Wilbur Smith in Mumbai

I was privileged to meet legendary historical adventure author Wilbur Smith on his book tour in India. He visited Landmark Bookstore at Infiniti Mall, Mumbai on 03-Dec-2011. He is 78 years young and has fans from multiple generations. A rich career and life that everyone should take inspiration from. He arrived to a standing welcome from the crowd gathered to meet and listen to him just past 7pm. Many eager faces were awaiting him, young and old, a true mix of age-groups which his fiction has conquered.

Wilbur Smith mentioned that he was supposed to read from his latest novel "Those In Peril", but he would rather just talk with the gathered audience. Everyone listened with rapt attention as Wilbur Smith recounted many anecdotes from past book signings he had attended in various countries. He also mentioned that he has been to India quite a few times before as well but that this was the first time he was here for promoting his novels.

His website: http://www.wilbursmithbooks.com/

So Mr. Smith recalled his very first book signing and how no one showed up to buy and get his novel signed. Another author on the floor was without any fans but busy signing books so Mr. Smith walked over to him and asked for whom the books are being signed. "Sign them, once signed the bookstore cannot return it to the publisher and we get our royalty" was the answer he got. He also narrated how once a lady in an Australian bookstore mentioned that she had travelled far from the Northern territories to get a book signed by him as a birthday gift to her husband. To Mr. Smith's surprise the book was a Jeffrey Archer novel and he mentioned that he was not Mr. Archer. The lady demanded that he sign the book - so taking this in stride, Mr. Smith wrote on the book: "In the absence of Lord Archer, signed by Wilbur Smith". LOL. Once Wilbur Smith was visiting England and found that no one was buying his books. This was his initial years as an author. While at the airport to take a flight back home to Africa, he saw a lady reading his novel. He was delighted and intrigued and tried to see if the lady had any emotional expression while reading his book. He also went around behind her pretending to go to the washroom so that he could see which page she was on. Finally he couldn't resist and interrupted her - "Madam, that is my book you are reading." The lady looked surprised and answered handing over the novel to him, "Sorry, I just found it lying around and started to read it." LOL!

Many other funny anecdotes were narrated and the crowd lapped it up with laughter and applause. He also recounted the incidents of die hard fans. One lady sent him a letter saying that her husband loved Smith's novels and wished to be buried with them; there was an accompanying photograph showing her husband in a coffin with all of Wilbur Smith's novels arranged with the dead body in the coffin. That Smith mentioned was a great compliment. Another such fan was a man who appeared in a hotel lobby requesting the staff to please allow him to meet Wilbur Smith. As luck would have it, Mr. Smith was passing by and introduced himself. The man had an amputated leg and mentioned that he fell off from the top of a train onto the tracks when he was travelling with friends. He said that he had given up all hope in life and the only thing he could do was read Wilbur Smith's novels and one character in one of Smith's novels had an amputated leg - and that fictional character went on despite his disabilities to achieve great success. So the young amputee thanked Wilbur Smith saying that his fiction gave him new hope to live and succeed in life. These he said were moments that he cherished about his fans.

He mentioned that though he is on a book tour in India, he is desperately trying to arrange to visit Jim Corbett National Park and glimpse the famous tiger conservation there.

Soon it was time to take questions from the audience and every one of the persons who asked him anything started by thanking him for taking them to the rich land of Africa through the descriptive words of his novels. I asked him a question too. I said: "Your website has a biography of you which mentions how your mother encouraged you while reading fiction as a child and that you had an encouraging teacher in school who liked Smith's writings and said it is admirable to be a bookworm - so what advice would you give to a struggling author?" He said that this was a very serious question which he cannot take lightly. He recalled how an editor friend of his thought writing a novel was easy and that he could write it in a 6 month break from work. "After one month, he was back in office" said Smith. LOL. Smith added, "It takes much effort and discipline and like all good things you have to continue with determination against odds to be a writer or succeed in any other profession as well."

He also answered a question regarding future of Africa, when a person from the audience asked that after Asia, is Africa the big boom economic centre. Mr. Smith said that Asia was very different and far more developed. That Africa is still in infancy in terms of growth and stabilization. He mentioned that India will grow further because he observed that Indians are intelligent and hard-working and hence like other countries in Asia, is growing fast. He also said that the leaders in India had done well to keep Indian states together after the British rule ended, otherwise the olden times when Maharajas fought each other and lived without unity would have kept India just as Africa is today - divided and lacking direction. He also said that Lincoln had done a great job when he allowed war to keep the 50 states of America together and that is the reason why USA is a great global leader it is today.

So a great evening wrapped up with the hostess announcing that Mr. Wilbur Smith would sign books. A very well organised event by Landmark Bookstore, culminating with an organised linup by fans to get their books signed. Very entertaining and enlightening evening indeed.

Catch Wilbur Smith on tour in India in various cities at Landmark Bookstores near you. I got 7 of his novels signed by him in person. :-)

Below are some photos from my mobile phone camera.

Best Wishes,
Ujjwal Dey (Editor)