No more Arthur! - The S&L Podcast #47

[Veronica, Supreme Sword]

New episode is up!

http://www.swordandlaser.com/home/201...

Topics:
J.K. Rowling
They'd Rather Be Right: The Classic Hugo Winning Novel
How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe

Visit this thread to win a copy of TOAFK! You know.. in case you want to read it again.

[Tamahome]

Tamahome (tom-ah-hoe-may) is an anime and manga character from Fushigi Yûgi: The Mysterious Play, Volume 1: Priestess. I wish I could find the fan video where Miaka says his name over and over. I am a dude. I didn't exactly recommend the Charles Yu book, but I mentioned it. Don't blame me if you don't like it!

[Veronica, Supreme Sword]

Tamahome wrote: "Tamahome (tom-ah-hoe-may) is an anime and manga character from Fushigi Yûgi: The Mysterious Play, Volume 1: Priestess. I wish I could find the fan video where Miaka says his name ove..."

Thank you, and I'm so sorry for constantly mispronouncing it. Now I know!!

[Lepton]

Just to point out another "too close for comfort" similarity to Rowling's Harry Potter is Ursula K. LeGuin's Ged or Sparrowhawk in A Wizard of Earth Sea (1968) wherein a poor-born young gifted and powerful wizard is taken to a school of wizards. There, the prideful Ged is goaded by a well-born, arrogant wizard to raise the dead. Ged accidentally creates his own shadow beast that when attacking him leaves a scar on his face. This shadow has the same abilities as Ged and the character comes to realize that the two are linked and only one can survive. The ultimate resolution is that the two are merged together if I remember correctly.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Wizard...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Po...

[Sean]

Here's the thing about Nancy Stouffer: her books were self-published and never sold in stores until after she made her cash-grab. The odds that Rowling had ever seen the books are infinitesimal.

As for the similarity to other books, Rowling was aping British boarding school novels like Stalky & Co and Tom Brown's Schooldays, which are also the inspiration for many of the other magic school books out there.

(Incidentally, if you want real fun, check out the Flashman novels by George MacDonald Fraser, which tell of the further adventures of the Malfoy-equivalent from Tom Brown's Schooldays.)

[Don]

I completely believe Rowling stole her ideas from other books, possibly even Nancy Stouffer. Rowling didn't achieve success because she had new ideas, or because she had masterful command of the language, but because what she wrote was approachable and I appreciate that a lot.

The kind of thievery she perpetrated is a well established literary tradition, but perhaps she should have done a better job giving it a makeover.

[Noel]

Thievery is an insulting and inaccurate allegation. I really think you should think before you post.

[Don]

I suppose you may be right Noel, however if I did what she did and somebody called it theivery I wouldn't find it insulting. I'm sorry if you do.

She took ideas and elements from other places and stitched together a nice quilt of a story.

[Noel]

Since Tolkien, most authors' work have been derivative to a greater or lesser extent. All borrow from a myriad of cultural references and to label Rowling as being particularly guilty is unfair and a bit of a cheap shot. I thought it was only us Brits that sought to denigrate the successful.

[Don]

All borrow from a myriad of cultural references...

True that. Even Tolkien lifted ideas from mythology and history.

I suppose it is the rough treatment she's given other authors that makes me less inclined to give her a benefit of softer language.