During his lifetime, science fiction writer Theodore Sturgeon (1918-1985) was known as a "writer's writer," revered by other writers and also very respected by the more literate science fiction fans. He is probably best known for his book More Than Human. Older science fiction fans still read. He was a renowned short story writer, and I read Sturgeon's Selected Stories in 2019. Mark Brown read Sturgeon's Venux Plus X a few months ago.
D. Scott Apel's Famedroppings, a memoir of his encounters with famous people, he describes how he arranged for RAW to meet with Sturgeon. The two writers were fans of each other -- RAW once said, "My favorite science fiction writers have long been Stapledon, Heinlein, Clarke and Sturgeon" -- and the pair had a nice meetup.
As for Famedroppings, it don't see it as a major Apel work, but the Kindle is only about $2, and you can get your money's worth skimming it and reading the entries about the people you are interested in. Apel's reflections at the back of the book also are worth a read. There is a really good section on Philip K. Dick, more substantial than many of the entries. There's also a biographical essay on RAW, although it's a shorter version of what Scott wrote in Beyond Chaos and Beyond. The more than 100 entries are divided into actors, directors, Star Trek figures, businessmen, politicians, public intellectuals, musicians, disk jockeys, astronauts, scientists, "specialty acts," vehicles, women "best known for displaying the proof they are women", writers and "I Am Known by Them." "L'Envoi: Why? Three Cautionary Tales" is the piece at the back of the book I recommend reading, even if you only skim the rest of the book for the good parts.
Incidentally, the book may make you think about the nature of fame. Apel writes that he almost left out Sturgeon for not being famous enough, although for me, a science fiction fan, Sturgeon is much more "famous" that the actors he mentions I never heard of.
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