Two of my all time favorite fantasy authors are Robert Jordan and Terry Brooks. The two authors who together inspired me to write fantasy of my own. I was quite sad when Robert Jordan died, as we all were, in part because I never got the chance to meet him while he was alive. There are few authors I have a burning desire to meet in person but he was definitely one of them. After Jordan’s death I swore that if I accomplished nothing else I wasn’t going to miss the chance to meet Terry Brooks someday.
My opportunity came when I attended my first writer’s conference. Traveling half-way across the country to attend the Pacific Northwestern Writers Association conference in Seattle seemed a small price to pay to hear Terry Brooks as a keynote speaker.
How right I was. The man is a glorious speaker. Funny, down to earth and poignant all at the same time. A significant birthday had just passed for him, so perhaps that contributed to the powerfully reflective nature of his talk. Whatever it was, I dare say every writer in the room was invigorated with a new found energy and sense of purpose for their craft.
Of course I had to get a book signed. There was no question.
While waiting in the understandably long line I picked out his memoir/book on writing Sometimes the Magic Works to be signed. At that point in my life I was very averse to reading books on writing. In my early 20’s arrogance I thought doing so would wreck me creatively. But this was Terry Brooks. Of course I had to read it. (As a side note, I highly recommend it to any writer)
I spent the rest of my time in line trying to think of what I would say to him. I couldn’t just spout out whatever came to mind. I had to say something memorable. After all, I was about to meet the man himself. The one who got the publishing industry to take my favorite genre seriously and paved the way for the rest of us. Inching closer to the signing table, I tried to come up with something succinct that would impart everything his books meant to me and, hopefully, get me an amazing response in return.
I came up with what I thought was a pretty good couple sentences to accomplish just that. I don’t remember anymore what they were, because they weren’t what ended up coming out of my mouth.
What did?
“You were a big inspiration.”
Most. Epic. Face palm. Ever.
“You were a big inspiration”?! Come on Aaron! Like he hasn’t heard that five million times a day for the last thirty years!
I tried to say something more, but the words froze in my throat. Terry, bless him, asked some questions of me that broke the silence. My answers were nervous and awkward and no doubt totally embarrassing as well.
I did get an awesome picture with him that sits proudly on my desk overlooking my writing station. I tried to salvage my part of the encounter by saying something more after the picture. But Terry, in his ever polite and wonderful way, had already moved on to the next eager fan in line.
This was one of the most exciting, satisfying, and disappointing experiences of my life all rolled into one. The first time I got to meet one of my writing heroes in person, he was amazing, and I disappointed myself not living up to my own expectations of what a fan should do on encountering an industry legend.
Terry doesn’t tour much anymore, and I don’t travel much either. The odds of my getting to meet him again aren’t all that great, unfortunately. Still, I’ll always treasure that memory. And next time I meet a hero in person, maybe I’ll be better prepared.
Maybe.
Have you ever met someone you were a fan of? Tell me about it!
