Tonight I went to see Neil Gaiman speak at Royce Hall at UCLA. In case you are one those who DON’T know who Neil Gaiman is (and he is a rockstar in the literary world so you’re missing out if you don’t know), here’s his pic:
According to his press release his is the “most famous author you’ve never heard of.” His recent books include Wolf in the Walls, Coraline, Stardust and The Graveyard Book. You’ll recognize that some of have been made into movies. You can find more of his books here. (Don’t worry, it doesn’t link to Amazon. It links to his list of books on Harper Collins.)
I was going to take extensive notes. Learn from the Dream King. Uncle Neil. Or as my friend referred to him – the 12th Doctor….Time Lord Extraordinaire.
But when you’re sitting in front of one of your idols (and yes, I have a pic of him up at home. Above my mirror. I actually said to it tonight on the way out, “Hey, I’m going to see you tonight!” It’s a fan girl thing) you forget to take notes because you just want to listen. It’s what happens when Neil starts talking. You just want to listen.
Last time I saw Neil it was when he did a reading at an independent bookstore, The Booksmith, in San Francisco. It was in 1998, I think. There was a line up. My friends and I had been so excited to see him that we got there early. We got there early enough to actually have seats in front on the floor, though not early enough to actually sit in chairs. And people were standing and leaning and sitting wherever they could find a spot. And we ALL sat there trying earnestly to drink up more of the great Neil.
Stardust had come out a little earlier and we were all fans of Good Omens and Neverwhere and, of course, The Sandman graphic novels. We overheard other people in line say they hadn’t seen a line up close to as this long and with so many goths (there were a lot of goths) at The Booksmith since Anne Rice had come there to read and sign. I got my copy of Stardust signed there. He read from a book of his that had just come out. I can’t remember, but I think it was American Gods. And, of course, someone asked during the Q&A (as they always do) “When are they going to make a movie of Good Omens?” And at that time he had a pithy reply about how he and Terry Pratchett were no longer starving artists, so it would take lawyers in slim suits and even thinner brief cases spending time together in a climate controlled room to haggle out rights before the movie even got written.
Tonight, more than 10 years later, the seats were better. We weren’t sitting on the floor at the bookstore. We had seats in the upper balcony of Royce Hall, which was mostly full. I don’t know how many people were there, but I think you could safely estimate several hundred. A thousand? And again — we were all earnestly waiting to hear the great Neil. People arrived early to get their seats right when the doors opened.
Now, the people who attend a Neil Gaiman reading/signing shouldn’t be too dim. If they’ve read his books and kept up, then they should have something going on upstairs. Or so you’d think. Yet, after David Sefton, the Director of UCLA Live, came out to not only introduce Neil but also spend at least 10 minutes telling us all to TURN OFF OUR PHONES and other electronic devices (only ones allowed being hearing aids, listening devices, pace makers and artificial limbs), there were STILL at least 5 times when a cell phone went off in the audience while Neil Gaiman was speaking. And let’s not forget all the signage explicitly stating NO electronic devices and TURN OFF YOUR PHONES. I mean really. Really? Yeah, really. David Sefton himself pointed out that if you were here to listen to Neil then you could be unhooked from the interwebs for an hour and a half.
I guess some people really are addicted to those little things. Either that, or they really don’t care. And that’s sad.
So, while I didn’t take extensive notes, I did take some notes in the dark with my atrocious handwriting. Let’s see if I can decipher them for you.
1) In which Neil discusses and read a bit of a story about “Horror and the English seashore.” He could have been describing my adolescence in the Pacific Northwest. It was a lovely bit of horror.
2) Being known as a “crossover” writer. It wasn’t something he ever aspired to be. He just wanted to write about whatever he wanted to write about. That seems reasonable. And he has been lucky enough to have publishers who will let him do that.
3) Neil as Dr. Who – my note to myself as I noticed his affection for horror and the state of his hair.
4) The Graveyard Book – which either took 2 1/2 years to write or 26 years – depending on how you look at it. He just kept trying until he got it right. Little bit at a time. You know what I say, “Slow and steady wins the race…” That method works. And having an affinity for graveyards.
5) Talking about children (and this may been at the beginning and not here). If you raise your children well – if you do your job right – then eventually they go away. That’s just the way of things.
6) Reading some from Od and the Frost Giant. Sounds like a fun tale. I think I need a copy.
7) Q&A in which the first question was: What are the voices in your head telling you to do now? To which Neil replied – answer questions now, and of course, kill, kill, kill….Other questions included some people trying to get him to talk about Amanda Palmer, which he nicely sidestepped (while acknowledging). And then the inevitable, “When are they going to make a movie of Good Omens?” and this time he replied, “When they do.”
8 ) Reading his poem, Instructions.
And then filing out. I thought I wanted to buy a signed book in the lobby until I saw the crowd. And the friend I was with was also not a fan of the multitudes around the books. So, we went straight home. And while I came home early enough to actually do some work, I ended up writing this blog about Neil. Cuz…
I ♥ Neil…
