Terry Pratchett Interview

"For Pratchett, an atheist and a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association, there is no fate that cannot be overcome by poking fun at it."

A nice interview with one of my literary heroes, Terry Pratchett, can be found on the Guardian Online.

I do not have Sky so I won't be seeing the new adaptation of the Colour of Magic on Sunday night, but if anyone does watch it please let me know what it's like. I didn't really enjoy the adaptation of Hogfather that was on a couple of years ago, and I'm a bit worried about this one too. Also, much as I love David Jason, he just isn't Rincewind...

A sad day for writers

The tragic news that the talented Anthony Minghella died today, aged only 54, has been followed by the news that the Science Fiction great, Arthur C. Clarke, has also passed away.

Horrible.

Harry Hill's TV Burp - Cataracts?!

I love Harry Hill's TV Burp so much, and this Cataracts (plus his ear Cataracts) sketch make me weep with laughter.

I Like - books!

Of course I do. I love books, and I'm rarely fussy about the book's topic.

I'll read any genre - I don't even think I have a favourite genre, in fact. Maybe Fantasy. Or Science Fiction. Or Historical Fiction. Hmm. Nope, no clear winner.

I'll read almost any author once - the only one I've deliberately avoided thus far has been Jeffrey Archer. One day I may be bored enough to read one of his books - if memory serves one of his novels was on the BBC Big Read Top 100. My favourite authors include: Terry Pratchett (I've been reading Pratchett since I was 8), Jane Austen, Bernard Cornwell, Phillip Pullman, Margaret Atwood, John Wyndham, Ursula Le Guin. Could name a hundred more, but then there would hardly be favourites.

I read, perhaps, 7 books a month. Depending on the books I might read more. If I'm reading a series of books then I can go through 4 books a week, if not more. I enjoy the Harry Potter books because they're always fun, always keep me hooked, and because they're easy to read I can go through most of them in a week. Similarly some books that are like old friends get read quickly - the Discworld books , Bernard Cornwell books - compelling narratives, distinctive writing styles and familiar stories. I think my record was set in High school between 4th and 5th year (16ish), where we were encourage to keep a record of all books we read. It was the first time I'd ever done this, and I managed to read a ridiculous 26 books in 6 weeks. I was going out, having fun, went on holiday, so no idea how I managed this. I was given the strangest looks by the rest of the class upon our return to school in August... However, I read so much when I was ill a few years ago that my right eye lens set permanently upon the focal length of a book, so I try to read less to stop that from happening in my near perfect left eye.

I enjoy judging books by their cover - front and back! If I didn't, I would only read books recommended to me by friends, and people don't recommend enough new books to me for that to be much fun! This no doubt makes me a shameless book hussy, but I don't care. If you don't take a few leaps then life would be dull. Anyway, as the back cover includes a synopsis and brief reviews it's not like making a wild choice - you know a bit about what you're getting. Judging books by their cover generally pays off for me, but this is probably due to me eating any words with gusto.

I recently discovered the joys of the wonderful Neil Gaiman, having only read Good Omens until recently. I bought myself a copy of Stardust when the film came out, and have since been ploughing through his novels. Perhaps these will lead me to dip my toe into the world of the graphic novel... But I'm not sure. My brother is desperate for me to read graphic novels, but have a bad habit of reading all the words on the page and then going back for the pictures without putting the two together, so it's not something I enjoy.

***

Some of my favourite books are:

• The Name of the Rose -by Umberto Eco
• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R Tolkien (All three! I cheat!)
• The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
• Catch 22 by Joseph Heller
• The Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy (just the first one, mind) by Douglas Adams
• Night Watch by Terry Pratchett
• The Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman (my favourite of the trilogy by far)
• A Passage to India by E.M. Forster
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Probably. Maybe. That's not a definitive list, and isn't in order - although the first two are, actually, my clear favourites.

***

Anyway, what do I like in a book? Exciting, interesting, well rounded characters, first and foremost - I think this is why authors such as Pratchett and Austen ring my bell. A page turning story comes next, writing style very soon after. I can forgive bad writing dependant on the book - I've read some very pleasing old books written by semi literate monks that were dreadfully written but enjoyable nonetheless.

When I was doing the MA I barely read any fiction - there just wasn't time - but I did read loads of factual books. This has prompted me to have more of an interest in factual books generally - I'm currently reading a fascinating book on the History of India.

Talking of the BBC Big Read has made me want to read all the top 100... I started, when the list was first published, plodding through them - I think I'd read about 30-40 of them anyway. I must have made it through about 80, so maybe reading the last lot will be a vague reading challenge. Something to think about.

***

I Like...

Hallo all,

My boyfriend and I went to New York last week, my first holiday since before I started the Screenwriting MA. It was good fun - lots to see and do - but by heck, it were freezing!




Back to normal service now, though. At least being away from it for a week has made Edinburgh seem sunnier and warmer!

Thanks for the nice comments about my Red Planet entry, all. I'm going to start refreshing the script in the next few days, have a few ideas I'm very happy about that will change the plot dramatically, but should make it tighter. I haven't done any spec work in a while so it will be nice to write something just for me!

Now, as to the blog title. As I've been to lax at blogging lately, I've decided that I need a theme to spur me on a bit. My chosen theme is "I like." Essentially, I will pick something random that I like, and then will blog about it. Ta-da.

Must go away and think of my first entry...