Worlds of ash. Of gods. Of spores. Of darkness. Of islands. Of knights. Of shades. Of deserts. Of cinders. Of color. Of spirits.
Such is the nature of the Cosmere. A universe of gods and men, of dragons and Sho Del.
Brandon Sanderson is the author of The Cosmere, a fictional universe consisting of a majority of his books, with notable exceptions of the final three books of “The Wheel of Time,” “The Reckoners,” “The Rithmatist,” “Alcatraz,” the Cytoverse (a smaller fictional universe) and “Legion.”
Sanderson’s Cosmere is largely high fantasy, though he plans on shifting towards science fiction, mainly with his third era of “Mistborn.”
However, Sanderson only plans on having some books completely necessary to understand The Cosmere. His goal is to create “a hidden epic” in which each series or book is understood alone but still contributes to an overarching story.
Sanderson’s universe is unique in that it has a unified theory of magic, where each book or book series, despite having a different magic system, each follows the same basic rules.
Sanderson’s writing style and worldbuilding are impressive, providing enough information to understand what is happening while still making it feel like a complete world, even if you don’t know everything about it.
Dan Wells, an author and co-writer for the Cosmere, said that his characters are one of the best parts of Sanderson’s writing.
“You really get to know who these people are and what drives them, and why they make the decisions,” Wells said.
His characters are also very diverse, whether they are kings, beggars, children or sages, all are included in Sanderson’s writing.
Another amazing thing about Sanderson’s writing is how quickly he writes. He writes for fun, meaning he comes out with at least one book per year (for the most part). For example, last year he released three books, but this year he will only release one. However, that one book is longer than all three last year combined.
Sanderson’s company, Dragonsteel, also hosts a yearly convention, known as Dragonsteel Nexus. According to Wells, there are panels and presentations, games and crafts, huge RPGs, Sanderson Q&A (called Words of Brandon), and a secret game each year.
Previous years have had hidden doomslugs (a character in Sanderson’s writing), or finding Mistborn coins, and this year will have a cosplay competition. Not to mention that every year Sanderson releases (and signs) a new book.
This year’s Dragonsteel Nexus will be from December 5-7 in Salt Lake City.
Overall, the Cosmere is not just a fictional universe but an experience where you can see life from fantastical perspectives.
In the end, however, as Brandon Sanderson once said, “The purpose of a storyteller is not to tell you how to think, but to give you questions to think upon.”
So please, read. And please, think.
