Writing to Writers and Celebrities...

[Asmer20]

I'm the Techno Freak!!! I sent Ben Bova emails...And he replied!!2 days later if you don't mind waiting. And all you have to do is go to his homepage and find the contact link and voila! Here's the quick link:
http://www.benbova.net/bens.htm

 

[Werthead]

Well, the world map that I put together for the Malazan series wound up being critiqued by Steven Erikson and was then adopted as the quasi-official-until-the-real-deal-comes-along map of the main Malazan website, so I was quite pleased by that. There was also a Q&A that someone was doing with the great Paul Kearney, but as I was the only person on the forum who'd read any of his books I ended up asking most of the questions in the interview by default, which was also pretty cool.

I also met GRRM at a signing and, slightly randomly, had a good conversation with GRRM's other half at a meet-up of GRRM fans in London a month ago.

 

[GOLLUM]

I wrote to Janny Wurts and she was incredibly friendly and generous in her response. She seems like a really nice person.

Yes I agree. I currently correspond with Janny over on another forum and she certainly seems very attune with her fans.

 

[GOLLUM]

Well, the world map that I put together for the Malazan series wound up being critiqued by Steven Erikson and was then adopted as the quasi-official-until-the-real-deal-comes-along map of the main Malazan website, so I was quite pleased by that. There was also a Q&A that someone was doing with the great Paul Kearney, but as I was the only person on the forum who'd read any of his books I ended up asking most of the questions in the interview by default, which was also pretty cool.

Hey nice to see another Erikson AND Kearney fan on these boards. I like Kearney's work and feel he is underrated or at least less well known than other authors out there. A friend of mine went over to Worldcon last year in Glasgow and apparently hung out with an editor friend of his who is personal friends with Kearney. Eneded up he spent some time whilst overseas at Kearney's hideaway chilling out with the great man. Almost as awesome as hanging out with M. E I think.

I've heard GRRM is reasonably approachable with fans...

 

[Werthead]

GRRM is extremely cool with his fans. Most of us over on the Westeros.org board are members of the BWB (Brotherhood Without Banners), which is a semi-informal fan group. Basically we organise parties and get-togethers for fans to chill out together. There isn't too much nerdiness here. People generally turn up, chill, talk about the books and other stuff. It's all good. If GRRM or his other half, Parris, are around then they sometimes stop by (obviously the American part of the BWB has greater luck with this than us Europeans!).

GRRM's attitude seems to be that his fans are his bread-and-butter and he enjoys hanging out and talking about the books. However, in moderation: he'll prefer to have a good conversation about say his favourite authors (Jack Vance etc) rather than talk about Tyrion and Dany all day long. GRRM also has a capacity for alcohol greater than any other known human being. There's people in the BWB who are not strangers to alcohol and have been comprehensively drunk under the table by GRRM, who seems none the worse the wear afterwards. Impressive.

 

[Spiritdragon]

I wrote an email to John Connolly,via his website. He replied, a really nice email...a bloody good author....Every Dead Thing, Killing Kind, White Road, The Black Angel

I also contacted A.A.Attanasio via his website too...a gent and a scholar...READ ALL HIS BOOKS!

His newest is KILLING WITH THE EDGE OF THE MOON - A brillinat modern twist on the celtic myth.

James

 

[Asmer20]

I thought I'd share an email I got from Ben Bova a while back...Here's the note:
Dear Rebecca Leech-Black: I'm delighted that you enjoy
my work. I try to make the science understandable and
interesting; it's good to know that you appreciate
that. I earned my Ed.D. from California Coast
University in 1996, at the age of 64. Thanks for
writing. Ben Bova

 

[creslin_black]

I've tried twice to send e-mail to Orson Scott Card, but either he cant be bothered to respond to it or maybe he somehow doesn't get it at all. Either way, I'm think I'm kinda done sending e-mail to him. Maybe I'll try some other sci-fi authors.

 

[NorseDude]

I wrote to Margareth Weis (Dragonlance) a few times, and she replied quite fast both times. She's nice.

 

[mosaix]

I e-mailed Colin Pillinger. He was the project leader for Beagle2 - the ill fated British Mars lander.

I wanted some technical info for a short SF story.

NO RESPONSE.

 

[ScottSF]

I emailed John Varley. I just wanted to let him know he was one of the people that really got me enthused about reading when I was a teen. He was happy to hear it. I think it's important to be brief and not get carried away. Since I figure authors get a lot of mail, I tried to be direct as possible plus give a little of my experience with his books.

