When the World Threw in the Towel

Since JKR is releasing an all-new story on Dolores Umbridge tomorrow (which I know you’re all waiting on the edges of your seats for), I thought this might be a good time for a little bit of reflection.

When Harry Potter was first released, it kind of stayed under the radar. One kid told his friend about it, who then told her friend, etc. As the series started to grow in popularity, different types of fans arose: die-hards (a.k.a. Potterheads) and those who jumped on the Potter bandwagon when it was all anyone could talk about. For the latter, Harry Potter was a passing fad, but for us Potterheads (whether you were there from the beginning or came later) that was not the case.

When the final movie hit theaters, some of my friends asked me, “What are you going to do now that Harry Potter is over?” At first, the answer to that question scared me because although I knew I would never stop loving Harry Potter, I didn’t know what I was going to do. Harry Potter was and is a huge part of my life. So I kept up on any news and reread the books, but in the eyes of most people, Harry Potter was over, or at least it fell back under the radar.

Then things began to happen. Soon there was a theme park, there was Pottermore, Quidditch was growing into a full-fledged sport, there was the World Cup on Pottermore, there was an expansion to the theme park, Fantastic Beasts was announced, and now a new story is about to drop. Harry Potter is regaining its place in the spotlight because when there wasn’t much enthusiasm, the fans gave the series hope. Without the fans, Harry Potter would be nothing.

So when the world threw in the towel, Potterheads remained. We have brought the story back into circulation with such intensity that people are once again recognizing the power of Harry Potter.

Special thanks to J.K. Rowling for knowing exactly what she was doing and using the loyal Potter fans to help give a resurgence to the series. Here’s to the Potter generations to come!