Is Brandon Sanderson "lame"

[Kenngo1969]

1 minute ago, Navidad said:

Are you talking about me and my dissertation? I just keep writing and writing and writing and I am running out of time! Also, at least one member of my committee gives me the sense that he thinks it is fantasy! Ha! 🙃

Good luck (and, indeed, Godspeed) with that endeavor, Sir.  

[Dario_M]

38 minutes ago, SeekingUnderstanding said:

👍Which book-just curious

I whas just looking on Wikipedia. I need to look it back because i forget wich one it whas. Give me a moment. I'm comming back to you.... ...... Edit i'm back it whas about Rithmatisma or so. 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Dario_M

[Dario_M]

48 minutes ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

Nothing old fashioned about Sanderson's work.

Well...i share i differend opinion about that. I myself also write books (in dutch offcourse) but i go fully on hardcore when i am writing. Published 2 books allready. 😎

And yeah...i just don't like old fassion. 

48 minutes ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

His stuff is usually a fresh take on the fantasy genre, stuff you'll never see anywhere else, some weird, some outlandish, some just downright cinematically engaging. But nothing, ever, that's old, tired, or been done before.

 

That little peach of his book Rithmatisma that i saw on wiki whas not reallly promising. But maybe i need to read the whole book to have an honest opinion. 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Dario_M

[SeekingUnderstanding]

41 minutes ago, Dario_M said:

I whas just looking on Wikipedia. I need to look it back because i forget wich one it whas. Give me a moment. I'm comming back to you.... ...... Edit i'm back it whas about Rithmatisma or so. 

Yeah, Sanderson has actually said he regrets some of the themes in that book and would have done it differently if he had it over again. Part of the reason he left that alone (was originally intended to be a few books). 

[Stormin' Mormon]

32 minutes ago, Dario_M said:

Well...i share i differend opinion about that. I myself also write books (in dutch offcourse) but i go fully on hardcore when i am writing. Published 2 books allready. 😎

And yeah...i just don't like old fassion. 

That little peach of his book Rithmatisma that i saw on wiki whas not reallly promising. But maybe i need to read the whole book to have an honest opinion. 

The Rithmatitst is one of those books that even Sanderson fans forget exists. I wouldn't look to it as representative of what Sanderson can do as a writer.

His core works can be found in the Cosmere. Do a wiki search of THAT term and you'll stumble down a rabbit hole of interconnected series and standalones, none of it conventional or old fashioned.

If you really wanna try Sanderson, either try The Final Empire (if door stoppers intimidate you) or the Way of Kings (if they don't). I'd really hate for you to get the wrong idea about an author from reading one of his failed works*

(*yes, failed works. The Rithmatist was originally part of the Cosmere, but retroactively removed. It was also planned as part of a series, which 10 years later, never developed. Seems like even Brandon saw the Rithmatist as a dead end).

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Stormin' Mormon

[SeekingUnderstanding]

28 minutes ago, Dario_M said:

Well...i share i differend opinion about that. I myself also write books (in dutch offcourse) but i go fully on hardcore when i am writing. Published 2 books allready. 😎

And yeah...i just don't like old fassion. 

That little peach of his book Rithmatisma that i saw on wiki whas not reallly promising. But maybe i need to read the whole book to have an honest opinion. 

Of his stuff in Dutch, this would be the place to try if you were interested (in my opinion):

https://www.lastdodo.com/en/items/5645835-het-laatste-rijk

[Dario_M]

32 minutes ago, SeekingUnderstanding said:

Yeah, Sanderson has actually said he regrets some of the themes in that book and would have done it differently if he had it over again. Part of the reason he left that alone (was originally intended to be a few books). 

Yeah yeah.  After you have published a book it is a little to late for that. 

After i publish a book i just don't read it again. Never. It's done. It's over. May there be still a mistake simwhere is it to late to sovle that mistake anyway. So.. for me it's time to move on. To the next book. 

Brandon should have done the same.

Edited March 26, 2023 by Dario_M

[Dario_M]

1 minute ago, SeekingUnderstanding said:

Of his stuff in Dutch, this would be the place to try if you were interested (in my opinion):

https://www.lastdodo.com/en/items/5645835-het-laatste-rijk

Het laatste rijk?? Why is it in Dutch? Brandon is from US right?? 

[SeekingUnderstanding]

1 minute ago, Dario_M said:

Yeah yeah.  After yoo have published a book it is a little to late for that. 

That view does not allow for growth as a person. I’m not the same person I was twenty, ten or even five years ago. 

[SeekingUnderstanding]

Just now, Dario_M said:

Het laatste rijk?? Why is it in Dutch? Brandon is from US right?? 

Translated, your native language is Dutch no?

