'I never sign torn notebook pages — but an arm is another story,' author said

A children's book author in their 60s sparked outrage after signing students' bare arms and telling them buying a book is 'basic courtesy'

This image is unrelated to the article. [Image generated by AI]
This image is unrelated to the article. [Image generated by AI]

A children's book author is facing a wave of online criticism after refusing to sign a piece of paper offered by an elementary school student and instead autographing the child's bare arm.

The author compounded the backlash by telling students to pass along a message to their parents: that coming to a school author visit without a book to sign is a breach of etiquette.

The controversy spread across social media and online communities Friday, centering on a post the author — identified only as A, a writer in their 60s — had shared on their own social media account.

"I may sound harsh, but I never sign torn notebook pages for kids who ask," A wrote, sharing a photo. "An arm, though — that's a different story."

The photo showed two students with their sleeves rolled up, A's signature written in large letters across their forearms.

A added that during the school visit, the author had told students that "the least you can do when meeting an author at school is have the mindset to buy a book and get it signed — that's basic courtesy. I told them to make sure to pass that along to their parents."

One user captured and shared A's post, writing: "You may think you sound a little harsh — but I will never buy your books."

Another user said the author had gone too far, noting that school author visits are not always something children choose to attend. "What's so special about an author's signature?" the user wrote, adding that parents may not even know a visit is taking place. "If kids had to bring a purchased book, they might never have signed up in the first place. It leaves a bitter taste."

Other users piled on with comments such as "Is this really a children's book author?", "Is this the mindset behind books written for children?" and "The genuine wish of kids who just wanted a signature on a torn notebook page seems like an afterthought."

After the backlash mounted, A deleted the post and deactivated the social media account.


jshan@heraldcorp.com