Brandon Sanderson is without doubt one of the largest voices within the fantasy style. Greater than a author and writer, he is an audience-friendly scholar. By some means he finds time to develop the Cosmere on a near-annual foundation and in addition ship lectures on Tolkien’s magic techniques. There’s a purpose we turned to him as soon as upon a time to show us his time-management wizardry.
In a chat with fellow fantasy creator Joe Abercrombie, shared on YouTube earlier this 12 months, the pair mentioned the craft of writing. That’s when Sport of Thrones was introduced up — once more. For Sanderson, it’s a prime instance of the strengths and weaknesses of Epic Fantasy.
“I grew up studying the massive epics. I believe it is probably the most pure type for fantasy in some methods. It offers you a variety of time to dig into that world and immerse your self in it and discover one other place,” he mentioned. “I believe that is why Sport of Thrones did properly.”
When requested in regards to the draw back of those tales, Sanderson spoke from private expertise, sharing that burnout is an actual downside, with him having to take a break from the writing course of at across the tenth go of the draft.
“Epic fantasy has this hazard. It begins very private, after which it may well drift away from being private in regards to the characters in case you’re not cautious. Authors are inclined to get extra enthusiastic about facet characters afterward. We see this taking place a bit in Sport of Thrones and in A Wheel of Time. How will you ensure that one thing that massive stays contemporary and private and thrilling? That is an actual problem with the style.”
That is an “once more” scenario as a result of final time the 2 writers obtained collectively in 2025, George R.R. Martin’s sequence additionally got here up. The 2 have been discussing the discharge of Abercrombie’s The Devils, which got here out final 12 months. “Do not you dislike maps? Is not that one thing I as soon as heard, that you do not like maps?” requested Sanderson.
“I imply, I like maps,” replied Abercrombie. “However I believe they have to be exercised in the fitting method. I suppose what I do not like is a type of lazy software of maps.”
“After I was first writing The First Regulation, I assume I wished to jot down one thing that was very character targeted, that was virtually instructed in tight closeup on the individuals. And to start out with the widest shot conceivable of the entire world felt like precisely the unsuitable type of tone to start with if you would like,” Abercrombie mentioned.
Whereas immersive and thrilling, the inclusion of a map creates some expectations for the reader. It additionally provides a sheen of realism, offering the reader with visible data that would later create issues for the creator that they need to deal with within the writing. Sanderson talked about the Sport of Thrones franchise for instance. “And as soon as you place the map in, you run into some issues. Perhaps like some later Sport of Thrones seasons, we’re like, ‘Nicely, how did they get from right here to right here?’” he mentioned.
“And once you’re making an attempt to be very lifelike when presenting a few of that stuff, it may well get you into hassle,” Sanderson added. “I nonetheless love them.”
George R.R. Martin agrees with Brandon Sanderson
Martin has been open in regards to the wrestle to slim the scope in an Epic Fantasy sequence like A Track of Ice and Hearth. The cycle of novels is deliberate to be made up of seven books. 5 have already been printed. Martin has been writing the sixth novel, Winds of Winter, for the previous 15 years. The HBO adaptation racing previous him within the chronology of the saga’s occasions clearly didn’t assist something.
If Sanderson has Sport of Thrones perpetually on the mind, it could be as a result of he’s within the strategy of streamlining his personal Epic Fantasy world for each TV and movie. After placing a mega-deal with Apple, he’s presently writing a screenplay for a Mistborn film. Then he’ll write a pilot for a Stormlight Archive TV sequence. Martin, for all his ups and downs, is the closest mannequin to the way it could all go down — so you possibly can’t blame him for pondering deeply on the state of Sport of Thrones.