Chapters in Discworld Books

[swreader]

Hollywodd keeps changing the ending of films - even those that are based on fact.

I even remember a documentary on TV with Terry who recountered that Hollywood were talking about making a film of 'Mort', but asked if he could lose the Death character, as the Mid-West weren't ready for Death as an individual entity!

On the theory that this thread has gone totally of the original point, but because your post, Batty, reminded me that young editors have been equally inclined to miss the point also. Tony Hillerman used to tell a story about an editor (his first) who looked at the first of the famous Joe Leaphorn (Navajo policeman) novels and said, "This is a pretty good mystery, but lose the Indians."

[kakaze]

I don't care about the use of chapters one way or another.

However, I don't really like the little tags put under the chapter titles in Going Postal.

However, they're easy to ignore.

[Dotsie]

I seem to recall (though I could be wrong) J K Rowling's UK editors said no kid would read a massively long book but she stuck to her guns and refused to compromise. The rest is history.

The same J K Rowling who allowed the name of her first book to be changed for the American market? All writers have to bow to editorial pressure to some extent. Putting chapters in seems minor compared with changing the name of your book.

[Exp. Date, the rat]

I think chapters are fine. In fact they help when you only have a certain time to read in a day and going for one chapter helps, escp when you are laying in bed at night. It is easier to say I will read one chapter, then just the next page, then 30 pages later and half the night is gone you feel like a complete -ing idiot!

It was a surprise in Going Postal and I thought it was fun to go back and look at the headers and see what it specifically referencing.

[poohbcarrot]

I seem to recall (though I could be wrong) J K Rowling's UK editors said no kid would read a massively long book but she stuck to her guns and refused to compromise. The rest is history.

The same J K Rowling who allowed the name of her first book to be changed for the American market? All writers have to bow to editorial pressure to some extent. Putting chapters in seems minor compared with changing the name of your book.

Bingo Dotsie! Thankyou.

J K Rowling didn't bow to UK editorial pressure, but to US EDITORIAL PRESSURE. Which is exactly my original point!

So supposing TP had to bow to US editorial pressure and put chapters in. As an act of rebellion he also includes little teasers to make HIS chapters different from everyone elses' chapters. Makes sense to me.

[MattK]

I think this is getting a bit over-analyzed and speculative. Maybe he just wanted to try something different. Or maybe he thought it just fit with the style of the book. Either way, you can't blame a man for wanting to get outside of his normal routine.

[Tonyblack]

I seem to recall (though I could be wrong) J K Rowling's UK editors said no kid would read a massively long book but she stuck to her guns and refused to compromise. The rest is history.

The same J K Rowling who allowed the name of her first book to be changed for the American market? All writers have to bow to editorial pressure to some extent. Putting chapters in seems minor compared with changing the name of your book.

Bingo Dotsie! Thankyou.

J K Rowling didn't bow to UK editorial pressure, but to US EDITORIAL PRESSURE. Which is exactly my original point!

So supposing TP had to bow to US editorial pressure and put chapters in. As an act of rebellion he also includes little teasers to make HIS chapters different from everyone elses' chapters. Makes sense to me.

But your email from Colin Smythe seems to say the opposite to this. It says, from the way that I read it, that it was Terry's choice.

And if you use the Rowling example, she did change the US title but NOT the UK ones. ALL the Discworld books in the UK or the US have the chapters - why couldn't he (if her objected so strongly) leave the chapters out?

It makes a lot more sense that this was Terry's own decision. It sounds like you are trying to lay blame where there is none.

[poohbcarrot]

I think this is getting a bit over-analyzed and speculative. Maybe he just wanted to try something different. Or maybe he thought it just fit with the style of the book. Either way, you can't blame a man for wanting to get outside of his normal routine.

Aren't your second, third and last sentences "speculative"?

[MattK]

I think this is getting a bit over-analyzed and speculative. Maybe he just wanted to try something different. Or maybe he thought it just fit with the style of the book. Either way, you can't blame a man for wanting to get outside of his normal routine.

Aren't your second, third and last sentences "speculative"?

Uh... well, you see... they're more what you'd call... inquisitive.

I actually thought for a good ten minutes on how to not make that contradiction and decided, after much internal debate, screw it.

[poohbcarrot]

A good honest answer!

[poohbcarrot]

It sounds like you are trying to lay blame where there is none.

I'm just playing devil's advocate to stimulate an interesting debate.

[Dotsie]

Tsk! I do think that all writers, be they ever so big & fancy, have to take direction from their editors (that's the editors' job after all). I just don't think that this is a particular instance of it, is all.

[chris.ph]

i like chapters , i will just carry on reading if it just carries on and on

[mspanners]

They dont make any sence until you have read the chapter and are a reminder of where to find episode in a book after the first read so not problem with me! Actually quite fun tring to guess whats up and coming in the chapter when first read.....

[Jan Van Quirm]

I think this is getting a bit over-analyzed and speculative. Maybe he just wanted to try something different. Or maybe he thought it just fit with the style of the book. Either way, you can't blame a man for wanting to get outside of his normal routine.

Aren't your second, third and last sentences "speculative"?

Uh... well, you see... they're more what you'd call... inquisitive.

I actually thought for a good ten minutes on how to not make that contradiction and decided, after much internal debate, screw it.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Watch it Matt - it's habit-forming!