We Love Esmeralda Weatherwax

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It is said that a witch's cottage is her fortress. There is nothing that says that it can't be a comfy fortress.


Sage advice from Death...





...and a little bit of wisdom from Sir "Pterry" himself:

Oh my goodness. I don't know what the "netiquette" is for this but oh my goodness

I'm crying

It's OK, they're good tears. Bless you! This is so sweet.

Home at last.

Yay Esmerelda, you're one of US.

I have a confession - despite being a voracious reader, and an especial fan of fantasy and science fiction, throughout my 50 years, I have never read the inimitable Mr. Pratchett's works.

I'm starting today, having just gotten The Color of Magic on my Kindle this very minute.

Because if Esmerelda Weatherwax likes them that much, they're sure to be worth it.

@Kuraudo: oh cute, Granny Kittywax and Kitty Ogg and Rincewind the kitty

@Auntblabby: nobody I'd rather be.

@MissChess: Oh jeez... those are big shoes to fill...

The first three novels in the series are somewhat different from the later ones. He was finding his voice and putting together a solid Discworld universe. The friend who introduced me to his books started me with "Guards! Guards!", which is #8 - but he'd put his world together by the time he wrote Mort (#4).

I'm particularly fond of the Zoons, though, in Equal Rites and I'll say nothing to spoil them for you now. I also absolutely adore Rincewind. This is him with a Quantum Butterfly, courtesy of tarthiev at DeviantArt. (Looks a lot like my ex, in our younger days, now that I think of it...)

I cried when Granny died. I cried when Terry died. Life lost it's magic. I started reading Discworld when the Colour of Magic was released. It was a constant for such a big part of my life. They are the only books I have ever re-read.
I met Terry once. I was so nervous I drank a bit too much of the wine on offer while waiting. During our conversation, he asked if I was from England which I'm not. My Husband explained how the elocution lessons of my childhood haunt me because when alcohol starts to make speech challenging, the elocution training kicks in and makes me sound awfully posh. It's entirely unintentional and embarrassing. Terry found it highly amusing. Me not so much.
RIP Sir Terry

You actually talked with him! Oh that's wonderful! I got to see him, only once, in DC about a year before his diagnosis was announced. He was hysterically funny, of course. I didn't meet him in person - too tonguetied to know what to say. But I'm so glad I saw him, then, when he was still well, and we didn't yet know what awaited him.

Discworld kept me going through some brutal, brutal times in my working life. Even though it was an imagined world, I could tell myself that there were people living and writing in this world who still had an innate sense of decency, and were not being demolished for that sin. Knowing that held me together through the worst.

Nowadays I reread Pratchett, and Theodore Sturgeon, and Seanan McGuire, mostly. (If you're not familiar with her work, I do recommend it, although it's darker and can be violent in places. She's an amazing worldbuilder.)

I just had a crazy idea. What if there was a Discworld book that featured every single major character, and they all had to go on a quest or something.

^^ You do know that Sir Terry has a daughter (Rhianna Pratchett) and among other things, she is a video game creator. Professionally.

I believe she is also the custodian of her father's literary estate...

Ahh: from Wikipedia, because I'm pressed for time: "Pratchett is the daughter of the fantasy writer Terry Pratchett. In 2012, Pratchett became one of the four founders of Narrativia Limited, the production company which holds exclusive multimedia and merchandising rights to her late father's works."

So, who knows? It could happen, could be happening even as we type. In an interactive format, even.

(Edit in: The Last Hero comes kinda close, come to think of it. Here are Carrot, Rincewind, and Leonard of Quirm, quite a combo in itself Their mission patch on the wall behind them: Morituri nolumus mori - we who are about to die don't want to.)

She said in an interview or something that she wouldn't let anyone meddle with Sir Terry's books, including herself. So...yeah...

Yes, thankyou Esmerelda, your posts are always insightful and so compassionate, and your sense of humour is right up my street!

(Oh, and thanks for the link to the anagram finder the other day, that's been hours of fun - even if it did call me "Dog Turd Lite"! )

@kuraudo7777: and Sir Terry had some horrific experiences with the Hollywood moviemaking system - just horrific. I have no doubt he shared these with Lady Lyn and Rhianna; he was fiercely determined never to let such a system destroy his stories.

But there are more stories to be told. I had not known until just now that a final novel was issued six months after his death. (Must... find... copy...) So there's *some* flexibility in that. We'll see

@trogluddite: thank you that's very kind.

I'm so glad someone found that link and is playing with the anagram server! God what a wonderful toy! Hmm. Come to think of it, let's put it here too.

Internet Anagram Server

Also, your new pseudonym caused a lot of this:

^^Was it The Shepard's Crown? That's on my list of Discworld books to get.

^^ Yep.