Breakfast Topic: Do you read the WoW novels?
by Amelia Ramstead 
Oct 25th 2011 at 8:00AM
For the most part, I've always sneered at novels that were spin-offs of popular movies or games. I considered myself a bit of a literary purist and felt that the writing in these books was mediocre, at best. When I met my husband, he had a full collection of every book ever written that tied into a Blizzard game and more than a few books based on card games as well. I accepted it as one of his quirks, and we did just fine.
As luck would have it, one day I found myself desperate for reading material, with nothing at hand but Rise of the Horde by Christie Golden. I rolled my eyes, picked up the book, started reading ... and couldn't put the darn thing down. I was astonished. This writing wasn't bad ... in fact, I thought it was pretty good! The story was interesting. I enjoyed reading the back history of characters I had been encountering for years.
I asked my husband for a recommendation on what I should try next, and now I'm a thorough WoW novel devotee. Christie Golden remains my favorite author. I think she gets into the character's emotional states better than anyone else, and I love her strong female characters.
What about you? Have you given them a try? Any particular authors or stories you prefer?
Filed under: Breakfast Topics, Guest Posts
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Philster043 Oct 25th 2011 8:02AM
I haven't read any novels so far, but I'd like to help Metzen be happier and get a Kindle sometimes, haha.
Jamie Oct 25th 2011 8:05AM
I really wish I could but I have a very short attention span for reading.
I did try reading the WoW compendium of the Knaak dragon novels but I got to about page 200 and gave up. But that's probably because I started getting 3G on my phone so I could post comments on WoW Insider.
Sigh, really wish I could read. It sucks because I can't fully enjoy all the stuff Blizzard decides can't put in the game. Which is ridiculous! I wish important events could be brought in the game but I understand the cost implications.
Bryan Dare Oct 25th 2011 2:39PM
It's not just cost implications either. Some things just work better in a novel, whereas others work better in a game. Different mediums have vastly different strengths and weaknesses.
That being said, I definitely think Blizzard needs to at least tie things together much better. I mean a lot of huge things happen in the novels that are practically not even mentioned in-game.
Revnah Oct 25th 2011 8:08AM
I'll be honest and say that the writing is terrible, and yes, I realise that maybe I'm just an elitist idiot because I have an MA in literature. I love the stories but I gave up after a few of the novels and have instead become addicted to the "Know your lore" articles to keep up to date! :-)
Belinus Oct 25th 2011 9:04AM
I'm in the same position as you, Revnah, and it has me thinking. Is the quality of writing on blogs better than that in the novels, or, do we as readers expect more of novels because of the medium? I find myself unforgiving of certain errors that are propagated by informal style, notably "there's" for "there are" (rather pedantic, I know). This certainly is not limited to or primarily directed at WoW Insider, and is perhaps even forgivable; the "there's" example has become so widespread in speech that to abandon it in conversational style could, if corrected inconsistently, be quite awkward. I think there is a larger question of informal writing's effect on the printed word, and, as it seems we move further away from that ideal, how the printed word as an ideal adapts, or does not, to a very different readership.
Revnah Oct 25th 2011 9:13AM
I think it's like you suggest, that the medium dictates our expectations - at least, it does mine! I actually use "there's" instead of "there are" in forum or blog posts myself (although when I do, I am aware of the fact it's bad grammar) but I would never do the same when I'm writing fiction. In my opinion, fiction needs to be well told and written, whereas a summary or an article *about* fiction just has to be well thought-out. It's a plus if it's well-written too (as many of the KYL-articles are) but not as important.
It's a bit like acting - in a movie ("fiction") I expect good acting as well as a good story. In a magazine programme about movies, I only expect good info. If a presenter is a bit of an actor as well, that's great but it's not the main point.
/end of Revnah-ramble (next time, somebody head me off, please, or I might go on for even longer!)
Wrathkind Oct 25th 2011 9:26AM
"... the writing is terrible ..."
Sad to say, but I am in agreement with this assessment. The novels are just barely above fanfic levels with their flat characterizations and tedious plotting. Nothing feels alive in the narrative; I'm too aware that the authors are writing characters that aren't theirs to freely develop.
I think the novels are hobbled by happening concurrently with the MMO. They are hobbled by being canon, and by focusing on characters they cannot radically change. The novels would be better off telling stories about random adventurers making their way through the world.
