Five Inches of Geek Plastic

I am lucky enough to enjoy the support of some ardent fans of my published work. Although I worry about anyone who will bid more than £296 on eBay for my privately circulated monograph on the Angry Brigade (I do not even own a copy anymore and that price never will again) their enthusiasm for my output is beyond flattering. While I may be flabbergasted at the lengths this small band of individuals will go to obtain my non-commercially released material, I am awed by their generosity.

I have at least one anonymous fan that during the past two years has been sending me a wonderful assortment of Doctor Who toys. More than one dark elevenses of the soul has been alleviated by opening a padded envelope to find not a death threat, but an Assault Dalek. The burst of inner sun comes not from the gift itself, but the knowledge someone likes my work enough to want to try to brighten my day with five inches of geek plastic.

Today, I received via a remailer the following message: ‘I am a fan. I have sent you tokens of appreciation in the past and would like to send you something for Christmas. I cannot do this as you have shut down your PO Box. Please provide in a public forum your new postal address.’

Given current security concerns, I am sorry to say that there is no public snail mail address for sending Christmas cards or battle-damaged Daleks to this year. I will try to provide one in the first quarter of 2008, but until then, those who wish to show their appreciation and support can do so without recourse to the postal system. This Yule, plant a tree, unleash your creativity and start a blog, commit acts of random niceness on unsuspecting strangers. Trust me, doing any of those things – then letting me know about them via a remailer – will almost put as much of a smile on my face as figure of a Judoon Trooper.