My first time

[Tesh Any pronouns]

@Runeweaver Chuckle What did your mom say about that?

But last Christmas, me and my family were up visiting other family and we went to a mall which had a Barns and Nobel in it. I've always loved B+N. But there was a Brandon Sanderson signing going on, so I thought oh, two of my cousins are reading one of his book. Cool. Then about three months ago, we went to another B+N in Salt Lake, and I saw WoK in trade paperback for $10. (I later found out it was about $7 on Amazon). I started reading it, but wasn't very into it. I was reading Brandon MULL's new book, and Etiquette and Espionage. But I was in the car for 11 hours, so I switched between the three. I finished Dragonwatch in two days as it was short and really good, but I had told @Runeweaver that I had seen Brandon Sanderson at a signing, and she countered that with saying that her mom knows his wife well. And other things.  But once I got back home and finished Etiquette and Espionage, I became obsessed and found out my best friend (@Kaladinwillumarryme?) was reading it to! And now we spend whatever time we have together discussing the Cosmere, as we have both read SA, Elantris, Mistborn, Well of Ascension, Steelheart, she Warbreaker, Firefight, and has started Alloy of Law, me White Sand. And we both are about halfway through the Hero of Ages. I am still trying to figure out if that is sad, or awesome, especially for 3 months. But almost never the Reconers trilogy, and then only to discuss David's bad metaphors.

Sorry. I'm prone to ramble.

Edited June 17, 2017 by Tesh Kholin

[Storming Radiant he/him]

I was first introduced to Brandon Sanderson about three years ago and I just can't remember if it was through Mistborn or WoK. I'm pretty sure it was WoK, but the friend who told me about the books thinks that it was mistborn. Wichever it was, I immediately got all of the Sanderson books that I had access to (WoK, mistborn era 1, Elantris and Steelheart)  and swallowed them. I started noticing the little connections between the books, and checked about it online. I discoverd that mr. Sanderson had a ton of other books that weren't translated to my native language,  and so I started lurking in the english section of every book store I could reach. Eventually I found WoR and it was an absolutely incredible book, but it only got me  even more interested in the Cosmere. A few months ago, I got myself a credit card, and was finally able to buy books online. Obviously,  I bought the all of the Cosmere books, and I finally finshed the last of them (Arcanum Unbound) on Saturday. I'm so happy to finally be a part of this community! it's really great. Thank you all!

[Taeshi Vei she/her]

@Tesh Kholin She was extremely embarrassed.  By the way, how to you create the signature preferences?

[Draginon he/him]

My first is different depending on how you look at it. My first bought was, discounting the WOT trilogy, Way of Kings but my first read was White Sand but first read book was Elantris.

[Sheity Williams she/her]

Well, my journey through these books is not really exciting...

The first one I read was The Way of Kings, and I first heard about it when a dear friend of mine started reading it. And I was like: meh, I'll just put it down my TBR list. I had no idea about what it was, other than fantasy, so it did not grab my attention all that much. Then, my friend finished with the first one, she kept insisting I HAD to read it, that I needed to put aside anything else I was doing and dive straight into WoK. She was a huge fan of Game of Thrones, but she sold me WoK as being as good or even better than Game of Thrones. Since it was summer, in the end, I surrendered, because I actually did not have much else to do. 

Reading the Way of Kings was a life-changing moment. Seriously. I had not enjoyed a book before as much as I had enjoyed that one. I'm not kidding! I am now a bookwork thanks to WoK, it rekindled my love for fiction and books. I remember that summer vividly; my dear friend and I spent entire nights commenting what we had read that day. And the rest is history. I read through Words of Radiance in two days. You read right. Two days. True, I spent the whole day reading, but oh it was so worth it. Then came Mistborn, which I went through really fast, too, and now, I am the one telling my dear friend she HAS to read Mistborn. Things change. 

As of right now, I'm missing a few books to read, like Warbreaker or Rithmatist, but I'll get to them once I've relaxed from the Brandon Sanderson frenzy I was in xD. I am also trying to build my hardcover collection of Brandon Sanderson books, since I usually buy Kindle copies, but those books I love, I like to have hardcover copies. There's nothing like the feel and smell of a new book, after all. 

[Ben Harrison]

I heard about him either because he finished WoT (which I had either not started or was on book one of at the time) or because I just noticed his books and picked them up. Either way, Mistborn: Final Empire was the first Brandon Sanderson book.

[Silverblade5 he/him]

I was introduced through Infinity Blade. Those games were my childhood, and I still play them.

[Stampede he/him]

My good friend and neighbor told me about The Way of Kings and recommended I read it a little over 3 years ago. He himself had found out about his books through Wheel of Time.

