Fiction author Robin Brande talks about writing, reading, and other vital matters

Remember how I said at some book signings it’s so quiet out in the audience you’d swear you heard crickets?

Last night I attended Elizabeth Gilbert’s book signing for Eat, Pray, Love. No crickets. In fact, enough questions and accolades from the audience of about 60-75 people to keep her talking for over an hour.

[A few tidbits from the Q & A: Remember the man she meets at the end of the book? Reader, she's marrying him! In two weeks, as soon as she gets back from this tour. Also, someone asked her about that meditation the Balinese medicine man teaches her--the "smile into your liver" one. She said scientists have been studying the effect of smiling on body chemistry, and not only does a meditation like that work, but even faking a smile works. Apparently people who have had Botox treatments on that wrinkle between their eyebrows have seen a noticeable reduction in depression and anxiety. If you can't frown--even if it's only because Botox says you can't--your body thinks you're over whatever stress you had. Wow.]

One of the reasons I like to go to other authors’ book signings–besides the fact that I love to support authors whose work I admire–is that it’s always fun to get a sense of the style other writers bring to their events. I’m not just talking about the clothes they wear–although I definitely take note of that just to see what the “uniform” seems to be (hint: loose, packable, crushable, able to be worn multiple times without becoming visibly grungy)–but also their attitudes as public speakers and people in the spotlight. Just as at Sundance, some artists handle fame well, others become . . . you know, d–ks.

Elizabeth Gilbert was so not a d–k. She was patient and kind with all the people commenting and questioning, and she took time with each person who came up to her table to get a book (or in my case, five books) signed. She was also very comfortable and confident, which isn’t something you see every time, either. I vividly remember one book talk where the author–a NY Times bestseller–kept her head down and her face covered by her hair the entire time she spoke. Very off-putting. Can’t say I was such an enthusiastic fan after that.

Which is why some authors hate to do book signings. They understand themselves well enough to know that they come off much better in print than in person. And that’s fine–some people really, really hate public speaking, and they should be free to avoid it. I know some publishers hire media coaches for authors who need to hit the road and tour a little, but who don’t have the natural skills to pull it off. I also know at least a few authors who absolutely refuse to tour, no matter how much it might help their books. They just can’t bear the thought of having people look at them and talk to them and scrutinize what they’re wearing and how they act.

I think I might be somewhere in the middle. I love public speaking, I love to talk to people, but I’m best at short performances. Then I need to go to a quiet, dark room and enjoy some sensory deprivation for a good long while.

This is no longer a hypothetical issue for me. I’m happy to announce that I’m going to be going on my own book tour about a month from now. Random House is sending me out in advance of my book’s publication, for what’s called a “Buzz Tour.” Whereas Elizabeth Gilbert is on a three-week tour, flying to a new city every day, I’ll only be doing that for one week, which sounds pretty easy by comparison. That means six pairs of underwear and some packable, crushable clothes that I won’t mind wearing over and over again. It also means people looking at me and asking me all sorts of questions, and I think that will be okay–I’m actually looking forward to it. For short performances.

I’ll fill you in on more details as the time nears, but that’s generally what’s going on over here. It’s why lately I sometimes realize I’ve been tapping my foot for the last fifteen minutes, and why I might have had Baskin-Robbins after the book signing tonight for the first time in about three years, and why I paid extra-close attention to those first few minutes of what Elizabeth Gilbert said to warm up the crowd and chase all the crickets out of the room.

No crickets. That’s what I’m shooting for.

Technorati Tags: Writing, Publishing, Reading, Books, Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love, Book Signings, Author Events, Book Tours

Posted on Thursday, February 15th, 2007 at 5:25 am under Reading, Writing . Subscribe to responses: RSS 2.0 Comment Feed. . Comment, or trackback.