So here’s the thing, I don’t think I’ve really done a post like this before but I figure now is as good a time as any.
It should be quite obvious to anyone that I am a book-a-holic. It’s not a secret, not even a little bit of one. I unashamedly love reading, books and well all things booky, though sometimes films from books make me a little crazy, in a bad way.
Books though are no different from any other fandom. Those of us who love some authors can have fan girl or fan boy moments. One of my first was when I worked my first Matthew Reilly book signing; I asked when I could get my book signed and was told just add my book to the pile for the store – my response ‘no you don’t understand I will be meeting him,’ and that’s how I ended up working my first signing.
It was AWESOME!
Since then I have worked a few. I have also been fortunate enough to network with some of my fave authors and as such have met some.
Marianne de Pierres is truly lovely and such a generous lady with her time for fans and bloggers.
This year I met Raymond E Feist – whose book Magician I read when I was 11 or 12 and loved it so much I read bits of it by torchlight when I was supposed to be asleep.
I also got to meet Michael Pryor, who is a wonderful and fascinating conversationalist. I loved every minute of my time with him, just talking writing, processes and what ever else took our fancy.
I have also met Jay Kristoff, who writes the Lotus War books. I even stayed in the same hotel as Jay this weekend just gone, how spun out was I? A bit.
The thing is though for me these things are as cool as meeting the movie and tv show stars I get to meet at SupaNova and similar cons.
Fandom is an awesome thing and authors love to meet their fans and get positive feedback. You know I’ve gotten to witness some wonderful moments of fandom over the years and I don’t think fanboys and girls should ever be ashamed to put their hand up to acknowledge their fandom. Sadly I have seen some terrible things said in the name of fandom. There is never any time you should think a writer owes you, don’t ever tell them how to do their job. They don’t report to you.
(If you noticed that there are a couple of book covers instead of pics of me with the author it’s because sometimes it really isn’t appropriate to ask.)
And for heavens sake if there was something you thought wasn’t great, you don’t need to lambast them for it. They make their writers choices, you make readers ones. I will say though, I love meeting writers and don’t begrudge the fact that they like to do things other than writing. This topic is a whole other thing really so I’ll leave it there. I prefer to focus on the positive.
I love the places authors can take me to. I love to sink into their worlds and I love to meet them. Sure my ‘I love your work’, is unlikely to stand out amongst the others but each one counts. I think there is a Authors Appreciation Day, and if there isn’t there should be.
Also, next year I will be going to an event just to meet one of my other all time favourite authors- the incredible Tamora Pierce, and man will I ever be a fan girl. I’ll be the one with a bag of books for her to sign and if she only signs one well that will be fine because I will have gotten to say ‘wow I love your stuff and recommend it to as many people as I can’.
So if you haven’t already read anything written by these authors I’ve mentioned, do yourself a favour and do so.
TheKylieVerse 