[Asrael he/him]

My wife had read Elantris in High School and read the Mistborn trilogy about a year ago. She was freaking out while she read it and I, being way too busy with school, was amused but didn't read it myself. This summer she nudged me to read it again so we went to the library... where there wasnt a single copy, only Elantris. She urged me to read that but I was stubborn that I only wanted to read Mistborn. She grabbed Way of Kings followed by more freaking out and yelling at the book. On our next visit it was the same story: only Elantris, so I caved. Best book I'd ever read. In the two months that followed I read every published Cosmere story, Brandon's annotations, the released chapters of Liars of Partinel and I now own Elantris, the Wax and Wayne Series, and Arcanum Unbounded with plans to get the rest ASAP.

EDIT: Have since bought Way of Kings and I'm picking up Words of Radiance this week

Edited August 28, 2017 by Asrael

[btcannon]

I met Brandon at a signing he did in my hometown years ago. I hadn't read any of his work, but I had heard good things, so I went to see what all the hubbub was about.

I listened to him address the crowd (many of whom were rabid fans) and was impressed, so I stood in line and waited to meet him. Most people were getting books signed, so when it was my turn I introduced myself and said that I hadn't read any of his books--I asked him where he'd recommend I start. I think he was a little caught off guard, but he mentioned both Elantris and Mistborn as good starting points. I was so impressed with him that I bought both Elantris and the Mistborn boxed set on the spot. I was delighted when he signed all four books for me.

I read Elantris fairly soon thereafter, and my mind was blown. The mysteries, the religions, the setting, and the twists were amazing to me. Mistborn, however, being a larger project, sat on my shelf for years after. When I finally really began to read TFE--about a year or so ago--I was sucked in. As I moved through the book, my interest grew and grew, and the amount of time I spent reading skyrocketed. I rode that wave through WoA and HoA, and then jumped into Mistborn Era 2, followed by Stormlight and all the other Cosmere works. I'm currently reading the Reckoners trilogy and greatly enjoying it as I eagerly await the release of Oathbringer in November! I'm planning to meet Brandon again at the midnight release party in Provo, and I can't wait! 

Brandon has singlehandedly made me fall in love with reading again. I can't thank him enough. 

[PlanetReelo she/her]

The first BS book I read was The Final Empire. This had to have been about 9 years ago because I was still in high school and just about to go to Spain with my family for summer break. We were at Heathrow airport departures. Having realised that I hadn't grabbed a book for the summer, I ran in to WHSmith and grabbed the first book with an interesting cover that I could see. And whilst I most certainly judged the book by its cover in this instance, I'm so grateful that I did because it introduced me to Brandon Sanderson and the wonderful, immersive worlds that he creates.

[Modal Seoul he/him]

So, uh, I sinned and read The Alloy of Law before the original trilogy.

I ended up really liking it and went back and read the original trilogy.

[Ammanas]

1 hour ago, Captains Domon said:

So, uh, I sinned and read The Alloy of Law before the original trilogy.

Say 50 Hail Sandersons, go thy way, and sin no more.

[AMMcCann he/him]

Just going to copy and paste my introduction because apparently, it fits too well here, ha:

Digging through my Audible account, so very many years back now it seems, I came across this cool covered book with a sci-fi themed name. I thought, 'Hell, I like cool covers and sci-fi theme more than food.' I added to cart and continued my progression of spending a few credits I'd forgotten about over my monthly membership accruals. Some Jordan here, some Goodkind there, some Pratchett over that way, 'What the hell I'll throw in some I Am Legend while I'm at it.' I made sure to listen to samples from each to ensure I could stomach the narrator, holy cow how a narrator can make or break a book let me tell you.

It turns out all were decent enough for my commute. I started with a small dose of a short read of I Am Legend; I'm here to tell you that is a much better book and a great reader by Audible, no offense Will Smith, you did fine. The second shortest read was this cool covered book by a writer I'd never heard of, couldn't even remember the title as I pushed play on the thing. Jack Garret did a great job portraying the characters; he helped fuel my addiction to audiobook performances that leave my imagination far off in second place. I can still feel my stubbed toe in never-ending pain, pure misery I tell you.

Elantris was the entry for many, as was it mine. I can't tell you the complete despair I felt when Jordan passed on, only to have the world righted again when Sanderson was announced to finish the Wheel of Time series. You see, I had just finished the Mistborn Trilogy not having anymore Wheel to finish and had become completely enthralled with this new style of writer I was reading. I've kept up with every addition to Brandon's collection since and have been more than inspired to start my own body of work, as well, by his creations. 

All these things bring us to today. I've come to a point where I have some extra time on my hands and am pursuing more of my love for writing and creating worlds while I finish off a degree I've always wanted. Hope to do a re-read of the Stormlight series here soon and looking to join like-minded individuals.

