My First Dragonsteel Nexus

I just spent several days in Salt Lake City at Brandon Sanderson’s Dragonsteel Nexus, a convention for Sanderson and fantasy/sci-fi fans. I’m here to report that I had the time of my life, and left Salt Lake City on Sunday morning full of inspiration and fire to go all in on this author thing. It’s hard not to be inspired after three days of learning from some of the best in the business. 

I learned about DSNX through happenstance. A Reddit post followed by a Google search led me to put my name on the ticket waitlist with a “we’ll see what happens” attitude. The convention is a hot ticket, so they released tickets in waves when they went on sale earlier this year. I was chosen in wave two, bought a ticket, and committed to reading a couple of Brandon Sanderson books before then. 

Oh, yeah, that might be important to know: I had not, as of buying a ticket, read a Brandon Sanderson book. He’s on my TBR, but my TBR is so very long, and he has so many books, many of which are quite thick. I had months, though, and one of my author goals for 2025 was to go to a few book events, so off to DSNX I went. 

The convention was incredible. 

Over three days, I was able to go to spotlight panels with Pierce Brown and Tomi Adeyemi, listen to Pierce, Tomi, Matt Dinniman, and Brandon Sanderson talk about the future of fantasy and sci-fi, and hear Christopher Paolini (!!!), J.A. Andrews, Ryan Cahill, and Evan Leikam discuss what makes a story stay with you. I learned about crafting interesting characters from Charlie Holmberg, Peter Orullian, Ben McSweeney, and Joel Daniel Phillips. and talked writing romance with K.C. Woodruff, Brittany Hansen, Tricia Levenseller, and Sariah Wilson, a panel that was worth the costs of the convention all by itself. I attended a live recording of Intentionally Blank with Brandon, Tomi, Dan Wells, and Ayman Chaudhary, shopped from incredible vendors, and added so many books to my never-ending TBR. 

I bought no less than ten books. I had to buy a new carry-on to bring them all home. 

I got to briefly meet Brandon and have him sign my copy of Isles of the Emberdark. 

I got to attend The Worldhopper Ball, which was absolutely magical. It was an immersive experience from the moment the curtains parted for entry to the last song. You can watch my recap of the ball here and here. I really believe I was meant to wear ball gowns and attend book-themed balls. 

Dragonsteel Nexus was, to say it again, incredible. 

On one hand, I was out of my league. There were so many hardcore fans of Sanderson and so much incredible cosplay. On the other hand, I was with my people. People who love books, many of whom also write books. The community was so kind and welcoming. Even though I attended solo, I never felt alone. There was always someone ready to chat about books or talk about writing. In the past, by the final day of a convention or conference, I’ve been worn out and ready to go home. This time, I was genuinely sad it was over, even if I couldn’t wait to see my pup. I could have stayed another three days, easily. 

You can read detailed recaps of day one, day two, and day three over on my Substack. I’m going to be sharing more about what I learned at DSNX, especially from Tomi Adeyemi, soon. I’m not being dramatic when I say she might have changed my life. 

Dragonsteel Nexus 2026 is already on the books for December 3-5, 2026 in Salt Lake City. I’ve blocked my calendar and can’t wait to go back, this time with one or two friends in tow. If you have the opportunity, go! You’ll have a great time. 

Just make sure you have plenty of room in your luggage for all the books and swag you’ll buy, or you’ll find yourself in Nordstrom purchasing a new carry-on the night before your flight. 🙂