Entry tags:

fandom: discworld, person: jkr, person: terry pratchett

So, I Can Take That as a "Yes," Mr. Pratchett?
So, Terry Pratchett was (rather unflatteringly) interviewed in the Times. [ETA April 20, 2007: The previous link is now dead. For all those interested in your wank history, here's a working one, supplied here by a helpful anonymouse: Sod the Booker, this is popular: Giles Hattersley meets Terry Pratchett.]

Here is a loose and free paraphrase of a portion of the interview:

Interviewer: "So, when did J. K. Rowling ~~stop beating your wife~~ start ripping off your work?"

Terry Pratchett: "You're crazy if you think I'm actually going to answer that."

Interviewer: "I'll take that as a yes." (<--Actual real quote)

Potter fans: "OMG Pratchett dissed JKR! He's so jealous!"

Me: *Headdesk*

The Leaky Cauldron report on the article, with links to other Pratchett interviews/letters, is here. [ETA May 14, 2009: Although the original post remains, the old comments page, with all its glorious wank, appears to be gone. If anyone knows a workaround URL to get to old Leaky comments, let me know.]

Oh, yeah. The wank report from the last time this happened is here.

ETA: Mightily Oates posts this response from Pratchett:

A fan asked him about the latest nonsense on alt.fan.pratchett today, and asked how he reacted. Responding he said:

…with annoyance. And that was one of the more subtle leading questions I've had in the past month or so.

Ye gods, we've all been though this before. In a genre, it all comes out of the same big pot, yadda, yadda, and that's true. As a writer you can dip it and pull out 'Magic school' or 'dragon riders' or whatever, and you understand that someone else might do exactly the same thing and that's okay provided everyone understands that they should put their own skin on the idea. I have never accused JKR of plagiarism, although I get the impression that some of her fans think I do so all the time.

Why clam up in that interview? Because I'd said my piece. It's the only way to be sure. A wrong phrasing, the wrong tone of voice and there's trouble. Silence, of course, can be misinterpreted, but at least it's silence.

I've been getting stuff like this:

Did you get the name Hogswatch from Hogwarts?
No, I made it up in The Colour of Magic, out of Hogmanay and Watch night.
When was that?
1983.
Ah, so you're saying she stole it from you?
Silence or changing the subject are the only safe ways out, and not that safe, at that.

--
Terry Pratchett

(paragraphing supplied by me)

ETA2: Because it's impossible to discuss Pratchett without someone wanting to try his books, we now have a thread of Pratchett recs. In fact, have two.

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	(Anonymous) 2006-12-18 04:30 am UTC (link)
	I have never read Pratchett's books. I think I will go do so now, because that poor man needs some more love if these are the kind of batshit interviewers he must put up with. (Reply to this)(Thread)

	threegoldfish 2006-12-18 04:32 am UTC (link)
	Start with Guards, Guards!. Gives you the beginning of the Watch and I think it's a good intro to the world. Then go back and do the Death stuff and the Witches. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	tangentialone 2006-12-18 04:36 am UTC (link)
	What, no Rincewind? is sad (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	threegoldfish 2006-12-18 04:41 am UTC (link)
	I can't stand the Rincewind stuff. He annoys the crap outta me. I'm not a big fan of the wizard-centric stuff either, although the later wizards like Stibbons don't annoy me so much. And, I less than three the Librarian oodles. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	freezer 2006-12-18 05:43 am UTC (link)
	Even if you can't stand Rincewind himself (and I really don't think you're supposed to), the awesomeness of Archchancellor Ridcully and ~~Hiro~~ Twoflowers more than makes up for it! (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	nekoneko 2006-12-18 06:12 am UTC (link)
	Luggage owns all. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	(Anonymous) 2006-12-18 09:03 am UTC (link)
	Seconded. :D -Mouse with a computer nicknamed "The Luggage" (Reply to this)(Parent)

	drakyndra 2006-12-18 07:04 am UTC (link)
	Aw, I like Rincewind. He's so pathetic, I feel sorry for him. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	rosehiptea 2006-12-18 08:23 am UTC (link)
	I love the poor guy. I also wanted to him to hook up with Cohen the Barbarian's relative what's-her-name. (Yeah, I know many reasons against that, but I still did.) But I'm pretty equal-opportunity when it comes to Discworld characters. I didn't adore every single book, but all the characters are good with me. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	wal_lace 2006-12-18 09:29 pm UTC (link)
	Conina the Hairdresser? I'm fairly certain she stayed with Nijel the Destroyer, son of Harebut the Provisions Merchant. (Yes, I keep all this stuff in my head. It is at least ten years since I last read Sourcery. Fear me) (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	rosehiptea 2006-12-18 09:44 pm UTC (link)
	fears Well, I'm glad it all worked for her at least XD But Rincewind needs more love, all the same. (Reply to this)(Parent)

m_butterfly
2006-12-18 12:10 pm UTC (link)

*wanders by by with her "First Rule of Discworld: your favorite series is someone else's least favorite" sign*

I've always dreaded making Terry Pratchett recs to people because of that. I have to spent a while trying to figure out what set of characters and stories they'd personally click with, and it's hard to convince people if I guess wrong that no, it's not necessarily that you don't like the author.

(Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dragonfangirl 2006-12-18 12:42 pm UTC (link)
	Agreement. The first one I read was Reaper Man, and I enjoyed it so little that it was YEARS before I picked up Guards Guards! and fell in love. (Reply to this)(Parent)

	squeakytoy 2006-12-18 01:00 pm UTC (link)
	Oh, yay. Someone else who is annoyed by Rincewind! I don't mind him because he usually comes with the wizards, who are hilarious; but he just doesn't appeal... (Reply to this)(Parent)

	nefret 2007-01-01 03:41 pm UTC (link)
	What, no love for the Lost Continent? I got just enough of the Oz jokes to find that book funny. I'd agree about the rest of the Rincewind books- except, of course, the Luggage! (Reply to this)(Parent)

	(Anonymous) 2006-12-18 07:59 am UTC (link)
	puts it on Xmas list Awesome. Thank you so much! It's seems like a hell of a thing to figure out where to START with his works. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	semiotics 2006-12-18 07:18 pm UTC (link)
	The library's your best bet until you find a series that you enjoy. That's what I did for a while, and then ended up buying nearly the whole Discworld Collection anyway. (Except for Rincewind. Meh.) (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	catslash 2006-12-20 11:44 am UTC (link)
	Definitely. That's how I did it. The library will give you a totally random sampling. My library's selection caused me to read Jingo right after Hogfather. It was my first Watch book, and I kept waiting for Carrot to turn out to be another Teatime. It took most of the book to realize that, no, that was really how he was. (Reply to this)(Parent)

Vimes ROCKS! (and carrot, and angua, and colon and nobby and detrititus and cuddy and cheery and...

nefret
2007-01-01 03:53 pm UTC (link)

Eh, actually, I'd disagree about G!G!

Try the witches if you like Shakespeare or fairytales, Hogfather if you're an elf or Grinch, Lost Continent if wizards turn you on, and, of course, Jingo if you're a Scotland Yard fan. (GG is a fantastic book, but I hated the characters the first time I read it- they seem so flat!)

And of course, read Good Omens if you're not super religious (but especially if you're a recovering Catholic School student- really, it's freaking hysterical).

(Reply to this)(Parent)

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