Elithanathile he/him Posted April 21, 2015 Report Share Posted April 21, 2015 Realized that today is the 10 year anniversary of when Elantris was first published, which launched Brandon to where he is today, with many wonderful stories, a great community, and many hours sunk into reading and re-reading his books to discover the many secrets, because as we know, "There's always another secret." This is a thread to congratulate Brandon on 10 years of fantastic writing, and wish him many, many more. Also, feel free to say how his books have inspired you, how they changed your life. Allow me to be the first. I cannot see how my life would be without Brandon's books, they inspired me to become a writer, and that's what I've spent the last 6 years of my life going towards, and I know that if I can write books the tiniest bit of an iota as good as one of Brandon's I can be a success. I have a purpose for my life, and I owe it all to Brandon Sanderson. Now my speech is constantly littered with references to books that other people don't get, which is part of me. I am so grateful to Brandon for his long years of writing, leading, and inspiring with his books. I wish you the best Brandon, and many many more years of writing in front of you. Happy anniversary. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Argent he/him Posted April 21, 2015 Report Share Posted April 21, 2015 Oh, it's today? Time to reminisce! First, I have to remark on the date itself - one day before my birthday. Considering my level of fanboyism (and depending on whom you listen to, my personal physical resemblance to Brandon), I find this amusing. Now, what could I talk about? At first I was more than a little disdainful of him. The first time I hear about him was when I saw the announcement that he was going to be finishing The Wheel of Time. I read his now infamous eulogy, thought it was well-written, and promptly forgot about him... for a few years, at least. Well, didn't forget as much as actively ignored him since, well, who was this kid (an at that time, he was practically a kid for the fantasy genre) who was going to be finishing the grand series of the great Robert Jordan? I didn't want to read him because I didn't want to be disappointed in him until I got my hands on The Gathering Storm. A few months before TGS came out, however, I changed my mind. Figured that I'll be stuck with Sanderson for a few books at least, might as well get a feel for his style before TGS. I picked up Elantris, and boy, was that the best decision I had ever made in my reading career! As is often the case with people of strong conviction who change their mind, I did a full 180 and landed so firmly in Camp Brandon, people were practically using me as a flag pole there! From there on it's the standard story. I found the annotations (pretty early too), they led me here, and here led me the truth behind Hoid. It's been deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole since then. I think the first time I saw Brandon live was during the tour for A Memory of Light, though I wasn't active on the forums until maybe the Steelheart release. Naturally I was completely flabbergasted back then - I still get a little flustered when I meet him, but these days I can at least get my questions out. It's been a remarkable amount of fun these past not-quite-ten years. Fantasy is changing, and even if it's not Brandon who started the change (and it might actually very well be him), he is definitely one of the biggest players in this. That alone would make it worth being an early adopter. P.S. Looks like Brandon was in the area exactly two years ago and I snapped a photo with him then. That's at least three ways April 21 is significant for the two of us, if you are counting. Coincidence? I think not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king of nowhere Posted April 21, 2015 Report Share Posted April 21, 2015 ten years ago sanderson's book did not exist. Some eight years ago I started reading him. What did I do with my life before that? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjustice99 she/her Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 (edited) Sanderson books are one of my favorite things. If I get really stressed I play a game with myself where I grab the first of second Mistborn or Warbreaker, flip to a random page and read a passage then see if I remember the context. These books have led me to this community where I feel that I can be myself more than I can at school or with my family because all I do is talk about things that I love. These books have introduced me into an entirely new genre of literature that I probably would have taken much longer to get into without them, if I ever found it at all. They have strengthened my love of reading while making me much more critical of other authors. I feel like, without these books, I would not love reading as much as I do now. I loved to read before, but I was running out of things to read. On the downside, they have made me judge a certain author *cough*Rick Riordan*cough* who was my all time favorite author before Sanderson, so harshly that I can now see his books (especially the latest one) as comparable to fanfiction. My introduction to the world of Sanderson books happened 4 Christmases ago when my brother gave me the first Mistborn book for Christmas. It is one of the best gifts I have ever gotten (next to all the Sanderson merch that I got last year). I loved that book so much and have now gotten two others into them. Edited April 22, 2015 by gjustice99 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kestrel she/her Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 So I've been trying to draw something all afternoon for it and finally consulted my friend for help. Apparently, he thinks this is some sort of game. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kestrel she/her Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 My part in this. I'm probably going to fail an AP world history quiz because of this, but that's okay. At least I did the thing. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StormingTexan he/him Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 It's pretty daunting to think of all that Brandon has published in 10 years since Elantris. Of course that didn't stop me from ravingly consuming the vast majority of it since the beginning of the year when I cracked open my first Sanderson book The Final Empire. Since then I have read all published Cosmere books and just finished up the Reckoners books. I was late to the party as usual Sanderson's books had been on my TBR list for a long time before this. Brandon's writing just keeps getting better with each book. He somehow magically knows what I will like in a book better than I do. I thought I would hate the Reckoners books and now my palms are sweaty just thinking about what is going to happen in Calamity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zas678 he/him Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 I remember when I first read Elantris. A family member saw the cover blurb by Orson Scott Card, and decided to buy the book. She read it and loved it, and then shortly after I read it and loved it. I loved the characters and their conflicts, the magic system and the secrets. It was amazing, and I soon read Mistborn and Warbreaker, and eagerly waited for new books. I remember going to the forums, seeing the whole world that was waiting behind the books, and great people to share it with. So thank you Brandon. Thank you for 10 years of writing, and here's hoping for 10 more! Also, To celebrate the 10th anniversary, Comatose has a trivia thread that's been started up. It's pretty good! http://www.17thshard.com/forum/topic/25417-the-official-10th-anniversary-of-elantris-trivia-thread/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeremy he/him Posted April 22, 2015 Report Share Posted April 22, 2015 Elantris was the first Sanderson book that I bought, although it wasn't the first one that I read. That honour belongs to Warbreaker, which I read online, in one sitting, after discovering that he would be finishing the Wheel of Time. I was worried about how the series would end after hearing of Robert Jordan's passing; by the time I finished reading Warbreaker, I was no longer worried. Brandon did an outstanding job in bringing to a conclusion one of the greatest epic series of our time, and his own writing has been every bit as satisfying. I have read practically everything he's written - short stories on his website, any and every published novel, anthologies that he's had a short story in, annotations and deleted chapters. I've even read unpublished material, including White Sand, Aether of Night, and portions of Liar of Partinel and Mythwalker. All I'm missing is Dragonsteel, which I'd have to take a trip to the BYU library to read. I've also had the privilege of meeting the man in person. Driving 12 hours to pick up my brother (who I converted to be a Sanderfan as well), then another 6 hours to a convention he was at in Calgary was well worth it. I left with a stack of signed books, and discovered that not only is he a fantastic writer, he's a wonderful human being - passionate about his work, caring for his fans, eager to help aspiring authors. The world is truly a richer place for having Brandon Sanderson in it, and I will continue reading everything he writes as long as he keeps writing. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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