Wossname -- October 2016 -- Main issue

[News and reviews about the works of Sir Terry Pratchett]

Wossname
Newsletter of the Klatchian Foreign Legion
October 2016 (Volume 19, Issue 10, Post 1)

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WOSSNAME is a free publication offering news, reviews, and all the other 
stuff-that-fits pertaining to the works of Sir Terry Pratchett. 
Originally founded by the late, great Joe Schaumburger for members of 
the worldwide Klatchian Foreign Legion and its affiliates, including the 
North American Discworld Society and other continental groups, Wossname 
is now for Discworld and Pratchett fans everywhere in Roundworld.
********************************************************************

Editor in Chief: Annie Mac
News Editor: Vera P
Newshounds: Mogg, Sir J of Croydon Below, the Shadow, Mss C, Alison not 
Aliss
Staff Writers: Asti, Pitt the Elder, Evil Steven Dread, Mrs Wynn-Jones
Staff Technomancers: Jason Parlevliet, Archchancellor Neil, DJ Helpful
Book Reviews: Annie Mac, Drusilla D'Afanguin, Your Name Here
Puzzle Editor: Tiff (still out there somewhere)
Bard in Residence: Weird Alice Lancrevic
Emergency Staff: Steven D'Aprano, Jason Parlevliet
World Membership Director: Steven D'Aprano (in his copious spare time)

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INDEX:

01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH
02) EDITOR'S LETTER
03) ODDS AND SODS
04) REVIEWS: THE WITCH'S VACUUM CLEANER, TERRY PRATCHETT DIARY, 
DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK
05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS
06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS
07) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS
08) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE
09) DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS
10) IMAGES OF THE MONTH
11) CLOSE

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01) QUOTES OF THE MONTH

"There won't be another like him, but his values will influence and 
inspire his readers for as long as his books are read. Children become 
adults, teenagers become professors and heads of industry. And as Terry 
influenced them, they influence the world."
– Colin Smythe, in The Terry Pratchett Diary

"Oats knelt in the mud and tried a prayer, but there was no answering 
voice from the sky. There never had been. He'd been told never to expect 
one. That wasn't how Om worked any more. Alone of all the gods, he'd 
been taught, Om delivered the answers straight into the depths of the 
head. Since the prophet Brutha, Om was the silent god. That's what they 
said."
– Mightily Oats discovers the beginning of wisdom (Carpe Jugulum, 
Transworld hardcover, p.213)

"For those suffering unbearably and coming to the end of their lives, 
merely knowing that an assisted death is open to them can provide 
immeasurable comfort."
– archbishop Desmond Tutu

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02) LETTER FROM YOUR EDITOR

Happy (slightly belated) Soul Cake Day to all! May your trickle-treating 
have been a runaway success, if by the time you read this you have 
stowed away your Soul Cake Duck costume for another year... and may this 
issue reach you in one piece, as at the moment our internet is up and 
down – mostly down – more often than the Unmentionables of a member of 
the Guild of Seamstresses.

As the number of Discworld plays performed around the world continues to 
increase, the Discworld Plays section of each issue keeps getting more 
crowded. So the new format, starting with this issue, announces plays by 
month (and year, at this season). I hope this makes it easier to find 
plays in your area.

Desmond Tutu has always been a fascinating man, and in his latter years 
he has become even more surprising and thoughtful. His op-ed on assisted 
dying, in The Washington Post, makes for passionate – and compassionate 
– reading. I think Sir Pterry would have approved of Bishop Tutu's 
thoughts: http://wapo.st/2dTXarC

If you're in or near Adelaide, South Australia this week, remember that 
Unseen Theatre's production of Feet of Clay is in its final week, with 
four performances starting tonight.

Right, on with the show!

– Annie Mac, Editor

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03) ODDS AND SODS

3.1 PENGUIN PRATCHETT GIVEAWAYS!

...and other fun stuff for the season...

Penguin Books says:

We're giving away a bewitching bundle this week – a beautiful hardback 
copy of Carpe Jugulum and the new collection The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner. 
Perfect for witches and wizards (young and old!). You can read the first 
pages of Carpe Jugulum here: 
http://classics.penguin.co.uk/c/1q8lxtqv55FFkuEO7W9NrLwcr.

Enter the competition: 
http://classics.penguin.co.uk/c/1q8lBsLQvP1aitoZZvy9aK8i2

Terry Pratchett created a world full of beloved characters, old friends, 
who we have met time and time again in his novels. There are some 
characters however that we'd hate to meet on a dark night... Or any 
night for that matter. Pratchett's villains are as complex as his heroes 
and we've compiled a list of ten of the best. Take a look at our 
suggestions: http://classics.penguin.co.uk/c/1q8lFs7bWymFgs9bR4WuTIKnD

Bake up a batch of bewitching star cookies with a The Witch's Vacuum 
Cleaner inspired recipe: 
http://classics.penguin.co.uk/c/1q8lNqNSO13FcpDzAdJclFYyP

Do you remember your first Pratchett? We think this collection is 
perfect for sharing with new fans. Listen to an audio extract here:
http://classics.penguin.co.uk/c/1q8lRq9eeKpaaonLrN7y4EAEq

3.2 PRATCHETT BOOKS: MOST SHOPLIFTED BUT ALSO MOST POPULAR FOR RESALE

On Bookriot, bookseller Danika Ellis writes:

"A funny thing about working at a used bookstore is that there is only 
so much control you have over your stock. You can select from what 
people bring in, but you can't make more people bring you the books you 
want the most. Book buyers have to mentally calculate how many copies of 
this title we already have, how many we expect to sell, and what space 
we have for it. Sometimes a book piles up for years only to sell out in 
a week when a popular radio show mentions it. But there are some books 
that stay constant. Some books, despite being published decades (or 
centuries!) ago, still can't seem to stay on the shelves. This is a mix 
of a) sheer popularity and b) the delicate ratio of how copies go out 
the door vs how many books come in. Some books we sell in huge amounts, 
but we also buy stacks of, so it creates a perfect balance. Usually, it 
just doesn't add up that way, and we either end up with too many or not 
enough. Here are 17 books that are inexplicably difficult to keep on the 
shelf..."

The list includes sixteen specific titles, but "anything by Terry 
Pratchett" is in there on its own!

http://bookriot.com/2016/08/15/17-books-that-sell-way-too-fast-at-used-bookstores/

3.3 ROUNDWORLD ALCHEMISTS' GUILD FOR THE WIN!

Or at least for the explosions...

"The drawers at the Making and Knowing Lab, at Columbia University, have 
labels rarely seen outside a Harry Potter novel: 'Ox Gall,' 
'Spiderwebs,' 'Powder for Hourglasses,' 'Dragon's Blood.' The denizens 
of the lab re-create old recipes from alchemy-era texts – primarily of 
the sixteenth century – and this brings them into contact with some 
unusual ingredients. On a recent Monday morning, Joel Klein, a redheaded 
history-of-science postdoc who studies Isaac Newton's alchemical work, 
sniffed a bag of flakes labelled 'Rabbit-Skin Glue.' 'It smells like 
skin,' he said. Another sniff. 'Although I'm not sure what a sommelier 
would say.'... Elsewhere in the lab, a dozen students in white coats 
bustled about. Siddhartha Shah, an art-history graduate student, was 
making counterfeit emeralds. The recipe involved mixing red lead, 
copper, and other ingredients in a ceramic crucible, then melting 
everything with a blowtorch in a small furnace, which he'd constructed 
from bricks and wire. Although his first attempts had flopped – the 
'emerald' looked like a nub of coal – Shah wasn't discouraged. 'It was 
fascinating to watch the color change from red to green to black,' he 
said. 'Then our crucible exploded.' The sixth and seventh attempts 
produced two translucent green buttons. Shah removed his own emerald 
ring – he also wore emerald earrings – and held it next to the buttons 
for comparison.

"Pamela Smith, a science historian who directs the lab, exclaimed, 
'They're like real emerald!' Smith founded the Making and Knowing Lab 
two years ago, in a moment of self-reckoning. She'd been working on a 
book about sixteenth- and seventeenth-century craftsmen. 'They made all 
these claims, but I realized I didn't exactly know what they were 
doing,' she said. Many recipes omitted crucial details or used obscure 
ingredients – swine paunch, jujube syrup, prunes of St. Antonin. Smith 
decided that the only way to really understand the recipes was to try 
them out herself, assisted by a platoon of graduate students..."

