If anyone heading through Heathrow Terminal 3 needs a signed book, I signed everything I could find (two Good Omens, a Trigger Warning, a Norse Mythology and two Coralines) in the Bookshop.
Neil Gaiman — If anyone heading through Heat...
How do you sign Trigger Warnings?
With a fountain pen.
Doctor, it hurts when I do *this.*
Well, don't do it, then...
Thank you, Tommy Cooper
It was the video I kept MTV on for, hoping it would play.
Good one! 😂
Thanks for doing the good work. 🫶
Do you ever sign other peoples’ books?
Nope.
Have you ever opened a bookstore book to sign it to find you had already signed it before?
Yes.
What do you do when that happens? Double-sign?
Put it back on the shelf.
If you were to put the date on the sig, people can also be surprised by how close they came to bumping into you, especially if it's the same day. 🙂
I'm very annoyed that I'm not going to be at that T3 bookshop until September!
🤣 Lovely 😁
Have you ever opened a bookstore book of yours to sign it but find it had already been signed by a "Neil Gaiman" before but it wasn't you or your handwriting?
We don’t talk about the Other Neil
Plot twist, it was parallel universe Neil
He has buttons for eyes, you know
(Camestros Felapton— there's a name that takes me back thirty years to Teach Yourself Logic)
But I've seen some for sale on eBay, often co-signed with bad Terry Pratchett signatures.
Signed, The Terrible Terry Pratchett
Were the forged signatures in all capitals?
I'm reminded of the classic Kurt Braunohler bit of signing other people's books and adding fun slogans. My favourite being "Jive Hustler! Clive Cussler"
I remember someone posting to a Hitchhiker's Facebook group a picture of a signed book they had, and we all took half a look at it and went "nah" for three reasons: he wouldn't write *that*, his script doesn't look like *that* and he never called himself "Doug". 😂
I own a 2nd hand hardcover of Good Omens "signed" by Neil & Terry.
Terry's signature looks close... but I'm not sure about it. I've never seen Neil's signature so I'm even less convinced that someone would let go of this for resale.
No-one would want to buy mine - 28 years of rereading in between pTerry and then Neil signing so it’s hanging on by a thread.
"Well loved"
When I was first dating my then girlfriend (now partner of 14 years) she wanted to borrow it. I said no and bought her her own copy instead.
Good boundaries.
Put up a picture and I can probably tell you.
I have a British edition my grandfather brought me back from London when I was 14, and I brought it to Forbidden Planet here in NYC and you both signed it and I treasure it. Read it to shreds, too.
Here's a pic of my copy that is signed by both. I got both of their signatures in person. bsky.app/profile/nady...
Were you ever asked? I had a student asking me to at a thing, clearly no clue who I was and needing it for a school assignment(?). I said no, and still wonder why he wanted me to to this day.
What a lovely surprise for some lucky book buyers. Do you just put your name when you do that?
Yup.
Doesn't it look weird from the staff's point of view that someone is scribbling in the books? Do you approach them and let them know, or do you act covertly?
He's pretty recognizable. Maybe he just opens the book to the author photo and shows them.
guardian angel of airport bookstands
Kind of wish I was passing through that terminal. Ah well it is what it is.
Esse homem é muito legal né? Neil Gaiman você é ouro. 🤍
That's really sweet. 💖
Good man!
when you stop by estação corinthians-itaquera let me know 😭
Fills my heart to read things like these 🫶
Oh you are so kind!
wait i somehow didn't know you wrote coraline. i'm p sure i saw you at the ordway in st. paul in like 2007 lol but i was a kid and only knew you as the coraline guy
also do you ever get in trouble with the employees wondering why you are writing in the books 💀
I should hope any bookstore employee worth their salt would recognize him.
there are like maybe 3 authors in the world i would recognize in public tbh
Me too, and he is one of them.
One of these days I’m going to go to a bookstore and sign books by the historian or the YA author who share my name.
godspeed, mr. opinions
On your way to Woking, perhaps?
Any chance you'll be heading through Gatwick?
Bloody hell, I've got a Good Omens first edition that needs signing. Could you wait in T3 whilst I quickly book a flight? 🙂
Was just there — just landed in Manchester. Ships that pass in the night!
(I sent an email to an email address I had for you last week. I won't be in town when you play Bearsville but was offering you my place if you need it...)
Yes I will answer — last week was a whirlwind and Roman got very ill (he is better now)
All good. Was just worried it was an old address.
When you turn up randomly at a bookshop to do signings, do they ever ask to see photo id? Airports are perfect for it!
I just take the books off the shelves, sign them and put them back.
Ooooo, secret signings. Very superhero.
