"It's a great day for geeks!"
I was standing in line, waiting to buy one of the pre-autographed books being offered, when I heard this come from the group of college students behind me. I didn't turn around to look at the speaker, but I could hear the excited smile in his voice all the same.
Besides, I really didn't need to see who was talking. You could tell, just by looking at the faces in the long book line, or standing in clusters throughout the room, or thronging ahead into the theater, that the sentiment was reflected by everybody present. Because if you were here tonight, then you had come to see Neil Gaiman -- an author of novels, short stories, and comic, who I've described to people as "sort of the rock star of sci-fi/fantasy writers."
Author Neil Gaiman
The author behind such books as
American Gods,
Anansi Boys,
Coraline, and the graphic novel series
Sandman, Gaiman had come to the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland in honor of the fifteenth anniversary of his novel
Stardust. Fans came out in throngs to the Wednesday event, which featured Gaiman talking about the writing process of
Stardust (among other things) before doing some readings of his work and answering audience questions. The theater was packed, with fans wildly cheering and applauding when Gaiman arrived onstage.
Why such devotion? For starter's, there's no denying Gaiman's appeal as a storyteller. It's not just that his written worlds are so unique and wildly weird (though they are), or that he weaves his plots so neatly and tightly (though he does). The style of the writing itself is pleasant to read, simple and poetic at the same time. His words first draw you in; you stay for the fantastical creations he comes up with. A fallen star revealed to be a woman with a broken leg, an infant rescued and brought up by ghosts, an "Other Mother" with buttons in the place of eyes -- no one writes books quite like Neil Gaiman.
But I think another part of Neil Gaiman's appeal to his fans is the overwhelming feeling that he's one of them. Gaiman doesn't just write stories; he loves them, too, and is a fan of many of the same things his fans are. Before publishing two Sherlock Holmes stories and being inducted as a member of the
Baker Street Irregulars, Gaiman had already been a lifelong fan of the Conan Doyle stories. He's penned an episode of the long-running British sci-fi series
Doctor Who (with a second script currently in production) -- and had been watching the show since his childhood. He read Batman comics as a kid long before he wrote a
graphic novel about the character. He understands his sci-fi/fantasy fans because he's one of them.
Gaiman and Cabal
What makes his geek-endearing "rock star" status all the more impressive is the fact that he so obviously doesn't see himself as a star. After gesturing firmly for the wild applause to stop after his entrance onstage, Gaiman proceeded to speak for an hour about the sparks of inspiration that had led him to write
Stardust, as well as stories behind some of his other works (including his upcoming novel
Ocean at the End of the Lane, due out next year). His speech was given in a warm, polite, very funny, and often deprecating fashion (of his World Fantasy Award for his comic
A Midsummer's Night Dream, he remarked that the award is the "silver head of H.P. Lovecraft, looking like Easter Island. Years later, my friend made these little bowler hats and made it infinitely better.").
I see his point.
Later, Gaiman read a selection from
Stardust, following later with a preview portion of his upcoming book
Ocean at the End of the Lane. Before closing the evening with a poem ("
The Day the Saucers Came"), Gaiman took some questions from the audience. Most were simple but interesting: his thoughts on the role of women in the fantasy genre, any tidbits about his upcoming episode of
Doctor Who, how he approaches writing novels versus short stories versus comics.
But the best question came from a college student who wanted to know, essentially, what lovers of sci-fi and fantasy could do to find adventure in the mundane on-goings of the real world. How does anybody find adventure?
"I don't think you find adventures, I think you go out and have them," Gaiman said, before going on to tell a story about his recent experiences with
Les Machines de l’île in Nantes, France. Inspired by Jules Vernes, Leonardo da Vinci, and the history of the city, the "Machines of the Isle of Nantes" feature such attractions as a giant, three-level carousal, and a forty-foot high mechanical elephant which groups of people can ride.
"This is something people wanted to see in the world," Gaiman said, of the team of artists and mechanics who had built Les Machines. "And so they went out and decided to
make it. And they made it for other people to share. So, having an adventure ... I think you go out, and you make it."
Whether you're a geek or not -- that's pretty great advice.
"If you put me and John Grisham and Stephen King in front of a deserted boathouse by a lake, Grisham would write about a brave young lawyer who was fleeing the mob and who would hide in that boathouse, and Stephen King would write about the thing in the lake that came out of the lake and ate the people in the boathouse, and I would write about how the boathouse got up on chicken legs and walked away into the woods.
"That's just who we are and that's what we write."
Neil Gaiman in Pittsburgh - The Post Gazette blogs about the night's events.
Author Neil Gaiman Guest DJs at WYEP - The title says it all. Stop by 91.3 FM's website to hear the show!
"Neil Gaiman Writes a Final 'Love Letter to Batman'" - An interview with Wired about Gaiman's thoughts on the Caped Crusader.
Neil Gaiman's Blog - Full of personal anecdotes, news and updates about his writing and appearances, and the occasional
Doctor Who reference.
Neil Gaiman's Pep Talk - In honor of National Novel Writing Month, Gaiman was asked to write a "pep talk" to writers struggling to finish their projects. Here's what he had to say about the creative process. (Recommended for all artists.)
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Books by Neil Gaiman
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Audiobooks by Neil Gaiman
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Graphic Novels by Neil Gaiman
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Films written by Neil Gaiman
-- Post by Ms. B
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