Although during his early career he wrote for the sci-fi and horror genres, Pratchett later focused almost entirely on fantasy, and said: "It is easier to bend the universe around the story." In the acceptance speech for his Carnegie Medal he said: "Fantasy isn't just about wizards and silly wands. It's about seeing the world from new directions", pointing to J. K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" novels and J. R. R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings". In the same speech, he acknowledged benefits of these works for the genre.