Ninja signing... 😏
Heretofore I had assumed you traveled with a small folding table and chair, placed a hastily scrawled "Artist in Residence" sign in front of you, and signed away until you heard your boarding call.
Image, dashed.
I fucking love that. More authors should do guerilla signing. XD
A little 'lottery' to support small indie boockshops maybe.
I used to work in publishing. There was a story going around where a store's returns were rejected, and returned to the bookseller. Because they were damaged; they had been signed by the author.
It's an urban legend. Signed books are still in "a saleable state" (unless they are signed to a specific person). Presigned books often turn up at bookshops.
One could even argue that signed books could be sold at a premium because of that
Don't click this one, it's a spam bot
unnecessary warning, but thank you all the same :) I was already blocking it
You could argue, but then I'd say "Jordan Peterson" and you'd be like "curses, they're right!"
Well, actually I wonder why one would buy a Jordan Peterson book...
Opposition Research. But if it was signed? Ewwww
That tracks. There are a lot of stores that will actively promote having signed copies. It's how I ended up with a signed copy of Ready Player Two.
I've bought at least two signed books that I just found at random at bookstores and was not charged extra fwiw
At a now defunct Jo-Beth we had a one stop try to refuse return of hundreds of signed copies of a book post-event. Many people stepped in to say “sorry folks, this is the standard”
I bought a hardcover copy of Philip Pullman's "The Secret Commonwealth". Sealed in clear plastic protected its gorgeous cover. I was delighted to discover that the book had been signed, even though there was no external indication. Sealed!
That's good to know. I have heard the "sign your books in bookstores so they can't be returned" a few times.
Yup. "A signed book is a sold book". But you'll find signed hardback books in remainder shops, and for paperbacks if the cover was removed to send back for credit, nobody knows if the book was signed or no.
Had that happen to me a long time ago. The small press publisher who signed my first novel was married to someone who worked for Borders. I did a signing at a Borders in Louisville and found books I'd signed in another city had been shelved. Surreal.
I'm glad to hear it. So much crazy shit goes on that I'm very glad to hear one isn't true.
I once bought a used CD online. When it arrived it was signed to Lise and Udo. I sometimes wonder what happened to them? Did they break up, and whichever of them got the CD collection couldn't bear to see the reminder? Did their taste change and they no longer like smooth jazz?
Did they decide to sell all their belongings and sail around the world? Were they burgled? I now have a thin connection to two people I will never know, except that we three all shared an appreciation for an instrumental jazz cover of Dock Of The Bay.
Do you pick up anything else? I imagine the people working in the bookshop:
"Did you see, Neil Gaiman was just in here!"
"What did he get?"
"Nothing, he just pulled down his own books, one by one, looked at them, put them back, and left."
I have a long standing ambition to catch you in the act
😂
Well I think this is awesome.
Are you concerned that you are steadily diluting the value of your signature with every book you sign? ✍️ 📉🤣
Shoot, missed by one day.
Every time I go through an airport I check the bookstores for this reason!
I signed a smattering of your books at the Sydney Domestic 1 terminal. Thanks for lighting the way.
Do you clear it with the people working in the bookstore first, or are you sneaking around doing it? I'd hate to read about famous British author being hauled in by security for vandalizing books
Neil, I hope they’re still there when I get there this June.
I’m passing that way next week, I wonder if there will be any left… 😄
i love that you posted this as if books signed by you are a resource that people need for projects and stuff
You’re so cool
Cue massive scrumm
The questions! 😂 I think that’s a kind thing you do
🤣😂🤣😂
Have you ever been "caught" by a clerk that didn't recognize you?
You know Neil, I love this about you. That you do this. Thanks for being awesome.
I so love that you do this!
Bah!! I flew through there last week and checked the book shops. Just missed it! Hopefully next time!
Dammed... missed it by 1 terminal.
Has anyone ever brought a book you signed, to be signed multiple times?
Yes.
So what’s the most you’ve signed one of your books for someone?
Do you hold the book at arms length and say in a very loud and accusatory way " how DARE you bring this obvious forgery to my event ! "
Then evil laugh while signing it IN EXACTLY THE SAME WAY?
This may only be amusing to me. Sorry.
I love that you do this.
Do you ever do a little drawing, or write anything else other than your name?
Not when I'm ninja signing.
I once asked Ruth Rendell to draw a picture of my cat and write a message to him in a copy of The House of Stairs and she stonily faced refused. However Terry Pratchett enthusiastically complied, asking various questions and wrote a paragraph in a copy of Mort.
His artistry didn’t put him above indulging a fan with a bit of harmless whimsy.
I'll happily do things like that at a public signing. I won't do it when I'm secretly signing in an airport bookshop.
Can confirm:
bsky.app/profile/oste...