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/09/26/twenty-first-century-alchemists

3.4 WHO YA GONNA CALL? GIMLET'S DELICATESSEN, POSSIBLY

Authorities in Jakarta are offering a US$1.50 bounty for each rat 
caught, in an effort to tackle the Indonesian capital's rat problem:

"Authorities hope the Rat Eradication Movement will help clean up the 
teeming city of about 10 million where enormous vermin are a common 
sight on rubbish-strewn roads and in slums. 'There are many rats here, 
and big ones,' Jakarta deputy governor, Djarot Saiful Hidayat, said a 
government news website, as he announced the plan recently. He said a 
recent encounter with a large rat had inspired him to start the 
programme, adding that the vermin were dangerous and could spread 
disease. 'For each rat, we will pay 20,000 rupiah,' he said. The deputy 
governor did not say how residents should catch rats, but urged people 
to refrain from using firearms. 'If possible, please do not use guns,' 
he told the Jakarta Post. 'If you miss your shot, the bullets could hit 
other people.' The captured rats will be handed over to local officials, 
who would dole out the money and pass the animals to Jakarta's 
sanitation agency for burial, the paper said. There is no guarantee the 
plan will work..."

http://www.thenational.ae/world/southeast-asia/wanted-dead-or-alive-jakarta-puts-a-150-bounty-on-every-rat-in-city

[We know how well that worked in Ankh-Morpork. Rat farm tax plan, 
anyone? Also, special thanks to Mrs Cake and the Beermeister for items 
3.2 and 3.3 – Ed.]

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04) REVIEWS: THE WITCH'S VACUUM CLEANER, THE TERRY PRATCHETT DIARY, THE 
DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK

4.1 REVIEW: THE WITCH'S VACUUM CLEANER

Here's a funny thing: I was visiting a friend and fellow Pratchett fan 
the other day, and noticed that she had a copy of The Witch's Vacuum 
Cleaner. "Ah," said I, 'how did you find it compared to Dragons at 
Crumbling Castle?"

"What's Dragons at Crumbling Castle?" quoth she.

"Huh? That's the first volume of Pratchett's children's stories!"

"There's another volume? I never heard of it! I bought this one because 
it's illustrated by Quentin Blake.'

"Whaaa? No it's not, it's illustrated by Mark Beech. And who's Quentin 
Blake when he's at home? I never heard of him!"

Several minutes and two Wikipedia pages later, our mutual confusion was 
sorted out, and my friend is now in possession of a borrowed copy (mine) 
of Dragons at Crumbling Castle. I look forward to hearing her comparison 
of the two. For my own part, I'm sticking with my description of Mark 
Beech's illustrations as written in my review of Dragons some time ago: 
"Beech's drawings are a stylistic cross between Pratchett's own 
(marvellous!) illustrations for The Carpet People and Johnny Hart's 
'Wizard of Id' comic strip, exactly suited to the text." And now that I 
have seen some of Mr Blake's illustrations, I'd take Mr Beech over him 
any day.

Anyway...

The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner, like its 2014 predecessor, consists of 
fourteen stories rescued from the dusty vaults of the much younger Terry 
Pratchett's days as a young journalist and weekly storyteller and tidied 
up (though only slightly) for republication by the much older Sir Terry. 
If you and yours enjoyed Dragons at Crumbling Castle, I think you will 
adore The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner. I certainly do! This collection seems 
to sparkle even more than Dragons did, and there is more 
cross-referencing and continuity of characters and places running 
through the stories this time around -- possibly because these are 
slightly later, perhaps, and young Pratchett had begun to find his own 
style...? And find his style he certainly did, as we all know. The 
Author himself says in his 2015 preface, "I've tinkered here and there 
with a few details, added a few lines or notes, just because I can – and 
because as I've got older my imagination has got even bigger so I can't 
stop myself adding bits and bobs. But the stories in this collection are 
all mostly as they were first printed."

Several of the stories in The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner – The Great Train 
Robbery, The Sheep Rodeo Scandal, The Frozen Feud, and Lord Cake and the 
Battle for Banwen's Beacon – are set in the imaginary Welsh town of 
Llandanffwnfafegettupagogo (most often known locally, and even to its 
creator, as Llandanff) and feature PC Bryn Bunyan, "the fastest 
truncheon west of the River Severn", his deputy Gorsebush Jones, and an 
assortment of cartoon-caricature villains. Llandanff is an adorable 
stand-in for the American Wild West of legend, with even more amusingly 
stereotypes-of-Wales touches: coal rush instead of gold rush, a rodeo 
centred on sheep, and the Temperance Hotel which serves as a children's 
version of the familiar fictional Wild West saloon.

As with Dragons at Crumbling Castle, there are hints of Pratchett YA and 
Discworldiana to come. Blackbury, later to become the setting for the 
Johnny Maxwell trilogy, is the scene of some of my favourite stories in 
this collection – especially The Time-travelling Television, The Truly 
Terrible Toothache, and the title story itself. The Blackbury Park 
Statues also sows the seeds of Johnny and the Dead, while Rincemangle, 
the Gnome of Even Moor is similarly a precursor to the Bromeliad 
trilogy, particularly Truckers, and Wizard War gives us Great Spells, 
talking doorknobs, and a gentler version of the destruction caused by 
the Mage Wars. We also see touches of what inspired our favourite author 
in his youth: The Extraordinary Adventures of Doggins could (and perhaps 
should) be subtitled A Child's Introduction to Tolkienian High Fantasy, 
and The Fire Opal is suffused with the feel of folk tales through the 
centuries, the kinds of tales a certain young boy might have devoured in 
his local library once he had discovered the delights of reading.

The illustrations, as mentioned, are great fun and greatly appropriate. 
And once again the text is littered with odd-sized fonts and unexpected 
emphases. I imagine these will serve as "make funny noises or amusing 
gestures here" cues for a parent or childminder reading aloud to  rapt 
young'un. Do I recommend The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner? Absolutely!

4.2 REVIEW: THE TERRY PRATCHETT DIARY

The Terry Pratchett Diary is gorgeously designed and bound, following in 
the distinctive style of the other Discworld auxiliary hardcovers (The 
World of Poo, Mrs Bradshaw's Handbook, Jack Dodger's Guide to London, 
etc.). Scattered throughout the book are tributes from family, 
colleagues and friends who knew Terry Pratchett best: Rhianna herself 
(who gets the first spot), Rob Wilkins (who gets the last spot), Colin 
Smythe, Paul Kidby, Bernard Pearson, Stephen Briggs, Professor David 
Lloyd, and a host of editors and co-writers. Neil Gaiman gets a two-page 
spread, but he does seem to like the look of his own voice (insert 
smiley here) and is, after all, possibly the world's leading famous 
Pratchett enthusiast.

Dates are in the form of a perpetual calendar, in that no days of the 
week are named, and the pages feature random illustrations of Discworld 
people and artefacts, with a quotation from any of various Discworld 
novels in the bottom quarter of each odd-numbered calendar page. The 
quotations tend heavily to early-mid-period novels such as Jingo and 
Mort, but they are all memorable. In addition to a number of significant 
Roundworld dates and holidays – geared to UK calendars, which is only 
right for a UK-based author and team of Cunning Artificers – plus 
numerous Discworld dates and holidays including Patrician's Day (6th 
July), Uberwald League of Temperance Day (22nd July), Treacle Pie Day 
(24th June), Chase Whiskers Day (12th October), Brebb & Leppis Day (27th 
August), and of course, Lilac Day, Hogswatch (30th and 31st December and 
1st Ick-or-January) and The Creator's Birthday (28th April).

The quality of the illustrations is high throughout. Peter Dennis' 
portrait art is featured; for me, this is one of the least apealing 
thngs about the Terry Pratchett Diary, as despite Dennis' undeniable 
talent he tend to portray all characters as rather lumpen-faced and 
grubby, which is fine for the like of Nobby or Mr Boggis but works less 
well for Susan Sto Helit or Lord Vetinari... but that's just my opinion, 
and your mileage may vary.

