The Wear and Potential of New York. A Chance Meeting With Tom. - 02/22/2010 - 12:11 PM:

When I first got going on this project, traveling to New York was always a very exciting thing. A week away from home? In New York? Cool. So much happens in New York, with that density of lives existing side-by-side, that it's impossible for me to visit without a sense of each day's potential. For me, a day in New York is like taking a snapshot of thousands of life's significant and insignificant events all at once. Next time you're in New York, take a moment to wonder how many children will be born near you that day? How many new lives are getting started within arms reach of you? How many fortunes are being won and lost? How many deaths and final goodbyes? How many first kisses?

When you arrive in a city the size of New York, with landmarks that are recognizable in nearly every film ever made there, it never fails to lend a sense of importance to whatever you're doing. This is still true for me; so much of the publishing industry revolves around New York that you almost certainly have to frequent the city often in order to accomplish much in this industry.

So while I love traveling to New York, repetition eventually starts bringing out the downside of traveling. I've found myself in New York roughly twice a month, recently, normally for a week or more at at time, and I can't help but groan a little whenever I have to pack up and get onto a 6:30 a.m. flight.

Still, sometimes you get some very cool, unexpected opportunities. Last time in New York, I had the unexpected chance to meet Tom Doherty, the founder of Tor Books. Now, most people will probably not know who that is or what Tor is, so let me offer a little back story. When I was 16, I wanted to be an author. I was reading books like Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series and Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game, and I wanted to be like those magical people that created these worlds. I wanted to impact other people's lives the way that I was impacted; I wanted to be a storyteller.

And so I wrote. I wrote at least two books (mostly as practice), and in all the world, there was one publisher that I really wanted to be published by. Tor Books. Over several years, Tor and its sister label Forge consistently won awards for being the best publisher for science fiction and fantasy authors. They published a good number of my idols, including both of those mentioned above.

So, meeting Tom Doherty, the founder and publisher of Tor Books, held more than a little personal significance for me. To be honest, while I knew his name growing up, he would not have been one of the people I'd have directly said I wanted to meet, as I would have for either Orson Scott Card or Robert Jordan. However, in a way, I'd argue that Doherty has had a greater impact on Science Fiction and Fantasy than any single writer. He did, after all, find and provide a platform for writers that went on to have significant and far reaching impact on the genres. I'd argue that I am a product of that impact.

Tom Doherty is, in my esteem, and person of substance. And one that is at least partly responsible, through his career, for my interest in the publishing industry at all. So, while traveling to New York can be tiring at times, each trip continues to deliver rewards on both a professional and personal level. It was deeply satisfying to shake his hand, hoping the entire time that - while telling him of his role in my personal history - I didn't come across as a fanboy. At the end, he loaded me up with books on the way out, either because he likes giving away books or because he thought burying me in hardbacks was a good way to get me to leave. :)

That said, having just gotten back from New York, I am very glad that I'm not at the Tools of Change conference going on in Manhattan right now. I've got too many items to juggle as is, and secretly, I like falling asleep in my own bed. :)