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http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2013/may/30/jack-vance-tributes-george-rr-martin

Loved his work - some of my favorites were, of course, anything set in The Dying Earth (but especially stories involving Cugel!), The Cadwal Chronicles, the Lyonesse Trilogy, The Demon Princes series, and too many others to name...

He certainly lived a full life, and we certainly all benefited from it...

One of the greatest writers to ever live, his prose is worthy of the highest acclaim. Thank you Mr. Vance for the joy, wonder and pure mirth your scintillating works have brought me over the years.

“What are your fees?" inquired Guyal cautiously. "I respond to three questions," stated the augur. "For twenty terces I phrase the answer in clear and actionable language; for ten I use the language of cant, which occasionally admits of ambiguity; for five, I speak a parable which you must interpret as you will; and for one terce, I babble in an unknown tongue.”

He's got a major place in my bookshelves,

and the Dying Earth stuff influenced so many other authors

That is the man who brought us the concept of spell memorization. He had a massive influence on the gaming world too. I think it's hard to find a more influential person in modern fantasy.

 GreyHamster wrote:
That is the man who brought us the concept of spell memorization. He had a massive influence on the gaming world too. I think it's hard to find a more influential person in modern fantasy.

Right - the original AD&D magic system is in fact a "Vancian" one - love it!