There are a few egregious ball-drops from the proofreading department – 
e.g "Waetherwax" (p.84) and a quote claiming to be from from "INGO" 
(p.91) – which one hopes will be addressed for future printings. But 
those are mere details. The Terry Pratchett Diary is, all in all, a 
lovely thing. And if the final page and inside back cover don't bring on 
the waterworks...

A keepsake for all time, and well worth the price of purchase.

4.3 REVIEW: TERRY PRATCHETT'S DISCWORLD COLOURING BOOK

In recent years, as any follower of internet-driven trends knows, 
colouring books for adults have become A Thing. Endangered animals, Old 
Masters, cityscapes, actors, pop stars, comics characters, Game of 
Thrones, even fashion magazines (yes, Virginia, there *is* a Vogue 
colouring book) have been turned into pastimes-for-grown-ups books. It's 
a fad, of course, and it almost certainly won't last. But Discworld fans 
have cause to celebrate this trend, because it made it possible for 
Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book to become A Thing too – and 
what a lovely Thing it is!

The Terry Pratchett's Discworld Colouring Book (henceforth TPDCB) is an 
A4-sized paperback featuring almost one hundred pages of Paul Kidby's 
iconic Discworld character depictions, old and new, re-rendered as black 
and white line drawings that are ready for colouring in or for simply 
admiring. All the most instantly recognisable ones are there, plus some 
completely new illustrations created for the book.

Let me say right now that if you are a Discworld artefacts collector, an 
all-things-Discworld completist, or just an admirer of beautiful art, 
TPDCB is a genuine treasure. Al the pictures stand on their own merits 
as finished art, so you're on a winner even if you never get around to 
attempting to colour them in. For those who do wish to have a go at 
colouring between the lines, TPDCB offers a fantastic challenge from the 
outset: the first page illustration is nothing less than a relief map of 
the Disc itself, surrounded by some of its most famous denizens – the 
Witches, the Watch and certain well-known anthropomorphic and 
wiz(z)ardly faces. The rest of the pieces vary in difficulty, with some 
(Gaspode, for instance) probably easy enough for novice colourers. The 
range is very wide – and yes, I am going to list them all here to show 
you just how wide:there's the Librarian, the Fresh Start Club, Death and 
Binky (and three more Death pictures: with the enchanted Soul Music 
motorcycle, with a kitten, and "un-masqued" and ready for the touch of a 
steady hand well supplied with red pencils), the Luggage, Rob Anybody 
Mac Feegle, Rincewind and Twoflower (and two more, Rincewind in the 
Dungeon Dimensions and in a wonderfully sour-looking solo portrait), the 
Eater of Socks, Sam Vimes, Susan Sto Helit dressed for her... other job, 
Granny Weatherwax, the Eater of Pencils, Hamish the Aviator and his 
embarrassing parachute, Errol, the "old guard" Watch from Guards! 
Guards!, Gaspode, the Mona Ogg, Greebo, Ridcully with a hatful of 
Blasteds, a full-page assortment of Feegles (including some delightful 
updates), the original Wyrd Sisters, Otto Chriek, Lord Vetinari, and a 
beautiful repeating motif of Sardines of the Clan... and not forgetting 
the two-page spreads (adult and infant swamp dragon varieties, the 
Finger of Cohen, the Librarian at work, the teenaged Tiffany Aching and 
Mephistopheles the clever goat, Death's skull-and-lifetimer-and-Omega 
wallpaper, the Death of Rats, Great A'Tuin and the Disc). Whew!

As a bonus – or inspiration – or reminder of why Paul Kidby is a master 
artist and the rest of us... aren't, sixteen pages of some of the most 
famous and beloved Kidby Discworld art, presented as finished 
full-colour illustrations.

Given the TPDCB's very reasonable price of £9.99 (or $20 in Fourecksian 
dollars), you might want to buy two – one to colour and one to keep, or 
at least a spare one to give as a Hogswatch present. I know I will.

Highly recommended!

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05) DISCWORLD PLAYS NEWS

5.1 PLAYS IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER 2016

* FEET OF CLAY IN ADELAIDE, FOURECKS: FINAL PERFORMANCES

Adelaide's Unseen Theatre is in its last days for their run of Feet of 
Clay! Director Pamela Munt says: "Next Unseen show not until April next 
year! Get your Pratchett fix while you can!"

When: 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th November 2016
Venue: Bakehouse Theatre, 255 Angas Street, Adelaide
Time: 7.30pm all shows
Tickets: Adults $22; Concession $18; Groups (6+) $16; TRev $16; 
available online at http://bakehousetheatre.com/shows/feet-clay

http://unseen.com.au/

* GUARDS! GUARDS! IN BRISBANE, FOURECKS: FINAL DAYS OF RUN

The Brisbane Arts Theatre takes on yet another Discworld play later this 
year, in October and November: "From the legendary author Sir Terry 
Pratchett comes the eighth novel in the Discworld series and first 
featuring the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. Long believed extinct, a superb 
specimen, The Noble Dragon has appeared in Discworld's greatest city. 
Not only does this unwelcome visitor have a nasty habit of charbroiling 
everything in its path, in rather short order it is crowned King (it is 
a noble dragon, after all). With some help from an orangutan librarian, 
it is the task of the Night Watch to overpower the secret brotherhood 
and restore order to the kingdom in this fantastical Discworld adventure."

When: 3rd, 4th, 5th, 11th and 12th November 2016
Venue: Brisbane Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Time: 8pm Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays (except 10th November)
Tickets: Adults $31, Concession $25, Group 10+ $25, Group 75+ $20, 
Student Rush $10(10 mins before curtain), available online at 
http://bit.ly/1QGbXBF

http://www.artstheatre.com.au/show/guardsguards

* GUARDS! GUARDS! IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA: FINAL PERFORMANCES

"ARENAarts presents its 7th foray into the universe of Discworld 
Productions. GUARDS! GUARDS! A villainous plot to rule. A city under 
siege. A dragon on the loose. Adapted from Terry Pratchett's comic 
fantasy novel, this a fun production for lovers of silliness!"

When: 4th, 5th and 6th November 2016
Venue: Latvian Centre Theatre, 60 Cleaver Terrace, Belmont, W.A. 6104
Time: all evening shows (4th & 5th November) 8pm; matinee (6th November) 2pm
Tickets: $22 (concessions $16, children $10, groups of 10+ $15p/p), 
available online at
https://www.trybooking.com/Booking/BookingDates.aspx?eid=206909

For further information, contact Simon James 08 9399 9947 
arenaarts at hotmail.com.au

* AUDITIONS IN NOVEMBER 2016 FOR 2017 PRODUCTION OF WYRD SISTERS IN 
YORKSHIRE

After the success of their production of Mort in June this year, 
access-for-all theatre company We Are Theatre will be staging Wyrd 
Sisters a year later -– in June 2017. That's a long way off, but first, 
next month, it's audition time! Open auditions will be held in York on 
the 13th, 20th and 27th of November 2016. To book an audition email 
wearetheatre at googlemail.com giving your name, age (if under 18), and 
preferred audition date.

http://www.wearetheatre.co.uk/auditions.html

* CARPE JUGULUM IN SUFFOLK

The Quaysiders theatre company will be staging their production of Carpe 
Jugulum in November. "Having previously staged both 'Mort' and 
'Maskerade' this time we continue to follow the antics of Granny 
Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Agnes Nitt as they face their most treacherous 
foes in the shape of a family of 'modern' vampires. The Vampires are 
determined to take over the Kingdom of Lancre, and their despicable plan 
seems to be working… but they hadn't reckoned on the formidable Granny 
Weatherwax."

When: 10th–12th November 2016
Venue: Seagull Theatre, Morton Road, Pakefield, NR33 OGH
Time: 7.30pm all shows
Tickets: £9 (£8 concessions), available online at 
http://intelligent-tickets.co.uk/index.php?th=gl

For more information, ring 01502 589726 or email info at theseagull.co.uk

http://www.theseagull.co.uk/event/carpe-jugulam/

* GOING POSTAL IN BEDFORDSHIRE

The Westoning Players, a "very sociable, friendly amateur dramatic group 
with members from Westoning and surrounding areas of Central 
Bedfordshire", will be delivering the post, Discworld style, next month. 
Featuring an excellent wing-ed Postmaster's Hat and an Adora Belle who's 
clearly channelling Claire Foy's excellent rendering from the telly film 
(see item 10 below), this looks like it's going to be great fun!

