My first time

[Pgibby8]

A friend recommended Wheel of time back in 2009, and it sounded interesting, but I never actually went for it. Then, my mother actually bought the eye of the world for my brother (he was scared by the size and never actually read it) and I remembered my friends recommendation and tried it out. Frankly, I devoured the whole WoT that year and essentially had my socks rocked off by how good the gathering storm was.

At the time, I hadn't really realized that Sanderson had any other books, but my aunt recommended Mistborn to me, and that was when my fandom began. I devoured nearly all of his books, (I just started warbreaker) and The Way of Kings just made it to the coveted position of my favorite book of all time. (It helps that I'm a student at BYU and so should be able to get his class sometime =D)

[AlwaysAnotherSecret]

I was introduced to the books through Alcatraz. I was handed them a few years ago and I loved them (I was fairly young at this point). I read them over and over again. For those few of you who have actually read the series, you know that the books make references to Brandon Sanderson's "bad" fantasy novels. I naturally went to the bookstore and picked up one of Brandon's books, Mistborn (I thought it looked more interesting than Elantris). I loved it and read the rest of the trilogy and soon read Warbreaker and Elantris. I had no intention to read Way of Kings, it was too long and seemed too traditional fantasy to me. Sanderson's books at that point (about a year ago) were the only fantasy books I had read and I was skeptical of the entire genre and WoK seemed to be fantasy without any of the interesting "gimmicks" (Brandon's own word for the "hero fails to save the world" idea) that had intrigued me before. A few months later when I wanted something that would be entertaining and would take me more than a day to read. I fell in love with WoK in a way I had never experienced before. I could read the book a hundred times and never understand, let alone remember all of the nuances. I began to religiously follow Brandon's website and listen to Writing Excuses, and now I'm here.

[LGriff]

I was a virgin sanderson. I asked my sister in law about what she was reading.

[Rutsahl]

I discovered his books post WoT, no more than half a year ago actually. However, WoT had nothing to do with me reading his books, because I had never read those either. In fact, I really hadn't read any books yet. I had read the obligatory Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings books throughout high school, but was never really a book person. About a half year ago I found my self craving some good fantasy stories, but having exhausted all lines of movies and TV series that I cared to watch, I figured I'd give some books a try. I started searching Google for websites that reviewed fantasy novels, and the first book that really stood out to me was tWoK.

What really grabbed my attention in the descriptions of tWoK was the interesting world with odd fauna, strange animals, and a totally unique world ravaged by highstorms (the book cover was also very intriguing, which I later found out through research was actually quite a big deal to BS, since a book cover was what originally helped him choose his first book to read in school.) I started reading it and was just blown away. I couldn't stop reading it, and it quickly became to me, the best story I had ever experienced, films included.

Because only the first book of the series had been made, I quickly looked up other novels written by BS to hold me over until the second came out. I moved on to Mistborn which yet again, blew me away. Since then, I've finished the Mistborn series (including Alloy of Law,) Elantris, am part way through Warbreaker, and have also made by foray out into books by other authors. I pretty much cling to BS's twitter feed hoping for new tidbits of information and news of the second book of the Stormlight series, which continues to be the best book I have read to date.

So I guess you could say Brandon Sanderson is the reason I became a reader. I hope he comes to the DFW area of Texas some day so I can meet him in person to thank him, and maybe get some books signed.

[makromag]

My best friend and I had this agreement once, every once in a while one of us could "force" the other to read a book the other liked himself. So one day he comes to me with a whole stack of books, Elantris, Warbreaker and the mistborn trilogy. I argued with him that it's quite the stretch for our agreement to give me a stack of 5 books instead of one single book. Then he says, with a straight face mind you, "I'm merely being considerate, once you read one of them you will want to read the others." Intrigued by that statement I started with Elantris and as it turned out he was right. And I actually was a Sanderson fan before I read WoT, somehow I never got around to reading it, only started when I knew that quite a bit of Sandersons time would be going into those and thought well, better get started on those if you ever want to read sandersons WoT books. Needless to say, I devoured the RJ books just as greedyly.

[wilionmuthy]

Let us listen to each other

[darksteel]

I had recently got back into reading, having read a few Magic: the Gathering novels. I must say, they were largely unimpressive, as there are only a couple that are worth reading, a handful that are mediocre, and a large portion of awful books. I can't tell you why I continued reading at this point, because the series I had been reading, the first book and its prequel are two of the best books I've ever read, but the last three are three of the worst books I've ever read, and the ending was so largely disappointing on so many levels. I think I wanted to find something that wasn't awful, cause I figured that better books had to exist.

 

Anyways, I went looking for recommendations and though Sanderson was given a few times, I ended up going for Pratchett initially. I was about to go on a vacation where I'd have tons of reading time, so I went to buy some books and they had a sale. I was going to pick up Bioshock: Rapture, which just came out, and three Pratchett books. Sadly (or possibly a blessing in disguise), they didn't have one of the books I wanted, so I ended up browsing around and coming to Mistborn, which remembering the recommendations, I decided to grab.

