Brandon Sanderson Community discussion
This topic is about
White Sand, Volume 1
Questions
>
Would White Sand have been better as a regular book?
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
[deleted user]
(last edited Jan 29, 2018 11:29AM)
(new)
Jan 29, 2018 11:14AM
White Sand is really good, and I loved it... but I feel like it could have been a lot better as a regular novel instead of a comic- hence the prose edition. What's your opinion?
reply
|
flag
There is a prose version, and I agree that it's much better than the graphic novel. It has a lot more information and goes into much more detail.
From what I've read in the Arcanum, the prose version is leaps and bounds above the comic.Maybe it's our own imagination that fills the gaps better than the images in the comics. I would love for the prose edition to come out for the series.
You can email Sanderson's team and they'll send you the full prose version.
Yes, get the prose version either by emailing them or signing up for the mailing list. I have it, just need to add it to my kindle, and then we should plan a buddy read of it later in the year.
I'll have to get that for sure!!Can't promise anything about a buddy read, I'm pretty inconsistent with my reading schedule. Sometimes I zip right through books, or I just flounder around.
I think the problem with the white sands comic book was the lack of variety in the scenery. It was a lot of sand. Too busy on the eyes.
David wrote: "I think the problem with the white sands comic book was the lack of variety in the scenery. It was a lot of sand. Too busy on the eyes."And the people. I thought they all looked alike. It was hard to figure out who was who. I would never say anything negative about Sanderson, but I really didn't like the illustrations for White Sand.
I would prefer to read it as a regular novel. I like Sanderson's writing style, and it is so diminished by the graphic novel format.
Diana Stormblessed wrote: "You can email Sanderson's team and they'll send you the full prose version."Oh that is awesome! Do you happen to know where I can find their contact info? Is it on his official website, brandonsanderson.com? Also, will they give the prose version just for the first graphic novel or for the second as well? Thank you so much!
I really like that the graphic novels give us more visuals to work with, but I agree with a lot of people here that I prefer the prose version better. But I still want to see the rest of the story in the same format, if only for consistency's sake!
Eliza wrote: "Diana Stormblessed wrote: "You can email Sanderson's team and they'll send you the full prose version."Oh that is awesome! Do you happen to know where I can find their contact info? Is it on his ..."
I just checked who I emailed and it was store@brandonsanderson.com. The prose is the full book, so all 3 graphic novels in 1.
Diana Stormblessed wrote: "Eliza wrote: "Diana Stormblessed wrote: "You can email Sanderson's team and they'll send you the full prose version."Oh that is awesome! Do you happen to know where I can find their contact info?..."
THANK YOU!!!!! I'm so excited!!! Thank you!!! :) :) :)
I don't believe you can get White Sand by emailing anymore. Just sign up for his newsletter, and a link to download it comes in the first confirmation email. I literally just did it three days ago, and I am already several chapters in!
Amy wrote: "I don't believe you can get White Sand by emailing anymore. Just sign up for his newsletter, and a link to download it comes in the first confirmation email. I literally just did it three days ago,..."Thanks for the tip! I've already e-mailed them so if that doesn't work then I'll go the newsletter route! Thanks!
Amy wrote: "I don't believe you can get White Sand by emailing anymore. Just sign up for his newsletter, and a link to download it comes in the first confirmation email. I literally just did it three days ago,..."Even easier! :-)
Just signed up! Waiting on the e-mail now! :)
I am a huge fan of the prose version. Obviously it didn't complete all the editing milestones etc, but I absolutely loved it. Part of it form me is that I've read exactly one graphic novel (white sand) and I'm not as versed in the medium.
Just finished White Sands prose version. Despite being unpolished, I loved it! I feel like my opinion on the original question - would it have been better as a regular book? - is absolutely a YES, but that should be taken with the understanding that if you asked the same question about ANY graphic novel, you'd get the same answer from me. I have tried to enjoy that genre/medium, and I just don't. So for me it's a matter of personal preference, and not one of the comparative story-telling pros and cons of the two different formats.
I’m not typically a fan of graphic novels. Once I realized that the story was cut up in pieces I gave up. I have the white sand doc but I never read it. I thought it was a draft version.
Is the doc a good read?
I enjoyed it very much. You have to overlook a good amount of typos and sentences that have missing or extra words that were intended to be edited later. And the plots and characters have some rough edges to them....it clearly needs some work. But even so, it was still better than most books I have ever read and definitely worth reading.
JaphiaHart wrote: "I’m not typically a fan of graphic novels. Once I realized that the story was cut up in pieces I gave up. I have the white sand doc but I never read it. I thought it was a draft version.
Is the ..."
Yes! Read it.
@JaphiaHart; yes yes yes - always listen to Diana (and Amy, but I don't really know Amy)
Michael *Windrunner* wrote: "@JaphiaHart; yes yes yes - always listen to Diana (and Amy, but I don't really know Amy)"Definitely always listen to me. LOL! ;-)
As a big fan of comics and graphic novels, and based only on the excerpt present in "Arcanum Unbounded", I'd say the book is better. The graphic novel has a rhythm and exposition problem. I'll still buy and read them all, but I'll make sure to read the draft as well.
Marcel wrote: "As a big fan of comics and graphic novels, and based only on the excerpt present in "Arcanum Unbounded", I'd say the book is better. The graphic novel has a rhythm and exposition problem. I'll stil..."Interesting to hear! I actually think your perspective holds a little more weight, because you are disposed to like graphic novels and so don't have an automatic bias against them.
Marcel wrote: "As a big fan of comics and graphic novels, and based only on the excerpt present in "Arcanum Unbounded", I'd say the book is better. The graphic novel has a rhythm and exposition problem. I'll stil..."What did you think about the illustration? Maybe it's my lack of graphic novel experience, but I think I would have liked the graphic novel more if the drawings were better. I found all the people looked the same and the world looked very bleak and lifeless.
Better is very subjective. Reading comics nowadays, one is subjected to a wildly varying array of styles, sometimes in the span of a single 20 pages issue.I'm not bothered by the lack of change in the scenery, especially since in the context of the finished piece, it will most likely contrast with Nightside, and I rather like the blinding desert. I mean, isn't it supposed to be somewhat bleak and lifeless? In fact, when most of the comics with a very assertive style I read opt for dark pages and beautiful subdued shades, it's a nice change.
I'm not so sure about the inking, especially for the characters, but I think the problem people might be having with it is indeed with the faces. It has a lot of the standardizations of a manga, with less distinctive features. It didn't really bother me but I can see why it would.
In fact _my_ main concern is the lack of clarity in actual panel sequencing, adding a confusion that was not needed. A good adaptation would need much more space, both in total and on the actual pages and, to be blunt, overall better graphic storytelling, though to be honest adapting any Sanderson novel is a daunting task.