When: 24th–26th November 2016
Venue: Westoning Village Hall, 34 Church Road, Westoning, Beds MK45 5JL
Time: 7.30pm all shows
Tickets: £9 (no concessions), available from 
http://www.westoning-players.co.uk/box_office.html – via email to 
westoningplayers at gmail.com, or by phone (07525926780, vox or text)

http://www.westoning-players.co.uk/current.html

* WYRD SISTERS IN NEWPORT, WALES

The Newport Playgoers Society are staging their production of Wyrd 
Sisters in November!

When: 15th–19th November 2016
Venue: Dolman Theatre, Kingsway, Newport, NP20 1HY
Time: 7.15pm (evening shows); 2.30pm (Saturday 19th matinee)
Tickets: £12.50 (students £8.50, concessions £11), available online at 
http://bit.ly/2dDR5kr – there is a booking fee of £2.00 per per transaction.

"For more information about this performance, please contact the Dolman 
Theatre on 01633 263670."

http://www.dolmantheatre.co.uk/show.aspx?id=298

There is also a Facebook event for the play: 
https://www.facebook.com/events/1232819446770130/

About the Playgoers Society, who have been performing plays since 1924:
http://www.dolmantheatre.co.uk/newport-playgoers-society.aspx

* MORT IN PAEROA, LAND OF FOG

Paeroa Little Theatre will be staging Mort in November: "Mort is a story 
about Death. Not death as in dying, though that happens, but rather 
Death (Martin Welborn), the 7 foot tall skeleton who carries a scythe, 
wears a cloak, and TALKS LIKE THIS. Mort (Daniel Flynn) is his 
apprentice who finds that the reaping business isn't as easy as it might 
seem. When things go wrong he needs to get help from Death's adopted 
daughter Ysabell (Krista Maley), his manservant Albert (John Warren), 
and the incompetent wizard Cutwell (Ben Anderson) to save the 
technically dead Princess Keli (Olivia Dustow). Mort is also the final 
play to be directed by Dell King. She has helped produce many plays for 
our theatre and will be missed. We wish her the best for the future."

When: 9th–18th November 2016
Venue: Paeroa Little Theatre, 1 Francis Street, Paeroa 3600, the North 
Island, New Zealand
Time: evening performances (9th, 10th, 11th, 16th, 17th and 18th) at 
7.30pm; matinee on the 13th at 2pm
Tickets: NZ$20, on sale now from Positive Paeroa and Arkwrights 
Antiques. "If you wish to reserve tickets call 07 862 8399."

http://www.facebook.com/PaeroaLittleTheatre/

* TAMAHER IN LEEDS

Leeds Children's Theatre, "a voluntary drama society, producing quality 
drama for children of all ages since 1935", are presenting their 
production of  The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents in November!

When: 16th–19th November 2016
Venue: Carriageworks Theatre, The Electric Press, 3 Millennium Square, 
Leeds, LS2 3AD
Time: 7pm (16th–18th), noon and 5pm on Saturday 19th
Tickets: £11 (£10 concessions), Family (2+2) £40. There is an early bird 
£1 reduction "if booked before 23 October 2016 (n/a to our coach 
inclusive deals)" Tickets are available for purchase in person at the 
City Centre Box Office, Leeds Town Hall LS1 3AD from 10am – 6pm Monday 
to Saturday – telephone (0113) 376 0318; email boxoffice at leeds.gov.uk – 
also, an event Box Office will be open on the ground floor of the 
Carriageworks Theatre from 1 hour before show start time. To purchase 
tickets online, go to http://www.amazingmaurice.info/tickets.html

http://www.amazingmaurice.info/

* MORT IN HARROGATE

The Woodlands Drama Group will be staging their production of Mort in 
November and December!

When: 30th November–3rd December 3 2016
Venue: The Studio At Harrogate Theatre, 6 Oxford Street, Harrogate HG1 
1QF (email: boxoffice at harrogatetheatre.co.uk)
Time: 7.45pm evening shows; 2.30pm Saturday matinee
Tickets: all tickets £10, available from 
http://www.woodlandsdramagroup.co.uk/tickets/ or http://bit.ly/2di6RSA 
or by phoning the theatre's Box Office (01423 502116)

http://www.harrogatetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/Mort-Presented-by-Woodlands-Drama-Group

* WYRD SISTERS IN BRISBANE

The Brisbane Arts Theatre is going multi-Pratchett for the back end of 
2016! On the heels of their forthcoming production of Guards! Guards! in 
October and early November, they will be presenting Wyrd Sisters only a 
few weeks later!

When: 23rd, 27th, 28th, 29th & 30th November and 4th–6th December 2017
Venue: Brisbane Arts Theatre, 210 Petrie Terrace, Brisbane, QLD 4000
Time: 8pm Thursdays, Fridays & Saturdays; 6.30pm Sunday matinees (29th 
November and 6th December)
Tickets: Adults $31, Concession $25, Group 10+ $25, Group 75+ $20, Gold 
Members $15, Members $25, Student Rush $10 (10 mins before curtain). 
"Members can redeem their included season tickets for this show. There 
are no refunds or exchanges once tickets have been purchased." Tickets 
are not yet available. Watch this space for updates...

http://www.artstheatre.com.au/show/wyrdsisters


5.2 PLAYS IN 2017

* TAMAHER IN CARDIFF (FEBRUARY 2017)

Monstrous Productions carry on from strength to strength! Next up is 
their February 2017 production of The Amazing Maurice and his Educated 
Rodents. Stay tuned for updates...

When: 22nd–25th February 2017
Venue: The Gate Theatre, Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW
Time: 7.30pm (2.30pm matinee on the 25th)
Tickets: £7 (£5 concession), available from 
http://monstrousproductions.fikket.com/

* CARPE JUGULUM IN NOTTINGHAM (MARCH 2017)

The Lace Market Youth Theatre present Carpe Jugulum, "a pastiche of 
vampire literature playing with mythic archetypes and featuring a tongue 
in cheek reversal of 'vampyre' subculture with young vampires who wear 
bright clothes, drink wine and stay up till noon", in March 2017.

When: 22nd–25th March 2017
Venue: The Lace Market Theatre, Halifax Place, Nottingham NG1 1QN
Time: 7.30pm all evening shows; 2.30pm Saturday 25th matinee
Tickets: £11 (£10 concessions), available online at 
http://bit.ly/2dIKhod or by phoning 0115 950 7201

https://lacemarkettheatre.co.uk/LaceMarketTheatre.dll/WhatsOn

* WYRD SISTERS IN BOLTON, LANCS (MARCH 2017)

Bolton Little Theatre, "a vibrant amateur theatre company run by 
members" since 1931, will be staging their production of Wyrd Sisters 
next March.

When: 6th–11th March 2017
Venue: Bolton Little Theatre, Hanover Street, Bolton BL1 4TG
Time: 7.30pm
Tickets: £10 (Monday night 3 for 2 special), available at 
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/boltonlittletheatre or 
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/event/EFILHL – group bookings of 10+ (£9) 
should be booked through the Box Office. "You can book at Bolton Little 
Theatre box office in person or by telephone on Monday night from 7.30 
to 9pm and Friday mornings from 10.30 to 12 noon – no extra charge if 
paying by cash or cheque and you can book during the run of the plays or 
you can book online at boltonlittletheatre.ticketsource.co.uk ...credit 
card charges will apply. Tickets can be e-tickets (no charge) mobile 
phone ticket (50p) standard post (£1.50)."

http://www.boltonlittletheatre.co.uk/terry-pratchetts-wyrd-sisters/


5.3 REVIEWS

* GUARDS! GUARDS! IN BRISBANE

By Susan Hetherington on ABC Radio Brisbane:

"Every year for as long as I can remember Brisbane Arts Theatre has 
included an adaptation of a Terry Pratchett novel in its season. I've 
seen about a dozen of them and this is by far the best... it's really, 
really funny. And as Arts Theatre transitions to a pro am model it is 
also interesting to see how the sets are on the up and up. This one was 
certainly one of the most elaborate I've seen and the investment was 
well spent. There were times however where the dialogue was lost because 
it was spoken from behind walls in that set or elaborate masks. The cast 
are mic-ed in the musicals. It may be time to look at the same treatment 
in the dramas even though the theatre is intimate. Those who love the 
Pratchett tradition at Brisbane Arts Theatre will be pleased that it has 
been retained into the first year of the new look theatre model with 
Lords and Ladies scheduled in September/October..."

http://ab.co/2dDOK8j  [Note: includes available audio download of the 
programme – Ed.]

