(I found this humor essay I wrote about Margaret Atwood’s LongPen invention and author book signings while scouring through my files in my quest to publish an essay a day this year.)
Author Margaret Atwood has invented a remote-controlled pen which allows her to sign books for her fans from thousands of miles away. BBC News
There comes a time in every author’s life when he or she has to enter the tawdry world of commerce, and engage in that most stressful of situations – the book signing. I can tell you firsthand, there is nothing in life as nerve-wracking as sitting at a wobbly card table in the center of a cavernous Books ‘R Us, with your darlings heaped on the table like a pile of yesterday’s fish.
Even the most esteemed and seasoned authors find book signings anxiety producing and exhausting. To this end, award-winning Canadian author Margaret Atwood, no stranger to book tours and signings, developed a device that allows authors to sign their books from home or office, effectively eliminating the need to sign a book in person. The LongPen was unveiled several years ago at the London Book Fair, with Atwood signing a copy of her new short story collection, The Tent, for her publisher who was in another area of the exhibition hall. The author merely has to sign an electronic pad, and then seconds later a mechanism consisting of two metal arms holding a pen, will reproduce the signature in a reader’s book.
I understand Atwood’s motivation. Besides the obvious appeal of being able to stay in your pajamas in the comfort of your own kitchen, it also removes the author from that most stressful of modern day contrivances – the book signing. Book signings are a fairly recent literary phenomenon, gaining steadily in popularity during the past few decades to the point where they are now seen as absolutely critical to a book’s success. That sounds good in theory, but the fact is most authors are solitary creatures who would prefer not to interact with anyone, thank you very much. J. D. Salinger had the right idea. Continue reading
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