Editing Terry Pratchett (section)

==Career==
In 1968 Pratchett interviewed [[Peter Bander van Duren]], co-director of a small publishing company, Colin Smythe Ltd. Pratchett mentioned that he had written a manuscript, ''[[The Carpet People]]''.{{sfn|Cabell|2011|p=15}}<ref>{{cite news|title=Welcome to the world of Terry|work=The Scotsman online|url=http://news.scotsman.com/terrypratchett/Welcome-to-the-world-of.2470398.jp|date=16 October 2003|access-date=17 December 2008|archive-date=20 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020213929/http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/books/features/welcome-to-the-world-of-terry-1-901031|url-status=dead}}</ref> Colin Smythe Ltd published the book in 1971, with illustrations by Pratchett.{{sfn|Cabell|2011|p=16}} It received strong, although few, reviews and was followed by the science fiction novels ''[[The Dark Side of the Sun]]'' (1976) and ''[[Strata (novel)|Strata]]'' (1981).{{sfn|Cabell|2011|pp=17–18, 28}} In the 1970s and 1980s, Pratchett published stories in a regional newspaper under the pseudonym Patrick Kearns.<ref name="Shaffi2023">{{Cite news |last=Shaffi |first=Sarah |date=27 February 2023 |title=Rediscovered Terry Pratchett stories to be published |language=en-GB |work=[[The Guardian]] |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/feb/27/rediscovered-terry-pratchett-stories-to-be-published |access-date=27 February 2023 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

After various positions in journalism, in 1979 Pratchett became press officer for the South West Region of the [[Central Electricity Generating Board]] (CEGB) in an area that contained three [[nuclear power station]]s.{{efn|Burrows states that Pratchett joined the CEGB in 1979 and oversaw three nuclear stations,{{sfn|Burrows|2020|loc=chpt. 7}} but according to Cabell, he started work in 1980 and the number of stations may have been either three or four.{{sfn|Cabell|2011|p=28}}}} He later joked that he had demonstrated "impeccable timing" by making this career change so soon after the [[Three Mile Island accident|Three Mile Island]] nuclear accident in [[Pennsylvania]], US, and said he would "write a book about his experiences if he thought anyone would actually believe them".{{sfn|Cabell|2011|p=28}}<ref name="writerswrite">{{cite news|title=A conversation with Terry Pratchett|work=Writerswrite.com|url=http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/apr00/pratchett.htm|date=26 March 2007|access-date=17 December 2008}}</ref>

The first ''Discworld'' novel, ''[[The Colour of Magic]]'', was published in hardback by Colin Smythe Ltd in 1983. Pratchett gave up working for the CEGB to make his living through writing in 1987, after finishing the fourth ''Discworld'' novel, ''[[Mort]]''. His sales increased quickly and many of his books occupied top places on bestseller lists; he was the UK's bestselling author of the 1990s.<ref name="guardian">{{cite news |last=Weale |first=Sally |date=8 November 2002 |title=Life on planet Pratchett |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/nov/08/sciencefictionfantasyandhorror.terrypratchett |access-date=6 June 2007 |work=Guardian Unlimited |location=London}}</ref> According to ''The Times'', Pratchett was the top-selling and highest earning UK author in 1996.<ref name="smythe" /> Some of his books have been published by [[Doubleday (publisher)|Doubleday]], another Transworld imprint.{{sfn|Burrows|2020|loc=chpt. 11}} In the United States, where his books are published by [[HarperCollins]], Pratchett had poorer sales, marketing and distribution until 2005, when ''[[Thud!]]'' reached the ''[[New York Times]]'' bestseller list.{{sfn|Burrows|2020|loc=chpt. 16}}

According to the ''Bookseller's Pocket Yearbook'' (2005), in 2003 Pratchett's UK sales amounted to 3.4% of the fiction market by hardback sales and 3.8% by value, putting him in second place behind [[J. K. Rowling]] (6% and 5.6%, respectively), while in the paperback sales list Pratchett came 5th with 1.2% and 1.3% by value (behind [[James Patterson]] (1.9% and 1.7%), [[Alexander McCall Smith]], [[John Grisham]] and [[J. R. R. Tolkien]]).<ref>{{cite web |date=August 2005 |title=Discworld Monthly – Issue 100: August 2005 – New from Colin Smyth |url=http://www.discworldmonthly.co.uk/dwm0100.php |access-date=6 June 2007 |publisher=Jason Anthony, DiscworldMonthly.co.uk}}</ref> He has UK sales of more than 2.5&nbsp;million copies a year.{{sfn|James|2012|p=75}} His 2011 ''Discworld'' novel ''[[Snuff (Pratchett novel)|Snuff]]'' became the third-fastest-selling hardback adult-readership novel since records began in the UK, selling 55,000 copies in the first three days.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=Pratchett's Snuff snaffles top spot with ease |url=http://www.thebookseller.com/news/pratchetts-snuff-snaffles-top-spot-ease.html |access-date=3 December 2012 |magazine=The Bookseller}}</ref> As of 2023, Pratchett's works have sold more than 100&nbsp;million copies in 43&nbsp;languages.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bushby |first=Helen |date=27 February 2023 |title=Sir Terry Pratchett: Short stories to be published after being found by fans |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-64789059 |publisher=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>