* FEET OF CLAY IN ADELAIDE

By Christine Pyman for Broadway World

"The tale explores what it means to be self-directed and, as such, is 
something to which everyone can relate. Cleverly, out of all of the 
Pratchett plays, this showed the hubble-bubble of humanity, with the 
grand total of only three or four actors managing to convince us that we 
were seeing and experiencing the seething life in the city of Ankh 
Morpork... Mike Shaw, as Commander Sir Samuel Vimes, is the main 
defender of the truth, playing the part with a suitably world-weary 
determination that has us believing that he really has spent years 
trying to whip many species into a functioning City Watch. His sergeant, 
'Nobby' Nobbs, who is caught up unwillingly in the politics, was 
beautifully portrayed by Aimee Ford, the character having the right 
balance of Chaplinesque humour and grossness to appeal to the audience. 
This is the first time Ford has appeared on the stage for Unseen, 
instead of behind the scenes, and makes the transition more than 
smoothly. Danny Sag, who, appropriately enough, is involved in running 
the Discworld fan group, City of Small Gods, in our world, played Lord 
Vetinari with restraint and suitably evil energy. The standout 
performance of the evening was Belinda Spangenberg as Dragon King of 
Arms, the ancient vampire trying to control all. She took command of the 
stage at each entry, and, although we didn't see her change form, her 
countenance was only too believable. Alycia Rabig, as Corporal Cheery 
Littlebottom, also deserves a special mention, transforming from a 
gauche new recruit passionate about his/her (Ankh Morpork has more 
pronouns than dwarvish, you know) science, to a shyly public dwarf going 
against all tradition and thoroughly enjoying showing femininity. 
Lead[sic], as always, by director, Pamela Munt, the passion and 
dedication that goes into Unseen Theatre Companies performances, is 
phenomenal and their plays, for Pratchett aficionados, are not to be 
missed..."

http://bit.ly/2fg0tyV

By Nicola Woodford for Glam Adelaide

"This is the thirty-first Discworld play produced by Unseen since 2000 – 
their creative and enthusiastic celebration of Pratchett's oeuvre must 
be commended. Unseen honours the bizarre stories, idiosyncratic 
characters, and wry humour of the original novels while lending them 
fresh lease on life as they artfully adapt them for the stage. The stage 
had three main levels: the city streets, the City Watch office slightly 
raised, and the palace up a small flight of stairs. This layout offered 
a visual representation the social hierarchy that our Commander Vimes 
negotiated throughout the play. Perhaps one of Unseen's best comedic 
additions was the theme songs played for the City Watch (Pink Panther) 
and the palace (Yes Minister). Unseen Theatre Company is among the best 
amateur theatre Adelaide has to offer..."

http://www.glamadelaide.com.au/main/theatre-review-feet-of-clay/

By Allison Thomas -for TASA/Encore

"Very clever set design by Pamela Munt, Andrew Zeuner and David Good 
created three stages of different heights in one area and, without a 
curtain and no movement of furniture or props, enabled the characters to 
move from one scene to another quickly and easily so the performance 
flowed smoothly. As usual, Terry Pratchett's quirky sense of humour made 
the full house audience on Opening Night laugh often. Alycia Rabig 
enticed and delighted as Cheery Littlebottom and stole the show with her 
lovely long beard and cheeky repartee. Mike Shaw in his role has 
Commander Sir Samuel Vines[sic] was very sleuth-like and dramatic, apart 
from a couple of lines. Each time I've seen Aimee Ford perform in a male 
role she pulls it off admirably, and she was suitably unsophisticated as 
Nobby Nobbs and Doughnut Jimmy. The other actors played multiple 
characters (including the golem) to good effect with many gender and 
accent changes...."

http://bit.ly/2eZ2mwd

...and by Jamie Wright for the Adelaide Theatre Guide.

"Pamela Munt's cast of ten portray a wide range of (mostly) multiple 
characters; the standout is Hugh O'Connor as Captain Carrot, with some 
good moments from Mike Shaw as Vimes, Kahlia Tutty as Angua, Danny Sag 
as Vetinari and Alycia Rabig as Cheery. The set is well-planned and, 
along with some tight lighting from Stephen Dean, allows for the 
numerous scene changes to happen quickly. Unfortunately, thanks to the 
(presumably) limited costume budget for the golems, differentiating 
between them is nigh-on impossible – which makes a couple of important 
scenes more than a little confusing... It's difficult at the best of 
times to convert literary works to the stage, and it's always a problem 
with the Discworld adaptations as so much of the beauty of Pratchett's 
writing is in the description and the subtext – which are difficult to 
factor into a theatrical production. But there is enough of his humour, 
wit and characterisation brought to life in them that, as in this case, 
there should be something there for the fans of the world he created."

http://bit.ly/2eWWFiL

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

06) DISCWORLD MEETING GROUPS NEWS: UPDATES AND REMINDERS

The Broken Drummers, "London's Premier Unofficially Official Discworld 
Group" (motto "Nil percussio est"), meets next on Monday 7th November 
2016 at the Monkey Puzzle, 30 Southwick Street, London, W2 1JQ.

For more information, go to http://brokendrummers.org/ or email 
BrokenDrummers at gmail.com or nicholls.helen at yahoo.co.uk

*

Canberra, Australia's Discworld fan group is Drumknott's Irregulars: "We 
are a newly established Terry Pratchett & Discworld social group in 
Canberra called Drumknott's Irregulars. The group is open to all, people 
from interstate and overseas are welcome, and our events will not be 
heavily themed. Come along to dinner for a chat and good company. We 
welcome people all all fandoms (and none) and we would love to see you 
at one of our events, even if you're just passing through. Please 
contact us via Facebook 
(_https://www.facebook.com/groups/824987924250161/_) or Google Groups 
(_https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/drumknotts-irregulars_) or 
join us at our next event."

*

For Facebook users in Fourecks: The Victorian Discworld Klatch is "a 
social group for fans of Discworld and Terry Pratchett... run by a 
dedicated team who meet monthly and organise events monthly." "If you'd 
like to join our events please ask to join the Klatch."

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VictorianDiscworldKlatch

*

"The Gathering of the Loonies (Wincanton chapter)" is a public Facebook 
meeting group: "This group, by request of Jo in Bear will continue to be 
used for future unofficial (not run by the Emporium) fan Gatherings in 
Wincanton. Look here for information." [Editor's note: this is an active 
group. If you use Facebook, it may be worth joining!]

https://www.facebook.com/groups/373578522834654/

*

The Pratchett Partisans are a fan group who meet monthly at either 
Brisbane or Indooroopilly to "eat, drink and chat about all things 
Pratchett. We hold events such as Discworld dinners, games afternoons, 
Discworld photo scavenger hunts. We also attend opening night at 
Brisbane Arts Theatre's Discworld plays." The Partisans currently have 
about 200 members who meet at least twice a month, usually in Brisbane.

For more info about their next meetup, join up at 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/pratchettpartisans/ or contact Ula 
directly at uwilmott at yahoo.com.au

*

The City of Small Gods is a group for fans in Adelaide and South Australia.

