Brandon Sanderson's new novels are already breaking records

Known for bringing epic fantasy series like Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive to life, Brandon Sanderson is one writer who we’ve come to know quite well. His work is actually a part of our daily lives here at Inked Gaming since the various cover arts found on his books are also featured on the premium pieces of gaming gear in our collection. We have legendary artist, Michael Whelan to thank for that!

Brandon’s books have opened the eyes and imaginations of so many readers who wish to leave their worlds behind and discover new ones. The characters, creatures, and settings that make up his adventures are some of the most fascinating in the fantasy world. In fact, you’ll find more than a few printed on our goods as well. So, when we heard that Brandon had secretly written four new novels over these past two years, it was hard not to break into our happy dance. 

This news became official earlier this week after Brandon himself posted a video that announced these newest novels and how he managed to keep them a secret from fans for so long. In that same video, Brandon also tells us how he was able to use the pandemic to his advantage. He actually began by writing one secret novel, but as time went on, it snowballed into four, which he appropriately has titled Secret Project.

You can watch that video HERE if you haven’t seen it already.

Not much detail has been given about the plots just yet. However, it has been said that three of them are expected to be set in the Cosmere universe, which is another fantasy world created by Brandon. The one other real piece of information that we’ve been given about these novels, and has created a buzz in the publishing world, is Brandon’s decision to fund these four new adventures independently.

Yes, Brandon Sanderson has decided to publish these latest novels himself but is asking for a little help from his friends/fans as well. Kickstarter is a wonderful tool for raising money, especially if you’re an adored author with a massive following. So, when Brandon announced that he would be using Kickstarter to support this effort, the universe answered…in a big way.

The $1,000,000 goal that was set by Sanderson seemed a little steep to me at first, but about 12 hours and $15,000,000 later, that goal is looking more like a small spec in the sand. I’m not saying that I didn’t expect him to reach that goal, but I just didn’t expect so much so quickly. We’re talking about 15x what was asked for in just half a day. And the scary part is that the number just keeps on climbing as we speak.

Today, the figure has now reached just over $27,000,000, smashing not only Brandon’s original goal but a few other records as well. Actually, this is the highest-grossing literary campaign in the history of Kickstarter, and they started back in 2009. April 1st is the last day that this project will be live on Kickstarter, so it's fair to assume that that number will make its way well North of $30,000,000 if it maintains this pace. 

This massive amount of support has helped to determine when Brandon’s four new novels will be released as well. Right now, we’re looking at some time in 2023. I don’t know about you, but I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed for an earlier release date if possible.

If you want to support Brandon Sanderson’s Kickstarter campaign, you can do so by clicking HERE. Again, since Brandon’s name is connected to all of our Michael Whelan products, I thought you would be interested in hearing this amazing story. 

Speaking of, we recently added some new Michael Whelan gear to our collection, some of which feature the cover artwork from Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. For those of you who didn’t know, Brandon co-wrote a couple of titles from that series as well. So, definitely be sure to check those out before you bounce.

Until we meet again,

Vince The Prince