Fate has been generous enough to grant me the privilege of face-to-face encounters with a few of my absolute favorite, most respected authors. My goofy geek outs are all on me.
Octavia Butler at a Book Con in Chicago 2003 or 2004: Just seeing her from a distance made me too teary-eyed and tongue-twisted to approach her table. She and her work enrich/ed my life and inspired me to write and to publish.
Jasmine Guillory at the Javitz Center in 2015 or 2016: After a lively discussion in which she was one a few panelists, we shared a moment of appreciation for the dad (RIP John Mahoney) in Say Anything (even as my eyes watered with the overwhelming emotions of being within touching closeness while chatting). She was super kind.
Lesley Penelope at the 2023 Yale Popular Romance Fiction Conference: During a hunt for the restroom she recognized me(!!!) as co-host for The Write Women Book Fest in October for which she was the featured author. Her recognizing me felt like such an unexpected honor that my brain fritzed out. My memory of our conversation is disjointed, then completely garbled after she waited to walk back to the auditorium when she finished in the facilities before I did.
(Ms.) Beverly Jenkins at the 2023 Yale Popular Romance Fiction Conference: On day 2 we were transported to a book event at a community center. During an informal lunch break there was space on the bleachers near Ms. Bev and her small group who all smiled and greeted me when I sat. I managed a smile and a soft hello while "Ms. Beverly Jenkins just smiled and spoke to me!!!" kept repeating in my brain. (Also, she actually followed me on the formerly-twitter app until after the hostile buyout led her and other melanated people to leave it. Yes, I have a "MsBev followed you" screenshot.)
Xio Axelrod at the 2024 Chocolate Town Book Fest: My co-authors and I were a few tables away in the children's section divided from the adult section by low-profile loaded bookshelves, but during a break to walk around the event an organizer noticed me hanging back from X.A.'s table, then encouraged me to approach after recognizing my fandom nerves. Bursting into tears happened next and the kind, thoughtful author came from behind her table to hug me. Even while feeling super embarrassed, I was thinking, "Xio Axelrod is hugging me!!!"
Marita Golden as honored special guest author featured in the hybrid The Write Women Book Fest 2021: Author Connie Briscoe and/or BARR (Black Authors & Readers Rock) founder Sharon Lucas suggested we reach out to the critically acclaimed, award-winning and much respected fiction & non-fiction author. When Marita Golden agreed to having a conversation with us on the grounds of Marietta Historic Site & Museum (then called Marietta House), we were speechless with gratitude. I THINK my manner was mostly calm and coherent during our nearly 2 hours of interaction, but my inner thoughts were spinning in giddy disbelief.
Nora Roberts at Girls' Night Out in Boonesboro, Maryland in 2024: Eye contact with a smile was all my Eve and Roark-loving self could manage while she sat and greeted people and posed for pics.
Nikki Giovanni in the late 1990s: She was a professor at my university and there wasn't space in my course schedule to take one of her classes until my last semester before graduation. So imagine my shocked disappointment when a middle-aged white man stepped into the classroom on day one. He explained the last-minute switch and was gracious in understanding if students chose to leave. I stayed, then dropped the class afterward.
My favorite memories of Prof. Giovanni encounters happened during Black History Month when she and her teaching assistant crossed paths with me and my friend in the dark in search of the location for a chat with Julian Bond. Together, we finally found the building. She also performed "Ego Tripping" to the accompaniment of a jazz quartet. (I think 2 different years.)
Although remembering my behavior makes me cringe and laugh at myself, there's all thanks and no regrets for those experiences.
Happy healthy fandoms!
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