LynMars Oct 25th 2011 9:38AM
I recently swapped from lit to writing in my MA program, but even so, I don't tend to expect much when reading a tie-in novel, for anything--movies, games, etc. They're light afternoon reading after dealing with "literary" novels, or even kid's books for my children's lit classes, and all the criticism and essays I have to read alongside them.
I try to read the novels when I can because I like the overall story and the characters--I can mostly forgive the writing if the author can pull off the plot and personal interactions...considering they are -given- material and told what to write about. There's little freedom for them to flex their own creative muscles and talents, though they may add things in as necessary (like Metzen praising Golden for pretty much creating the current plothooks and characterization for Anduin Wrynn).
So, much like my expectations are lower for online blogs or news sites or other mediums (though in some cases, it shouldn't be), my expectations for tie-ins are lower and I take them as they are: a way to get a deeper part of the story that isn't as easy to get in game itself. Though i'd really like to take Metzen at his word about bringing more of the novel and comic lore to the game, either in quests, books, bards hanging out in cities willing to tell players who care the info...
Roguebert@Ulduar Oct 25th 2011 10:09AM
Same thing here. I did not study literature (science ftw!) but I've been devouring books at an average rate of one every two weeks for years now... maybe a bit more.
I started reading before school and I inherited my uncle's SciFi & Fantasy collection when he went to university. I read formulaic trash (Perry Rhodan !!) alongside classics (Tolkien, Bradbury) high-quality innovative stuff (Zelazny, Lem, Dan Simmons, Gene Wolfe). I loved it all. But now I just want the good stuff.
I read while walking around the city, walking to work, riding the bus. Still, I feel overwhelmed by the number of novels that I still have to read (top genres: Hard Boiled Crime, Fantasy, SciFi, mixed Non-fiction). If a book has won the rights awards or comes recommended by sources I trust, I'll buy it and add it to the pile. Everything else I ignore. It's not that I'm an elitist, but reading time is precious and limited... you just have to select.
Buuuuuuut: Audiobooks are a different matter, as they don't eat away at my precious reading time. I can listen to them while I do sports or cook or clean the flat... perfect for books that won't be insulted by being processed by just half a brain ;-).
That's how I managed get through Harry Potter... I might give the Warcraft novels a shot.
Shinae Oct 25th 2011 10:28AM
Wrathkind wrote, "The novels would be better off telling stories about random adventurers making their way through the world."
And that is why some of the best Warcraft/WoW fiction I've seen is in the Legends manga, which has more stories focusing on one-shot characters than on the big lore names. The same goes for well-written fan fiction I've read.
While I like to know what the big name characters (Thrall, Jaina, Varian, Malfurion, etc.) have done and are up to, I'm more interested in explorations of how living in Azeroth affects everyday people. That is something that I can better identify with.
Some reading I'd like to recommend is Destron's Travels through Azeroth and Outland:
http://wow.joystiq.com/2011/05/26/travels-through-azeroth-and-outland-comes-to-a-close/
Wrathkind Oct 25th 2011 12:00PM
@Shinae "...And that is why some of the best Warcraft/WoW fiction I've seen is in the Legends manga."
YES! Though I found the art a bit jarring sometimes, I loved that anthology. I can't relate to major characters because they are static NPCs in game, and I know that consequentially means the authors can't really do much with them.
While I like being updated on those major characters' developments, I'm sure we can glean such information from stories about the everyman. I mean, I am just dreading the Jaina Proudmoore book because I have zero confidence that she'll come off as interesting. I'd rather read a story about some random refugee who escapes Theramore's destruction, and have that character drop tidbits about what Jaina is doing in the meantime.
"How many of you survived?"
"Both my sons were killed, and my husband hovers at the brink of death..."
"Lady Proudmoore wants to hold a vigil at the Cathedral of Light."
"..."
"She'll likely do some public weeping."
"..."
"Want to incite a vigilante mob?"
"Yesss... with all the blackest rage I can muster, yes!"
That kind of story would hold my interest better than some of the fan wank I've recently read in reaction to the Theramore news. One had Jaina going Dark Phoenix on Garrosh, and I fear the book is going to resemble such awfulness. I really don't need to read more character assassinations (the figurative kind [did you read the Varian Lo'gosh comics?! omg])!
Anyway, thank you for that fantastic link to Destron. That will occupy my time, especially because Destron is Forsaken. I usually don't like fan fics because of the typical awfulness in storytelling, but that one looks promising.
