It's an excellent question, and I've definitely noticed it too (and I think it's *usually* self-indulgent, not a good thing). And I think it's two things: it's just become acceptable in the genre. One person did it, and it worked, and another did too, and it became a "thing." And I suppose fantasy is based on classic "epic" stories that …
It's an excellent question, and I've definitely noticed it too (and I think it's *usually* self-indulgent, not a good thing). And I think it's two things: it's just become acceptable in the genre. One person did it, and it worked, and another did too, and it became a "thing." And I suppose fantasy is based on classic "epic" stories that did tend to be longer (but even the epics never had multiple POVs of 15 different characters! lol)
But I also think it's about world-building. People are drawn to read and write fantasy because they take comfort in the "world." And so they explore than world...at great length. I love the first three books in A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones), but honestly, I think he's lost "in country" now. The last few books have been. Just. Too. Much. Same for Patrick Rothfuss, frankly. Just get to the point! The reason your first book(s) worked so well is because they got to the point. IMHO!
Interesting. Actually, the Harry Potter series by itself could have been one of the first examples of the phenomena. Seeing all the books lined up makes me laugh at how tiny the first one is compared to the last!
The world-building piece makes sense. I agree that some authors get lost in their own enjoyment of the world and forget to give their readers reasons to care. Funnily enough, I couldn't get past the first book in Song of Ice and Fire because the jarring perspective switches drove me nuts! I hope the fantasy genre still retains some shorter, standalone books that have enough world building to make you feel immersed. Tress of the Emerald Sea and Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries were two recent examples of that that I thought were very good.
She REALLY needed editing after book 3 or so. (For length. She needed editing for other reasons in the earlier books 🤣) I'll check those books out, thanks.
It's an excellent question, and I've definitely noticed it too (and I think it's *usually* self-indulgent, not a good thing). And I think it's two things: it's just become acceptable in the genre. One person did it, and it worked, and another did too, and it became a "thing." And I suppose fantasy is based on classic "epic" stories that did tend to be longer (but even the epics never had multiple POVs of 15 different characters! lol)
But I also think it's about world-building. People are drawn to read and write fantasy because they take comfort in the "world." And so they explore than world...at great length. I love the first three books in A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones), but honestly, I think he's lost "in country" now. The last few books have been. Just. Too. Much. Same for Patrick Rothfuss, frankly. Just get to the point! The reason your first book(s) worked so well is because they got to the point. IMHO!
Thanks for the comment.
Interesting. Actually, the Harry Potter series by itself could have been one of the first examples of the phenomena. Seeing all the books lined up makes me laugh at how tiny the first one is compared to the last!
The world-building piece makes sense. I agree that some authors get lost in their own enjoyment of the world and forget to give their readers reasons to care. Funnily enough, I couldn't get past the first book in Song of Ice and Fire because the jarring perspective switches drove me nuts! I hope the fantasy genre still retains some shorter, standalone books that have enough world building to make you feel immersed. Tress of the Emerald Sea and Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries were two recent examples of that that I thought were very good.
So many books, so little time!
She REALLY needed editing after book 3 or so. (For length. She needed editing for other reasons in the earlier books 🤣) I'll check those books out, thanks.