History Creator / BrandonSanderson

He has released twenty-seven novels since his 2005 debut ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'', plus fifteen novellas and a number of short-stories. ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' in particular are enormous {{Doorstopper}}s which are published at a similar rate to his shorter books (which are generally 500-600 pages themselves). He plans to be even ''more'' prolific in the future, having at least 27 more novels planned[[note]]two ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' sequels, a ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'' sequel, six more books in ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', seven more ''Franchise/{{Mistborn}}'' books, seven other [[Literature/TheCosmere Cosmere]] books, two more ''Literature/{{Skyward}}'' sequels, a sixth ''[[Literature/AlcatrazSeries Alcatraz]]'' book, and a sequel to ''Literature/TheRithmatist''.[[/note]].

* WhamEpisode: It's so common for the last few chapters of every book to be one Wham after another.

* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: Nobles in most of his Novels are actively involved in helping their homes. Warbreaker in focuses on two princesses doing their best to save their kingdom, and Highprinces and their families in Stormlight Archive are actively involved in things like warfare and research.

He also heartily embraces NewMedia to the point of providing his own CelebrityBlog, participating extensively in fan forums, releasing several ebook test balloons, and making his own write-your-own-novel PodCast ''Podcast/WritingExcuses'', co-moderated by his friends Howard Tayler (writer and artist of ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary''), Dan Wells (author of the ''Literature/IAmNotASerialKiller'' horror trilogy), and Creator/MaryRobinetteKowal (author of ''Literature/ShadesOfMilkAndHoney'' and numerous short stories). He also cofounded an audiobook company, Mainframe, with Max Epstein, with their first project, ''The Original'', being released in 2020.

Brandon Sanderson (born December 19, 1975) is an American fantasy author. He is oft-acknowledged for his ''Franchise/{{Mistborn}}'' and ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' series. He is also widely known for being selected to finish ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' saga after [[DiedDuringProduction the death of Robert Jordan]].

*** ''Lost Metal'' (to be published in November 2022)

* AfterTheEnd: Used in ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' (where it's just the titular city), ''Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy'' (where the whole world is post-apocalyptic), ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' (where The End just keeps coming in a cycle of EternalRecurrence), Literature/TheReckonersTrilogy (civilization was destroyed by superhumans), ''Literature/Skyward'' (where a human galactic civilization has gone nearly extinct)... there's a lot of this going around.

* AuthorAppeal: Boy, does Sanderson ever love his fantasy cities. Almost all of his works, Cosmere or otherwise, take place in or around a particular city or cities, with the notable exception of ''Way of Kings'', where much of the action happens on the battlefield (but there's still a subplot that takes place entirely in the city-state of Kharbranth). He has stated this was a deliberate choice to differentiate himself from Robert Jordan and other fantasy stories of that time which usually had the characters travel the world extensively.

* RealWomenDontWearDresses: Averted -- all of his major female characters are feminine to a greater or lesser degree, and all [[ActionGirl end]] [[GuileHero up]] Badass in their own way. Several character struggle with how to balance their views of themselves and outside expectations.

* BrokenPedestal: At the end of the story, [[spoiler: Jason is utterly dissappointed in the aliens he's been looking up to as morally better than humans, since they've proven not to be. He vows to free humanity from their stifling influence.]]

* SeriousBusiness: Apparently, shortly before the story started a misspelled word resulted in fourteen thousand deaths (It was in a peace treaty).

** Dawnface's inhabitants are capable of becoming sorcerors, harnessing the magic of the cube to their will.

* DisproportionateRetribution: Kai provoked the feud with his nemesis by treating him dismissively once. He retaliated by committing genocide against a machineborn population and then starting a campaign against Kai [[spoiler: that ultimately culminate's in Sophie's suicide.]]

** changed even further by a deleted scene that was meant to be the ending of the story and according to WordOfGod is still has some canonicity, if only in the background, that shows that [[spoiler:Melhi's real name is Sophie, and everything Sophie said was true, even if the Sophie that 'died' was a program based on the real Sophie.]]

* BrokenPedestal: At the end of the story.

* HandicappedBadass: Jason Write is completely blind but definitely not someone you should mess with.
* HiddenElfVillage: Inverted: the galaxy at large is the elf village and our solar system is kept isolated so we don't wreck it. (Only the Phone Company knows this reason).

* ''The Original'', co-written with Creator/MaryRobinetteKowal and released as an audio original.

* PsychicPowers: MindOverMatter and [[spoiler:TeleportersAndTransporters]], but not {{Telepathy}}.

* WhamEpisode: It's so common for the last few chapters of every book to be one Wham after another that it's earned a FanNickname: the "Sanderson Avalanche".

** ''Cytonic''

* ''Literature/{{Skyward}}'', a science-fiction series [[spoiler: set in the universe of ''Defending Elysium'']].
** ''Literature/{{Starsight}}'', sequel to ''Skyward''.

Brandon Sanderson (born December 19, 1975) is an American fantasy author. He is oft-acknowledged for his ''Franchise/{{Mistborn}}'' and ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' series. He is also widely known for being selected to finish ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' saga after [[AuthorExistenceFailure the death of Robert Jordan]].

* ''Dark One'', a graphic novel that Sanderson co-wrote with Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly.

