Monday, November 7, 2011

The book I'm most grateful for

Crazy thanks to Angela Brown at In a pursuit of publishness for awarding me the Stylish Blogger Award! I love it.

So have you guys heard about this?




Beth Revis is doing an incredible giveaway on her blog. She collected 19 SIGNED BOOKS from the people who really helped her on her journey, along with a whole lotta swag. So what does Beth Revis want?

She wants people to share a book they are grateful for. How awesome is that? During this month of gratitude, sharing a book I'm grateful for sounds pretty much perfect. (Want to share yours? Click on the picture above, and it'll take you to her post.)

Without a doubt, the book I'm most grateful for is MISTBORN by Brandon Sanderson. I don't read a ton of fantasy, but I do love it almost every time. A friend HIGHLY recommended this book, and so I read it.

I can't express how much this book BLEW ME AWAY. I finished reading it, and just sat there, not moving, completely in awe. I couldn't even imagine how many hours... days... years this book had to percolate to become what it was. It was definitely one of those books that stay with you long after you read it. I'm talking LONG after. (Plus: kick-butt female protag, plot where tons of stuff happens. Me=love.)

And the thing is, Brandon Sanderson writes A LOT. It doesn't take him three years to put out a masterpiece like this. He writes a book in like three minutes. Okay, maybe that's a little bit of an exaggeration. But the guy is definitely prolific.

Brandon is amazing, and one of the most efficient people I've ever met. Even his thinking process is efficient! Man, I'd love to live in his brain for a day just to see how he does it.

My gratitude for Mistborn started with the book, but it didn't end with it. I read Mistborn about six months after I decided I wanted to pursue writing professionally. I got to the end of the book, and found out that Brandon taught creative writing at a university half an hour from my home. I knew-- knew-- that if I could learn from someone like him, it would make all the difference. The thing about Brandon is, he's a REALLY nice guy. And he likes nothing more than to help aspiring authors on their way. He and a few friends do a weekly podcast called Writing Excuses just to help us out.

I owe Brandon a lot. I owe him for my writing group. I owe him for teaching me more about writing than any other person, by far. And I owe him for writing a darn good book that still makes me wistful whenever I think about it.

21 comments:

Kelley Lynn said...

Ok, you've convinced me. It's going on my TBR list! :)

Cristina said...

this is AWESOME! I'm definitely going to enter to win.. oh my sooo many awesome books!!!

Katie Dodge said...

You've sold me,too.It's going on my list. :)

Michael Offutt, Phantom Reader said...

Brandon can write a lot because he only teaches two creative writing classes and draws down a salary as a BYU professor. That means oodles of spare time and summers off? Yeah...the rich have it good, right? But he's also very talented.

Angela Cothran said...

I so need to read this. I'm a little ashamed I haven't.

David P. King said...

I am in full agreement with you. This book stuck with me and helped me come back to writing more than I ever have. Perfect selection. :)

Carrie Butler said...

I'm going to go with the crowd and say it's going on my TBR list, too. :)

Kristine said...

Mistborn is mine too! And, I'm on my way to her blog to enter. Thanks!

Lan said...

Wow, I've actually never heard of this book before and I'm a prolific fantasy reader. Will have to check it out. How cool that you were able to connect with such an amazing author. I'm still blown away by how great authors are in general and how willing they are to give any help that they can!

Golden Eagle said...

Okay, I need to put this on my TBR . . .

Denise Baer said...

This is a great way to be thankful for this season.

Also a wonderful way to support aspiring authors.

Thanks for sharing.

Iain said...

How slow amd I? It's never occurred to me to download podcasts about writing?
Thanks for the idea :o)

Jenny S. Morris said...

Oh, I'm with Iain. My husband's going to love that I'm downloading podcasts.

I just added this book to my goodreads. Thanks Peggy. Hope you're resting after your marathon revising weekend.

Unknown said...

What a great post!! :) I will definitely have to check that book out!

Angela Brown said...

I heard some wonderful things about this book and especially the author. Better make sure I have Mistborn on my TBR.

Thanks Peggy.

i'm erin. said...

I remember when you pressured me to read this book, and I was like no way. And then I tried, and it took me forever. But then I loved it and couldn't get enough!

Emily R. King said...

Okay, another book to had to my TBR list. This looks amazing. Thanks for the referral!

LynNerdKelley said...

The book sounds awesome, and how cool that you were able to take classes from the author. That's downright amazing! Yes, it must have been meant to be. That contest sounds great, too!

Peggy Eddleman said...

Kelley-- Yay! You're going to love it.

Cristina-- It's incredible, isn't it?

Katie-- That makes me so happy!

Michael-- Idk. He was crazy productive even before he became a full-time author, and even with the FT status, he gets an unbelievable amount done in a day.

Angela-- You definitely won't be sorry you did.

David-- I figured you had read it!

Carrie-- WooHoo! Feel free to thank me later.

Kristine-- I can't wait to read your post about it!

Lan-- Definitely read it! Brandon Sanderson is so great at writing fantasy. You'll love it.

The Golden Eagle-- Definitely. :)

Bea-- I know! Beth Revis rocks. I love that she thought of this!

Iain-- Awesome! They're funny guys. I actually don't know the girl that joined them at all, but the others are pretty hilarious (along with being really knowledgeable).

Jenny-- Yay! Enjoy them! And no... not resting. But I did stay up crazy late last night to make the weekend last a bit longer. Does that count?

Marisa-- Thanks! It's definitely worth checking out.

Angela-- I concur with whatever wonderful things you heard. :)

Erin-- Isn't it usually the other way around?

E.R.-- It is amazing. You're welcome!

LynNerdKelley-- It was definitely one of those "make the most outrageous wish and have it come true" kinds of things. I loved every second of it. And the contest is unbelievable! You should check it out.

Unknown said...

What a great guy! I am so jealous of authors who can write so fast and still have time for social media. Thanks for the review.

Susanna Leonard Hill said...

What a great story - so nice to know that such a talented writer is also a nice person and has helped you so much. I would love to write a really awesome book in this genre because I love reading them, but I don't think I have the Brandon type of mind :)