@neilhimself.neilgaiman.com is pretty fucking rad. I was glad to attend his auction today at Heritage Auctions. Not only did I get a new signature from him on an old book of mine, I won the lot for a beautiful new-to-me Neverwhere. Good cause, good man, good gods what a good day.
My (now ex) wife collected signings and messages to our pet dog from her favourite writers and I did the same with our cat, it was a kind of competition. We also laughed over indignant refusals and who was cool with it. You were on both our hit lists but never bagged.
I mean, not naming any names, but it’s amazing how a Booker nomination makes someone so averse to drawing a cartoon cat and writing a few imaginative lines.
I gotta ask - what pen did you sign them with.
A Lamy Accent.
Made with Pride in Wieblingen/Heidelberg :)
Hey! That's just the way I talk!
Can't go wrong with a Lamy.
Well now, isn’t this cool? Wow
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If you are going to be in Heathrow Terminal 3, I Just stealth-signed 3 copies of The Ocean at the End of the Lane and a copy of Anansi Boys in the Bookshop.
And if you can’t do that, please put a trigger warning on it, as it can trigger paroxysms of laughter
I'm not a lefty, but how I sign books might work for you: I bring blank white address labels, and sign them before sticking them in the book. (I don't pre-sign, I do it in front of the book owner). They come in many sizes, so you can pick a size that fits your title page design.
When a judge sentencing you talks about the need for specific deterrence and how you could easily do it again, is that a good sign?
When a judge sentencing you says you're "a man willing to flip a coin as to the continued existence of life on earth," is that a good sign?
When you find your books in the wild, do you ever surreptitiously sign some?
Oeh, oeh, I know what I can do! I can give out signed copies of my book. Do you want a signed copy of my book? *crickets*
A book site for trigger warnings?
https://www.booksns.com/57572/
There’s a website that’s called doesthedogdie.com that tells you about trigger warnings and other warnings in movies so you know beforehand when watching the movie, is there a site like that for books? by TheNightStalkersGirl
You got this! I hope you do get it out next year!
If book 3 is percolating already, that's a good sign.
Spicy Books
https://www.booksns.com/44539/
I am looking for books that have trigger Warnings in the front. Some of the spiciest, trigger content you have ever read. Also If someone could name the one with like 2 and a half pages of trigger Warnings, id really appreciate it. by BuunniiPriincess
The love that you confessed a product of your loneliness.
I see right through you, but what do I do?
Of course I fall for it, just like I did when I was 16
Did you ever even miss me? Doubt it
Pay day happened recently so I will do a signed book that you have available (any price) OR if the many signed books don't entice anyone, up to £20 for a free choice.
Do you like Comics? Do you like podcasts? Well I have just the thing for you. It contains both comic and podcast (surprise….), with a bonus of two lovely hosts and a whole host of books you will want to check out!
Pssst, if we could ask for a huge favor!
If you enjoy our show, would you mind sharing this post and maybe even tell folks a reason to pick it up? We spend a lot of time and love on this and would love to reach even more folks. To all our current listeners: thank you <3
I’m about two-thirds through and all I’ve wanted to do today is skip out on work to finish it. Always the sign of a good book.
What do you wanna do? I could read you a book if you like. =3
Well, you do you, of course. I wont deprive myself from a good book just for that kind of reason. Especially when you know author arent allways aware of the cover the editor uses.
The deal "I do work and I get paid" is what employees sign up for. "You do work and we don't pay you" is a deal that some bosses never stop trying to put over.
How do people like you manage to leave the house? Do you put a trigger warning on your front door?
I could def do that for you if you win a slot :3 thanks for joining and good luck Deshr ^^
LOOK THE MONKEY SIGNED ITS NAME ON THE SHEET SAYING IT WAS TERMINAL. WHAT MORE DO YOU WANT?
My book What if You Wish? Comes out so soon! 😱
Want a signed copy? Order from my local bookstore: https://store.wordsbookstore.com/book/9780063036130
Put a note in your order that you would like it signed. If you want it signed to you or a specific person, put that in the note as well!
What If You Wish? (Hardcover) | [words] Bookstore
A gentle child embarks on a magical journey and transforms their worries into wonder by simply asking "What if?" When a spring breeze blows,a quiet promise whispers,What if?What if you close your eyes...
store.wordsbookstore.com
every time i learn that there's a name for something my brain is doing i freak out. what do you mean there's whole disorders that describe how i go through life? what do you mean its in the DSM?! what do you meeeeeean
It really is a sign of you getting good at what you do. A sign that you found ways to get to your goal reliably. :D
2. What do you want others to think about you and your work when they see your logo? Do you want to convey what kind of work you do or what kind of person you are?
3. How do you wish to use the logo? For example, like a watermark for your works.