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SALT LAKE CITY — Brandon Sanderson is a huge name in the community of fantasy literature, but many nondevotees of the genre may have heard his name for the first time last week when the Utah author went viral for an unusual reason.
A magazine article published in Wired about what it termed "the biggest fantasy writer in the world" took a less-than-flattering tone, criticizing everything from Sanderson's religion to his fashion sense to his decision to add salt to his food — things one wouldn't necessarily think matter in terms of a writer's work.
But Sanderson's response, for many, might have been even more surprising. Instead of defending himself or criticizing the article's writer, he asked his fans to give the writer grace.
"I like him. Please leave him alone. He seems to be a sincere man who tried very hard to find a story, discovered that there wasn't one that interested him, then floundered in trying to figure out what he could say to make deadline. I respect him for trying his best to write what he obviously found a difficult article," Sanderson said in a response to the Wired article on Reddit.
The debacle even led another national magazine to weigh in this week. On Wednesday, Esquire published an article that had originally been scheduled to go live soon after the Wired article. The Esquire article discusses some of the "oddly hostile language" in the other article, and Sanderson's reaction to it.
Who is Brandon Sanderson?
Sanderson is a prolific, best-selling writer of fantasy novels. He has published more than 50 books. He is also a Brigham Young University graduate, creative writing instructor and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who resides in American Fork.
He made headlines when he broke crowdfunding website Kickstarter's record for most funds ever raised for a project on the site. The campaign to publish four of Sanderson's novels and related swag surpassed $20 million in its first 72 hours, according to Kickstarter. The campaign ultimately raised nearly $42 million.
Sanderson brings his fans together every year in Salt Lake City for the Dragonsteel Convention. Dragonsteel is the name of his publishing company.
Sanderson employs many of his relatives and is generous with his time when speaking to fans in public, according to the recent pair of national articles about him. He will be the commencement speaker at Utah Valley University's graduation ceremony on May 4 in Orem.
What happened?
Technology and culture magazine Wired published a piece titled "Brandon Sanderson Is Your God" on March 23. The article sought to demonstrate how Sanderson's religion and his status as the world's current reigning fantasy writer are "profoundly related."
The article labels Sanderson as "extremely Mormon" and a "weirdo Mormon" but does not delve deeply into Sanderson's beliefs or how exactly they connect to his work. The writer, Jason Kehe, expresses difficulty digging deeper throughout the article as "none of (Sanderson's) self-analysis is, for my purposes, exciting. ... I find Sanderson depressingly, story-killingly lame."
Those types of conclusions sprinkled throughout the story — with little explanation about what specifically brought the writer to them — have drawn a slew of angry comments toward Kehe on social media.
"This article would have been better if it wasn't dripping with contempt for its subject and his values. A critical article would have been fine, but this is written in a way that is so sneeringly condescending that I actively hated reading it," one man wrote.
Some who admitted they don't enjoy Sanderson's novels even took to social media to express disbelief at the Wired article's tone.
"I'm not a fan of Brandon Sanderson's writing, but even if he had a dull personality he did not deserve this abusive article. Oof! Bad form," one person wrote.
Then Sanderson entered the conversation not to complain but to ask people to give Kehe a break. In the Reddit response, he didn't attempt to defend himself against Kehe's criticisms but did take issue with "how he seemed to find every single person on his trip — my friends, my family, my fans — to be worthy of derision."
Sanderson added: "But he also feels sincere in his attempt to try to understand. While he legitimately seems to dislike me and my writing, I don't think that's why he came to see me. He wasn't looking for a hit piece — he was looking to explore the world through his writing. In that, he and I are the same, and I respect him for it, even if much of his tone seems quite dismissive of many people and ideas I care deeply about."
The fantasy author's response incited praise on social media.
"Despite what we think of his writing, Sanderson's response to this article is greatness," one man wrote on Twitter.
In the Esquire article — in which writer Adam Morgan goes in depth about Sanderson's work, his successful approach to nontraditional publishing, his lifestyle and some of his specific religious beliefs in principles like tithing — Sanderson is quoted saying he felt betrayed by the Wired article but reiterated that he respects the writer.
"Anytime I get criticism from anyone, my job is to listen," Sanderson said, according to Esquire, adding that a main theme of one of his books is "that it's worth trusting people" even if you get hurt.
The Esquire article also quotes Kehe, whose response to the criticism was: "As I've said to others, the piece belongs to readers now. They get the last word."
