Terry Pratchett Slams JK Rowling

31-07-2005 23:00

PRATCHETT ATTACKS ROWLING FOR MARGINALISING OTHER WRITERS

Author TERRY PRATCHETT has accused JK ROWLING of unfairly stealing the limelight from other fantasy writers with her increasingly popular HARRY POTTER books.

Pratchett is furious that bestselling writers like himself are being marginalised, due to the success of the Scottish writer's boy wizard books.

And he was so disgusted when Rowling declared she didn't realise Harry Potter was a fantasy and was "not a huge fan of the genre" he wrote a strongly-worded letter to Britain's Sunday Times newspaper, accusing her of gaining popularity "at the expense of other writers".

He fumes, "Ever since THE LORD OF THE RINGS revitalised the genre, writers have played with it, reinvented it, subverted it and bent it to their times.

"It has also contained come of the very best, most accessible writing for children, by writers who seldom get the acknowledgement they deserve.

"The status of JK Rowling is being elevated at the expense of these other writers.

"And I'm not the world's greatest expert. But I would have thought that the wizards, witches, trolls, unicorns, hidden worlds, jumping chocolate frogs, owl mail, magic food, ghosts, broomsticks and spells would have given her a clue that Harry Potter was fantasy."

Director MIKE NEWELL is using his forthcoming movie HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE to vent his seething mistrust of children.

The 63-year-old film-maker is determined to obliterate any sense of false innocence in the magical tale, as he insists kids should be depicted in a more truthful light - as bloodthirsty maniacs.

He says, "I was very anxious to break the franchise out of this goody-two-shoes feel.

"It's my view that children are violent, dirty, corrupt anarchists. Just adults-in-waiting basically."