Who is this Man called Bacon?

By Robert Rankin

I have to have known James Bacon for more than ten years now, he is THE MAN behind Sproutlore and I'm happy to say a very good friend of mine. It is a fact well known to those who know it well, that most authors are insecure drunkards with all kinds of phobias and personal problems and naturally I number myself amongst that happy throng, which is one reason why having a friend like James Bacon has been worth much more than its weight in gold. It's down to trust, you see, being able to talk to someone and know that what you say will stop with them. The world of SF and especially that of SF fandom can be a dangerous place at times, people have petty grievances, people have big grievances, and axes to grind and jealousies and God knows what else besides. Which is why folk such as James Bacon are rather special people. James is a fellow of consummate enthusiasm, he says "we can do that" and he means it. Exactly how he has persuaded the sun to shine upon every single Sproutlore event is beyond me, but it is for his enthusiasm, his drive, his energy and above all the fact that I can trust this man, that having his friendship means a very great deal to me. To the cynical this might sound like a lot of old sentimental twaddle, well tough for the cynical. I value trust and I value friendship. Jason Joiner, who runs vast events in Milton Keynes has told me that he could not run them without the help of James, "how many other people do you know that you could trust to carry around a bin liner containing more than ten thousand pounds in cash and not help themselves to some?" was what he had to say.

For ten years James has been the driving force behind Sproutlore, producing the quarterly magazine, coming up with events and making these things happen. Naturally he does not do all this on his own, there are others, James Shields, Michael Carroll, Stef, Elvis, Lee, others, but they would all agree that without James, Sproutlore would not be what it is. Probably the best fan club in the world! Fan clubs have a tendency to self-destruct, internal politics, rivalries, jealousies, rip them apart, James does not have too much time for any of that kind of nonsense, he gets on with doing what he does and the members appreciate what he does because he never lets them down. When he says that the next event will be the best yet, it always is. I'm not saying that this man is some kind of saint, he does have a certain love of the ladies, so I wouldn't recommend that you trust him with your girlfriend. But I love the man and I'm proud to call him my friend.

So there you go!

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