The Sword and Laser discussion

I was disappointed in 2013 when I found there wouldn't be a book 3 of the Kingkiller Chronicles. I heard that in 2014 there would be a 2.5, but I was holding out for book 3. Now, 3 years later, there is still no book 3?! And considering the lack of threads, there isn't one in the near future? What is going on? Is Patrick pulling a GRR Martin on us and never finish? Is he going to turn it into a retirement project like Robert Jordan and never wrap up till he dies?

[sentence replying to a now removed post... gone]

Yeah, yeah, we all know the Gaiman chant "[author] is not your bitch..." But Rothfuss did set himself up for some of this when he said he'd written Kvothe's story and just needed to edit it. It's also a little frustrating for a reader to see the author off doing other stuff while their series languishes. Do they OWE us? Eh, wrong question. The better one is "did the author set expectations with readers" and the answer here and for GRRM is 'of course they did." If you start to tell me a long story and just stop in the middle, you're violating the expectation that you were going to finish the story.

NOW.... authors are all different. They write differently, at different rates, sometimes hit a block and feel like they've written themselves into a hard place and aren't sure how to proceed. But yeah, when you take years between books, spend time doing other stuff and generally seem unconcerned about continuing a story you've started, you'll get flak. That's a risk of writing a series. And of reading one that's not finished.

Me, I don't care. I like Name of the Wind but when the second book took so long to come out and then the third has dragged... I simply have no interest. IF the series ever wraps up perhaps I'll go back and read it.

Just want to say there are hundreds or more other great books and series to read while waiting.

I want to read the book, and I'll be damned if I feel embarrassed about chomping at the bit to get my mitts and eyeholes on it.

Silvana wrote: "Just want to say there are hundreds or more other great books and series to read while waiting."

Of course there are. I don't agree with the people harassing him about it but it's been, what, 7 years? At some point, as my daddy used to say "shit or get off the pot".

Rick wrote: "Silvana wrote: "Just want to say there are hundreds or more other great books and series to read while waiting."

Of course there are. I don't agree with the people harassing him about it but it's ..."

Yeah I guess different case for different people. I am easily distracted so I can wait. There is a strong possibility that if it's not out in another ten years (or even finished the story) I would still be okay.

I dread book 3. I think Rothfuss' writing suffers under the trilogy format. Instead of forcing all the threads into a book 3, I think he should write a book 2.6, then a 2.7, then a 2.71, etc.

If you look at the way his work is put together, he's at his best when he's telling a 100 page yarn. He's at his worst when he's trying to tie a stack of 100 page yarns into a cohesive whole and call it a "book." I'd rather he just stick to spinning yarns.

Rick wrote: "Oh calm down Mark. Your post reads as if no one can criticize an author and that's a ridiculous sentiment.

Yeah, yeah, we all know the Gaiman chant "[author] is not your bitch..." But Rothfuss di..."

I tend to agree with Rick - it doesn't seem fair or right to me to cultivate a large fanbase and then leave them hanging while you go off and invent board games... Rothfuss is now doing this for money - he gets paid, probably quite handsomely. If you get paid for something it behoves you to deliver.

I'm also engaged in writing a long epic and it's even harder to stay motivated when you're self published and don't have a legion of fans that will happily pay to read your work. But so far I have, despite having had to deal with a hell of a lot of personal stuff in the past few years.

'Shit or get off the pot?'.... I'd put it more like this: 'Switch on the laptop, and get to f*cking work...'

Having said that, I have enormous respect for Rothfuss as a talented writer... That's why it can be a bit frustrating watching these people stall indefinitely. If you're smart enough to write yourself into a hole, you're smart enough to write yourself out of it ;)

Phil wrote: "If you look at the way his work is put together, he's at his best when he's telling a 100 page yarn. He's at his worst when he's trying to tie a stack of 100 page yarns into a cohesive whole and call it a "book.""

Nope.

. . . trying to tie a stack of 100 page yarns into a cohesive whole and call it a "book."
I hadn't realised it on first reading, but that might well be the reason I was less than totally impressed with Rothfuss on first reading (OK, I gave it 4 stars - but I also had some reservations)
And I have been guilty of the same style myself - which probably means it is a beginners error. Or maybe indicates some detailed world-building in the author's head which he has not been able adequately to transfer to the reader's.

Silvana wrote: "Yeah I guess different case for different people. I am easily distracted so I can wait. There is a strong possibility that if it's not out in another ten years (or even finished the story) I would still be okay.
..."
Whereas I already don't care.

