As promised, here’s the video clip of Neil Gaiman at the World Fantasy Convention 2013 in Brighton (yay!) UK, talking with Jo Fletcher (Jo Fletcher Books) about his first published book – about Duran Duran (the pop group, not the character in Barbarella).
Please excuse the shakiness – hand holding a camera is not the best idea, but it was a spur of the moment catch. Likewise, you’ll probably need to turn up the sound, but he’s a great speaker, so it’s worth it to hear how his career moved from ‘starving journalist’ to author.
Addendum
He added another little story about this book later in the talk:
Some years later, after he’d become successful, Neil discovered there had been a hardback version of the book, of which he’d never been aware.
Expressing an interest in owning this version, a member of his household procured one for him – at the cost of $800
Neil was rather unsure whether he’d actually wanted it that much, until he later ran into an old friend who’s become an author, having previously been a book seller. While relating how he’d been able to make the break into full time writing, the friend explained that he’d managed to sell one particular book for enough money to support himself through the transition.
You’ve guessed it – it was that hardback Duran Duran book, which he’d sold for $10,000 !
Neil felt so much better about the $800 that was spent on his.
deborahjay 
Lucky you! He is one of my favorite main stream authors. That must have been a blast, being there at the Con!!!! Lucky lucky …. LOL
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It was certainly a good experience – my first WorldCon and I had no idea what to expect. It followed the rather strict description of ‘a serious literary convention’, so no costumes (aside from a few on Halloween) and no geekish fannish behaviour, but loads of fantastic panels.
I’m in awe of how articulate they all were – not something I necessarily expect from insular writers, but I guess the world has turned and now we must all interact with readers rather than hiding away in our writing caves. I did sit there, picturing myself up on a panel – hmm, maybe not!
I’ve just added a little story to the end of the post, come back and take a look 🙂
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I was at a thrift store in south florida about 5 years ago, skimming the bookshelf just as they were closing. I saw a Duran Duran poster book, and then another – of course I grabbed them. As I thought to myself how funny it would be if they had also donated… DURAN DURAN by NEIL GAIMAN – THERE IT WAS IN ALL IT’S GREY GLORY
HARDCOVER
two whole dollars US
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Lol, what a bargain!
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