Just a Geek

Summary

 * From the back cover
 * The story begins in the summer of 2000. When asked by a waitress, "Didn't you used to be an actor?" Wil Wheaton realized that he'd become what he'd always feared: "I was a has-been. I 'used to be an actor' when I was a kid!" In the spotlight for nearly his entire childhood, Wil starred in the movie Stand By Me at the tender age of 12 and grew up on television as Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation. But after Star Trek, the roles he expected didn't materialize, leaving Wil to grapple with the big questions: could he avoid the pitfalls that typically befall a child star, create a real life, and define success on his own terms?


 * Just a Geek is the story of how Wil faced down his constant companion, the ghost he calls "Prove To Everyone That Quitting Star Trek Wasn't A Mistake." The key to banishing that ghost turned out to be the weblog, or online journal, that he launched in 2001 at wilwheaton.net. On his weblog, Wil shared – with stunning and fearless honesty – his real life: the struggles of being a working-class actor, the joys of being married and raising two stepchildren, and the experience of growing up on the Starship Enterprise. The kid actor was now a writer too, with an audience of nearly a million readers a month.


 * Not the usual celebrity biography, Just a Geek fleshes out the stories that started on the weblog. Wil takes you with him to auditions, to Star Trek conventions, to his living room, and into the deepest reaches of his soul. Along, the way, he realizes that he's happy to be... Just a Geek!


 * Both funny and poignant, the book chronicles Wil's journey to rediscover himself and come to terms with what it means to be famous, or, ironically, famous for having previously been famous. Engaging, witty, and pleasantly self-deprecating, Just a Geek will surprise you and make you laugh.

Contents

 * Foreword
 * A Note to the Reader
 * Introduction
 * This Monkey's Gone to Heaven

Act I

 * Where's My Burrito?
 * Wil Wheaton Dot Net
 * SpongeBobVega$ Pants
 * Breaking News
 * The World Has Turned

Act II

 * Stop Me If You Think That You've Heard This One Before
 * Last Place You Look
 * Balance

Act III

 * A Sort of Homecoming
 * April's Fool
 * Alone Again, Or...
 * "You're Gonne Be a Great Writer Someday, Gordie"

Act IV

 * The Wesley Dialogues
 * All Good Things

Epilogue

 * Hooters 2: Electric Boogaloo
 * Appendix A. The WWDN FAQ
 * Appendix B. Selected Interviews
 * Acknowledgments
 * Further Reading