This is one reason I dislike the trend in fantasy over the last 10-15 years to write long, multi-volume works. Even if someone turns out a book every 1-2 years it will take a decade or more to actually complete and if they get in a funk for some reason, longer. That, combined with the fact that I simply don't think it takes thousands of pages to tell a good, complex, richly detailed story and these works just leave me cold.

Look at Sanderson and his new series. He turned out 2 volumes out of a projected 8-10... and then we get new Mistborn stories, etc. He's a fast writer too. But when will the Stormlight series wrap up? in a decade? 15 years?

The thing is, these timeframes are significant chunks of a person's lifetime. A series that takes 20 years to reach fruition is 1/4 of a generous lifetime. The time between books 2 and 3 of Rothfuss' series is ALREADY about 10% of a lifetime.

Is Pat our bitch (to use Gaiman's phrase)? No. Is he open to criticism for doing a lot of other stuff when he's left his readers hanging? Yes. Should he be harassed? No. How can he get out of this? Finish the series. Put ass in chair and write.

PS: final(ish) thought.... The reason Rothfuss gets to go do all of the other stuff he's done and have it be as successful as it has been is BECAUSE of the success of Name of the Wind and the second book. So, yeah, finish the story.

Rick wrote: "Silvana wrote: "Yeah I guess different case for different people. I am easily distracted so I can wait. There is a strong possibility that if it's not out in another ten years (or even finished the..."

Couldn't agree more, Rick, and I note your comments... Thanks to the likes of Rothfuss and Martin, up and coming writers of epic fantasy such as myself are struggling to sell copies because readers understandably are reluctant to buy into a series that they feel may never be finished.

Martin, Rothfuss et al are not only damaging their own careers with their fecklessness, they are harming those of nascent writers.

Still the writing game was never an easy one at the best of times: after years spent working in journalism I know that all too well...

I hear Neil Gaiman in the back of my head. He has some choice words for this thread. It is pretty easy to find his quote on his defense of George R R Martin, so I will leave you folks to find it yourselves if you like.

Martin and Rothfuss do not owe you another book. You have not preordered another book. What they need to do is to live their lives as best as they see fit as citizens of a free country.

You may want another book from these guys. I really want another book from these guys. There is however a wonderful little online book club I joined to help me find good books by good authors to help pass the time until then. Someone mentioned Sanderson earlier? There is also this Three Body Problem that needs solving. . .

Rick, Your argument about a ten book series taking a fourth of a generous lifespan might be more valid if reading the series was the only thing you're doing. I would assume you have some options for activity during that time, your life is hopefully not being waisted waiting for a new book. Go out, see the world, have a life, and then when the book is out, read it. The only time a book costs you is the time it takes to read, anything else is on you.

I can tell I'm alone in the "don't care if the plot ever resolves" camp. Let me try to put it a different way.

Back before Terry Brooks changed the fantasy market, writers like Robert E. Howard, Fritz Leiber, and, to some extent, Michael Moorcock would create a world and then tell great stories within it. That's some of my favorite writing in the field. Nowadays, it feels like everything has to be published as some huge, artificial arc.

How often does a writer put out a 1,000 page chunk of drivel, and all the fans have to plow through it to get to the good parts in the next book? Wouldn't it be better if we could skip the continuity games and just read the good parts? I don't even care if they're in order, as long as the storytelling is good.

I'm not sure how many listen/read interviews with other writers talking about their craft, but the majority only write for a few hours a day or 2000ish words, whatever comes first. It's not like a 9-5 job where you put in a certain number of hours whether they are productive or not. Some authors only write on their subway commute to and from a real job. Some only write for an hour a night, or on the weekends, or while the baby is asleep.

I'm just saying - Pat or GRRM or whoever else, can be writing productively and still have time to videogame for hours, or do charity work, or take his/her children to the zoo, or whatever they want without it taking away from writing the novel. There's no need to be screaming at them online every time they do something that isn't writing.

I think Pat is a perfectionist to the point of crippling himself, yes. And it was a mistake to tell everyone the story was already written, because big edits of book one led to huge-er edits of book two, and now book three is most likely being re-done from start to finish. Except that starting book three over from scratch would probably be easier than just trying to tweak endless bits of the original version, which is what I suspect he's doing. Same with GRRM.

