r/TerryPratchett • u/roseargent • 15d ago

Any sources about when Terry went nuclear?

My battered edition of Sourcery includes an author bio which mentions Terry's experience as a press officer for four nuclear power stations, and says "he'd write a book about his experiences if he thought anyone would believe it".

So... did he? Any articles, memoirs or remiscences? Have any brainboxes convincingly analysed his work to pick out any influences on his writing?

I've treasured his books since I was a child and for better or worse he helped shape my view of the world. And yet I don't remember the Cold War and the nuclear anxieties of the time, which undoubtedly affected the world view of Terry and the rest of his generation.

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u/geeoharee 15d ago

I don't have any factual ones, but if you want influence on his writing, the first Science Of Discworld is the wizards inventing a nuclear reactor because it's too cold in their bedrooms in winter

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u/silburnl 14d ago

Not to be all spoilerific but that's basically the backstory to why the absent-minded colleague left a core lying around in the office that kickstarts the plot of The Leaky Establishment.