(View entire post here)

via Bookwitch:

If you have a fairly normal name, you can bid money to become a character in a novel by Meg Rosoff. The reason for the normality request is that Meg somehow doesn't fancy having a character with an embarrassingly abnormal name running through a whole book. Which is understandable.

Meg has donated the name of one of her characters in an upcoming book to a charity auction for Women's Aid, which is the key national charity working to end domestic violence against women and children.

Other authors who have done this in the past are Kate Thompson, John Grisham and Ian Rankin. When Meg went digging further she found this page which actually lists an awful lot of similar goings-on. So, it's not new, but it's fun. I remember thinking when I read Kate Thompson's The New Policeman that I wanted to be in a book. But I want to be a nice, lovely character.

There isn't a lot of time for you to think about this, as the bidding needs to be in on Thursday. That's this Thursday. The 10th September. If you have lots of money to spare in order to subject yourself to whatever Meg can come up with, you should email your bid to t.downes@womensaid.org.uk

Do it today. Now.

A side benefit is that you will get a mention here, when the time for review comes. How great is that?

Meg Rosoff was born in Boston, USA. She has worked in publishing, public relations and most recently advertising, but thinks the best job in the world would be head gardener for Regents Park. Meg lives in Highbury, North London. She is the author of Just in Case, What I Was and How I Live Now. 

Discover her books here.