Why I'm Giving

Back in 1984, I was a spotty, geeky teenager who spent most of his lunchtimes hanging around in the local branch of Games Workshop chatting to the staff and other spotty teenagers. One day, Ben the deputy manager shoved a book into my hand and told me to buy it. Impressed by his no nonsense approach to selling I brought it without really looking at it. It was only when I was on the bus home that night that I gave it any attention and discovered it was called The Colour of Magic.

A few years later I was the proud owner of several Discworld novels but I had fallen in with a bad crowd of Douglas Adams fans know as ZZ9. After sitting in a pub all day someone suggested than there should be a Discworld fan club and a few minutes later we had a committee for Octarine, the Terry Pratchett Fan Club. Next weekend, we descended on a science fiction convention that Terry would be at. After hanging around in the bar all day, nervously waiting our chance, we pounced on Terry, explained our great plan and something amazing happen. Terry Pratchett listen and talked to us. With a skill I didn't appreciate until I was a lot older, he guided us away from being the Pratchett fan club and instead suggest we covered all science fiction and fantasy humour. It was good advice and Octarine, The Science Fiction & Fantasy Humour Appreciation Society was born.

Terry gave us his contact details and that of his agents. In no time Terry's publishers were sending us press releases and review copies. To a bunch of fan-boys and girls, this was heaven. The club prospered, especially as Terry would refer to us as The officially unofficial Not-the-Terry-Pratchett-Fan-Club and pass on our details to anyone who asked. This led on to Octarine's Way-Out Day-Outs where fans and the man himself would visit a theme park and have a party. Eventually we thought it would be a good idea to run a convention and Terry came along as "the man who most certainly wasn't the guest of honour, oh-no most definitely not".

The convention was great fun but an organisational disaster because none of us knew what we were doing. Despite this, through out the convention, Terry got involved with everything and willingly played the fall guy in half the programme. His presence and enthusiasm saved the weekend from complete meltdown.

Time passed and Octarine faded from my life and from existence but others fans took over. Alt.fan.pratchett gave birth to the first Discworld convention. We went along and saw Terry, who was now a world famous, best selling author, engage with his fans in exactly the same way he did with us ten years before. He would take time to talk to fans and thank them for buying his books. He knew how much his books meant to the fans and was, and probably still is, touched and honoured by this.

As I write this, sitting on the bookcases downstairs is every book Terry Pratchett has written. They still give me as much joy now as they did when I first opened The Colour of Magic on a bus home more than twenty years ago. What gives me even more joy, are the memories and friends I made through Octarine. Without Terry's support, advice and above all patience, none of it would of happened.

This is why I'm giving to Match It For Pratchett.

Why are you giving?

Comments

[Kathy Hatfield - USA]

My name is Kathy, and I am the primary caregiver for my 79 year old Dad who has Alzheimer's disease and lives with me in North Carolina.

I am writing a daily blog on my Alzheimer's caregiver website that shows the lighter side of caring for someone with dementia.

We have also added over 100 pages of resources for caregivers that we have gathered over the three years Dad has lived here.

Please pass this link along to anyone you feel would enjoy it.

http://www.KnowItAlz.com

Thanks,
Kathy

[Robert]

Hey - if you work for microsoft, you can donate through the matching program and get your donation doubled.

[Jones]

Check this idea, perhaps it can help you out, or perhaps you can help here, or just join forces, or lend moral support.

http://community.livejournal.com/discworld/823554.html

[K`shandra]

The announcement that Pterry had made his contribution hit my LiveJournal friends page on the anniversary date of my great-great-aunt's passing last year. She was three weeks shy of her 99th birthday, and was blessed with a fully-functional body and brain until the very end. Her sister, my great-grandmother, was not so lucky...she spent her last five years on this earth descending into senile dementia, trapped inside her own mind for those final 18 months.

After Nana's passing, her daughter (my Grammy) stated on more than one occasion that she didn't want to "end up like her;" sadly, this became a self-fulfilling prophecy, and she has been in a residential facility specializing in Alzheimer's and dementia care for several years now. So it's no real surprise that I read the announcement and found that my wallet felt a little heavy....

[Patrick M]

I'm giving because PTerry has not only provided me with literally months of reading enjoyment, but has also made it possible for me to meet wonderful people all across the world that I would never have known about otherwise. Through Terry Pratchett Books (.com) I have met and get to communicate with an amazing group of fans that end up being like family.

I got to briefly speak with him at a recent book signing in Torrance, California. I waited my turn, handed him my copy of Making Money and tried to make some witty small talk - just to say that I had spoken to him. Terry had been at it for some time by then and must have been beat - but not only did he take the time to listen, he contniued to engage me in conversation. He did that with everyone I think; not just a "Hi. How are you? Fine." He was really glad to be there meeting his fans and speaking with them.

Terry is a class act and a talented man. He has given us all an entirely new universe to explore, has let it run free among us and infect us with its being. I'm sure he has many more stories to tell.

I really want him to have that chance to tell those stories.

Thank you Terry Pratchett!

[Sajia Kabir]

Terry Pratchett helped me to grow up. I suffer from bipolar disorder and his books, even when I violently disagreed with them, helped me to understand the ways of the world.