There is a professor at my university who is a fairly well-known author in our state. She has recently published a book that I found to be absolutely beautiful. Her writing is amazing and it really moved me on a personal level. Would it be okay for me to approach her, introduce myself, and ask if there was a time we could discuss her book, how she got into the publishing world, etc.? As an aspiring author myself, I would love to get the advice of a writer I admire so much. The thing is, I don’t want to do it in a way that makes me look like a stalker or a kiss up. Is it normal for students to approach professors out of the blue to talk about their work?
I am not sure if it is normal, but I think that most professors would be very happy to talk to an interested student! In my experience, professors love to talk about their work/research! You could try emailing her. Make sure you keep your email short and sweet - professors don’t have a lot of time to read long emails.
You should absolutely approach the professor to ask her questions about her book. You could send her an email introducing yourself and then ask if it would be ok to stop by during her office hours to ask a couple of questions about her book which you like so much.
Then go to her office hours (after she replies back with, “Yes, of course come to my office hours!”) but if there are other students waiting to talk to her, too, don’t monopolize the whole hour. And you can always go back the following week during THOSE office hours to continue with any other questions you have for her.
I agree that you should reach out to this professor, politely and with respect, of course. Most professors welcome interaction with students: you’d be surprised by how often students are too intimidated to approach these better-known figures. Odds are she will be pleased to talk to you since you were so moved by her book and are a fellow writer. Don’t miss out on such an opportunity: meeting/learning from top faculty is one of the best reasons to go to college.
Definitely yes, reach out to this professor.
For the very few professors that I know, having students reach out to them is an important part of their job and probably the part that they like the most.