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Sanderson Collecting Deep Dive​

Let's Talk About The Books Baby!


Infinity Blade Awakening (IBA)

Maybe you've heard of this book but I bet you don’t have one. Why? Because this is a unicorn. Only 200 hardcover and 100 paperbacks were ever and will ever be produced. They were distributed at conventions he attended that year to promote the mobile game Infinity Blade he wrote the story for.

Why will no more ever be printed? The game developers were bought out and Brandon does not own the rights to it anymore. If they ever find an extra box in a closet like they did with the second book in this series we will let you know ;)


Infinity Blade Redemption (IBR)

The second book in this two book series written for the video game Infinity Blade. Still rare and hard to find but not nearly as hard as the first book Infinity Blade Awakening (IBA).


Why is The Well of Ascension (WoA) So Hard to Find?

Hardest Mistborn 1/1 book to find is The Well of Ascension (WoA). The publisher (Tor) wasn’t sure it would sell well so its first print run was the smallest of the original three in the series. Most collectors complain that this is a surprisingly difficult edition to add to their collection.


What the Heck is the Difference between a First Edition and the True First Edition?

A True First is the very first time a book is in print and sold to the public. A first edition is when a specific publisher prints a book for the first time or changes the format such as hardcover to paperback. It may not be the first time the book has ever been in print, it is just the first time this printer has produced the book.

White Sand (WS)

There are three graphic novels in this series and an updated Omnibus with all three combined into one book  was released in multiple editions by a new publisher in 2021. All of these are considered First Edition, First Printings even though they are the same stories. The True Firsts would be the WS editions.

WS 1

WS 1 Signed edition

WS 2

WS 2 Signed edition

WS 3

Omnibus regular hc

Omnibus regular pb

Omnibus special edition with slipcase


Epic Bookmarks

For a few special books Dragonsteel created “Epic Bookmarks" that were given out with a few new releases.  Some fans have gotten them signed and/or numbered in person but they did not originally come that way.  Here is the current list of Epic bookmarks that have been released so far:


​Kickstarter​

With the popularity of Brandon’s Stormlight Archive series exploding the Dragonsteel team decided to use the Kickstarter platform to release the ten year anniversary leather bound The Way of Kings.  By using Kickstarter they were able to create a release event bringing the excitement of a book release party to fans homes with swag normally reserved for live events.  These books were bound in genuine leather which is a higher grade than previous leather bound editions and came with a custom slipcase that were supposed only available through the campaign but are still available though the store. The project was so successful they also used Kickstarter for his surprise Secret Projects, a year of Sanderson and plans to use the platform for future Stormlight archive leather bound ten year anniversary editions. 


Mistborn: Secret History (SH) and Mitosis 

Until recently Mistborn Secret History and Mitosis only had UK releases, Secret History got its first US printing in 2022.  SH had a UK numbered run of 150, Mitosis has never had a numbered run or a US release.


The Way of Kings 10 Year Anniversary Leather Bound (TwoK LB)

These were released though a 2020 Kickstarter campaign as an experiment for larger releases since most of his larger releases crash all the servers. This edition came split into two beautiful books held within a matching slipcase. This Kickstarter blew all expectations away and numbered copies sold out very quickly and a second block of numbered copies were opened up to be distributed in 2021. Dragonsteel has stated that they consider all the leather bound copies sold though the Kickstarter campaign to be first edition, first printings. Some collectors purchased both 2020 and 2021 copies and there have been some changes in the colors used on the interior maps. Copies produced in 2021 have a bluer ink used on an interior map. Books numbered 1-1000 were from the 2020 release and 1001-2000 were released for 2021. Whether a copy was numbered or not, every copy from the Kickstarter was signed. Only the first book will be signed and numbered; the second book was left unsigned. These were signed before binding and shipped directly from the printers arriving sealed in plastic therefore it will still be signed even if still factory sealed.

The Way of Kings Leatherbound has TWO STATES!


Elantris Leather Bound (El LB)

This being Brandon’s first published novel it was the first 10th anniversary leather bound Dragonsteel produced and after the first printing his team decided to use better bindery for the second printing. Therefore it is very easy to tell if a copy of this book is a first printing because the glit embossing is smaller and thinner then the second printing. The second printing matches the rest of the leather bounds better then the first.

Elantris Second Edition Leatherbound


Which Came First: the Paperback or the Hardcover? The Emperor's Soul (TES)

The Emperor's Soul is a weird order of format release because the paperback is the True First for this novella and the hardcover was released by Dragonsteel later in a limited to 1000 copy print run therefore even though the HC is not the first print it is usually the more expensive and harder to find of the two copies. Some collectors only want to collect the hardcovers and others want the 1/1’s and some of us need both.


