Oh, my… here’s a interesting development: it seems that Scalzi came across the post I wrote about him and has linked back to me in a post of his own, using my full name and everything.

I’m a little bit intimidated by this because, for one thing, a quasi-celebrity noticed me again (giddy fanboy moment #2: coooooooollllllll. [Okay, Bennion, enough of that! People are going to start gossiping!]), and he also noticed that I was talking about him. It’s like getting caught passing notes in class or something — no big deal in the Grand Scheme of the Universe, but kind of embarassing at the time. More importantly, however, is the fact that Scalzi’s readership is huge and a mention from him could potentially send a lot more readers my way. There’ve already been two new people come over here from The Whatever that I know about (hi, Sara and Brian!), and I wouldn’t be surprised to learn there are more lurking in the shadows right this very moment.

My usual readership is rather small — I joke about having a mere three loyal readers, but I think I actually have about a dozen or so regulars, and maybe a few more infrequent visitors — and this fact has lent a certain intimacy to the proceedings around here. Until last night, I’ve been 98% certain that most everyone reading this blog has been a real-world friend of mine, so, for me, writing here has been like talking on the phone in a dark living room with my shoes off and my pants unbuttoned. Now it feels like company may actually be coming over and I need to pick up all the empties and vacuum the Dorito crumbs out of the sofa. In other words, I suddenly find myself just a wee bit self-conscious. I don’t quite know how to proceed, or whether I ought to adjust my subject matter or style at all to cater to this new audience of unknowns.
That’s silly, I guess. I’ve had strangers pass through these parts before and I haven’t let it affect me. But I also didn’t know they were here unless they chose to comment on something. Now I can sense people out there in the darkness, sizing me up and waiting expectantly for me to go through my stage routines. I am reminded of that old Looney Tunes cartoon in which Bugs Bunny asks Gossamer if he’s ever felt like he’s being watched and the poor monster gets all paranoid and runs away screaming.

The next couple of days could be very interesting…

(Or not. Just because two people clicked through from The Whatever doesn’t mean a thousand are going to. I’m probably running off half-cocked and worrying over nothing, as I am wont to do. We’ll see…)