Kids author, Kevin Henkes at a book signing.
Very pleasant, humble nice guy.
I’ve met:
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Chuck Palahniuk: I went to a couple of his book signings and he gave me an autographed severed arm. Very nice guy, with a twisted sense of humor.
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Michael Stackpole: On numerous occasions (he actually knows who I am, so it’s a little more than just a fan relationship–not that we’re old buds or anything). I first met him at a college gaming convention in the 80s, and I struck up a conversation with him about his anti D&D-and-Satanism talks. He also ran a memorable Shadowrun game I participated in, and he gave me an NPC that he wasn’t using anymore.
I’d make it a point to catch up with him every year at Gen Con and we’d chat for a bit at his booth. -
Scott Adams: Met him when he gave a talk to support one of his Dilbert books, many years ago. I’ve got a couple of autographed books, but it was just a “hi, how are you, love your work” thing.
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Jacqueline Lichtenberg: Author of the “Sime/Gen” novel series, at a party when she came to my hometown for a science fiction con. Very nice, very smart.
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Several random Shadowrun novel authors including **Stephen Kenson **and Jason Hardy, and Order of the Stick cartoonist Rich Burlew, but not sure whether they count.
I met David Sedaris at a reading and book signing just after ‘Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim’ came out. He was pleasant and more charming than I had expected and took time to chat with everyone in line, including my friend and me. He signed 5 books for me, each one different and funny. I was … not ungushy.
I met him at the local SF convention this summer and bought one of his books based on what I saw of him. I’ve also met Catherine Asaro and filked with Sarah Zettel at the local convention, but it tends to be a literary con and it’s easy to meet authors there.
There is also one author who I’d rather not name who I’ve not only met, but been close friends with for several years now. He lived with me after his divorce, I’ve hung out in his hot tub, and I even talked him into hanging out here for a while. I gave him a call while I was writing this and asked him if he minded compliments or being asked the same old questions. His response was, “Hell, no!” He’s always happy to hear compliments and from what I’ve seen of his stuff, he deserves them.
Have been to a lot of book signings, at Book Expo in particular. I saw but didn’t get to meet (due to not getting tix) Judy Blume and R.L. Stine. Got to meet Ann M. Martin, Katherine Paterson, E.L. Konigsburg, Joyce Carol Oates, Todd Strasser, among others.
At book signings/events when I was in elementary school, through both school and the public library, and in one case at the bookstore, I met one of the American Girl authors (hey I was young), M.M. Ragz, and Yoko Kawashima Watkins.
Isaac Asimov, at a lecture long ago (35 years?). No actual gushing, as I recall. He did answer a question I asked about the 3 Laws of Robotics. Can’t remember if I got anything signed or not.
Met Isaac Asimov–a charming fellow with an eye for a low neckline.
Had dinner with Gregory McDonald (Fletch and Flynn novels). At the Russian Tea Room in Manhattan, where the maitre d’ whisked us past the waiting line of tourists becaue he recognized Greg. A great experience. I told him that Carioca Fletch was my favorite of his books because it had helped me understand 100 Years of Solitude. He said it was his favorite Fletch novel too–he may have just been kind, but still a very nice thing to say. He was a good listener as well as a good talker. We exchanged letters for a while afterwards.
I shared a house with young adult writer Tamora Pierce for some time. A very good person with tremendous creative drive, and great compassion for kids who needed someone on thier side.
I find that sincere admiration for the work of others is never unwelcome, but “where do you get your ideas?” is really a pretty dumb thing to say.
I have met P.J. O’Rourke a couple of times. Once at a college student function, and once at a book signing. He got a kick out of the fact that I wanted him to sign my book, “Here’s to driving fast on drugs, while getting your wing-wang squeezed, and not spill your drink.” (The world’s greatest title for one of his short stories.)
These have all been at book signings at the Tattered Cover in Denver:
[ul]
[li]Doris Kearns Goodwin (for Team of Rivals, about Lincoln’s cabinet)[/li][li]Neil Gaiman (for Stardust)[/li][li]Malcolm Gladwell (for Blink)[/li][li]Michael Chabon (for The Yiddish Policemen’s Union and Manhood for Amateurs)[/li][li]Douglas Brinkley (for The Wilderness Warrior, about Theodore Roosevelt)[/li][/ul]
Chabon was extraordinarily gracious – he took time to try to engage everyone in line and I noticed he stuck out his hand for a handshake with everyone. The first time, I told him that I really, really enjoyed his writing (which I knew he’d heard from other people a few kajillion times, but I felt like I’d regret never telling him that). For Manhood for Amateurs, I asked him if he had any input on the design of his books’ dust covers – he said that, since The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, he was contributing more to their development.
I meet a lot of authors, because I work in the trade. I have a bookstore, and I am an author myself, so I meet a wide variety of writers.
