OLA 2007: Long-Distance Autographs

It's very rare that famous authors visit the Philippines. But what if fans could actually talk to authors across oceans, and tell them that they wanted their books signed a particular way? Well, it's possible.




The photos above show Leo Yerxa in Ottawa signing Ancient Thunder for librarians in Toronto. The LongPen, conceptualized by Margaret Atwood, has made it possible for her and other authors to interact with fans and sign books without having to ride planes, cross oceans and go on book tours.

This development gives hope that maybe Filipinos will not have to wait years before Neil Gaiman "returns" to the Philippines.