I want to read the next books in both of those series. I hope they come out soon. I will be okay if they don't. I think it's ridiculous to harass them about it, or get angry. I've got other stuff to focus my energy on.

Michele wrote: "I want to read the next books in both of those series. I hope they come out soon. I will be okay if they don't. I think it's ridiculous to harass them about it, or get angry. I've got other stuff to focus my energy on."

I agree, well said.

The condescension dripping from Matthew and Chistopher's replies is why I lack sympathy for either Martin or Rothfuss. Aside, of course, from them utterly missing the point and attacking the person vs the argument. Nice try guys, but you're parroting others. Try harder next time.

I want to read the next books in both of those series. I hope they come out soon. I will be okay if they don't. I think it's ridiculous to harass them about it, or get angry. I've got other stuff to focus my energy on.

Who's angry? As far as I can tell it's mostly the defenders of these authors who seem to feel that any criticism is over some imaginary line rather than being a legitimate topic of discussion. I'm certainly not angry.

Of course we'll all be fine if we don't get another volume in either series. That's really not the point, it's more of a distraction argument. While the over the top hate is not OK, I simply don't have a ton of sympathy for an author starts a story, who then takes years between volumes, does a lot of other things in the meantime and who reacts poorly to legitimate questions about when they might have another book out. Realize that the only reason you seem to be getting a lot of questions about this is that you have a lot of fans. Who brought you a lot of money so far. And that's also the reason you get to do Heifer International and have it make an impact or have an HBO series.

PS: The point of a series spanning noticeable chunks of a lifetime isn't that a reader has nothing to do, despite the lame personal insults above. It's more that it's a very long timespan over which to release a work of fiction that tells a single, long arc. It's why I prefer the way Hobb does her stuff in smaller, roughly trilogy long arcs or the way Bujold does the Vorkosigan books. There's still a large universe wth a lot of stories, but you're not asked to wait a decade or two for the story arcs to resolve.

I am sorry if you felt I was attacking you, mocking your argument sure, but that's something else entirely. I did infact speak to your argument, hyperbolic as it was, what with addressing the fourth of a life span thing, or perhaps that was the imagined attack? Where I am now lost however is why you assume because I disagree with you that I'm parroting someone else, I am more than capable of disagreeing with you on my own account, no imitation of a tropical bird necessary. I wonder who this comment will allow you to have no sympathy for, birds maybe? After all my last one was reason to lack it for authors who have nothing to do with me.
Feel free to consider this to be something of an attack though, as my mockery has moved beyond the argument to you yourself.

Sounding like this thread might need locking soon..

Silvana wrote: "Just want to say there are hundreds or more other great books and series to read while waiting."

This is really the best answer here.

Don't get hung up, OP, on unfinished series. Start a new book. I have a pile of books on my nightstand 2ft tall to read through.

Phil wrote: "Wouldn't it be better if we could skip the continuity games and just read the good parts? I don't even care if they're in order, as long as the storytelling is good. ..."

I totally agree Phil. UK LeGuin was really, really good at this.

Who's angry?

Um, all those "fans" who jump online every time Rothfuss does anything public like play a videogame or advertise his charity and call him names and bitch and moan about how he's wasting time if he's doing anything other than writing 12 hours a day? I'd be worried about a Misery style situation if I were him or George.

Even the people who say things like, "It's taking way too long, so I just don't care any more and I won't bother to read them if they are ever published," are expressing some anger and disappointment (and probably lying). It's a legitimate, understandable response - doesn't mean it's not painful for an author to read/hear it. And also not helpful in any way.

I don't know, I just don't think an author is obligated to do anything more than try to write good books. If they start something I'm sure they want to finish it as much as we want them to. If they can't or just don't, for whatever reason, that's a shame but it's not like I've been betrayed or cheated or robbed. It doesn't ruin what they've already written or my childhood and reading the previous books wasn't a waste of my time because I enjoyed them.

I don't think any author ever wants to disappoint their readers and I think it's a balance between writing the book you want to write, writing that book well, writing what you think the audience wants to read, and just getting the damn thing done already.

On another note - Have you noticed that the new TV trend seems to be "event" programming, just like movie series have become? We now wait an entire year just for 8-10 hours of storytelling, or even a 2 hour movie - we all did rush out for Rogue One and are now counting down the 300+ days until Episode 8 comes out, right? And the 4 more months until Guardians of the Galaxy 2?

