Terry interviews

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Tonyblack

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Jul 25, 2008
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#1
I'm sure this may have been done before, but I can't find it, so I thought I'd start a new thread.

This one is from Pebble Mill on the BBC back in the CD Rom days of 1995.

 

RathDarkblade

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Mar 24, 2015
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#3
Some random thoughts...

=============
Interview from 1995.
Wow, how young Terry looked back then, even with the greying beard.

I remember the first Discworld game. :) I still have it, and bring it out from time to time. It's a nice reminder of the way things were. :)

Was Terry worried that his books would be replaced by CDs? Nope. And now CD-ROMs have bitten the dust, and DVDs too.

*LOL* A disservice to molluscs. Love it. :) I still remember the old, old anecdote about someone who wanted to buy "Mort" but told Terry "We have to lose the whole Death angle, it's a downer." :rolleyes:
=============
Interview from 13/6/2008.
Just think - last year was the 35th anniversary of Discworld. This year would be the 36th.

This interview is longer, with fewer jokes and more philosophy, but also very interesting.

"Cutting the arse off a dead mole" (roughly 10:00)... love it.

"There are so many 'cures' for Alzheimer's that I'm surprised it still exists." *LOL*
 

RathDarkblade

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Mar 24, 2015
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#7
Um, I liked the first part - but in the second part, about 2:15, the sound fails and doesn't start again until about 3:00. :(

Although envy isn't an attractive emotion, I do envy Terry's early life in journalism, and wish I had the chance to try it when I was younger. Then again, it probably wasn't as attractive as it seems. I just built a career in administration and accounting, which - I suppose - makes me a cross between A. E. Pessimal and an Auditor. But I strive hard to become more like A. E. and less like an Auditor.

I can't hear or understand some parts of these (mainly due to the echo). I wish these had closed-captions.

What is Terry saying in Part 2 (roughly 10:12) - is he saying that he had a "tortoise called Pheidippides"? I'm curious now, because I also learned the Greek myths when I was young.

Part 3 - love Terry's description of theologians: "easy work, in the dry, with no heavy lifting."

What was the second last question (the one that Terry answered with a big "No!"? I can't hear it, alas. :(

Hmm. Terry's approach to writing (at least initially) reminds me of pantsing, as opposed to advance planning - outlines, beat sheets and so on. When I started writing, I was pantsing too (although, of course, I don't compare my writing to Terry's). ;) I tried my hand at various genres and so on, but a couple of years ago I found out about writing formal outlines and beat sheets, and now I wonder how I ever did without them. In Terry's books from the early 90s onwards, I think I can recognise elements of beat sheets and formal outlines.

Pantsing can only take you so far before you realise "Oh drat-a-doddle-door, I forgot to close that subplot or clear up what happened to that character." Having said that, even formal outlines aren't set in stone.

Plans change because, while you write, ideas happen to you all the time. Ideas beget other ideas, and it may be necessary to change a character or a part of the original plan. Changing that part may mean changing another part, and so on. It's like a working out a jigsaw puzzle before you even know what the picture is supposed to show, and then working it out again. ;)

Speaking of Waterstones and Terry - I've just seen this:


I was impressed, even if it doesn't follow the plot exactly (i.e.
Dodger doesn't just walk down the street when he notices the two blokes beating up Simplicity
). OTOH, some parts are incredibly well-done - they even got the scream for the coach. So, what I'm trying to say is ... I'd love to see more. Perhaps it might be possible to film the book? :) I'd pay to see that. It's one of my favourites of Terry's later books.

Alas, I only got to see Terry once, and that was at a book signing when Night Watch came out. I was a bundle of nerves because I didn't know what the protocol was supposed to be, and thought I was supposed to ask for an inscription whereas, in fact ... you all know the story. ;)

Anyway, I chose different reactions to all three videos because I can't choose "thumbs up", "love" and "laugh" for each one. :) Vale Terry Pratchett ... :cry:
 

Tonyblack

Super Moderator
City Watch
Jul 25, 2008
30,841
3,650
Cardiff, Wales
#8
Yes, the sound goes down a bit in the second video. Pretty sure it was a technical hitch - but I was able to understand just about all of the interview. What Terry was saying about his tortoise was - basically: buses show their destination at the front and if Pheidippides had been a bus, he'd have had "Athens" on his front rather than Marathon and therefore, maybe the race should have been named Athens rather than Marathon.

Rath the videos have Closed Captions if you select the icon on the screen.

The second to last question was: "Have you got any plans for a Discworld novel set around the 2012 Olympic Games?" To which Terry replied: "NO!"
 

RathDarkblade

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Mar 24, 2015
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Melbourne, Victoria
#12
"I like the cut of your jib, young man." You can't say that nowadays without going to prison. *LOL*

"Our driveway was full of journalists. You couldn't get them away with shovels." Love the comparison to snow. ;)

It's very sad, listening to how PCA was affecting Terry's speech patterns. He starts and stops, starts and stops again. Is that PCA, or "just" age?

The interviewer misses the point when talking about "Choosing to Die", when he says that he thought there was more juice in the tank. That shouldn't be up to him to dictate to them, or up to the church or the government or anyone else. It should be their decision and no-one else's. :(

I helped my family by first being a full-time and then a part-time carer for my grandmother, when she was slowly dying of dementia. I helped her shop and took her to medical appointments and things, played cards with her to help her, sat by her bedside as she was slowly succumbing, and every moment I was loving it and hating it - the former because it was such a precious time, and the latter because I couldn't do anything more to help. :cry:

She passed away in late 2011, and I still miss her sometimes. :cry:
 

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