It's really quite funny, and honestly just one big, happy coincidence:

On Saturday I read Neil Gaiman's Coraline. I'm a rather huge Gaiman fan, as anyone who's played The Longest Journey could probably testify to, but for some mystical reason it took me a whole year to get around to reading it. I have no idea why. Then on Sunday I checked out the man's impressively updated journal (he posts every single day, even when he's on a book-signing tour; I will never complain about being 'too busy' again) - something I hadn't done in a very long time - and I noticed that he was currently in Finland.

"Hmm," I thought. "Either he's just been to Norway, or he's going to Norway afterwards."

So I checked. And yes, he was coming to Norway - on Tuesday, in fact.

Which, as it happens, is - was - today.

So at four o'clock this afternoon I went to the bookstore where Mr. Gaiman was signing. I purchased Endless Nights and The Wolves in the Walls and, together with my brother and a friend, I got in (the suprisingly short) line. Less than an hour later, I'd not only met and chatted with a man I consider one of the great storytellers - a man who has been a constant and important source of inspiration for more than a decade - but I'd also presented him with a copy of The Longest Journey.

(Hey, if anyone deserves a free copy, it's him.)

I'm rather happy about it all. I'm not typically the fanboy type, but you have to make exceptions. There are times when you just have to succumb to the inner geek and admit that you're as giddy (and nervous) as the rest of them to shake hands with someone you really, truly admire.

Gaiman was, not surprisingly, a very pleasant, genial, and humble fellow. There's no reason why he shouldn't be, but signing thousands of books - and personalising each and every one with a neat little drawing - is bound to make even the best of us a bit grumpy. Book tours can't be particularly pleasant things to embark on.

Gaiman is also speaking at a café (Bokcaféen) in Oslo this evening, and I'm considering going. I'm not quite sure what the format is; if he's going to read from one of his novels, or if he's being interviewed live, or if he's going to sing and dance and breathe fire - but I'm sure that whatever it is, it'll be interesting. So I'm considering it.  ¶ 18:37