 

When I read it, I fell in love instantly. The book was amazing, it was everything I wanted in a fantasy book. So far, all the fantasy I'd read had this notion of magic being wizards flinging crazy spells with little notion of how or why and the concept of resource was completely unfamiliar in books, though I've played plenty of RPG games with MP. His notion of having a cost to use magic was something I became fond of very quickly, and I enjoyed the first Mistborn more than any book I had ever read (though now, Name of the Wind brings serious competition).

 

I came home, bought the rest of the trilogy, loved it (though less so than the first book). Bought The Way of Kings some time later as well as Alloy of Law. I generally credit him as being the author that got me into reading. After reading the Mistborn trilogy, it more or less snowballed from there, and now I've got a bunch of books on my shelf waiting to be read.

[PhilV]

I started reading The Wheel of Time several years ago, and got all the way through Lord of Chaos (reading back-to-back) before I burned out and needed a break. After a long enough time away from the series, I didn't think I would ever return to finish it, but I still paid some attention as books came out. So I must have read that Brandon had been picked to complete the series, but I had never heard of him before then.

 

Some time after that, I was browsing in Borders and the cover of The Way of Kings caught my eye (score one for Michael Whelan). I'm a sucker for doorstoppers (Neal Stephenson is another all-time favorite), and if you throw in a map, I'm sold. I didn't buy the book just then, but downloaded a preview to see what it was like first.

 

I generally love books with a high learning curve, so the Prelude didn't throw me off, and just whetted my appetite. By the time I was done with the Prologue, I was read to dive into this world. I bought the paperback, devoured it, and loved every minute of it.

 

Soon after, or maybe during that time, I started reading about Brandon's other books, doubting whether I would be interested in them. But the more I read about the interconnections and the backdrop of the Cosmere, the more intrigued I became. Before long, I knew I would have to read everything set in this universe.

 

Next came Mistborn, then Elantris, Alloy of Law, Legion, Warbreaker, and The Emperor's Soul. I've loved each one, but the pinnacle in my mind is still The Way of Kings. I'm (re)reading along with the Tor Re-read, and loving it all over again. (I've since bought the hardcover, and the Kindle edition when it went on sale.)

 

A nice side-effect of discovering Brandon has been re-starting The Wheel of Time and actually deciding to finishing it this time!

 

I've lurked on these boards a little, and now that I'm caught up on the Cosmere books, I'm looking forward to following the discussions more closely, especially as details come out about Words of Radiance.

[justinator1]

I was at home in small town Texas, just getting ready to go off to college at BYU, wandering the Fantasy section of my little public library as was my want, when I saw a book I had never seen before (keep in mind, I had read almost every in the fantasy section of my hometown library by this point, so a new book always caught my eye) and picked it up. Elantris, by Brandon Sanderson. Hmmm, never heard of him before...oh he teaches at BYU I'll give it a go.

 

That was April, 2005...the rest is history.

[WeiryWriter]

The first time I heard of Brandon was when it was announced that he would be finishing the Wheel of Time.  I think my first reaction was something to the effect of "WHAT BLASHPEMY IS THIS?" I did some research on him (i.e. I went to his wikipedia page, and the one for the Mistborn series) and thought "Okay... These mistborn magics sound weird.  Like really metal?"  But then Gathering Storm came out and it was good so I figured I should read some of his other works.  I picked up Mistborn (even though I had already spoiled myself on everything) because the title "Elantris" sounded funny to me and I didn't like the cover of Warbreaker (I still don't actually.  I like the content.  The cover? Not so much...).  And then Borders went out of business and I got Way of Kings for cheap.  After I read that I realized I was addicted to his work. 

[Shaidar]

I heard he'd be finishing the WoT.

 

Read TGS. Thought it was a solid, if not great, effort on his part. 4/5, will check this author out.

 

Decided to read Mistborn. Though it was one of the very best fantasy series out there (5/5), and now I expect to buy and read practically all of his new books.

 

Read MoT (meh - 3/5) and AMoL (outright disappointing - 2/5). But that is bearing in mind that by that stage it would have taken a genius to truly salvage the WoT. I doubt even RJ could have managed it.

[kroen]

Got into Brandon's books first with Elantris. The premise of a stand alone fantasy novel was unheard of to me and I was interested on how exactly would an epic fantasy story be wrapped up in one book. Needless to say I wasn't disappointed.

Edited April 29, 2013 by kroen

[Unknowingly]

I read Elantris and loved it but I didn't read his other books and moved on. Then, about a year later, a friend recommended Mistborn to me(Thank you Bianca!) and I read it and I loved it sooo much, but I didn't make the connection between these two awesome books. I carried on reading fantasy and got a kindle. On my recommended list for more that a year was this book called Way Of Kings, but I was turned off by the length and the blurb didn't interest me and I didn't like the cover at all. then I made the connection between the authors names on these books(I don't usually pay attention to authors) and since this guy had written mistborn which was in my top 10 books of all time, I decided to give it a try. Needless to say I fell in love and devoured this book, it was so intricate and subtle and amazing and... there just aren't enough words. I then pormptley re-read it, discovered the wonderful cosmere which is consuming my life and the rest is history.