Shows like American Horror Story, The Expanse, Agent Carter, Game of Thrones, Outlander, Westworld, Stranger Things, Sherlock, Man in the High Castle, Orphan Black, etc., are becoming the new way to do TV right. It's still mostly a cable thing, but half seasons and summer programming seem to be happening a lot more. We're becoming a binge-society. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing.

It's interesting, but I'm fine with 10 hours of quality TV once a year versus 22 episodes, half of which are filler, spread out over the year.

^^^^ This!

Matthew wrote: "I hear Neil Gaiman in the back of my head. He has some choice words for this thread. It is pretty easy to find his quote on his defense of George R R Martin, so I will leave you folks to find it yourselves if you like.
"

Or you can actually read the thread you're commenting on, and see it's already been quoted. Twice. The first time was the second post in the thread... So you didn't even read two posts.



Also to Rick. Please quit holding Sanderson up as an example of how fantasy should be written. The man is an insane outlier, and writes doorstoppers at speeds only a very few authors can match.

Whew! I'm not the only one with that opinion of Sanderson.

Darren wrote: "Also to Rick. Please quit holding Sanderson up as an example of how fantasy should be written. The man is an insane outlier, and writes doorstoppers at speeds only a very few authors can match. ..."

True. Of my favorites Sanderson is the only one with regular production, although Joe Abercrombie has, at times, been pretty regular too.

This discussion reminds me of an interesting podcast Malcom Gladwell did discussing different ways genius manifests itself. I remember thinking of PR when I listened to it.

I think we would all like people to produce like Sanderson, but in the end, it is an author's method that produces the feel of the books they write. A change in method would change the books, no doubt.

I think there's a connection to the old saying: You can have it fast, high quality, or cheap. Pick two.

Personally, I don't think the more prolific authors in the genre are better for it. I'd rather read a great story, even if it takes much longer for it to be finished. In the mean time, I will read other great stories - there's no shortage of them.

I find it silly to gather like a mob with torches outside the home of a favorite author, demanding they produce something immediately and of substance.

Christopher wrote: "I am sorry if you felt I was attacking you, mocking your argument sure, but that's something else entirely. I did infact speak to your argument, hyperbolic as it was, what with addressing the fourt..."

Ah, the "start out apologizing, end up attacking" post. It kind of amuses me how people do this not realizing the contradiction... "Here, let me say I'm sorry... oh wait, let me do the thing I just apologized for."

You were parroting not so much people in this thread as argument that have been made in relation to this issue many times before. If you're not familiar with the background here that's fine, but there IS a background.

The 1/4 of a lifetime isnt hyperbolic at all. It's (roughly, potentially) accurate. If you discount the first 10-15 years of a life and maybe the last few, it's actually a greater percentage. I noted that to illustrate how long some of these series take to complete and to question that when we're talking about a relatively small number of books.

@Darren etc on Sanderson - sure he's an outlier. But there are plenty of authors who do a book every 1-2 years. Stross. Scalzi. Asher, etc. It's NOT uncommon. Frankly, the less common period seems to be authors that only turn out books every 5+ years.

@Michele - well said. However, that wondering about a series might be painful for the author is kind of their issue. As long as the wondering is in good faith and not hateful or harassing, readers have the right to wonder what's up. I *do* think that we forget that the sheer mass of questions can, itself, be hard to take. It's one thing to have a couple of people ask. It's another to have 20,000 ask.

What I dislike is the idea that doing that immediately provokes overreactions like Ken's: "I find it silly to gather like a mob with torches outside the home of a favorite author, demanding they produce something immediately and of substance." Not all criticisms are mob-like.

@Ken - "I think there's a connection to the old saying: You can have it fast, high quality, or cheap. Pick two."

Fine. I'll take high quality and fast. Don't mind paying. :)

I do get your point - but sometimes people get in the trap of the perfect being the enemy of the good. That saying had a lot of use in software (still does) but as a program manager I also had to hammer home that a good product that ships so people can use it is preferable to a perfect product that never ships and thus can never be used. In books... a very good book that we can read is better than a perfect book with no flaws that we never see.

IN fact, authors who delay trying to make the book even better put added pressure on themselves. If a book in a series comes out over 2 years and is merely good, people are generally OK. But if you take 5, 6, 7 years because you want it to be great and it's NOT... well then you likely will fear that reaction. It's a hard loop to get out of because delaying and rewriting etc simply increases the stakes.