Edited March 26, 2023 by SeekingUnderstanding

[Dario_M]

15 minutes ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

The Rithmatitst is one of those books that even Sanderson fans forget exists. I wouldn't look to it as representative of what Sanderson can do as a writer.

His core works can be found in the Cosmere. Do a wiki search of THAT term and you'll stumble down a rabbit hole of interconnected series and standalones, none of it conventional or old fashioned.

I will look into it. 

15 minutes ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

If you really wanna try Sanderson, either try The Final Empire (if door stoppers intimidate you) or the Way of Kings (if they don't). I'd really hate for you to get the wrong idea about an author from reading one of his failed works*

I get that. That's kinda said for him as well.😔

15 minutes ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

(*yes, failed works. The Rithmatist was originally part of the Cosmere, but retroactively removed. It was also planned as part of a series, which 10 years later, never developed. Seems like even Brandon saw the Rithmatist as a dead end).

 

Aaaawh yeah that's to bad. I didn't even realised that Rithmatist what that old anyway. 10 years is a long time. 

[Dario_M]

3 minutes ago, SeekingUnderstanding said:

That view does not allow for growth as a person. I’m not the same person I was twenty, ten or even five years ago. 

Well... i don't read my published books anyway. It's done. It's fine. I have done my best. So i'm proud anyway. And move on. Eventhough i get bad feedback on it. Wich i got a lot. But yeah...Dutch people complain about everything i find. It's never good inough for them. 😞

Brandon should do the same and don't worrie about his book. My opinion about his book whas just an opinion. And at the end of the day other people's opinions are not important and doesn't matter anyway.

That's how i see it at least. 

[Dario_M]

18 minutes ago, SeekingUnderstanding said:

Translated, your native language is Dutch no?

Yes it's tranlated in my native language. Het laatste rijk means: "The last kingdom"  

 

oh wait mistake. I'm tired. Not the last kingdom. Otherwise in Dutch that would be: Het laatste koninkrijk. 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Dario_M

[webbles]

5 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

Very popular and successful American fantasy writer who is also LDS. Along the order of Orson Scott Card, Brandon Mull, Margaret Weiss, and, of course, Talentissimo Gui.

I don't believe Margaret Weiss is LDS.  Her common co-author, Tracy Hickman, is.  Maybe you switched the two?

[bluebell]

I tried reading one of his books and discovered that I don't like the Fantasy genre much at all.  Which I wasn't really prepared for because I love LOTRs, The Neverending Story, and stuff like that.  

But I know that he is well loved and his books (especially the Mistborn series I think) are really popular.  I haven't read the article from Mr. snootypants but who cares if someone is the best writer.  As long as people love reading their books then that's really all that matters.  Stephenie Meyers is not a good writer at all (some of her stuff is super cringey), but she's a good storyteller and that can make all the difference.  I've read some awesome writers whose books were not at all fun to read.

Article guy sounds like one of those people who can't handle it when someone likes something they don't like.

[Bernard Gui]

4 hours ago, webbles said:

I don't believe Margaret Weiss is LDS.  Her common co-author, Tracy Hickman, is.  Maybe you switched the two?

I don't believe Margaret Weiss is LDS.  Her common co-author, Tracy Hickman, is.  Maybe you switched the two?Indeed, I misspoke. Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weiss collaborated on many fantasy books.  I misremembered her as the LDS partner. The Dragonlance series were staples in our home when the kids were young. I read many of the books aloud to the them. We even learned to make Otik’s spiced potatoes…still do! Started a three-generation love affair with Tolkien, Sanderson, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, and other fantasy stuff.

https://www.aaronjasinski.com/media?lightbox=image_1c81

Edited March 27, 2023 by Bernard Gui

[Bernard Gui]

6 hours ago, Stormin' Mormon said:

Writing style aside, Brandon does a couple of things that make him stand out from other fantasy authors.

First: he is extremely transpatent with his fans. He communicates regularly and openly about the writing process, tracks the progress of various projects, and engages fans on their theories about his work.

Second: He is industrious. While Patrick Rothfuss and George RR Martin take years (or decades) between books, Brandon just keeps writing and writing and writing (like he'srunning out of time). He has a large staff that helps with editing, proofreading, continuity, and all the inicdentals to publishing. This staff is largely people who believed in and supported him when he was still unpublished; it's his way of giving back to the people who made him him.

Finally: he's just a respectful class act. 

We could use more authors like Brando Sando.

Fun Fact: back in the day, my wife worked with him as one of three editors at a BYU student-lead fantasy magazine. They weren't super close, but because of that association, we have been avid Sanderson fans since the very beginning.

Amen and amen! A class act indeed. Our son Talentissimo is a largely self-taught fantasy writer working on his magnum opus, but he uses and loves Sanderson’s free tutoring. What a great service! 

