Notarize My Book?

By Sue Ann Jaffarian

By day I work as a paralegal in a law firm in Los Angeles. Mornings, evenings, and weekends I don my author cape and crank out mysteries. But lately, my two careers have started overlapping. Perhaps this post should really be called “When Worlds Collide.”

It’s wonderful in a weird sort of way. Like the time I called the California Secretary of State’s corporate division and identified myself as Sue Ann Jaffarian, paralegal with XYZ. The woman on the other end paused, then said: “Did you know there’s a writer by that name? Are you related?” When I told her I was both the paralegal and the writer, she told me how a friend had turned her on to my books.

Then there was the time our attorney service, the company that files our corporate documents all over the nation, called me and said when one of them ordered a book from Amazon, one of my books popped up as a recommended purchase. “Is that you?” they asked.

Or the day I called another paralegal at another firm to discuss some documents. I identified myself as I usually do and was met with the usual pause, followed by a skeptical, “You are not.” Yeah, I am. My identity confirmed, the next question was, “Why are you still working?” Um, because I’m addicted to food and shelter?

Please know that situations like these don’t happen every day, but they do happen often enough to warm the cockles of my heart and inform me that people are, indeed, reading my books. At least people involved with the California paralegal community.

I am also a California commissioned Notary, and I must have mentioned that fact somewhere in my travels because recently I received an e-mail asking me to perform a notarization. Since I don’t offer notary services to the general public, the request stymied me. The woman turned out to be an avid reader of my books and really did need a notary. Remembering I was one, she thought it would be cool to have me perform the service and have my signature* on her document, complete with my official seal. I politely declined, informing her that I only provided notary services in the course of my job with the law firm. She was disappointed, but understood.

To me, it was way cooler to be asked, than for her to have me perform the service. Trust me – WAY COOLER. It's something I'll never forget.

When have your worlds collided? Is it a good or a not so good thing?

*By the way, my signature is not the same as my autograph. Just thought I'd clear that up.

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