quote:

Originally posted by annie1981:
Having experienced complete fan girl breakdown recently in front of Stephen Merritt of the Magnetic Fields recently, I think I'm back to "sign this take a picture bye" for the time being.

I can totally relate - NOTHING is worse than having a crazy fan moment. Its like you feel like you are being grasping and yet at the same time you desperately want to be acknowledged by someone you admire.

Here's my nightmare experience being an idiot in front of someone famous...
A number of years ago..like 10...I met Robin Williams.
I was crashing a wrap party for a film and had big plans to try to corner the art director and Force him through the brilliance of my conversation to hire me as a set dec. for his next film. I rounded a corner and slammed right into R.Williams. And I mean I bounced off him and almost knocked him off his feet. (Now please keep the image of me walking backwards & blithering while RW with his hands out like trying to gentle a frightened deer keeps walking towards me while you read this......)

RW - "Oh No I'm so Sorry, Are you all right?"
ME - "Holy S#@t you spoke to me!"
Pause
RW - "Why wouldn't I"
ME - "Cause I'm No One"
pause
RW "I Wouldnt say that"
ME(Very strongly) - "I WOULD!"
(Edited out blither from me which made no sense and was an utter stream of conciousness until I ran down a bit)
Long pause
ME- "I Have to go I'm acting like an Idiot"
RW - "No you aren't"
I point at him emphatically and shout while waving my finger at him...
ME "YES I AM!"

Then I turned and ran...Kept catching him glancing over at me - I lasted about ten minutes before I finally left. The worst part was it was all me..he was perfectly gracious - I just got suddenly ... Caflibberty ( Dont know the word for that state)

I probably would go to a reading, but I don't think I'd want to try to meet Neil Gaiman. I would be so aware of myself I'd prob. forget how to shake hands or something dumb.

quote:

Originally posted by glassheart:
I probably would go to a reading, but I don't think I'd want to try to meet Neil Gaiman. I would be so aware of myself I'd prob. forget how to shake hands or something dumb.

I've yet to meet Neil or any of my other favourite writers, but I imagine I'd be exactly the same. From what I've read on this board and elsewhere, I think it's quite a common fear, so don't be embarrassed!

i would probably lose the ability to speak in his presence...and just gaze at him adoringly...this has happened to me before...when i met one of my favorite musicians.

i wish i had the opportunity to meet him, but people around me don't know him at all . dont be afraid you people! i met two of my fauvorite musicians (vincent cavanagh and duncan patterson from anathema) and, i wasn't too nervous but i forgot all the english i had learned for years! i made sentences like "i like antimatter it's very nice" what a shame.

like when i went to a clive barker signing...
in the queue i'm thinking "he's BOUND to want to know which of his characters I like best"

then when i'm at the front i just open my books and gawp at him..
clive says "who's it to?"
and i can't remember my name dammit!!

hopefully, i can meet him some day to tell him how much i adore his books and thank him for giving imagination back the world.

quote:

Originally posted by cira:
hopefully, i can meet him some day to tell him how much i adore his books and thank him for giving imagination back the world.

Me too.

lol...i haven't had a full fangirl breakdown yet...but I got to meet Ray Bradbury at a very small signing in Westwood this year...I had a few graceful things in mind to say--to let him know I enjoy reading and teaching his stories and that my middle school darlings love "Dark They Were and GOlden-Eyed" but he seemed so Important and Wise and Old that I got intimidated and just had him sign the book and I took a picture, only because my friend was brave enough to ask. He didn't care, but I felt so dumb! All I could think when i saw him was "You remind me of my Dad!"
Hopefully, I won't be quite so tongue tied if/when I get to a signing. (methinks comic-con 2007?)

He rescues dogs too.

I just keep liking him more all the time

It's about time he rescued a dog, too. *grumbles* Cats cats cats, it's always about the cats.

Am I the only one who gets excited about Fred the cat updates? He's like a walking train wreck.

yea...I was pleased with the tale of the cannibal fish and the dog rescue I like the idea of Neil gamboling around his yard with a wolf dog--it seems fitting

And now Neil has Dog.

Or Dog has Neil.

i just read that and it made me unexpectedly cheerful!
Man, can that man write a journal entry...

*raises thread from the dead*

Ooh, reading this I am SO jealous of everyone who got to meet Neil. I haveto get to one of his signings sometime. Because yes, he is one of the coolest people on earth.

I'd probably have a total fangirl moment and forget my name, and it would be wonderful.

Absolutely cool. Look up "cool" in the dictionary, and voila! Neil.

...though given all the "I forgot my name at the signing" comments running around, I have devised a brilliant plan. I'll write my name in large, block-print letters on the backs of my hands, so he'll be able to read it while I cover my face in embarrassment. I may also include a written apology underneath my name.

And having read the first post, I'm thinking this might be a good plan, because if I got a hug from Neil for forgetting my name, it'll help the paramedics identify my remains after I die of heart failure.

*revives thread*

Hah, I have a funny story.

So I went to the '07 San Diego Comic-Con. Pretty much my only goal was to meet Neil and maybe Warren Ellis or David Mack . . .

Not sure what day it was, but it was either Friday or Saturday that Neil had a big signing in the Autograph Area. So of course I drag my friends up there and make them wait in line for hours with me.

There were about 300 people waiting in line at first and there was this weird set-up where the first person in line would select a raffle ticket from a bag and if it was blank they had to go to the end of the line. There were 100 tickets that had some sort of stamp on them, meaning you get to stand in line for the chance to meet Neil.

I knew there was no way in hell I'd get a ticket, but I kept hoping. I went through that line three times. By then there were around a hundred people (everyone else had left in despair) and the guards just walked down the lines and handed out tickets. To everyone. Including me.

So . . . I got to meet Neil Gaiman. It was pretty awesome. I was shaking and all, and brought that fact up, which made him laugh. He signed my book and then his scary bodyguards shooed me away.

I floated off in a dream of sorts. I kept thinking I made Neil Gaiman laugh!

Then we went downstairs and I went up to the Image booth and said hi to David Mack (he did Kabuki, an awesome comic for those of you who didn't know), who I'd been terrified of meeting previously . . .

Anyways. I basically said something like. "OMG I USED TO BE SO INTIMIDATED OF YOUUUU *giggle* But then I met NEIL GAIMAN. NOW I SEE YOU'RE JUST ANOTHER GUY! I MET NEIL GAIMAN!!!! *giggle*"

My friends grabbed me and made me walk away from the booth as quickly as possible. When I came to my senses and realized what I'd said, I felt horrible . . . But that's just the effect Neil had on me.

Also, I feel that I should add that after meeting Neil, I had to sit down and I couldn't move for about three hours. You can imagine how my friends made fun of me. I kept swooning. Embarassing, really.

Yeah . . . true story.

I have met him twice at signings. He seems very sweet and kind and I love everything he writes, especially in the blog and novels. I'm a little embarrassed that I like him so much. That I feel like I may have met him a long time ago when he lived in England? Probably not, but as he grew up not far from where I did and we are of a similar age, you never know. Maybe we just have coincidental childhood memories or maybe we did meet. I don't think I'll ever know.

I remember feeling rather silly at the signing in Foyles Bookshop in London in 2007. I asked him if he could smile for a photograph and he said "only if you say something funny". It completely stumped me and then made me feel bad because I guess if you had to smile for every photograph that every person took, you'd feel like you did at the end of your wedding day - all smiled out! Sorry Mr Neil.

The next time I met him, I didn't ask for a photo - but I wish I had - and had thought of something funny to make him smile.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Motley,