Brandon Sanderson Community discussion

I am a new fan of Sanderson. Someone recommended Elantris in January and my reading challenge has been FILLED by Sanderson ever since. In addition to Elantris, I have read all of the MISTBORN novels, Rithmatist, Warbreaker, THE EMPEROR'S SOUL, and am now in the early part of WAY OF KINGS. RECENTLY I learned that this universe has an over-arching theme of connection, which brings me to the core of my question....

Where does a novice START and in what order should they read the currently available Sanderson catalog to see the interconnectedness of these stories? Is there a timeline or fan inspired lineage as to when each story occurs telative to another?

Welcome to the world of the Cosmere! There is no set order to read them, but you've started out well. I always recommend people start with the original Mistborn series if they want a trilogy or Elantris as a standalone and Brandon's first published novel. I think reading the Stormlight Archive books last is a good way to go. So many references from other books find their way to Roshar. I started with Way of Kings and missed so many things. However my retreads have been very rewarding!

Another note: don't forget to read the Cosmere novellas and short stories. They're just as rich in Cosmere lore. I loved Secret Histories, Sixth of the Dusk, The Emperor's Soul, and Shadows for Silence in the Forests of Hell. But you're in luck! All of these shorter works are coming out in an anthology called Arcanum Unbounded on Tuesday the 22nd!

http://coppermind.net/wiki/Coppermind...

http://www.17thshard.com/

Here are a couple of fan made websites that have a ton of info about the Cosmere and things that Mr. Sanderson has said at events. I would be careful though, because these websites can have some major spoilers.

Great resources Joe! Not only are these fan sites, but the 17th Shard is Brandon's official fan site and the coppermind is the official wiki maintained by the fan site. You may find information there that is NOT in the books, but are from Words of Brandon (WoB). Sanderson loves to answer fan questions at book signings, Cons, on Reddit as /u/mistborn, and on Twitter. Members of the 17th (like myself) then transcribe these Q and A's and use them to theory craft and add to the wiki.

The 17th Shard fan site got it's name from Brandon himself. It was originally named after a reference to a character that made many people realize that his books were set in the same universe. He then said that there is an organization in the Cosmere called the 17th Shard that is actually hunting for this character. It becomes obvious in the Way of Kings who this is. As a result he said the fan site should take the same name!