Writers as Rock Stars

A good friend of Inspiration Conspiracy, Julian Smith, recently came through Berkeley to promote his new book. His first book, Crossing the Heart of Africa. It's great. He put on his safari boots and retraced the steps of an Englishman who walked Africa, bottom to top, back in the late 1890's for a woman he loved. Julian did this, then wrote a book about it, then got it published by a big publisher, Harper Perennial. So he stopped at Books, Inc. on his well-deserved victory lap and even brought a slide show. And only 11 people were there!? What's wrong with the literary world? Julian finished a book! And his book is great. Have you finished a book? This kind of thing deserves a parade, a sold-out stadium. Not 11 senior citizens on folding, metal chairs. A decade ago, Dave Eggers came onto the scene with A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, and not only was his title correct, but he also brought rockstar status back to being an author. He even went on book tour with a band, They Might Be Giants, and people were lining up around the corner to see him, and even scalping tickets. I saw Irvine Welsh read at the Elephant & Castle Pub, and there were hundreds of people, drunk and practically getting in fistfights to hear him read. And Sedaris, it costs $50 to see him read at a podium for an hour, and he sells out, and it's worth it. That's how writers should be treated, as the rockstars they are.