Top Ten Tuesday is hosted each week by the lovely folks over at The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is:

Top Ten Bookish People You Want To Meet (Authors, Bloggers, etc.)

This list was harder to put together than I thought. Some came very easy, but others were much harder to come up with. But here we go:

1. J.K. Rowling – I adore her. She has been my inspiration for wanting to be a writer ever since I first read the Harry Potter books. I love her story, how she started out as a single mom who had basically nothing but a great idea to write about.

2. John Green – Another person I find inspirational. Not only is he the amazing author of such best-selling and award winning books like Looking For Alaska and The Fault in Our Stars, but together with his brother Hank, created one of the most successful YouTube channels, the Vlogbrothers, who have gone on to create a large community of nerds who try to make the world a better place.

3. Mark Oshiro – This guy is a riot. I’ve mentioned his website before – Mark Reads. He chooses books, recommended by his community of readers, and reviews them one chapter at a time. His entries on Harry Potter are hilarious and heartwarming, and his take on Twilight is laugh-out-loud funny. He also does this with television shows. He would just be a blast to hang out with.

4. Sheri Lynch – Half of the popular syndicated radio program, Bob & Sheri, Sheri Lynch is also a novelist. She has two published books, Hello, My Name is Mommy and Be Happy or I’ll Scream. Her books are full of stories about her life and all the obstacles she’s had to overcome. Her advice is always given with humor and humanity.

5. Alfie Boe – I’m cheating on this one, so sue me. Alfie Boe is not really known for his writing, but since he just published his autobiography, I say he counts! He is a classical tenor and has one of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard. Just go on YouTube and search for the Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Concert. He plays Jean Valjean and is absolutely amazing.

6 & 7. Maureen Johnson & Libba Bray – I discovered these two YA authors via the Vlogbrothers. The are both fantastic authors, but after following their blogs and their Tweets, they are both also incredibly fun. It would be fun to hang out in New York with these two.

8. Melissa Anelli – I actually have met Melissa Anelli, although only briefly. She is the webmistress of The Leaky Cauldron and author of Harry, A History, a book about the Harry Potter fandom. I met her at a live podcast when they went on tour and got her to sign the book for me. She was incredibly busy, but very nice. She’s also been on the front lines of all the crazy Harry Potter hype, so I’m sure she has more stories to tell.

9. Dianne Sylvan – If I have to choose a vampire series to read, my first pick would be the Shadow World series by Dianne Sylvan. They are excellent books. The fourth in the series is coming out sometime next year and I cannot wait. Dianne also wrote a couple of non-fiction books, including The Body Sacred, which is about body image and learning to accept your body’s spiritual nature and a fabulous book for someone who has always had body image issues. Plus, her blog is a lot of fun and we have the same sense of humor.

10. Chris Baty – Chris is the author of the book No Plot? No Problem, but he’s even more than that. He is the founder of National Novel Writing Month, or NaNoWriMo. I love NaNo so much! I’ve participated many years, and although I’ve never met the goal of 50,000 words in 30 days, I’ve always enjoyed the experience and excitement. It’s funny how a group of 21 people getting together to write as much as they can for a month has grown into a world wide writing celebration every November.

So that’s my ten people. Who would you like to meet someday?