Sunday the literary world lost one of its giants, with the passing of James Rigney. Better known to Fantasy readers as Robert Jordan, he died after a several years struggle with Primary Amyloidosis, an extremely rare blood disease that is fatal within 1 year if untreated, and within 5 years with current treatments.
Jordan was diagnosed three years ago, and has been sharing his experiences with treatment with his fans through a Blog on Dragonmount.com.
His landmark, and unfinished, epic Fantasy series called the Wheel of Time, is the most popular and influential series of Fantasy novels since the Lord of the Rings, and many of the top writers in the genre credit Jordan for their success, including literary heavyweights like George R R Martin.
While I spent more nights than I can remember falling asleep to one of the dozen books in the series, and his legacy will be the Wheel of Time, I will always remember the courage and dignity that he displayed as he publicly fought this terrible disease. Writers can be very solitary, and Jordan's fans are very fortunate to have been able to share a part of this man's life, even if at a distance.
He was one month shy of his 59th birthday.
"Life is a mountain, death is a feather."
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