"We have an established Terry Pratchett & Discworld fan group in 
Adelaide called The City of Small Gods, which is open to anyone who 
would like to come - you don't have to live in Adelaide or even South 
Australia, or even be a Discworld fan, but that's mostly where our 
events will be held, and we do like discussing Pratchett's works. Our 
(semi-) regular meetings are generally held on the last Thursday of the 
month at a pub or restaurant in Adelaide. We have dinner at 6.30pm 
followed by games until 9pm. The games are usually shorter games like 
Pairs, Sushi Go, or Tiny Epic Defenders, with the occasional Werewolf 
session, as these are the best sort of games that work in a pub setting. 
Every few months, we have a full day's worth of board games at La Scala 
Cafe, 169 Unley Rd, Unley in the function room starting at 10am. In 
addition, we will occasionally have other events to go and see plays by 
Unseen Theatre Company, book discussions, craft, chain maille or 
costuming workshops or other fun social activities."

The next Monthly Dinner and Games at the Caledonian Hotel will be held 
on 24th November 2016. Before that, there will be a group outing to see 
Unseen Theatre's production of Feet of Clay (opens 21st October), and 
the Quiz Long and Prosper – Science Fiction and Fantasy Quiz Night (12th 
November). For more info, go to www.cityofsmallgods.org.au

*

The Broken Vectis Drummers meet next on Thursday 3rd November 2016 
(probably) from 7.30pm at The Castle pub in Newport, Isle of Wight. For 
more info and any queries, contact broken_vectis_drummers at yahoo.co.uk

*

The Wincanton Omnian Temperance Society (WOTS) next meets on Friday 4th 
November 2016 (probably) at Wincanton's famous Bear Inn from 7pm 
onwards. "Visitors and drop-ins are always welcome!"

*

The Northern Institute of the Ankh-Morpork and District Society of 
Flatalists, a Pratchett fangroup, has been meeting on a regular basis 
since 2005 but is now looking to take in some new blood (presumably not 
in the non-reformed Uberwald manner). The Flatalists normally meet at 
The Narrowboat Pub in Victoria Street, Skipton, North Yorkshire, to 
discuss "all things Pratchett" as well as having quizzes and raffles. 
Details of future meetings are posted on the Events section of the 
Discworld Stamps forum:

http://www.discworldstamps.co.uk/forum/

*

Sydney Drummers (formerly Drummers Downunder) meet next on Monday 7th 
November 2016 at 6.30pm (probably) in Sydney at 3 Wise Monkeys, 555 
George Street, Sydney,2000. For more information, contact Sue (aka 
Granny Weatherwax): kenworthys at yahoo.co.uk

*

The Treacle Mining Corporation, formerly known as Perth Drummers, meets 
next on Monday 7th November 2016 (probably) from 5.30pm at Carpe Cafe, 
526 Murray Street, Perth, Western Australia. For details follow Perth 
Drummers on Twitter @Perth_Drummers or join their Facebook group: 
https://www.facebook.com/groups/Perth.Drummers/ – or message Alexandra 
Ware directly at <alexandra.ware at gmail.com>

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

07) DISCWORLD CONVENTION NEWS

7.1 AUSDWCON NEWS: DISCWORLD GRAND TOUR UPDATE

The word (with footnotes) from Danny Sag, AusDWcon organiser (and 
occasional Discworld thespian), is:

We have so much news to announce this month! Please take the time read 
everything below (you'll regret it if you don't. Honest).

What to do on your holiday

Nullus Anxietas VI – The Discworld Grand Tour – The Australian Discworld 
Convention (_https://ausdwcon.org_) is getting closer and closer every 
day! On August 4-6, 2017, we'll have a weekend packed full of lovely 
Discworld and Pratchett related activities for you to enjoy!

You can already find out a little bit about Vaudeville Le Maskerade, 
Passports, Mr Shine's Thud Parlor, the Gala Dinner and the Wine and 
Gourmet Tours on our website 
(_https://ausdwcon.org/convention/events/_), with more information about 
these and other events coming soon!

BUT (and my, that is a big but) we also desperately need your help to 
ensure our tour's itinerary is full of wonderful things to do. If you've 
got a great idea of an activity that you would like to run, please 
volunteer at http://ausdwcon.org/volunteer

Where to stay on your holiday

The Australian Discworld Convention will take place at the Lakes Resort 
Hotel in West Lakes, Adelaide, and the hotel is now ready for your 
booking! We've managed to negotiate a fantastic room rate at this luxury 
hotel which includes breakfast every day!

For more information on the hotel and how to book, see 
https://ausdwcon.org/convention/venue/accommodation/

What to wear on your holiday: Deck your body out in our fashionable 
Discworld Grand Tour merchandise! Ranging from t-shirts to hats to 
coffee mugs, you can choose one, any, or all of our wonderful items to 
celebrate your attendance at the convention.[1] Check them out here 
https://ausdwcon.org/shop/souvenirs/

We are also celebrating 10 Years of Australian Discworld Conventions 
with a special t-shirt - You don't have to be attending the convention 
to get this special t-shirt – we can post it to you within Australia, 
New Zealand, the UK or the USA.[2] 
https://ausdwcon.org/shop/product/ten-years-t-shirt/ Shipping costs 
listed at https://ausdwcon.org/shop/delivery-timescales/

Tickets for your holiday: Don't forget that you can buy your tickets for 
the Discworld Grand Tour in our shop right now: 
https://ausdwcon.org/shop/tickets/
Please keep in mind that early-bird prices[3] finish February 4th 2017.

But wait – did you know there's a way to get the early-bird price 
without paying for a full ticket now? Yes, that's right! If you buy a 
Supporting membership ($40) before Feb 4th 2017, you will lock yourself 
in at the early-bird price, and you can pay the remaining balance (in 
instalments or all at once) any time up until July 21 2017!

Buy your supporting membership here: 
https://ausdwcon.org/shop/product/supporting-membership/
And read here for information about all membership types: 
https://ausdwcon.org/convention/membership/

Every holiday needs a postcard...

We can now reveal to you the lovely Discworld Grand Tour postcard (our 
advertising material) with a very happy Great A'Tuin! See it at 
https://ausdwcon.org/blog/on-your-holiday/ (If you're attending Supanova 
Adelaide in November, we'll be handing these out at our table in Fan 
Club Central, so pop along and grab one!)

Welcoming our sponsors! We are proud to announce the following companies 
as sponsors of the Australian Discworld Convention!

* Dymocks Adelaide
* Pace Advertising
* University of South Australia

Their contribution will help to make the convention significantly better 
– and we hope you will support them in return.

[1] Please note most of these items are *only* available for pick up at 
the convention
[2] Please note that for now, this is a pre-order, and shirts may not be 
posted until after August 2017.
[3] Possibly a geas or a scalbie.

https://ausdwcon.org/blog/on-your-holiday/

7.2 NADWCON NEWS

The fourth North American Discworld Convention (NADWCON) will take place 
from 1st–4th September 2017 in New Orleans – and appropriately, the 
theme will be The Genuan Experience!

"The 2017 NADWCon will be organized by RavenQuoth, Inc., a nonprofit 
501(c)(3) organization that was responsible for NADWCon 2013, which 
raised over $24,000 in charity funds that were split equally between the 
Orangutan Foundation UK and Alzheimer's Research UK. The 2017 NADWCon 
will be co-chaired by Emily S. Whitten and Richard Atha-Nicholls. Emily 
S. Whitten was co-founder of The North American Discworld Convention, 
Vice-Chair of NADWCon 2009, and Chair of NADWCon 2011. Richard 
Atha-Nicholls was Chair of NADWCon 2013 and is President of RavenQuoth, Inc.

"NADWCon 2017 and RavenQuoth, Inc. will provide further announcements 
and details about the 2017 convention in the upcoming months. Further 
information will be available at http://nadwcon2017.org."

http://www.nadwcon2017.org/

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

08)  DISCWORLD ARTS AND CRAFTS NEWS

DISCWORLD EMPORIUM NEWS

* Your very own Discworld! With Turtle! And 1,000-, er, four elephants!