Ben Oct 25th 2011 8:09AM
I a lot of people bring up that Golden is better than Knaak. I find most all of the novels to be very good from both authors. It would be nice to see more of the lore "current" in the game from the novels, perhaps as Bliz releases smaller, more timely releases, this could be more feasible.
Billlop Oct 25th 2011 8:10AM
I first read "Stormrage" and since then have read every single wow Novel. I find them really gripping and interesting. Each one fleshes out the lore of wow so whenever i enter Karazhan or meet with Malfurion or pass through Ashenvale, i get shivers down my spine.
MattKrotzer Oct 25th 2011 8:14AM
I bought The Shattering, but haven't gotten to it yet. I'm way behind on my reading.
Nagaina Oct 25th 2011 8:19AM
Yes, I do -- a great deal of the *current* Lore occurs in them now, I'm the Loremaster/Officer In Charge of Overseeing Roleplaying in my guild, and so I feel a certain obligation to keep up with the documentation, as it were. Some I've liked, some I've loved, some I've thrown across the room with great force, some I've had to remind myself I could not throw across the room with great force because Kindles are expensive. Until recently, Christie Golden was my favorite WoW author but that place may be taken by Sarah Pine, who wrote "In the Shadow of the Sun" and finally applied some characterization to Lor'themar Theron, who sorely needed it.
It's actually somewhat funny that the instillation of emotion in the WoW novels came up, as I recently ruminated on that very topic. My thoughts:
I think I've figured out the fundamental distinction in Christie Golden's writing in Lord of the Clans and Arthas: Rise of the Lich King versus her writing in The Shattering and Twilight of the Aspects.
Emotion.
In LotC and Arthas, the main PoV characters had and expressed realistic emotion in their internal narration -- emotional reactions that the reader could experience and share, emotional reactions that rang true because she took the time to help the reader invest in the characters and their feelings.
In The Shattering and TotA, this is absolutely not the case or, where the time is taken to try to establish that emotional connection, it completely fails to achieve the desired result. Thrall and Aggra do not read like a couple who overcame their initial differences in personality and background to fall gloppily into world-saving love, despite the huge amount of verbiage devoted to establishing their individual and collective character arcs in these novels. Thrall's internal narrative is all over the map, emotional reaction wise, with some parts ringing true (his desire to take a moment and live for himself a bit, to have a mate and a family of his own, his grief over the death of Cairne Bloodhoof and the self-disgust he feels over his own culpability in that tragedy) and others falling totally flat (the plot-dictated sudden onset love for Aggra that comes literally out of nowhere, whatever his actual feelings are for Garrosh Hellscream since he can't apparently coherently verbalize them even to himself). And it's not just Thrall and Aggra. Alexstrasza's PoV chapters read like an emotional reaction you're supposed to watching on your computer screen not experiencing inside your own mind -- the presentation, where it isn't entirely flat -- her entire reaction to the brutal murder of her consort and their unhatched children is utterly emotionally flat for all the visually appealing imagery attached to it -- is so melodramatically over-the-top that it's impossible to take it seriously.
Christie Golden has actually written stories with better emotional impact calibration than this in the past. Hell, she's written better than this for the World of Warcraft. I'm really not sure how to analyze this properly. Part of me really hopes she's trolling in protest against being forced to write an idiot plot coupled with a pointless deconstruction of Thrall's already heroic character.
mem0ryburn Oct 25th 2011 8:28AM
This post is the only Warcraft novel I've read.
RS Oct 25th 2011 8:31AM
I see what you did there.
bimberiusz Oct 25th 2011 8:19AM
I personaly treat WoW novels mainly as nuisances, because with them blizzard can make far too many things off screen
Neodarkmatter Oct 25th 2011 8:33AM
Weather that be Blizzard's intention or not the novels do allow Blizzard to fill in gaps and tell stories that could not fit or make it into the game.
loop_not_defined Oct 25th 2011 10:39AM
Expecting Blizzard to duplicate these events in-game is simply unrealistic. In many cases you can't. Inserting our characters into every lore event is simply implausible.
Could Blizzard do a better job at hinting towards some of these events? Sure. But there's a LOT of ground to cover, and even hinting at them all risks over-exposition. Further, the work required for each inclusion needs to be balanced against everything else WoW's development requires.
At the end of the day, anybody that's interested in lore can easily find out the details without ever picking up a book. There's more than enough resources online to help you with this.