If you could meet one living author and spend the day with them, who would it be and why?

Mary

Stephen King definitely

Hi Maggie. Great choice. We are lucky to still have him around after he got hit by that car.

mary

Hi Mary, can't wait for Under the Dome - its going to be my Christmas read. Yes we are lucky to still have him.

Maggie

Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

(I don't think I'd like him, but I'd be interested to find out.)

What I've heard he's living in Mexico City and going to Los Angeles for cancer treatment, and he writes about four hours a day.

Hi Nathaniel. Great choice. I didn't realize he was ill. So sorry to hear that.

mary

Hm... that's a bit tougher to choose, but at the moment I think I'd choose Neil Gaiman. I think the man is an absolute genious, and from interviews I've seen he seems really nice and sympathetic too. And what an amazing imagination!

Unsurprisingly, I have an unread recent published biography of him.

I don't know what the cancer is.

Eirin - Reportedly Neil Gaiman lives in Wisconsin.

(as does Axl Rose of Guns and Roses. Sometimes in my very serene moments, I daydream about them sharing a house, and having very weird dinner conversations.)

Nathaniel wrote: "Eirin - Reportedly Neil Gaiman lives in Wisconsin.

(as does Axl Rose of Guns and Roses. Sometimes in my very serene moments, I daydream about them sharing a house, and having very weird dinner..."

Hi Nathaniel. I was going to ask about those weird dinner conversations but I'm not going to go there.


mary

Those sure would be weird... but fun! For onlookers.

Wisconsin is a bit far from where I live, but maybe I'd hunt him down if I ever go to the USA. Certainly he'd appreciate fanatic fangirls stalking him!

Neil Gaiman....Andrew Davidson or Diana Gabaldon...

J.D. Salinger. Though no one really knows where he lives and what he's doing.
That's why I want to meet him. He wrote one of the best books ever -in my opinion :)- and nobody really knows his inspiration or whatever. I would love to talk to him and find out some more about him!

Emma -- There was a lawsuit from the Salingers recently, some author from California was continuing the life of Holden Caulfield.

In the reporting of the suit, it came out in court documents that Salinger was either deaf or blind, and living in an assisted living facility and was in pretty poor health.

(Look at me facilitating potential stalkers!!!)

Stephen King, Joe Hill or Neil Gaiman, i missed the signing he did in cleveland recently.

Nathaniel: Yes I read something about that too. He's pretty old so I guess it could be true. Still would like to meet him. I'll even learn sign language if I have to!
& Thanks for facilitating my stalkery needs! I think I'm off to find him :P

Here it is :

Court documents filed in the case describe Mr. Salinger, now 90, who lives in Cornish, N.H., as totally deaf, with “several age-related health problems,” including a recently broken hip that has put him in a rehabilitation facility.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/17/books/...

Thanks for the document! Never really read it before, just heard rumors about it!

(Yeah but I still think he won't appreciate it... Probably won't talk. But someday, somehow! I'm keeping the faith!)

i'd quite like to meet Jim Butcher author of the Dresden books, they are fantastic and think he would be a really good guy to chat to!

Nathaniel wrote: "Eirin - Reportedly Neil Gaiman lives in Wisconsin. (as does Axl Rose of Guns and Roses. Sometimes in my very serene moments, I daydream..."

Too funny Nathaniel! I don't even know how we could refer to your trio...the house where...???

Hello!

I have been quite lucky to meet and chat with a few authors (Canadian) over the past several years (work related)and I am always so thrilled. There is no way I could pick just one author, so I am going to pretend I am having a Continental dinner party.

From North America I would invite Richard Russo.
From South America, I would (also) invite Gabriel García Márquez.
From Europe, I would invite Anna Gavalda.
From Eurasia, I would invite Mohammed Hanif.
From Africa, I would invite Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
From Australia, I would inviteTim Winton.
From Antarctica it would be tricky to get someone, so I would invite A.S. Byatt and she could 'represent'.

Who wants to come? LOL!

Me!! Me!!

I would love to meet Haruki Murakami!

Sweet.

