By: Ann Purcell
The moment I walked into the tent that housed a hundred authors, the excitement was palpable. Actor/filmmaker Edward Burns was the featured author and celebrity. The press were crowding around him filming him, and he immediately had a long line of people waiting for him to sign his book for them.
Author’s Night is a yearly fundraiser for the East Hampton Library, and hundreds of people come through to buy signed copies of the books by the many notable authors.
One noted author and spiritual luminary, Lama Surya Das, came up to me as I was waiting for the event to start. He was very warm and friendly. Naturally, since both of us have devoted our lives to the spiritual path, we felt a deep connection and delighted in exchanging each of our books. He also introduced me to Rameshwar Das, who co-authored a book with Ram Das.
Dick Cavett was another high-profile celebrity at the event. Before the official starting time, he was sitting at his table with no lines. I went up to him and told him I saw his show in the ’70s when he interviewed, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. At that time, he had learned TM to prepare for the interview. I asked him if he still meditated, and he jokingly said he medicated! I gave him a copy of my book, which he seemed to appreciate.
Within 2 minutes of sitting down before the official starting time, a relative of a former President of the United States came up to my table and started asking me all sorts of questions about my book. She told me she had learned Transcendental Meditation recently in San Francisco. I did not know who she was, but my new friends to my right told me after she left. She could not have been nicer!
I was elated to have a steady stream of people stopping by saying they had learned TM in the ’70s and wanted to get back into it. Quite a few people stopped who were practitioners of TM. Several people bought my book saying they had heard a lot of publicity about TM recently and that they wanted to learn.
There were a few other celebrities there. One of the hosts of Author’s Night, Alec Baldwin, came with his wife. I saw him walk out with about ten books in his hand.
As the evening came to a close and the crowds started to disperse, I saw Ed Burns sitting at his table with no lines. I went up to his table to get a copy of his book, but they were all gone. I asked him if he would like a book on meditation and gave him a copy of my book. He looked at it and told that he had learned TM a while ago, and maybe it would help him get back into it. I smiled and walked away. He called out to me and said, “You have to sign my book”!
It was an extremely enjoyable evening. I am already thinking of a new book, so I can be in next year’s Author’s Night!
Listen to a Webinar that Ann participated in where she discusses her award-winning book.