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A tale of tempestuouse passiones, thwartedd luvv, and ill-propagated newgroupes in a worlde gonne mad! [1]
Actually, not much of a tale to tell of how this particular newsgroup came into being. In late 1994, it was observed by many that alt.fan.pratchett was suffering a bit of a major article overload, and lots of people were beginning to complain that they couldn't get the choice juicy bits (book announcements, signing tour dates, and such) and there was a general concensus that a moderated, low-volume announcements group would be at least a partial solution to this. Okeydoke, we decided. Better have a word with alt.config, in that case.
This is a very important stage in newsgroup creation, as if groups are not properly discussed, a lot of sites won't carry them, and the unfortunate creator tends to get burned to a crisp by the subsequent reaction. So, we donned our best flameproof garments, examined all the pros and cons, worked out the complex legal arguments involved, found answers to all the probable objections, then took a deep breath and bravely raised the subject. The discussion went something along the lines of...
Alt.fan.pratchett: "We think we should have an announcements newsgroup for alt.fan.pratchett."
Alt.config: "Yup, sounds good to us. No worries."
Obviously, this was a setback. A group which passed the notorious flamefest that is alt.config without even a vague hint of fiery dissent couldn't possibly succeed. What the hell, I thought, someone has to do it, and newgrouped the group anyway on Thursday 17 November, 1994. Since then, there have been around 140 things people have considered important enough to announce to the world. Low volume, but hopefully not low interest.
The purpose of AFPA is to provide the juicy bits of Pratchett-related news to the wise people who choose not to trawl through the charmingly rustic AFP in full. If you have some interesting information that the world would find interesting, then feel free to submit them - the editorial policy is pretty lax. The moderator is a nice enough chap (or so I've been told), so don't be afraid...
[1] Though notte invollvinge a thousande elephantes. Sorrie.
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