LIFE EMBARRASSING BOOKSTORES

I Accidentally Crashed a Book Signing…Twice

You are never prepared to meet your idol

Clay Banks at Unsplash

Have you ever met one of your idols? How did it go?

I have met my idol, twice — and both times have embarrassed myself and everybody around me.

One day in my late twenties, I dropped by my go-to bookstore in Denver to find some fiction therapy to get me out of my funk. I was going through a divorce and needed a non-alcoholic distraction. The store sold both new and used books. The owner, Barbara, knew me as a frequent customer, and like any good businessperson, knew which authors I preferred. She had sold me the newest hardcover by my favorite author, Nora Roberts, just the week before.

Fiction as Therapy

I was holding a few good therapy candidates from several writers, including an old paperback by Ms. Roberts. She has written 195 New York Times bestsellers including 37 written as J.D. Robb. Her fictional characters have made me laugh — deep belly laughs. And they have given me alternative ways to handle some of life’s rough patches.

Did I mention the fiction therapy? It’s cheaper and less annoying than having counselors asking you unanswerable questions and encouraging you to solve your own…