Yesterday, 12th March 2015, there was a sense of collective sadness among many of my friends and myself at the news of Sir Terry Pratchett’s passing after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s.
In 1983, I was an undergraduate at Bath University browsing the campus bookshop when I came across The Colour of Magic. It was bright, funny and original. I have no idea how many Discworld novels I have read since. My favourite remains Mort.
Few authors write in a void, and I certainly don’t when the genre I write in is humourous fantasy with Terry Pratchett straddling it as he does. His influence on me, and my peers, is undeniable and we owe him a huge debt of gratitude. He will be sorely missed.