I have read all of his stuff ,including WoT, excepting legion and infinity blade(don't worry ill get there)

can't wait for Words of Radiance

and just incase it wasn't obvious enough Brandon is by far my favourite author

[Guest Alaxel]

The year was 2008. November. Lance Corporal Alaxel, 0351, of 2nd Battalion 1st Marines, Echo Company, Weapons Platoon, was smack in the middle of a month long training operation in the Mojave Desert in preparation for a deployment to Iraq. He noticed that he was bored as hell during the handful of days that were set aside for rest and refit, so he walked down to the Post Exchange and perused the miniscule selection of books. His options were bad romance novels or one other book. That book was Mistborn: The Final Empire.

Needless to say, I devoured that book and loved it. I read it far too fast because by the time I deployed, I forgot all about it. When I came home I checked Pat Rothfuss' blog looking for news about The Wise Man's Fear and instead found an article about what a fantastic author a certain Brandon Sanderson was. The name was familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. After a quick Google search, I was locked in my barracks room reading all of Sanderson's books while my peers were out getting escorts, buying cars, and getting good and thoroughly drunk in celebration of a safe return home.

Edited October 29, 2013 by firstRainbowRose
no swearing please

[Ausar]

I first discovered his awesomness through the Alcatraz series, and then I read the Infinity Blade novella's, so I'm kinda a fan of his writing, and want to read some more of his books.

[Peng the Just]

My sister recommended Mistborn: The Final Empire

[Ete'ni]

.

Edited June 11, 2014 by Ete'ni

[Pinpoint]

Well, Me and some cousins were telling each other about favorite books. We turned off all the lights and they told me about a wondrous place where mists come out at night and the people run and hide. But they also told me of the fabled Mistborn and their powers. Then they told me of a dark eyed man who has nothing but bad luck. it was almost like they were lightweaving. I had a dozen pictures painted in my mind about the setting and the magic and I have been captivated by Sanderson's books ever since. The first Mistborn book was the first Sanderson book I read and I loved it.

Edited December 17, 2013 by Pinpoint

[IllNsickly]

it is a long, long story that starts with Orson Scott Card and ends with hearing about Mr. Jordans terminal illness. A journey spanning over 20 years. "Journey Before Destination" in action.

[Atilium]

My sisters boyfriend loaned The Final Empire to her. while she was reading it, I told her of an idea I had for s story with a 'dying world' and she said it sounded similar to the world in Final empire, so I tried out the books and loved them ;d

[TheShogun]

I was in my local public library, looking at the Science Fiction/ Fantasy shelf (which they have since gotten rid of. ), and TWoK stared out at me (as it was the biggest book on the whole shelf). I picked it up, looked it over, noticed that Orson Scott Card had said nice things about Mr. Sanderson, and decided to read it.

 

But Library loans are only two weeks, so I thought there was no way at all that I'd get through it (especially with school going on). So I decided I'd read it during my two-week March break. I thought It'd take the whole thing to get through.

 

Nope. 

I finished the first weekend. 

Edited January 20, 2014 by firstRainbowRose
no swearing please

[Awesomeness Summoned]

it is a long, long story that starts with Orson Scott Card and ends with hearing about Mr. Jordans terminal illness. A journey spanning over 20 years. "Journey Before Destination" in action.

Wow, almost exactly how I would describe my journey except it started about 15 years ago.

[Delightful]

Hmm I seem to have an unusual story...

I spent like a year and a half listening to Writing Excuses, hearing the others go on about what a fantastic writer Brandon is (I initially started listening because of Dan Well's serial killer books), and eventually decided I should read something of his. First I read was Mistborn, finished it over 24 hours or so and realised I *had* to read every other thing Brandon had ever and would ever publish.

[digitalbusker]

Hmm I seem to have an unusual story...

I spent like a year and a half listening to Writing Excuses, hearing the others go on about what a fantastic writer Brandon is (I initially started listening because of Dan Well's serial killer books), and eventually decided I should read something of his. First I read was Mistborn, finished it over 24 hours or so and realised I *had* to read every other thing Brandon had ever and would ever publish.

**came in from Writing Excuses respect knuckles**

I started listening to Writing Excuses because I was a Schlock Mercenary fan. This was after the Wheel of Time announcement, but I'd forgotten the name of the guy tapped to finish it so I was a few months in before Brandon mentioned it and I said "Oh! I have to go read his stuff now, because based on the podcast I trust him and now I'm less worried about the Wheel of Time." But if I ever get a chance to attend a WE taping, I'm going to be sure to point out the fact that I read I Am Not a Serial Killer before I read Elantris.

[tsquared84]

This is my first post on 17th Shard; I thought this would be a good place to start. I got started with Brandon Sanderson because I wanted to explore Infinity Blade more after playing the games. I really liked the novella and looked Brandon up on Wikipedia and found out that he was teaching at my alma mater. I bought WoK because it was on sale and I loved it. I've since read the Mistborn Trilogy and the first Alcatraz book. I'm starting The Alloy of Law now.