Influences: Terry Brooks

• Posted: November 27, 2006
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• Author: Chris Murphy
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• Filed under: Influences, Writing
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Terry Brooks is one of my earliest literary influences. I would love to say it was JRR Tolkien or even some of the classical greats, but - and not sadly - Terry's work has always been a well spring of inspiration.

Some of you may know Terry Brooks for his long running Shannara saga and others of you might know him from his work on The Word/Void trilogy and Landover series. For those of you who do not, Terry Brooks began his writing career with the publication of Sword of Shannara. He went on to explore the world of Shannara for two more books before moving onto other worlds altogether; the Landover series was born as a result of that. Despite the hiatus from the world of Shannara, he returned to produce other series in the saga some years later. Terry continued on that vein on and off and also managed to develop a wonderful basis for the origin of that world in the Word and the Void series.I’m not about to start pushing books on people; everyone has their favorite authors and typically connect with certain brands of sci-fi/fantasy. I always find it awkward when someone tries to share some of their own favorites with me. I’m sure there are those of you out there who share the same sentiment. It’s not that I do not appreciate the gesture (there are times where I have found myself really loving the introduction of new literary material), I just find it hard to tell someone that “I don’t like your brand of fantasy.” How do you say that to someone in a nice way without hurting their feelings?

I digress.

Terry Brooks is currently in the middle of completing the latest installment of the Shannara saga with the sequel to “Armageddon’s Children“. This was quite a departure from the world of Shannara that most of his readers are familiar with as it blends the world he created in the Word/Void series and the earliest histories of the Shannara saga. It is not a complete surprise that he has finally broached this topic of the Shannara world, and I have been expecting it ever since he completed work on the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara where he laid some of the groundwork.

Without giving too much away for those who have an interest in reading his latest series, I will simply say that it is a clever melding of worlds that touches briefly on some controversial modern subjects. That being said, it is still an endearing work. Terry has such a talent for character development where one finds themselves establishing a rapport with his characters that makes you feel as familiar with them as if you had imagined each one yourself.

I try not to compare authors as each writer is talented and unique in their individual way. For me, Terry Brooks is akin to a painter whose work is best imagined as broad strokes on a canvas where some of the finest details emerge when you step back and look at the finished painting as a whole.

Other Links:

1. Visit Terry Brooks on Amazon.com, here.
2. Visit Terry’s Brooks official website, here.

Technorati : Books, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Writing

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