P is for Pratchett

Welcome to letter P in my A-Z series "26 Things that Made Me a Writer".

Terry Pratchett is far and away my favourite author. The first book of his I read was Truckers in 1989, at the age of eight. Since that time I have eagerly devoured every new novel that's been released, Discworld or not. 23 years is a long time to continuously read one author, so how did this obsession develop and how has he influenced me as a writer?

I think the main thing with Terry's books is they have so many layers. His popularity is staggering, with 70 million books sold worldwide, and according to Wikipedia he is "the second most-read writer in the UK, and seventh most-read non-US author in the US". Yet many still dismiss his books as "just" fantasy. They are so much more than that. Fantasy isn't even my main genre and I am no authority on the subject. His books are led by believable characters with traits that we recognise in ourselves and others, although they may be wizards, witches, trolls, dwarfs, zombies, vampires, werewolves, or even an orangutan. Lots of these characters have been developed over the course of many novels (Death being an excellent example), yet at the same time any book can picked up and enjoyed as a standalone read.

So there's the fact that his books are story-based with characters who have human foibles like greed, cowardice, idealism and bigotry. What may be less well known is that his stories address issues such as racism, warfare and capitalism, by using his world to mirror our own. Except on the Discworld it's refracted in issues such as "speciesism" with minority groups such as vampires trying to fit in and be accepted in society.

Another key thing in the books is Terry's razor-sharp wit; his comic timing, in dialogue particularly, is genius. And there are constant references to movies, books, myths and customs that exist on our world. I don't think anyone could catch them all, but if one passes you by then it won't make any difference to the story.

In terms of influence, I don't think what I write is similar to his stuff, but I'm definitely inspired by his ability as a storyteller and the richness of his work, and I would love to be able to produce something that was on that level.

I could go on and on, but instead I'll just recommend, if you've never read any of his books, to go to his Goodreads page and give one a go. You could choose based on the title or cover, if you like; they're all good. Just one, for me? Pretty please? :)


Do you like Terry Pratchett? Any other "P" authors to recommend?