“If you give up what you want most for what you think you should want more, you'll end up miserable.” 
― Brandon Sanderson, The Hero of Ages

[Darkness Ascendant he/him]

@Silverblade5 No way, so do I. (still play infinity blade)

[Silverblade5 he/him]

14 hours ago, Darkness Ascendant said:

@Silverblade5 No way, so do I. (still play infinity blade)

You still have the first game? A multiplayer would be fun.  

[Darkness Ascendant he/him]

6 hours ago, Silverblade5 said:

You still have the first game? A multiplayer would be fun.  

I have them all :3

It would yes! I don't actually have a means to access the game as of now thooo :/ I'll tell you when I can!

[Aon Ati he/him]

I found Sanderson in a rather strange way: a bookmark. A couple of years ago I found myself in a bad rut of nothing to read, everything I picked up was either unimaginative or a bad copy of other much better works. Then one day I was in a library and as I was leaving I saw a strange looking bookmark advertising a book called "The Rithmatist". It was cool looking and had a lot of really positive reviews, so I checked out the book. And finished it in one night. After that I read almost every book he has written and I am hyped for the next Stormlight Archive.

[SadisticSnowman]

My sister recommended Mistborn when I was like 11. I laughed and declined because it looked "Asian" or something dumb like that. A few years later I found Way of Kings at my school library and was intrigued by its length as much as the back cover blurb. I read it in like two days and when I talked to my sister about it, she laughed and told me that the author was the same person who wrote Mistborn! I reluctantly read it, loved it, and have been hooked ever since. 

[FeatherFawkes]

I wanted to write fantasy so I told myself "well, gotta read some of that stuff then!". So I went into my local bookstore (small, maybe the size of my room) and asked what they could recommend. So, the woman told me of Eragon, A Song of Ice and Fire, Bartimaeus and some other book, that sounded... meh. In one corner there stood The Way of Kings so she pulled it out and we were reading the back, wondering what it might be about (german edition is not so very informative) and I read the first pages. I liked them. I wasn't overly excited, but it had a certain spark. So I bought it, together with Eragon which (shame on me) I still haven't picked up.

The first 100 pages were slow. Like, it took me a month of reading in between lessons at school - until I picked it up at home one evening and started actually, as in continously reading it and it suddenly made a whole lot more sense. I read through it that day and realised there was a second part (german version...) so I bought it thinking, it was quite nice and now I want to know the ending. And, well, after screaming, crying, laughing and squealing my way through that book (I still remember how emotionally drained I was after the big battle) I bought WoR and after that Elantris, Mistborn 1, Reckoners 1 and Warbreaker all at once.

[Mason Wheeler]

I had his work recommended by a family member, way back in the early days, when it was just Elantris and Mistborn.  (I believe it was simply called Mistborn back then, and the The Final Empire part was added to the title later.)  I really enjoyed both books, and right as I was finishing Mistborn up, The Well of Ascension came out.  I read it and loved it, and like many here I was heartbroken to hear about Robert Jordan dying, and then shocked that this obscure author with only 3 published works got chosen to finish it up, but at the same time I found it kind of awesome because that meant that on the strength of just those three books, they determined that he'd be the best one to finish the series.  That was when I knew Brandon was more than just some fun author, but someone I'd have to pay serious attention to going forward!

It's been a long road since then, but I've enjoyed every step and every new release!

[Unlicensed Hemalurgist he/him]

I saw a copy of Alcatraz Smedry versus the Evil Librarians at my local library. Being a bored thirteen-year-old with nothing to do, I picked it up and began reading. I don't really remember much besides being totally confused and annoyed for the first half of the book, though I remember finishing it. I thought it was okay but not great, and thought nothing of it again for years. 

Then about three years ago, I picked up a totally unrelated  novel called Mistborn: The Final Empire. I was on a bit of a fantasy kick at the time, and thought the premise of an epic fantasy heist novel sounded interesting enough to merit a read. The Mistborn OT have since become some of my favorite fantasy books, though it was a long time before I found the Coppermind Wiki and connected the dots and realized the they had the same author.

[Xhawk101]

I heard about him through reading the wheel of time. And saw he had another large series (WoK) so I jumped into that, and now I cannot wait for Oathbringer.

[Necessary Eagle she/her]

Can I go back and change my poll answer? I think I may have remembered it wrong. The first Sanderson book I saw was Elantris, because my library has a copy. But the dust jacket summary didn't grab me. The first Sanderson book I read was The Final Empire, I think on someone's recommendation. Then I went back and read Elantris, didn't like it, and was all like "Thank goodness I read Mistborn first!"

Edited November 5, 2017 by Necessary Eagle

[Hrathen667]

Multiple friends were pressuring me to read The Stormlight Archives. I was enthralled after reading the incredibly epic prelude to Way of Kings. I haven't been able to put his material down since! It has gotten to the point where I have read all of the major titles and am trying to soak up all of the short stories. It's a good thing he puts out a ton of material so often! Cant wait for Oathbringer!!