Delayed Memory

I learned recently that the final book in the Wheel of Time series is being delayed until Jan. 8, 2013. At one point it was supposed to be out now, so I am fairly disappointed.  23 years from the first book to the last one is a long time.

As a writer, I can sympathize. Writing is not an exact science. Sometimes you have to throw a lot of work away because it’s just not working. That necessitates rewriting large sections, or even entire books. Better to have the story, especially the penultimate book in a long running series, perfect, than just done on time.

But as a reader, I am of course frustrated. I’ve tried reading the series on two occasions. The first time I started was about 7-8 years ago, Knife of Dreams had just come out or was just about to come out. I read straight through to book 8 pretty quickly and enjoyed it. But I couldn’t get through book 8. With there being no end in sight to the series, and then Robert Jordan dying not long after that, it seemed pointless to continue.

Then, about two years ago, after Brandon Sanderson released the first of last three books, and people raved about how it really started bringing the series to a close, I decided to try ago. I also heard about the excellent quality of the audio book version, and since I was commuting 2hrs everyday for work at the time, it seemed like a perfect way to pass the time.

From that point, I burned through 13 books (407+hrs or 17 total days of listening) in under two years. I finished Towers of Midnight last summer and was all set for the release of A Memory of Light for this spring. Reading it all at once allowed me to have a good handle on everything that happened.  9 months to wait for the last one is not to long to forgot.

But another year? I fear I’ll forget all the important details. And then I’ll just have to relisten to them again. Shucks.

Maybe some day people will be eagerly anticipating the release of my next book, like they do for WoT or one of George RR Martin’s. For now though, I’ll just enjoy being one of the ones eagerly anticipating a books release.