* EvilOverlord: ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' and ''Literature/TheReckoners'' play straight, Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy deconstructs, ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'' subverts, and ''Dark One'' deconstructs/subverts it '''even further'''.

* PrincessProtagonist: It's been observed that he's rather fond of strong female leads of the royal persuasion. [[TheChessmaster Sarene]], [[RebelliousPrincess Siri]], [[WrongGenreSavvy Vivenna]], and [[BadassBookworm Jasnah]] are the most noteworthy.

* ArcNumber: Four and derivatives (eight, twelve, and especially sixteen). Certain shards also have numbers associated with them (10 for Honor, 9 for Odium, 16 for Preservation).
* AuthorAppeal: Boy, does Sanderson ever love his fantasy cities. Almost all of his Cosmere works take place in or around a particular city or cities, with the notable exception of ''Way of Kings'', where much of the action happens on the battlefield (but there's still a subplot that takes place entirely in the city-state of Kharbranth). He has stated this was a deliberate choice to differentiate himself from Robert Jordan and other fantasy stories of that time which usually had the characters travel the world extensively.

* DeathByCameo: None yet, but has stated that if there is ever an adaptation of his works, [[https://wob.coppermind.net/events/124-drogakrolowpl-interview/#e1811 he would like to be a mook killed by his characters]], as revenge for him killing off so many characters.

* EvilOverlord: ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' uses straight, [[Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy the Mistborn trilogy]] deconstructs, ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'' subverts.

* ''Literature/{{Skyward}}'', a science-fiction novel [[spoiler: set in the universe of ''Defending Elysium'']].
* ''Literature/{{Starsight}}'', sequel to ''Skyward''.

* DiscOneFinalBoss:
** The character who is initially presented as the BigBad is almost never the ''actual'' BigBad in his works, and they may not even be that villainous, period.
** In ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'', Hrathen looks like the BigBad but is actually an AntiVillain. [[spoiler: The real villain is his treacherous, fanatical DragonInChief, Dilaf.]]
** In ''Literature/MistbornTheOriginalTrilogy'', the Lord Ruler is initially presented as the BigBad [[spoiler: but he's actually only as bad as he is (that is, an oppressive mass-murderer instead of a xenophobic {{Jerkass}}) because the real BigBad, Ruin, has been toying with his mind while TLR's been keeping him imprisoned]].
** In ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'', perhaps the most extreme example, God King Susebron is built up as potentially worse than the Lord Ruler [[spoiler: but he's actually a perfectly kind and friendly figurehead. His secretary Bluefingers is the villainous mastermind]].
** In ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', the Parshendi initially appear to be the villains but book two shows them to be [[AntiVillain sympathetic figures]] and [[spoiler: at the end of the book they get all but exterminated - all part of the plan of the real BigBad, Odium]].

*** ''Literature/{{The Way of Kings|2011}}''

* ''Literature/TheWayOfKingsPrime'', an AlternateUniverse version of ''Literature/{{The Way of Kings|2011}}'', written before ''Mistborn'', that is not considered canonical but was [[https://www.brandonsanderson.com/the-way-of-kings-prime/ released by the author as a free download]] in July 2020 to give a look at WhatMightHaveBeen.

* FourthWallObserver: In ''[[Literature/TheStormlightArchive The Way Of Kings]]'', Hoid states that "I began life as a thought, a concept, words on a page." This ties in with his being a recurring character that helps tie the various book series of the ''Cosmere'' together.

*** ''Literature/TheWayOfKings''

* ''Literature/TheWayOfKingsPrime'', an AlternateUniverse version of ''Literature/TheWayOfKings'', written before ''Mistborn'', that is not considered canonical but was [[https://www.brandonsanderson.com/the-way-of-kings-prime/ released by the author as a free download]] in July 2020 to give a look at WhatMightHaveBeen.

He has released twenty-two novels since his 2005 debut ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'', plus almost as many novellas and a number of short stories. ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'' in particular are enormous {{Doorstopper}}s which are published at a similar rate to his shorter books (which are generally 500-600 pages themselves). He plans to be even ''more'' prolific in the future, having at least 27 novels planned[[note]]two ''Literature/{{Elantris}}'' sequels, a ''Literature/{{Warbreaker}}'' sequel, six more books in ''Literature/TheStormlightArchive'', seven more ''Franchise/{{Mistborn}}'' books, nine other [[Literature/TheCosmere Cosmere]] books, two more ''Literature/{{Skyward}}'' sequels, a sixth ''[[Literature/AlcatrazSeries Alcatraz]]'' book, and a sequel to ''Literature/TheRithmatist''.[[/note]].

He also heartily embraces NewMedia to the point of providing his own CelebrityBlog, participating extensively in fan forums, releasing several ebook test balloons, and making his own write-your-own-novel PodCast ''Podcast/WritingExcuses'', co-moderated by his friends Howard Tayler (artist and writer of ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary''), Dan Wells (author of the ''Literature/IAmNotASerialKiller'' horror trilogy), and Creator/MaryRobinetteKowal (author of ''Literature/ShadesOfMilkAndHoney'' and numerous short stories). He also cofounded an audiobook company, Mainframe, with Max Epstein, with their first project, ''The Original'', being released in 2020.

[[caption-width-right:212:The man himself.]]