> readers have the right to wonder what's up

I don't think "right" is the right word. It's not a right. It's not protected under any law. Maybe they have the justification.

> Not all criticisms are mob-like.

Very fair, I was referring to (and hyperbolizing) the sort of indignant "Answer us now, we have a right!" criticisms.

> but sometimes people get in the trap of the perfect being the enemy of the good.

All too true. I'm an engineer by day, and this is a mantra we all carry with us.

> a very good book that we can read is better than a perfect book with no flaws that we never see.

I agree completely.

> But if you take 5, 6, 7 years because you want it to be great and it's NOT...

With authors like Martin and all the hype surrounding his story, I think this is exactly where he's headed. Rothfuss as well.

Ken wrote: "I think there's a connection to the old saying: You can have it fast, high quality, or cheap. Pick two.

Personally, I don't think the more prolific authors in the genre are better for it. I'd rat..."

Does not explain Sanderson BTW. His books are no more expensive than anyone else's. He is comparatively fast and of good quality.

That being said, for PR to maintain his level of quality, quite a bit of time is needed.

Note: if anyone thinks I am saying everyone should produce like Sanderson, please read my previous post.

Psh, amateurs. I've been waiting for the last book in a trilogy since 2009. And I'm honestly not sure if it will actually be relased because I've heard rumors that there are issues with the publisher. At least those of you waiting for Martin or Rothfuss's next books know that they'll be published.

I have some minor sympathy for this complaint, I too would like the next book to the series I'm reading, but not to the extent that I'll harass an author because they aren't putting out the work that I would like them to.

TBH I don't think Sanderson is that great. He's certainly popular and well-received, but it's the kind of river that's wide yet shallow.

Ken wrote: "TBH I don't think Sanderson is that great. He's certainly popular and well-received, but it's the kind of river that's wide yet shallow."

That's a really apt metaphor for how I feel about Sanderson. Thanks! I do enjoy his works mostly. I call them "clean fantasy" due to the lack of sex and swearing. Makes for a nice change every once in a while.

Melani wrote: "Psh, amateurs. I've been waiting for the last book in a trilogy since 2009."

You think that's a wait?

Melani wrote: "I too would like the next book to the series I'm reading, but not to the extent that I'll harass an author because they aren't putting out the work that I would like them to. "

I don't understand why people keep bringing this up. Who here is harassing Rothfuss? The only people who keep bringing up all the things people say to harass Rothfuss are those apparently defending him (from people not saying those things... at least not here).

I don't understand the agony of waiting. There's always an avalanche of great reads waiting to be read, no matter what your interests...

Ken wrote: "I don't understand the agony of waiting. There's always an avalanche of great reads waiting to be read, no matter what your interests..."
I think it depends on the person. For myself, when I am reading a great series, it is disappointing to get to the current end and have to wait to see how the story will be resolved. Starting another good book is a good way to deal with that personally.

Ken wrote: "I don't understand the agony of waiting. There's always an avalanche of great reads waiting to be read, no matter what your interests..."

1) Not true.

2) Maybe you don't understand because you only gave Wise Man's Fear three stars. I don't get excited about books that I think were mediocre, either.

3) Of course there are other nice books. Why would that ever mean I therefore shouldn't want to read more from an author I love?

1. That's your opinion.

2. I get excited about books I gave 5 stars, and they're not all finished series either.

3. This is the entire point I made. Of course there are other nice books. While you wait for the next book from an author you love, go explore them.

Ken wrote: "1. That's your opinion.

2. I get excited about books I gave 5 stars, and they're not all finished series either.

3. This is the entire point I made. Of course there are other nice books. While ..."

1) It is. And yours, by your ratings.

2) Right?

3) No, it's not. Your point is that I shouldn't worry about reading book 3 because there are other nice books out there. I'm saying there are other nice books out there, and I can and will read them, but I still want to know what lies beyond the doors of stone. I want to know who the Penitent King was. I want to know what happened to Kvothe's hands, and why he doesn't sing, anymore. I want to know what happened to Caesura, and how Folly came to replace it. I want to know how he met Bast, and how he got expelled from the University.

Other nice books won't give me these answers.

I guess a big difference between readers is their attitude towards book series. I seem to be in the minority in my willingness to drop a series midway through. I dropped out of ASoIaF after the third book because I felt like it was going in a direction that didn't interest me (too many minor characters, too many dead Starks, zombie character, too much Tyrion). I'm guessing most of the readers on this thread forced themselves through A Feast for Crows and Dancing Dragons.