I had a chance to meet Robin Hobb but I chickened out. If your area has a specialty Sci-fi, fantasy store they usually have book signings. Varly, Hobb, Martin have all made appearances at Borderlands books not far from where I live but I haven't been to a book signing yet. Anyway, it never hurts to send off a letter of appreciation just don't expect that they will have time to respond.

 

[Marky Lazer]

I'm going to write a letter to Chuck Palahniuk as well. He answers every letter, so he's cool.

 

[Asmer20]

I'm in luck again guys...I sent Bova an email 2 days ago and guess what!! He responded!! Here's the note:

Dear Rebecca LB: I know some of the scientists who
have sent that probe to Pluto, and they want me to do
a novel set there, also. At the moment I'm finishing
up the fourth Asteroud Wars novel, titled THE
AFTERMATH. After that I go back to Mars and then so a
sequel to JUPITER. Maybe I'll work in a Pluto novel
afterward. The argument over whether Pluto should be
called a planet or a Kuiper Belt Object seems pretty
academic to me. It is what it is, and the name won't
change its nature. I believe the astronomers have a
rough definition: if it orbits the Sun and is big
enough to pull itself into a spherical shape, then it
should be called a planet. Under that rule of thumb,
Pluto is a planet and not a KBO. Of course, there are
probably more planets farther out in the Kuiper Belt,
so Pluto will lose its distinction as the most distant
planet from the Sun. Thanks for writing. I'm delighted
that you're enjoying my work. Ben Bova

 

[star_song]

my friend wrote to chuck palahniuk and got a personalized detailed long letter and he made her a necklace.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Not that I receive an avalanche of fan mail, but I hate to send back a reply that sounds too mechanical -- and there are only so many ways of saying that you're glad that someone likes your books so much. That doesn't make the mail any less welcome, but it can slow down the response time, as I try to think of something to say that doesn't come across as too much of a form reply. (Then I feel guilty because so much time has elapsed, and I end up just saying the same sort of thing I usually say anyway.)

If someone asks an interesting and original question about something I've written, they're more likely to get a longer and (I hope) more interesting response.

 

[Marky Lazer]

Oh, Teresa posting here reminds me of a celeb once writing me...

 

[Neal Asher]

I think most writers can give a nice chatty personal reply, but a reply to a second letter or email, refering to the first, is a different matter. If a writer is well known he/she will have a minimum of hundreds of fans who want to get on a first-name basis. How does the writer remember them all, while incidentally keeping in mind all the details of his/her present book?

 

[SpaceShip]

Not that I receive an avalanche of fan mail, but I hate to send back a reply that sounds too mechanical -- and there are only so many ways of saying that you're glad that someone likes your books so much. That doesn't make the mail any less welcome, but it can slow down the response time, as I try to think of something to say that doesn't come across as too much of a form reply. (Then I feel guilty because so much time has elapsed, and I end up just saying the same sort of thing I usually say anyway.)

If someone asks an interesting and original question about something I've written, they're more likely to get a longer and (I hope) more interesting response.

Like you, Teresa, but probably due to the fact that I ain't that well known, my fanmail is spartan but the people that have written have always encouraged me by their love of my stuff, so I have, so far, made a point of always writing - as soon as I can - a personal reply.

Might we have a new thread on ideas for replies? I know that they should all be individual but sometimes too much time elapses because one doesn't know quite what to write?

 

[jenna]

I have emailed Piers Anthony a couple of times, and he replied. If you read his newsletters or the Author's Notes in his books, he gets heaps and heaps of fan mail, and even though it takes him ages he replies to as many as humanly possible. He does have someone help him by sorting through them and printing them out for him.

I really wish that I'd contacted David Gemmell before he passed to let him know how much I love his work and what an inspiration he's been to me. Sigh.

I think in general authors would be happy to reply to fan mail. There'd only be a select few that would have the celebrity god complex and think that they're above conversing with us lowly mortals (you know who I'm talking about!!)

 

[Patrick Mahon]

Not that I receive an avalanche of fan mail, but I hate to send back a reply that sounds too mechanical.

...

If someone asks an interesting and original question about something I've written, they're more likely to get a longer and (I hope) more interesting response.

Teresa, I'd be interested to know what the ratio of these different types of fan mail are for you. Are most of the letters you get of the general "I liked [Book X]" type, or do quite a lot of those who write to you ask the sort of detailed questions you referred to in your last paragraph?

And how do the letters get to you? Via your publishers?

Thanks.