From Publisher's Weekly:

Chuck Palahniuk Knocks 'Em Out Without a Punch

There are stories that make you cry. Others that leave you breathless. Some might even give you nightmares. But the short story Chuck Palahniuk is reading aloud on tour to promote his latest novel, Diary (Doubleday), is making people faint. That's right, people literally have been rendered unconscious by the mere power of words.

It started in Portland and Seattle, and happened again Monday night, when two fell at Cody's in Berkeley. "It's the only book tour with a body count," joked Palahniuk Tuesday, as the stricken fans were helped out of the room. The story is called "Guts" and it is from a collection in progress.

Had I not seen it for myself, I would have thought the fainters were faking. Here's what happened:

Before diving into the piece, Palahniuk asks the audience to raise their hands if this is their first-ever book event. About half of the 200 or so indicate they are newbies. The crowd is largely the low-rise jean, tattooed variety--a new generation of readers reared on the gore of video games and movies, and one that's hardly squeamish.

Palahniuk asks that no one record the reading, that it stay within these walls and can only exist outside by their retelling. "No one has any dibs on what goes on in this room," he says. "Last night, the Santas came out and threw whipped cream at me." (An event held by Booksmith in San Francisco drew a handful of rowdy fans dressed as Santa and demanding that Palahniuk buy them drinks. Author escort David Galia had to get a little physical to keep things in order and eventually gave them $50 to go and buy their own drinks.)

So, this story that is knocking people out is comprised of three different episodes about three 13-year-old boys and how their attempts at masturbation go horribly awry.

As with so much of Palahniuk's work, the grotesque is laced with the hilarious, and the humanity of the work tends to draw the listeners in and unarm them. "Sure, this is gross, but it is also really personal, in the moment, and intense between author and fan. Really funny," thinks the listener.

What throws people off guard even more is the delivery, coming from this very engaging man with a brilliant smile and twinkling eyes. How bad can it be? (Let's just say that I wouldn't want to take my mother to such a reading, but I'd sure love to take her out for milk and cookies with Palahniuk afterward.)

The moment of truth comes in the third story. In all of my years as a writer, I don't think I have used the word "grotesque" more appropriately. I cannot tell you too much, because to know what happens takes away from the effect (not that this is something to be
savored, necessarily). Simultaneously, two people faint. A man and a woman, showing that the grotesque does not discriminate.

The author stops reading. "When this first started happening, I thought it was a fluke," he says, as the fallen are comforted. "It has a happy ending," he adds as the two woozy listeners are helped out. Although he is funny about it, clearly Palahniuk is not mocking his fans and seems somewhat in awe of the apparent power of the written
word.

"It doesn't help to know that it gets better," he adds. "It also doesn't help to know that it gets way worse before it gets better."

Oh, he adds, these are true stories.

The spell broken, he continues. And it does get worse. And I am not exactly sure it ever gets better, but he has us laughing again in minutes. By the time he starts taking questions from the audience, the fainters have rejoined the event. He rewards questioners with prizes from his Halloween grab bag--fake tiaras, Santa hats, even handmade jewelry. The climate in the room is a little like a carnival.

"I read that people fainted at Dickens readings," Palahniuk tells PW Daily after the event. "I never believed it." Then he hands over another of his favorite door prizes, a mini bottle of Jack Daniels. And I think I will need it.

Palahniuk read in Los Angeles on Tuesday and heads out to Kansas City, Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., and Pittsburgh. Booksellers might want to have smelling salts at the ready.--Bridget Kinsella

I'd also like to thank you guys for never showing up to my readings in clown outfits, demanding I buy rounds of drinks. Well, Ray and Blynch did, but they've been doing that since I was in Monks' Night Out.

Check it. A Pixies reunion! (thanks, Scott and stee for the link).

Quick: I wish for a job, preferably a writing gig. Or a bag of money to tide me over until something sells. I wish for something to sell. I wish Cal could live forever. I wish stee makes dinner tonight. Wait. No. Priorities. I really need a job, magic blog. I sure do.

This is a much easier way to post new cool kids! Huzzah!

From Michelle:

I also wanted to let you know that I've just packed up a box for the Oakland Libraries. My trip to the post office tomorrow will surely break me, but it's for a good cause. Because you're tracking such items, I'll give you the breakdown:

"The Life and Career of Bill Clinton: The Comeback Kid" by Charles F. Allen
"A Tangled Web" by Judith Michael
"Clinton: Young Man in a Hurry" by Jim Moore
"Out of Sight" by Elmore Leonard
"The First Wives Club" by Olivia Goldsmith
"Power of a Woman" by Barbara Taylor Bradford
"Message from Nam" by Danielle Steel

Although none of these titles appears on the wish lists I perused, each of the books is hardbound with a perfect dust jacket. Even if they have 20 copies of each, maybe they can give mine away for free to someone who will actually *read* them!

On the paperback side, I sent "The Canterbury Tales" (you know, that Geoffrey Chaucer dude) and "Welcome to My Planet - Where English is Sometimes Spoken" by Shannon Olson. Olson actually autographed this copy. (Maybe someone will think that's nifty.)

(Oh, and - *cough* - I also sent seven titles by Nora Roberts and eight titles by Lavyrle Spencer, because everyone needs a little trashy novel reading once in a while. The St. Louis County Library system has a neat way to preserve trashy little paperbacks. I'm hoping Oakland will too.)

Thanks for the opportunity to share. I told my eight-year-old son about it, but he just wanted to know when I was going to clean all the stacks of books off the floor. Eh, kids.

I have a copy of Welcome to My Planet, but I haven't read it yet. And no, they won't give the copies away -- anything that the library can't use will be sold at the Friends of OPL booksales, which goes back to help fund the library. So all of your donations are both greatly needed and appreciated. Thanks, Michelle!

The magic blog makes things happen. We wish for Jon Stewart, and we get a new episode last night. I wish for Inhale on Oxygen, and it comes back -- without the annoying news ticker at the bottom! Who says petitions don't work?

Showtime's Freshman Diaries makes me so nostalgic for my first two years of college, when I lived on campus. It's also making me crave UT merchandise. Back in my day you didn't have cute hoodies or baby-t's. You had giant white t-shirts or enormous sweatshirts that made you look like a pumpkin in your burnt orange. The only people who ever looked good in UT clothes were jocks, cheerleaders and famous people, the ones who filled out those t-shirts in the right places and somehow always scored the better outfits. The rest of us looked like sleepy slobs, walking around in pajamas.