I'm even willing to drop out of a series that I consider fairly good, like Assassin's Apprentice. I say to Robin Hobb, "Thank you for that very good book. I will weigh reading the sequel against all the other books on my to-read pile."

I don't particularly understand the series-orientation of many readers, but I know it is something that makes them different than me.

Darren, I think we're talking past each other.

1. If your opinion is that "there are other books which are good, and there are always other books which you can read while you wait" - is not true, then I think you're confusing me. Because you acknowledge that, but ask why you shouldn't await more from a favorite author? (See answer 3)

2. You link to a 3 star review I made of Rothfuss. I mention OTHER books I have given 5 star reviews to, as stories whose conclusions I await. I don't see how this is relevant.

3. I don't see these as mutually exclusive, and I don't see it as a problem. While waiting for the conclusion to a series, I read other books. I fail to see why it's such a melodrama that the wait is of a certain length.

1) Why change your wording?

2) We are not talking about other series. And before you jump in about how other people have mentioned ASoIaF et alia, by "we" I mean you and I.

3) Why do you keep changing the goalposts? Ah, you're talking to imagined other readers of the thread, and not to me. If that's the case, the "quote" feature is an odd way to go about it.

1. Um?

2. I am talking about books in general. I guess you're not. That's what I meant when I said talking past each other.

3. I don't really know how to continue this.

I don't understand why people keep bringing this up. Who here is harassing Rothfuss? The only people who keep bringing up all the things people say to harass Rothfuss are those apparently defending him (from people not saying those things... at least not here).

S&L is a tiny community compared to the legions of fans that Rothfuss has - some of whom have no problem bitching about him all over the internet on places like Facebook and Twitter and Reddit. I see it all the time, and I'm just on the fringes of internet geekdom.

There was just a recent uproar because Rothfuss was doing some kind of video talk and there was a page of his book-in-progress in view of the camera and some people screengrabbed it and posted it all over the place - Rothfuss got pissed off and said things publicly (yes, a mistake on his part) and the internet responded with more abuse. Rothfuss-Gate, they were calling it.

Then there was the time he played a videogame for a few hours and streamed it online. And every time his charity does a big event. And when he writes something other than book three. Etc. He gets harassed and harangued and denigrated and insulted every time he publicly is doing anything other than slaving over book three. GRRM gets the same thing.

So, yeah. Not here in Sword and Laser much, but S&L isn't the whole world (blasphemy!) and if you've been exposed to some of the things that inspired Neil Gaiman to make that statement, then you have an idea about how toxic some fans can be.

Ken wrote: "1. Um?

2. I am talking about books in general. I guess you're not. That's what I meant when I said talking past each other.

3. I don't really know how to continue this."

1) Right?

2) Except you shouldn't be, as you're responding to a comment specifically about your rating of Wise Man's Fear, book 2, and how it relates to one's desire to read book 3 of the exact same series...

3) Don't?

Michele wrote: "S&L is a tiny community compared to the legions of fans that Rothfuss has - some of whom have no problem bitching about him all over the internet on places like Facebook and Twitter and Reddit. I see it all the time, and I'm just on the fringes of internet geekdom."

You're painting everyone with the same brush, though.

You're still the only person talking about him playing video games, for example.

I see that some simply want to argue, and as that is not productive, I shall not participate. Michele, astute as always.

Ken wrote: "I see that some simply want to argue, and as that is not productive, I shall not participate.

Why not just do this in the first place?

I understand this thread is in danger of being locked any minute, but here is what I see is the heart of the matter. I'm not singling out anyone in particular, although Darren was the last responder in the thread in this vein so I've quoted him.

Darren wrote: "I'm saying there are other nice books out there, and I can and will read them, but I still want to know what lies beyond the doors of stone. I want to know who the Penitent King was. I want to know what happened to Kvothe's hands, and why he doesn't sing, anymore. I want to know what happened to Caesura, and how Folly came to replace it. I want to know how he met Bast, and how he got expelled from the University."

I want .

It feels bad to get your imagination kindled and your hopes built and then never get the payoff, and it might make you angry or sad or frustrated or pissed off. But holding on to that crankiness for ages is just a Veruca Salt-esque tantrum ("I want it NOW, Daddy!"). Ultimately, I think we've just gotta chillax and accept that we're never going to see the end, or maybe one day we will. It's disappointing, sure, but I'll get over it.