Aether of Night

Is one of Brandon’s first stories within the Cosmere universe that has not been produced in book format and will probably never be traditionally published but is available from the 17th Shard to read if requested.


Brando Blue Book (BBB)

A list made by the collecting community to help determine the value of Brandon's works.


Stars End

Another of Brandon’s first stories, which takes place within the Skyward universe. They have not been traditionally published but a few hardcover and paperback copies do exist that were privately published but are not for public sale. This may become a Sanderson curiosity in the future like The Way of Kings Prime.


Mistborn Grim Reaper Cover

The first paperback edition of Mistborn (TFE) has what appears to be a grim reaper on the front cover even though there is no character that matches that figure in the book or series.  It’s collected for interest's sake not for any monetary value.  It’s considered not the best cover art for the book content.


The Well of Ascension Leather Bound 1/1

A first edition, first printings of WoA LB are easy to spot because they are a tiny bit shorter in height than all the others from when they switched to the same printers as Easton Press to print the leather bounds.


New Mistborn Leatherbound Leather Color

Covid had many effects on our lives and publishing was no exception.  Paper shortages and shipping delays were expected but even the name of the color of the leather used for the Mistborn trilogy was called Corona and they didn't just change the name they got rid of the color completely and replaced it with a close match but there is a visual difference between the two.


Dragonsbane; By Barbra Hambly

A Grim Oak Press limited edition triple signed by Barbra Hambly, Michael Whelan and Brandon Sanderson with an introduction by Brandon. In eighth grade Brandon read the book Dragonsbane which started him down the path of a love of the fantasy genre.


Unfettered 1,2,3

An anthology series by Grim Oak Press Brandon has been a contributor for.  Books came either numbered/signed or just signed.


Children of the Nameless

Brandon is a big fan of Magic the Gathering and so he wrote a book as a thank you to the Magic the Gathering community. Only available in paperback format from Bulgarian and Turkish publishers.


Sanderson Curiosities

Books that have been published for interest's sake like The Way of Kings Prime which he plans to release with the 10th anniversary leather bound editions of the Stormlight Archive.


Koloss Head Munching Day 

The holiest of holy days, December 19 is a sacred holiday celebrated on Scadrial also known as…. Brandon's birthday!  This tradition started out when a fan asked if they have any in-world holidays on Scadrial and Brandon answered that they have Koloss Head-Munching Day and hence Koloss Head Munching Day now is a thing annually celebrated by Sanderfans everywhere. It is also usually the day that the State of the Sanderson is published each year.


The Leading Edge

Is the Brigham Young University (BYU) science fiction/fantasy magazine Brandon volunteered at and became the editor and chief in his senior year of college. He also continues to teach creative writing classes at BYU, and posts these classes online on YouTube for free. There are editions of this magazine that are Sanderson collectibles.

  • The Leading Edge Issue 39 March 2000

  • The Leading Edge Issue 40 September 2000

  • The Leading Edge Issue 41 April 2001

  • The Leading Edge Issue 42 October 2001

  • The Leading Edge Issue 50 October 2005

  • The Leading Edge Issue 55 May 2008


Writing Excuses

A doubly Hugo-nominated podcast he hosts along with Howard Tayler, Mary Robinette Kowal, and Dan Wells about writing advice. It has also twice won a Parsec Award.


The Wheel of Time

A very famous epic fantasy series by Robert Jordan that Brandon was personally asked by Robert's widow Harriet McDougal to complete when Robert passed before being able to finish. Brandon wrote the final three books; 2009 The Gathering Storm, 2010 Towers of Midnight and 2013 A Memory of Light. Completing this series really made Sanderson a household name in the fantasy genre.

These last three books were obviously not signed by Robert Jordan personally but have printed signatures, but are often portrayed in listings as “signed copies”.


Signings

In the past Brandon would sign anything you put in front of him and stay all night at signings to make sure everyone had a chance to meet him and get a signature. He would even go so far as to sign his books at airports he traveled though as a surprise for anyone purchasing his books before a trip. During Covid his traveling schedule completely stopped and so the only way to get a new signature was in a new release. He found this great for productivity (hence the 4 Secret Projects) and for the immediate future will be limiting the number of signings he attends and how many people he can meet with.

During his inaugural Dragonsteel convention in 2021 signing spots were limited to 150 with one guest allowed, who could also get books signed. There was a limit on how many books you were able to get signed. This seems to be the plan going forward for future signing right now.

Brandon’s signature has changed over the length of his career, as his popularity increased demand for his signature has increased.   He had to change his signing style to use his whole arm and not just his wrist which helps decrease the effect of the repetitive movement on his body; some of his releases have up to 40,000 signed copies. His first few books published you may see a less stylized signature.




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