June 9, 2007

• Another Brag Blog

  I knocked fists with him. “You rule for so many reasons,” I laughed. “Thanks. You too,” he said.

  The Debut Authors Festival in Edinburgh is a pretty big deal. Writers and agents and publishers come for a two-day schmooze fest. Among many other talk-ey, workshop-ey things, two jam sessions for unpublished work happen over the course of the weekend. Authors enter a pool that is randomly chosen from to read their work in front of a captive audience and a panel of important literary types, from the BBC, Granta, The Sunday Herald arts and books editor, and so on. These plucky authors then get “live feedback” on their work, American Idol style. Does it sound like crucifixion to you? Me too. Shaun thought it sounded fun.

  Originally, his name wasn’t one that was selected from the pool to read. But since so one told him officially that he hadn’t been chosen, Shaun-san thought he’d better contact them just to make sure they didn’t need anyone. Low and behold, someone cancelled. And a spot was opened.

  At 7 pm, the readings began. About 8 out of the 14 readers read overly written, painful detective stories. One girl shared a fictionalized account of a Nazi princess that read only marginally better than a book report. One man burst out in song. A fascinating gothic horror drew me in. A fab story by a pretty girl my age made me smile. Few were appalling. Some were quite dazzling. And then Shaun read.

  He’s shopping around a hilarious novella right now called Pizza Good Times. The characters are endearing and it is by far one of the funniest things I’ve ever read. Better yet, the humor sustains itself throughout, which is a tricky task for any writer. Laugh-out-loud descriptions are casually tossed out one after another for readers to stumble on, making you laugh without hitting you over the head with a heavy punch line. And Shaun reads with enthusiasm, cheer, and the un-cocky confidence that comes with knowing that you busted ass on something so it really is the best that you’ve got. The audience went from dead to roaring. Shaun’s manuscript physically woke some woman’s husband who had fallen asleep during the other readings; the poor bloke was laughing and wiping tears from his eyes. After Shaun finished, the man turned to his wife and said, “That was bloody brilliant!”

  The judges went away to convene. The prize was a bottle of whisky and the chance to have your manuscript hand-delivered and recommended to agents by the panel of judges. Pizza Good Times has already visited a few agents this spring, some expressing keen interest but no commitment so far, others letting it get dusty on their desks.

  While they convened, I listened to the crowd ask each other, “who is your winner?” And I couldn’t help but feeling a huge surge of pride in my chest when, from the crowd, praise for Shaun bubbled up: “I’d pick that pizza guy. He was great!” “I like that one about pizza.” “Yeah—that American with the pizza story.”

  The judges came back. And in true American Idol fashion, they praised the Gothic horror story first and then gave Shaun the winning prize for Pizza Good Times.

  As my partner shook hands with impressed, important people on stage, I shook my head and smiled. He wasn’t even supposed to have been there. Thanks to his tenacity, his gentle persistence, his warm, open approach to the world and to new (scary!) experiences: he won. And its those qualities that make me choose to share a life with him.

  Tonight, he’s reading at another Festival here in Glasgow. There are no prizes at this one besides the most important one, exposure, but we’re going with friends, some who are also reading, and it promises to be a great night out.

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  What qualities in another make you swoon?

  • 3:36 am
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