Adventures of a Bibliophile: Sparks fly in Manila with Nicholas 2011

Authors are my heroes. Writers are heroes. Being an amateur-ish writer myself (who dreams of being published) Those are the people I look up to. They are people who make wonderful alternate realities and take you in this roller coaster ride of emotions, while finishing off with a bang (and wanting more of course).
That's why when I heard the news, way months back, that Nicholas Sparks will be coming to Manila, I was happy..heck I was in cloud 9.

But, the only problem was...is these simple rules in how a fan could get a signing pass (c/o National Bookstore and Powerbooks):

1. All purchases of Nicholas Sparks’ new book “The Best of Me” from National Book Store or Powerbooks will come with a Lucky Draw Coupon. Note: The Lucky Draw Coupon in not a guaranteed Signing Pass.
2. A person may purchase as many copies as he/she wants and each purchase will come with a Lucky Draw Coupon.
3. The Lucky Draw Coupon shall entitle the bearer to one (1) attempt at a Lucky Draw on Friday, October 28, 2011 at the atrium of The Podium. Lucky Draw will start upon registration at 1:00 pm.
4. Every person who draws a marked winning stub shall be entitled to a signing pass to have one (1) book signed by Nicholas Sparks at the event.
5. There will be a minimum of six hundred fifty (650) winning stubs in the the Lucky Draw.
6. In addition, there will also be fifty (50) Early Birds. The first fifty (50) persons to arrive at the venue will be allowed to have their Lucky Draw Coupon automatically exchanged for a Signing Pass. Limit is one (1) signing pass per Early Bird.

I was really nervous. To get a signing pass, all you need to do is to surrender the lucky draw coupon (which was with the "Best of Me" purchase) and draw a paper which should have "YES" in it. Oh, Lady Luck be with me today.

 And yes, I was standing at the 5th floor. Imagine how long the line was? And the event was supposed to be at 5pm. Me and my best friend Dianne arrived at 10:30 AM. The mall opens at 10 AM, they said that there was a line as early as 2 AM. WUT? o_O

Closer to the lucky draw, and I can feel my heart beat. So stressed out~

Got my pass!! *jumps for joy while throwing confetti* For some reason the number 14 is such a great help to me. Sadly, Dianne got a NO. They got her book and the guy said that they will try to make it a signed copy as well. Hope so!

As the event draws near, more and more fans are anticipating to meet Nicholas.

And there he was! Too much screaming, like he is an idol or boy group. It was obvious that he was rattled. He didn't expect the warm welcome. Well, Filipinos are bookworms you know. ^^

My heart was thumping as I got closer to get my book signed. I really don't know what to say if I meet him face to face.

And there he was, the first thing he did was smile at me and say "Hi there~" Seriously, I was starstruck. I love him and his books. What I said was the simple "Hello~" and when he gave me the signed copy... "Thank you~" Which I regretted later on. I should've said something like: "Thanks for coming to the Philippines~ The fans love you" But NOOOOOOOOO~ I was speechless. Ugh. Regrets.

Well, I got my book signed and that's whats most important. It wasn't personalized with my name or anything (but was deeply yearning for it) due to time constraints and the amount of who people attended, and it was mind-blowing! I guess he was sort of touched on how he is loved here.

 

Happy. On Cloud 9.

Hope he comes back.

Hope other authors would come to the Philippines.

Writers are heroes.