Being a writer means spending a lot of time by yourself in front of a computer screen that just blinks back at you, waiting for you to make the first move. Even when you’re a gainfully employed freelancer you rarely go into an office and meet your editor. Interaction comes via emails, sometimes snail mail if you’re not linked up to PayPal.
A couple years ago, I was working as an arts writer for a hipper-than-thou New York blog that actually sought to foster their community of writers through social events. The first time I got invited to an event, I still had never met my editor or any of the other contributors in person, and had no idea what anyone looked like. The first time I got invited to an event, the bar where we were meeting also happened to be holding a speed dating event. I’m sure you know where this is headed: I got a little confused, and almost ended up accidentally speed dating.
All of this comes to mind because I just read Frank D. Santo’s “Waiting for a stranger to roll her eyes: My adventures in literary speed dating” for NY Daily News. Apparently, literary speed dating exists. A book seems to serve as a great conversation starter, a little peek into a person’s interests—and reading level.
Stephanie Nikolopoulos 
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