Intern Adventures: A Trip to Amanda Palmer's Evelyn Evelyn NYC Show

A very warm welcome to Intern Michael, who's joining the Overlook publicity team for the summer! Watch for periodic updates from Michael as he discusses what he's been doing as an intern (more than the glamorous world of mailing books and researching media outlets, although that could make for a thrilling blog post...). Below, his trip to hand out postcards about our new book, On the Many Deaths of Amanda Palmer, at her show in New York City in early June.

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BY MICHAEL GOLDSMITH

Two weeks ago, Overlook visited the theatre--the Lucille Lortel Theatre, that is. During that time, the Lucille (located at 121 Christopher St.) served as a makeshift home for indie-darling and Boston native Amanda Palmer as she marathon-performed her way through five straight nights as one half of the conjoined twin sister duo Evelyn Evelyn. Capping off my first full week as a summer intern at Overlook, I had the opportunity to meet and chat with some of Amanda's fans as I provided them with information on our upcoming release On The Many Deaths of Amanda Palmer during her opening nights.

For those out of the loop, Amanda Palmer came up in the early aughties as one half of now defunct cabaret punk duo The Dresden Dolls, and has since garnered a cult-like following amongst fans and detractors alike. In 2008 she dropped a solo album titled Who Killed Amanda Palmer? (Twin Peaks fans take note) and this upcoming July continues to refine her "posthumous" persona with the release of Overlook's On The Many Deaths of Amanda Palmer, a collection of essays, poems, and illustrations on the "palmeresque," collected and edited by Rohan Kriwaczek.

For someone like me who possesses only a modest familiarity with Amanda's prodigious artistic career, spending a few hours rubbing elbows with her most devout fans was an educational experience. An outspoken collective who for the most part responded positively to my solicitations, together we braved Wednesday night's rain storm underneath the Lucille's marquee, waiting patiently for doors to open. Like her own sundry career, Palmer's fanbase reflects a wide array of styles and tastes. In attendance were a diverse group including parents with young children, Brooklyn punks, Wall Street stock brokers, and at least one pair of fully costumed mimes. Their differences aside however, they all shared in common an obsessive fascination with all the details of Palmer's life (including her recent engagement to Neil Gaiman, a hot topic for discussion) and most had already heard about the book before I could even pitch it to them, making my job that much easier.

I returned to Overlook with a newfound appreciation for the loyalty of Amanda's fans and with the hopes that my next out of office assignment falls on a sunnier day. On the Many Deaths of Amanda Palmer will be released on July 8th and will be available in bookstores and online. In the meantime, visit http://amandapalmertrust.com to pay your respects and enter a contest to win a free galley copy.