To mark the quarter-century of the Discworld Emporium creative team, a 
very, very special item:

"We've been making little bits of Discworld for a very long time... From 
the first Discworld figurines as Clarecraft in 1991, to a cornucopia of 
collectibles and publications at the Discworld Emporium, we've been 
bringing the creations of Sir Terry Pratchett to life for 25 years. To 
celebrate this milestone in our Discworld journey we wanted to make 
something really rather special. We wanted to make a world…

"Created with the sculpting talents of Emporium associate artist Richard 
Kingston, this stunning rendition of Great A'Tuin celebrates our 
illustrious heritage, and marks a return to our roots producing 
figurines & objet d'art. Produced in a glorious bronze and verdigris 
finish, it will sit elegantly on any bookshelf, look at home in any nook 
and last for generations. From the resolute expression to the stylish 
finish, it has an elegant understated presence – a work of true 
craftsmanship for those who cherish Discworld as much as we do, and a 
most elegant addition to your Discworld collection. Each piece is hand 
cast and finished locally by our team of professional craftsmen, and 
features our makers' mark inset as a little button on the base, allowing 
A'Tuin to rest at an angle that really portrays a sense of movement 
through the cosmos.

"The piece is cast in bronze resin, coated with real micro-fine powdered 
bronze. You should care for it in the same way as your other priceless 
bronzes. If left indoors it will need no particular extra care other 
than the occasional dust, but you can treat it to a gentle wax polish 
once a year or two if you wish to keep A'Tuin sparkling."

Each Great A'Tuin Discworld figurine is priced at £50, measures approx 
120mm across and stands 66mm high, and is presented in a Discworld 
Emporium Gift Box.

The piece is currently out of stock, the first batch having already sold 
out, but the Emporium elves are hard at work on hatching a new flock 
(pod? school?) of A'Tuins, so do check back frequently!

http://www.discworldemporium.com/atuin-discworld-figurine

* The Soul Cake first day cover!

"As we all know, Soul Cake Tuesday falls on the first Tuesday after the 
first Half Moon of Sektober. To mark this year's celebration the 
Ankh-Morpork Post Office has released its very first Soul Cake Duck 
postage stamp! The Soul Cake Duck Penny makes its debut on this charming 
First Day Cover, depicting the Soul Cake Duck surrounded by its famous 
edible eggs. Each cover features a commemorative insert and bears the 
new One Penny Soul Cake Duck Penny franked by the iconic hand-stamp of 
the Ankh-Morpork Post Office. So grab your celebratory First Day Cover, 
roll your eggs down a hill, paint your faces and go trickle-treating!"

Each Soul Cake first day cover is priced at £6.50. For more information, 
and to order, go to:

http://www.discworldemporium.com/soul-cake-day-fdc

...and an important announcement from the Emporium Hex:

"++ Next week we'll be conducting some major work on our website while 
we introduce some exciting changes and improvements ++
While we will do our best to keep out-of-cheese errors to a minimum, 
there may some adjustments that affect your Discworld Emporium account 
information. Should you wish to take copies of your order histories 
(other than our confirmation emails) we recommend you do so now as they 
will no longer be accessible once these changes are implemented. Pending 
order information can be found in your confirmation emails for 
reference. Please bear with us while we iron out any gremlins, feegles, 
demons, and possibly Bernard. We'll keep you updated on further 
developments and look forward to sharing our efforts with you!"

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

09) AROUND THE BLOGOSPHERE

Blogger Jenny Roman recalls a very special writing class:

"The English Department at my secondary school did a lot of things to 
inspire my literary ambitions – one of which was to invite the late 
Terry Pratchett to come and give a talk about his writing experiences. 
Imbued with a heady idealism about writers and writing, I hoped Mr 
Pratchett (he wasn't a Sir back then) would regale us with tales of the 
creative process, and somehow pass on some magic pearls of wisdom which 
would instantly enable us to plunge into our own rich world of 
creativity and become best-selling authors too. When I bravely stuck up 
my hand and asked him for his top piece of advice for aspiring authors, 
he said, 'Get a word processor.' To say I was disappointed would be an 
understatement. Now, of course, I realise that this was jolly good 
advice. Even if my 17 year old ears did not wish to hear about the 
mundane mechanics of the writing process (I'm not quite sure what I had 
expected his answer to be – other than magic – but it was presumably 
something to do with inspiration not perspiration), now 
I'm….ahem….somewhat more mature, I have come to appreciate the 
importance of 'creative hardware'. In order to write at the simplest 
level you need a pen and paper, but in order to write with even a 
semblance of professionalism, you need much more... I did subsequently 
take Mr Pratchett's advice, and got an Amstrad 8256 (oh, what a joy 
after my old typewriter!), which made me feel like a real writer, even 
though I most definitely wasn't. It didn't, of course, make me write. No 
gadget or gismo can help with that in the long term but, as they say, a 
workman is only as good as his tools. If you are going to write, you 
need the right basic equipment. Sir Terry, you were right all along. And 
for that, a belated thank you."

https://jennyroman.wordpress.com/2016/10/16/terry-pratchetts-advice-for-aspiring-writers/

booksbooksbooks200 gives The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner high marks:

"The stories are written in Pratchett's inimitable style. Beautifully 
written and illustrated, this is a treasure trove of stories for readers 
of all ages. The majority of these were written when Pratchett was a 
young journalist and the tweaked before his untimely death last year, 
this collection showcases his then emerging talent and humour. A 
wonderful book and If I had any kids I would delight in reading them 
these stories at bed time, instead I will keep them to myself and savour 
them when I need the a childish escape from real life that we all need 
from time to time."

https://booksbooksbooks200.wordpress.com/2016/10/20/the-witchs-vacuum-cleaner-by-terry-pratchett/

The gaming/horror/metal blog-collective known as GBHBL gives nine of ten 
stars to Mort:

"This is it. The moment where the Terry Pratchett's Discworld series 
finally starts coming into its own. The first that really begins to 
create the universe we all know & love, filled with plenty of the magic 
& wonder that existed before but held together with a fantastic plot... 
There is a reason why Mort is such a beloved story, one that has seen 
many adaptions & even ended up on stage! The Death books are some of my 
least favourite of the entire series but Mort is the standout of his 
stuff. It gives a massive amount of detail & character development for 
one of the most important characters on the Disc & introduces both Mort 
& Ysabell... Mort is the best of the series so far, so good I named my 
cat after him."

https://gbhbl.com/2016/10/17/discworld-series-review-mort-terry-pratchett/

On the Danville Library bookblog, Jessica A. feels the Wyrd Sisters love:

"What does one do when the very country itself (more than just the 
people within it) rejects the usurper to the throne? What does the 
usurper do to rewrite history? Should the witches even involve 
themselves in the matter? As with all Pratchett novels, this one is very 
funny. The footnotes are often the best part, explaining, for instance 
just why the Thieves have a Guild and why guild members must therefore 
give receipts to those they rob. The story involves many references to 
Shakespeare's plays, including Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello, and others. The 
characters are by turns endearing, intriguing, and in some cases 
horrifying. Death makes his usual cameo appearance and steals the show, 
literally. This is my favorite series, and I'm eagerly rereading the 
whole set..."

https://danvillelibrary.wordpress.com/2016/10/10/wyrd-sisters-by-terry-pratchett/

Blogger Beth reflects on The Shepherd's Crown:

"I really enjoyed this book. I loved Tiffany. I loved the Discworld. I 
loved so much about this book, but I can't help but feel I missed 
something. Although The Shepherd's Crown works fairly well as a 
standalone, the references to previous books were common and, given that 
I have only read a couple of Discworld novels before now, I expect often 
went over my head. I think that had I read it in the context of the 
previous Tiffany Aching novels I would have certainly enjoyed it more... 
In many ways, The Shepherd's Crown could be called a coming-of-age 
story, following Tiffany as she finds her place in the world. As she 
steps out of simply being Granny Weatherwax's heir and becomes her own 
witch. I think finding your own way in a changing world is one of the 
most important themes of the book. Although Tiffany is at the centre of 
the story, The Shepherd's Crown is full of characters fighting for their 
own place in the world- even if it isn't what they always thought it 
would be. From Geoffrey the boy witch to Nightshade the evil queen come 
good at last. Speaking of Geoffrey though, I wasn't his biggest fan I 
have to be honest. At times, he felt a little bit like a Mary Sue 
character. A boy from a privileged background, but oh no his dad was 
horrible, so he runs away and it turns out he has all of these magical 
gifts and everyone likes him. I didn't hate Geoffrey, I just felt he was 
a little bland. Overall, I liked The Shepherd's Crown and I do have 
plans to venture backwards into Pratchett's earlier Discworld stories..."

https://bethsbooktalk.wordpress.com/2016/10/09/review-the-shepherds-crown/

Pratchett collector (and fan) tonofwoot91 offers a long post, well worth 
reading, on the early Discworld novels including tCoM/tLF, Equal Rites, 
Mort, and Sourcery:

"The Colour of Magic was an excellent introduction... The Light 
Fantastic is a far more orthodox novel...