A few general notes:
[ul]
[li]Writers are humans. They like to be told they’re good.[/li][li]I’ve only had one author be a jerk to me in all these years (R.L. Stine – I told the story in another thread somewhere)[/li][li]Although writers enjoy talking about their books, most don’t enjoy it when they’re interrupted by a stranger while eating or something (although I did once have someone recognize me and hand me a book to sign when I was out on a trail in Yellowstone Park. That was pretty cool!)[/li][li]The question most writers seem to dislike the most is “where do you get your ideas?” Nobody seems to have a good answer to that.[/li][li]The question I like the most when I’m signing books is “can I buy you a beer?” ;)[/li][li]The only author I’ve met that made me gush and feel silly afterward was actually a cartoonist: Berke Breathed.[/li][/ul]
That would be an evening to remember.
Chances are good that only Canadians will care about this, but:
**Rick Mercer **did a fund-raising show for a group here in Calgary that helps kids with learning disabilities, and after the show, he signed copies of his book. We were the second to last people in line, and by the time we got up to him, it was midnight. He was still gracious and friendly, and even agreed to a photo with my son (who is a huge fan). Seeing how kind and patient he was, although clearly exhausted, was very impressive. He’s a good man.
Went to a sci-fi/fantasy convention in Fort Worth in 1979 with two friends, where Stephen King was in a panel discussion (Gahan Wilson is the only other panelist I remember). All of five people were in line to talk to him, and we were last, so we got to spend a while talking to him about the book he was working on (The Stand) and shenanigans on the set of The Shining. In retrospect it was nice of him to spend that much time with some random teenagers.
The convention was also memorable for a public semi-humiliation. At some point we went to hear L. Sprague de Camp reading aloud from a Conan book, and the combination of his Pythonesque-twit accent and the subject matter put us into fits of giggles. When he read a line that went something like “hot breath panted upon Conan’s naked back” we lost control and were frowned/shushed out of the room.
I’ve met quite a few authors who have published stories, poems and non-fiction books on writing, mostly via taking writing classes or doing critiquing groups. No gushing, they were just part of the group, except they’d gotten a bit further than the rest of us.
I’ve taken classes from Lyda Morehouse, and have been to her house. http://www.amazon.com/Archangel-Protocol-Lyda-Morehouse/dp/0451458273/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257551978&sr=8-1
No gushing there, either. She’s good people and pretty down to earth.
I once babysat Neil Gaiman’s dog, but Mr. Gaiman doesn’t know about that. I probably live closer to Neil than anybody on the SDMB, but I haven’t met him yet.
I briefly met Seamus Heaney after a public reading in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1996. I felt a bit stalkerish, rounding the alley and street sides of the building, hoping to spot him leaving so I could get an autograph. About 30-40 minutes after his reading, he exited with an entourage out the back door, and I was able to approach him and get a personalized autograph on my copy of The Spirit Level. Unfortunately, I’ve long since lost the book. 
I do still have an autographed copy of his collected works, but that was just something I picked up at the reading itself–not quite as satisfying as the personalized copy with the wrong date on it and a story to go along with it.
Oh, and my friend’s dad lived across the street from Harold Pinter in Holland Park (London) and was friends with him. (My friend’s father tells a rather amusing story of a holiday dinner gone horribly wrong when he invited a bunch of academic types over, including Pinter, and the dinner table descended into heated intellectual bickering and ego thumping.) I saw him several times when I stayed with my friend, but never quite got the courage to talk to him. So that’s my other brush with a Nobel Prize in Literature laureate.
I met NZ children’s author Margaret Mahy & a book reading. She signed one of her books for me, but it has been lost 
Margaret Mahy - Wikipedia
& i met NZ romance writer Daphne Clair at a book reading (she also writes under her real name Daphne de Jong & as Laurey Bright) She was blonde, elegant & articulate & was kind enough to email me some writing tips.
[quote=“InvisibleWombat, post:30, topic:516634”]
[li]I’ve only had one author be a jerk to me in all these years (R.L. Stine – I told the story in another thread somewhere)[/li][/QUOTE]
Can you repost it? I LOVE to hate on Goosebumps, but at the same time I have a soft spot for all that nostalgia stuff. And anyway, I just have to know what happened. Sorry for the bother, but it would so make my day!
You’d think so, wouldn’t you?
There was a lot of beer. 
I’ve related my various Close Encounters with Harlan on these boards before, so there is no need to repeat them here.
Oh wait, I did once chat with a Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry, Ilya Prigogine. Though I stayed away from any scientific conversations, since I would have had no idea what we were talking about.
I rented a room for a year in the basement of L.E. Modesitt’s home. His wife was my voice teacher at the time. Apparently, I appear in one of his books, as a witch. He asked me beforehand, by the way, if it was OK to make me a witch. I didn’t take it personally.