There Be Dragons Ahead!

We sat in the last row on the right side of the “stage” area. Our row consisted of only three chairs, placed less than ten feet from the “down” escalator at the Exton Barnes and Noble bookstore. I occupied the middle chair. One dear friend sat on my left, my other dear friend on my right. We had nabbed the seats a little over an hour and a half before Christopher Paolini was expected to arrive.

As the minutes ticked by, more and more fans filled the seats that faced the lectern. When the chairs ran out, the fan-overflow had to stand. Many filled the empty spaces between the bookshelves surrounding the area. Some fans stood as far away as the railing by the “up” escalator.

All autograph seekers had to purchase a book in order to receive a lettered wristband. The first twenty fans wore bands marked with the letter “A.” The next twenty wore the letter “B” and so on. I don’t know how deep into the alphabet they got, but I met a former student who wore the letter “I.” If they stopped at the ninth letter, and doing the math, that equals 180 books sold. Wowser! Back when my “Eddie Clegg,” novel came out, I thought I crushed it when I sold 12 books at a signing. Of course my book had no dragons in it. 🙂

To me, one of the most important components of the creative writing process is the “curiosity factor.” That’s why it’s so much fun to meet authors at bookstores. I’m curious about how they’ll make use of their time at the lectern. How much talking will they do? What will they discuss? How will they handle readings? How will they interact with fans?

A subset of the “curiosity factor” is wondering, “what if?” That can be the first step in the writing process. Authors who visit bookstores often mention that they use “what if” questions as their novel’s starting point. Chris said the same thing. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves; he hasn’t arrived yet.

Eager anticipation filled the room. Strangers who first stepped through the front door became instant friends, sharing their love of the author’s books. We struck up a conversation with a delightful young man who drove over an hour to meet his favorite author. Others behind us had come even farther. Their enthusiasm was contagious.

Confession time: The number of Paolini books that I own cannot be counted on one hand. Not because he wrote more than five books. Five was the number he came to promote. No, I don’t need any hands at all. That’s right. It was the Moody Blues Cruise all over again.

Let me explain: A few years ago, my sister invited me to join her on a cruise – just the two of us. This one had a theme: the Moody Blues – in person – along with an assortment of other bands from the late 60’s. My sister is a huge fan of Justin, from the Moody Blues (please don’t ask me for his last name). What I knew about that band before the cruise would fit on the head of a pin, with enough space left over to print the Ten Commandments. Put another way, I thought they recorded “A Horse with No Name.” [Note: The band, America did that song.]

I only agreed to go on a Moody Blues Cruise because I’m a fan of my sister. Truth be told, I would have accompanied her on a trip filled with jug and bottle band enthusiasts. Despite my lack of Moody Blues CD ownership, I still had an awesome time and met the friendliest people!

Bringing us back to the present, I am a fan of Christopher Paolini. Not because I’ve read all his books, but because he’s an author and I love author presentations.

As the appointed hour drew closer, I looked around the open area. How would Chris arrive? Would he take the “up” escalator way over on the other side of the huge second floor? Would he ride the elevator that stood even farther away than the escalator? Once he got here, how would he make it through the horde of people to reach the lectern?

Then an awed voice mumbled, “There he is.”

My friends and I peered over our shoulders. With coffee cup in hand, he casually stood with the crowd behind us.

Even though I’d never seen him before, I recognized him. Okay, I saw his picture on the back flap of one of his books, but in the photo he was clean shaven.

Now that he had arrived, he remained with the people in the back.

The festivities began with a bookstore employee reading trivia questions that related to the Inheritance Cycle series. Chris later referred to it as a “trilogy in four books.” Fans raised their hands, eager to offer their answers. Due to my earlier confession, obviously I couldn’t participate, although I did mumble “Sally,” when the audience was asked the name of a character’s aunt. I was wrong by the way. Whoever heard of a character named Sally in a fantasy series?

Chris was everything you’d want at an author signing; he was poised, personable and funny. He had a clever way of reading excerpts from each of his books so that he wouldn’t bore the audience.

He even read an excerpt in the language he made up.

And if you ever give an author presentation at a bookstore, you can never go wrong with a little self-deprecating humor.

After his talk, and despite the multitudes seeking an autograph (including those who came with cardboard boxes filled with books), he took the time to speak briefly with each of them as he signed.

As an added bonus there was a “photo-op” station, complete with swords and a stuffed dragon.

From start to finish, it was an awesome experience. If you hear that Christopher Paolini is coming to a Barnes and Noble near you; be sure to go. It’ll be worth it and, if you’re not one already, he’s sure to make a fan out of you.

It’s always fun to see the different ways we experience the same event. For another take on Christopher’s visit to our local Barnes and Noble, please check out Gemma Brook’s post. She was the dear friend seated on my left.