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Originally Posted by ShellShock
I don’t think your analogy stands up. The standalone paperback was written and published in its entirety, and the author never intended you to only be able to read two thirds of it. Generally individual books in a series have some sort of payoff or finale at the end of the book, to give the reader satisfaction in finishing it, with enough unresolved plot lines to make you want to buy the next one, Games of Throne being a very good example.
I think the existing Game of Thrones books are some of the best fantasy novels ever written, and it is a shame if anyone cannot enjoy them just because there is no conclusion to the series in sight. For me reading is more about enjoying the journey along the way, and not worrying too much about the destination. Often the end does not live up expectations anyway, and this certainly seems to be what GRRM is struggling with—how does he wrestled the many-headed monster he has spawned into a conclusion that will satisfy his demanding fans?
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For the most part, I agree with you. Just enjoy the read. My biggest issue with WOT wasn't that it was 13 books, it was that after the second or third book, there was so much dross that it was difficult to wade through for me.
In general, authors seem to lose steam after a certain number of books in a long running series. It's just hard to keep the story going, plus I think that many best seller authors will listen less and less to editors and there is less and less pressure to go that last 10% of polish to make it a top notch book.