The Wheel of Time (abbreviated by fans to WoT) is a series of epic fantasy novels written by American author James Oliver Rigney, Jr., under the pen name Robert Jordan. Originally planned as a six-book series, it now consists of twelve published novels, with two more still to be released. There is also a prequel novel and a companion book available. Rigney began writing the first volume, The Eye of the World, in 1984 and it was published in January 1990.[1]

The author died in 2007 whilst working on what was planned to be the final volume in the series, although he had prepared extensive notes so another author could complete the book according to his wishes. Fellow fantasy author and long-term Wheel of Time fan Brandon Sanderson was brought in to complete the final book, but during the writing process it was decided that book would be far too large to be published in one volume, and would instead be published as three volumes as large or larger than any previous book in the series. The first volume was published in 2009 under the title The Gathering Storm.[2] The final two books are called Towers of Midnight and A Memory of Light and are planned to be published in 2010 and 2011 respectively.

The series draws on elements of both European and Asian mythology, most notably the cyclical nature of time found in Hinduism and Buddhism and the concepts of balance, duality, and a respect for nature found in Daoism. It was also partly inspired by Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace.[3]

The Wheel of Time is notable for its length, its detailed imaginary world, its well-developed magic system and a large cast of characters. The eighth through twelfth books each reached number one on the New York Times Best Seller list. As of August 12, 2008 the series has sold over 44 million copies worldwide[4] and has spawned a computer game, roleplaying game and a soundtrack album. The television and film rights to the series have been optioned several times, most recently by Universal Studios.