I just got a message from Harper Lee and she is miffed and I am red-faced. She has been cordially invited to the festivities.

Greg Iles

Jennifer wrote: "
Hello!

I have been quite lucky to meet and chat with a few authors (Canadian) over the past several years (work related)and I am always so thrilled. There is no way I could pick just one author, ..."

Very nice list there, so organized! Some I don't know so I must get my hands on thier work ;) Thanks for broading my horizons!

Ian McEwan... I have read all of his books and find some very disturbing. I think he would be very interesting to talk to.

I think I would choose J. K. Rowling because I am intrigued how in such intricate detail in book 1 she set in motion things that were addressed again and finally resolved maybe in book 5, 6 or 7. How everything swirled around in that head of hers and came together as it did continues to be quite amazing to me. And I do so appreciate how she brought reading so prominently back into a new generation of readers that have now been bitten by the bug and will most likely continue for a lifetime of reading.

Darlene wrote: "Ian McEwan... I have read all of his books and find some very disturbing. I think he would be very interesting to talk to."

I have thought, about Stephen King, the same thing. Very disturbing...and then jokingly get thankful he has writing as an outlet because, yikes!! What if he wasn't writing?? McEwen goes to some pretty dark places and I do wonder, with writers who are so good at dealing with twisted (for lack of a better word) materials, what goes on in their heads to allow them to express such themes so well?

If I had to pick just one author to meet, I would pick Debbie Macomber.

I love her Blossom Street series and many of her other books. I just think she is a very nice caring person and would be someone fun to spend the day with

Jennifer,
I completely agree with you!! I have to admit that I have never thought about most of the things that Stephen King and Ian McEwan write about ( and I'm glad about that too!!). But I guess it does make for interesting reading!!

Elizabeth Wurtzel.
Because I think not only has she empowered Women but for her blunt honesty!

Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett, Elie Wiesel and Nelson Mandela.

Stephen King....Amy Tan....Michael Connelly.....Jon Krakauer....

Margaret Atwood, Orson Scott Card, Jon Stewart, Paulo Coelho, Norman Mailer, Lois Lowry, Ken Follett, Steven Dubner, A.J. Jacobs... (where does the list end?!)

But I'd pick Stewart or Dubner if I could only pick one mainly because I know the conversation would be good.

Jennifer wrote: "
Hello!

I have been quite lucky to meet and chat with a few authors (Canadian) over the past several years (work related)and I am always so thrilled. There is no way I could pick just one author, ..."

Hi Jennifer. What a great party. Count me in! I love the way you think.

Marbear

Hi all. I came up with three living authors I'd like to meet. J.K. Rowling, Richard Russo and Diana Gabaldon.

Marbear

Hard to narrow it down to one. Diana Gabaldon for sure. Also David McCullough and Ken Burns.
CJ

hi all. i would like to meet so many authors, but mentioning some ...i would say Dan Brown,J.K.rowling, Niel Gaiman.....

The science journal Nature interviewed McEwan earlier this year. It's a good interview, a little science-centric, but a good interview. (It's free.)

http://www.nature.com/nature/podcast/arc...
(it's down between April and May 2009)

Hello.

Thanks for the link Nathaniel.

To change things up a bit...who is one author you would never want to meet?? Why?

Katie price, and I use the word author loosely....

Yorky wrote: "Katie price, and I use the word author loosely...."

LOL!

I don't know Katie Price - what's the joke?
CJ

Yorky,really?Why? Is this a joke?


Hi CJ she is an ex page 3 model who seriously losing the plot...

Help can I just point out she is posted under the comment about which authors you would NEVER want to meet, oh dear think im now labelled a fruitloop and may be thrown off good reads...............

Katherine Paterson, who wrote my favorite young adult novel of all time: "Jacob have I loved."

stphenie meyer and kristin cashore and stephen king

Great choices Leonor. I think Stephen King would be cool to meet too. Like to see how his mind works. Have you read his new book yet? I got it in the mail this week but I'm in the middle of the second "Outlander," book and it's so long.

Marbear

thanks
hmm, no I havent...whats it about?