Eye of the World, take a deep breath, and start this little test.
Happy reading!
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