So, yeah, I talked with Lawrence Block!

 I'm not a hero worshiper or deluded by somebody's celebrity status. I don't look to them for advice on my personal life, not even which shoes to wear. Mostly, I do what I want, think with my own brain, wear what I want. Thus I have nobody else to blame for me except me.

I do have people whose skills I admire. Mostly it's people who do things I can't do. Watching a guy run a sub 4-minute mile or with mad skills on the guitar. Great speakers, super intelligent people, craftsmen, etc. I can build a rabbit hutch; but I cannot build a roll-top desk with tiny drawers, intricate etchings and hidden compartments, like the one I have built by my great-uncle Oscar.

You know I am a big fan of Prince. He was a genius beyond just the range of his voice, the ability to expertly play several instruments, but also in his marketing ability and foresight.

In the literary world, my Princes are Mark Twain, Dean Koontz and Lawrence Block. I can write a book; but I can't write a book with the imagination, plot twists and skills of those authors. I'm in awe of them.

So it was with great glee and surprise last night when I had a brief Twitter exchange with Lawrence Block. My wife compared it to Sheldon Cooper playing Words With Friends with his hero Stephen Hawking.

It was a book nerd chatting with his favorite book nerd.

As I've blogged about before, I've noticed that Lawrence (I call him that now) dropped obscure references to South Dakota. Last night while reading one of his "Burglar" books there was another reference to Sioux Falls. On a whim, I decided to check to see if he was on Twitter. I receive his email newsletter, so knew the 82-year-old was at least familiar with some aspect of social media. And, lo and behold, he is, so I followed him and sent him a message, never expecting a response.

I wrote to the longtime New York City resident: "Sir, I've read about 45 of your books and have noticed in several you make passing reference to South Dakota or places in SD. Seldom notice other state's reference. Did you visit or have some other connection? Full disclosure, I'm a 5th-generation SD."

Five minutes later, he responded: "Been there a few times. Ran a 10k in Clark in 1981, a marathon near Rapid City in 2005 or thereabouts. Been to the Corn Palace twice, ditto Rushmore and Crazy Horse. The Badlands. Brookings, twice, and I'd like to get back for another look at the Harvey Dunns. So yeah, I like SD."

That conjured so many questions in my head. First of which: Why the heck were you in Clark? I don't think I've even been there. But I didn't want to be an annoying Sheldon with twenty questions. So I settled for one response.

I wrote back: "Was a kick to see us mentioned. You and Donald Westlake got me through a lot of cold winters. I live about 20 miles from Mt. Rushmore. Thanks for all the great books. Also, I ran the Deadwood Marathon a few years before you. Guess that's the one you ran."

He replied: "Yes! Couldn't remember the name. Point to point, and I think a net downhill."

I'm still feeling a little giddy about corresponding with him in ways most people wouldn't understand. I also feel a little guilty feeling so good about it. Maybe I am a hero worshiper now - of one guy anyway - who took five minutes of his remarkable life to make me feel really good.