 

Edited March 27, 2023 by Bernard Gui

[Bernard Gui]

4 hours ago, Dario_M said:

After i publish a book i just don't read it again. Never. It's done. It's over. May there be still a mistake simwhere is it to late to sovle that mistake anyway. So.. for me it's time to move on. To the next book. 

Brandon should have done the same.

Sanderson is surely the only writer in history to write a poor novel and then abandon it.

But, of course, much to his credit he did move on, as you advised him.

 

[Bernard Gui]

18 hours ago, Meadowchik said:

I had a friend who lived near him and got Sanderson to sign a poster for my son who reads all his books. Nice guy.

Sanderson creates entertaining worldbuilding. But I wouldn't be surprised if he really is stuck as an artist in terms of developing better prose and deeper characters.

Oh that I were so stuck.

[Bernard Gui]

8 hours ago, Dario_M said:

He is another oldfassion Mormon that has quite bald and old ideas. I have read a bit from his writing online. And i'm afrait i can't be all to stoked about this stories or his philosophical ideas . 

Not.

[Bernard Gui]

18 hours ago, Navidad said:

Are you talking about me and my dissertation? I just keep writing and writing and writing and I am running out of time! Also, at least one member of my committee gives me the sense that he thinks it is fantasy! Ha! 🙃

We had a fellow in our ward who was a security guard. He had gone to law school, but never passed the bar exam, not because he wasn’t smart enough, but that he always wrote so much that he could never finish. He gave very long prayers in sacrament meeting.

Edited March 27, 2023 by Bernard Gui

[OGHoosier]

I will freely admit to loving Brandon Sanderson and being current on his cosmere literary universe. 

I've found his novels to be enthralling and, more importantly, his characterization deeply moving. Dalinar Kholin's arc in Oathbringer is probably the most moving account of guilt and redemption which I've ever read in fiction. The Mistborn series captures the nature of religious struggle very well in the character of Sazed, Spook, and Waxilium Ladrian. One of my more useful theological speculations was actually inspired by the cosmology he sets up therein. Sanderson is whatever the opposite of "lame" is, and I am a shameless fan.

[Meadowchik]

2 hours ago, Bernard Gui said:

Oh that I were so stuck.

No kidding, I'd take that problem!

[Meadowchik]

4 hours ago, bluebell said:

I tried reading one of his books and discovered that I don't like the Fantasy genre much at all.  Which I wasn't really prepared for because I love LOTRs, The Neverending Story, and stuff like that.  

But I know that he is well loved and his books (especially the Mistborn series I think) are really popular.  I haven't read the article from Mr. snootypants but who cares if someone is the best writer.  As long as people love reading their books then that's really all that matters.  Stephenie Meyers is not a good writer at all (some of her stuff is super cringey), but she's a good storyteller and that can make all the difference.  I've read some awesome writers whose books were not at all fun to read.

Article guy sounds like one of those people who can't handle it when someone likes something they don't like.

Some of the most beautiful and enjoyable prose I've ever read was in a book I found in a giveaway pile of English books in a non-English speaking European village. Those piles can have such a mix! But I loved it at the time and never noted the author, aagh!

But speaking of poorly written prose, Dan Brown is imo another example of an author who despite that, still creates an entertaining plot.

Michael Crichton wrote Jurassic Park and has more refined, smart writing with alot of scientific detail in his science fiction.

John Grisham's lawyer books are fast reads, exciting but also very sympathetic and satisfying in that way.

When I was a girl, the first chapter books I read were from a highly formulaic series called Sweet Valley High. In retrospect I wish I would have been introduced to more dimensional writing then. There is really, really good books written for children and youth. But I'm glad that at least I was reading.

My autistic son was slow to learning to read but the first chapter books he enjoyed we read together: Danny Dragon breath. Not long after we started the Percy Jackson series together but he kept going and finished the series on his own and as a young adult still devours books. They've certainly added tremendous happiness to his life. 

Capturing imagination through writing really is a special skill and so valuable. There is a particular joy in finding the writer who hits that spot. The more, the better!

[bsjkki]

38 minutes ago, OGHoosier said:

I will freely admit to loving Brandon Sanderson and being current on his cosmere literary universe. 

I've found his novels to be enthralling and, more importantly, his characterization deeply moving. Dalinar Kholin's arc in Oathbringer is probably the most moving account of guilt and redemption which I've ever read in fiction. The Mistborn series captures the nature of religious struggle very well in the character of Sazed, Spook, and Waxilium Ladrian. One of my more useful theological speculations was actually inspired by the cosmology he sets up therein. Sanderson is whatever the opposite of "lame" is, and I am a shameless fan.

I too am a fan. The wired article does indeed seem like ‘coastal elite’ problem. Snobby and sneering. Why even bother? Sanderson, with his millions, can certainly be magnanimous. 
 

Dario. Why not start at the beginning and read Elantris or Mistborn? I don’t ‘love’ all his book but do love most.