The Way of Kings is a book that you have been planning for a very long time. Is the finished book close to your original vision or has it altered significantly in that time, with the influence of your other work, particularly on The Wheel of Time?
I would say yes, it has altered significantly. Eventually I’ll be able to release the previous version of The Way of Kings so people can see how. It’s really kind of odd; I can now almost see it as a parallel world, with several important deviations that branch out and create spiraling different stories. In some ways it’s very similar. Dalinar’s character is essentially identical with who he has always been, yet Kaladin and his story have transformed extensively. Szeth is essentially the same person. Shallan didn’t exist in the previous draft; she’s new to this one. Some things are the same—the world, the history—and yet some things are different. The characters are more complex and have more depth now, and that certainly was influenced by the Wheel of Time. I think I’m better at foreshadowing, which something else the Wheel of Time influenced.
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