Last night, on the eve of The Gathering Storm‘s release, Wheel of Time fans gathered in Charleston at Brigham Young University for a release party with Brandon Sanderson. Reporting from the ground was Spencer Powell, and below the cut is some of the magic and madness he witnessed there. (If, like us, you couldn’t make the Charleston JUST KIDDING BYU shindig, see if you can catch Brandon at another one of his tour stops, including one in Charleston for reals.)
Storm Leaders, the volunteer elves to Brandon’s Santa Claus, at dinner with Brandon before the event: clockwise from the front, we have Karen, Nick, Emily, Brandon, Sarah, Sarah’s husband (we know you have a name, we just don’t know what it is!), Matt, Matt’s wife (ditto), Jennifer, Kayley, and Spencer.
Meanwhile, as the line stretches out to Shayol Ghul and beyond, one fan can’t take it anymore and decides to do some sword-forms to calm himself. Homemade heron-mark blade + flame + void = this face:
Inside, finally!
Where Brandon is signing copies of his previous books (looks like Warbreaker there).
And where the shiny things are….
Fly free, little Gathering Storms!
Brandon and the Storm Leaders post for their heroic portrait after a heroic effort.
Thanks again for the pictures, Spencer! Enjoy the book, all.
Megan Messinger is a production assistant at Tor.com, and her copy of The Gathering Storm is by her left elbow as she types this.
Megan, Charleston or BYU? I thought the midnight was over in Utah and the Charleston shindig is tonight (at least I hope, as I’m sitting in Charleston right now!)
On a related note, d’oh, I forgot to grab the galley of Warbreaker I got at Dragon*Con to have Brandon sign it! Mother milk and bloody buttered onions!
I really really hope that Brandon gets a chance to do one of these in NZ at some point. Not a release party maybe, but just a signing tour (and perhaps I’ll organise the party) :)
All you lucky lucky ducks in the US…
Yeah, none in Canada even!
Unless there is some weird replica of the BYU Bookstore in Charleston, these pictures are from Provo, UT.
R. Fife and Felonius Monk, you are so right. ‘Tis fixed now.
Hmm…I wonder if it would obstruct my Storm Leader shirt too much if I wore my Asha’man coat and heron-mark sword to the Dallas signing…
Coincidentally, as I read this entry, my left elbow was literally resting on my tGS copy!
Skwid! “resting on my tGS copy” WTF??? Why are you not READING it?
It was a lot of fun. Thanks to Tor for the cool handouts and for picking up the tab!
MoM – he has probably read it already. Grr – still twitching… must get home…
R Fife – thank your lucky stars you are not in the right place on the wrong day.. Lucky you.. we expect a post about tonight.. good luck, and have a beer on behalf of all us people that can’t be there.
Sigh!
*Cry* I know I’m barely in the photo, but you didn’t have to leave my name out. And after I sent you all those lovely videos…
This is just getting me more excited for Thursday’s tour stop in Baltimore – can’t wait!
Ruth @@@@@10, I would never leave you out on purpose! Between which two people are you sitting?
Skwid @@@@@ 6, DO EET.
Sheesh, don’t any of you people have day jobs?
P.S.: I’m 2/3rds through, now. Who needs sleep when CostCo sells 5-hour Energy in bulk, eh?
Sorry for the drama – I was still tired from the signing. I’m sure it was Spencer’s oversight.
I was sitting between Matt’s wife (I can’t remember her name either) and Jennifer.
The people in the bottom pic are Jennifer, Sarah, Brandon (of course), Spencer, me, Kayley, Nick, and Matt – from left to right.
That redhead in the 2nd to last picture is me!
That was a very fun party. I was one of the few who stayed all the way to the end. I’m definitely going again next year, and the year after that.
WoT!
Ah, it was a good time. I got book #10 ’cause #9 was reserved of course. It was awesome. The book… it’s awesome too.