"Buying Discworld novels has become a hobby of mine. Whenever I'm in a 
new town, I go to the nearest charity shop to scour their shelves. My 
entire collection is made up of little finds from this place and that. 
Most of the time, I come up empty-handed but every now and then I find 
something new. In the back of older editions you'll find advertisements 
for the Discworld fanzine known as The Wizard's Knob. On seeing this, I 
didn't think much of it but now I realise just how important a fanzine 
was. Such groups are a great incentive to keep writers going... I wasn't 
as enthralled by Equal Rites as I was with other books in the series. 
This third novel comes at the point in the series where the author's 
output has just kicked up a notch. Despite being a pleasant book to 
read, it didn't carry the same level of humour as the other books. But 
what I will praise it for is its message: Reach for your dreams if you 
believe they're meant to be... Death and Mort have a touching 
relationship which goes through its rough patches. Overall, I think the 
character development in this book is some of the best in the series so 
far..."

https://wootreviews.wordpress.com/2016/10/05/my-thoughts-on-the-discworld-so-far/

Lizzy the Bent Bookworm, on the other hand, thinks Equal Rites 5 out of 
5 stars:

"I was immediately hooked by the mildly hysterical battle of the sexes 
that takes place within the first few pages – a dying wizard tries to 
bequeath his powers (and staff!) to the 8th son of an 8th son…who turns 
out to be a daughter... I love Esk, and I love Granny, and watching them 
tear through Discworld was just a rollicking, fun ride... Pratchett, as 
usual, manages to create his own very entertaining world and somehow 
have it be a satirical commentary on [its] own..."

https://bentbookworm.com/2016/09/13/book-review-equal-rites/

...while blogger Ryan, on Muse With Me, makes a well-intentioned attempt 
at analysing it:

"Though humorously approached, the gender issues seemed too simply 
presented to me at first. At the forefront they are apparent through 
negation: Esk seeks education saying 'Yes I can,' while the community 
and the wizards say 'No you can't.' Reading between the lines a little 
more, I did find that the argument for equality is more artfully woven 
into the story than I'd initially though. Each respective school of 
thought is simply a different way of approaching the same natural 
phenomenon. When considering this along with Granny's practice of 
Headology — which is essentially the idea that belief shapes reality — 
it's easy to see how their institutional structure is held together by 
how they believe things to be rather than what is possible... The 
characters are evocative and a lot of fun to read about. Granny is wise 
and capable, but a lot more unsure and inexperienced than she lets on. 
Esk, while intelligent and capable, is still childlike, retaining a bold 
and curiously naive approach to the people and places she encounters. 
This often goes array as her powers act more upon her whims than her 
will, which helped to keep things interesting. The plot is where the 
book felt flimsy to me, good characters notwithstanding... The writing 
style is witty and deceptively clever, articulating a world that I 
wanted to laugh with as much as speculate upon. The gender politics 
could have been more deeply explored than they were, but I don't feel 
the subject was done any disservice. It is the third book in the series 
so some prior experience would be handy, but it is quite accessible as 
well, if you'd rather pick and choose from this extensive series. I 
don't feel this will have been one of Pratchett's best for me, but it's 
still worth the read."

https://musewithmeblog.wordpress.com/2016/09/27/review-equal-rites/

Blogger The Bookbeard is ecstatic about the Discworld Colouring Book:

"Let me preface this by saying, I hid this from my son as soon as I 
opened the parcel. I love him but he's a toddler and will daub colour 
and wild scribbles on anything that stays still long enough. Including 
me. From the stylish cover to the excellent set of illustrations in the 
back of the book, this is both a testament to Terry Pratchett's 
wonderful Discworld and Paul Kidby's brilliant visual interpretation of 
those characters and places. Many of the drawings available to colour 
are accompanied by fantastic quotes from the Discworld novels, adding a 
great (and, for me, nostalgic) element to the concept. The illustrations 
are fantastic and I, for one, will not be attempting to let my (or my 
son's) crayons loose on such a magnificent book..."

https://thebookbeard.wordpress.com/2016/09/29/review-terry-pratchetts-discworld-colouring-book-by-paul-kidby/

...and finally, in the idiot's corner, we have one JM Williams, an 
unpublished soi-disant "author" who blathers at considerable length 
about how he considers Monstrous Regiment to be a failure even though 
"it's a great book with some of Pratchett's best characters", simply 
because Men Can't Write Female Characters. A prime contender for Your 
Editor's James B Tiptree Words "May Have Sex But Brains Don't" Award, 
and yet another demonstration of the dangers of Academia (may contain nuts):

"Anyone who has spent years in the liberal arts knows there are many 
traps to avoid with female characters. All too often, female characters 
are defined by their relationships to others, particularly to men or the 
patriarchy, rather than on their own terms. Pratchett's work seems to 
suffer the same problem. The main characters, all women but for one, are 
ultimately defined in this way. None of them join the army because they 
want to be soldiers; the enlistment is for each simply a means to an 
end. One joins in order to search for the deadbeat father of her unborn 
child; another needs to rescue her brother so he can inherit the family 
business; a pair join to stay together; another follows her lover; and 
so forth. Three of the characters are escaping abuse, two are trying to 
prove themselves in a societies that view women as lesser, one is 
working a legal loophole against a rule that is designed to keep women 
from social power; they are all rather cliche as concepts when you 
really think about it. Only two of the main characters are defined on 
their own merits, and they are men. And when one of these characters is 
revealed at the end to be a woman, her life in the army, a life as the 
most rugged and successful soldier ever, is degraded to a decision to 
follow her male lover into the military and then just sticking it out 
because there was nothing better. What the story lacks is any woman, any 
female at all, that chooses to join the army because they actually 
wanted to be soldiers. Every woman soldier, high or low, ended up there 
indirectly, but some just decided to stay for various reasons or because 
it was easier than leaving. So the overriding moral message is that yes, 
woman CAN do the same things that men can but they don't WANT to. By the 
end of the book it becomes a sweeping generalization. This in turn helps 
to reinforce the gender divide, rather than tear it down. It is 
ultimately limiting in its own way. The women defeat the strict 
patriarchy of their society by working from the inside, but their 
stories are always defined by these relationships...."

https://jmwwriting.wordpress.com/2016/10/03/discussion-the-danger-of-male-writers-and-female-characters/

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

10) IMAGES OF THE MONTH

Sculptor Richard Kingston at work on his marvellous piece for the 
Discworld Emporium – and some of the results: http://bit.ly/2fuWG00

Moist, Adora Belle and Postman Groat from the forthcoming Westoning 
Players production of Going Postal:
http://www.westoning-players.co.uk/sitebuilder/images/GP2016_Adora_Moist_Groat-286x386.jpg

The Abbot of the History Monks, by Paul Kidby in 2007 for the Talpress 
edition of Thief of Time: http://bit.ly/2epQ8LZ

...and a lovely sketch of Nanny and Greebo, that says it all about her 
feelings for him: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CvwxzeEWIAASyfm.jpg

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

11) CLOSE

It's been a long time since Pratchett quotes began to surface out in the 
wider world; these days it's nearly a badge of nous for random 
journalists and such to quote The Author. But Pratchett quotes can still 
crop up in surprising enough places to make them noteworthy – in this 
case, in an article about endangered big cats: "The five-day challenge 
opened volunteers' eyes to the plight of big cats across the world and 
the multitude of issues they face at the hands of man. Among those 
taking part was Al Scott, whose wife Adelle works in the foundation's 
Bognor office, on Castlegrove Business Park, and heads the 
communications and fundraising team. He said: 'Terry Pratchett once 
wrote "Them as can do has to do for them as can't. And someone has to 
speak up for them as has no voices". I'm one of them that can and there 
are some big cats who can't, and who need a voice.'" (To read the 
original article, go to _http://bit.ly/2f3aJHJ_)

And that's the lot for October. See you next month!

– Annie Mac


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