I was a huge Potterhead back in the day (well…I still am, just not as obsessed). I know the books are great and all, I know how addictive her writing style is, that she can create such vivid and engaging characters and places, and the stories keep you hungry for more…but IMO that still does not completely explain the insane hype that generated. I don’t think there has ever been this level of mania and craze for a book – a children’s/YA book for that matter. So I am wondering, what are some of the factor that led to the hype? I’ve heard things like the rise in Internet (and internet fandom), JKR’s rags-to-riches story, etc all contributed. So for those who have been there, what was the mania like at that point, and what factors (aside from the quality of the books themselves) that lead to it?
I read the first 3 (all that were out at the time, ~1999-2000) at about nineteen years old by the recommendation of my girlfriend at the time. I wasn’t super-up on the craze otherwise, just vaguely familiar with the name. I continued through the three books (and eventually the rest) because I liked the books, and likewise, I think the primary reasons for the phenomenon are the books. Media attention and chance and other things certainly play a role, but people liked the stories, and that’s what mattered most.
The prose isn’t brilliant, but it’s good enough to not annoy most people, and the characters, the world, and the plots are just better than average, occasionally way better. So my answer to “why the phenomenon,” is a qualified, “the books are just really good.” (Qualified because things can be really good even if not perfect, universally appealing, or even if they have bad qualities.)
Trans rights are human rights. JK sucks.