JK Rowling, the celebrated author of the path breaking Harry Potter series of books has her name written down in the annals of literary history. Every one, of all age groups and across geographical boundaries has been touched by the charm of this magical story. The Harry potter books can boast of claiming the number one position on the top of The New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. The latest one belonging to the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, is no exception.

It would be appropriate here to give a little background of the author of these books. Joanne Rowling was born in Chipping Sodbury near Bristol, England. After graduating from Exeter University, she started working as a secretary, and later moved on to teach English in Portugal. She currently resides in Scotland with her husband and three children. Her most noticeable achievements include winning the Hugo Award, the Bram Stoker Award, and the Whitbread Award for Best Children’s Book.

It was in 1998 in United States that Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone was published. With this we witnessed the Potter-mania engulfing the whole nation, with both the children and the parents wanting to read the same books! The rest came out in quick succession, and by the fall of 1999, two new books had come out. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire got released on 8th July, 2000 and within 48 hours of its release, sold about three million copies to become the fastest selling book in history! This title was claimed by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when it got released on June 21, 2003.

Warner Bros, the film production company has the rights to create films on all the Harry Potter books released till now. The Harry Potter books by Rowling have been translated into 63 languages and distributed in over 200 countries. Moreover, all the five books released so far have appeared in the bestsellers list of United States, Britain, and around the globe.

How is it possible that some reviewers can read and fully digest a 784 page book, and post a thoughtful, well-considered 1,100-word review in a single day?

It’s really not as hard as you might think.

First, you start with speed reading.

Speed reading is quite common, and with practice it’s possible to reach speeds of up to a page every 15 or 20 seconds, which means you could read the seventh book in the Harry Potter series, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” in about 5 hours or so.

And true speed readers are not just skimming and skipping. They’re actually absorbing and understanding all the content with full retention.

Then comes the tricky part.

To write the review, it’s entirely possible to blast through a 1,100 word review in a matter of hours. When you use something like the FAST System (as explained in“Writing Fast: How to Write Anything with Lightning Speed”), you quickly understand that all you need is a systematic approach to the writing process — and with less practice than you might think, belting out a 1,100-word review in an hour or two becomes a piece of cake.

I think you’d need some practice to get up to reviewing and writing the article in a single day, but, really it’s just a matter of practice. And the fact is, the more you write FAST, the faster you’ll write.

Put in about a half hour of practice each day, and you’ll be speed reading and speed writing at this time next year.

Oxford graduate student Karen A. Brown has published a study on discrimination in J.K. Rowling’s ‘Harry Potter’ novels (See http://www.thelppc.com/featuredbook-prejudiceinharrypotter.html). While it has been widely acknowledged that Rowling’s work chronicles real-world social issues through some not-so-subtle subplots and allegories, so far, no one has dedicated an entire book to the subject. And Brown hastens to emphasize this feature in her blog, where she admits that she has been doing some “promotional work” for the new book. (See http://www.thelppc.com/karenbrown-blogg-prejudiceinharrypotter.html).

Ironically, this book’s release coincides with the latest controversy surrounding Rowling’s work, as HPLexicon.com founder Steve Vander Ark’s efforts to publish his own ‘Harry Potter Lexicon’ have been thwarted by Rowling’s lawyers. They claim that the Lexicon breeches their client’s copyright and infringes upon exclusive materials that Rowling intends to use in her own ‘Harry Potter Encyclopaedia.’

Since Brown has made it possible for readers to write to her, I contacted her to enquire how she felt about the Vander Ark controversy, and how it impacts upon her upcoming publication. She insists that ‘Prejudice in Harry Potter’s World’ does not in any way infringe upon Ms. Rowling’s copyright, and that all copyrighted materials (quotes and long citations) are properly referenced and kept to a minimum, as specified by the Christopher Little Literary Agency, to whom she wrote years ago to request permission to publish an essay entitled “Harry Potter and the Minorities Issue.”

“Lots of publishers turned me down,” Brown claims. “And it was not because of copyright concerns: Many other things have been written about Rowling’s work, none of them being given her authorization or approval. But I found it curious that most of the rejection letters I got clearly stated that my study was not marketable because no one was interested in reading about prejudice and racism. Some editors stressed that people who read Harry Potter are not interested in reading ‘about’ the books. So in the end I decided to publish the book myself, and mostly for me, because I strongly believe in the ideas put forth in it.”

All things considered, Ms. Brown appears to be quite passionate about this project, and seems to understand her own legal standing where Rowling’s work is concerned: “I did not create Harry Potter, obviously. I simply comment on how the books make reference to some of the social trends in our own world. Wizarding-world biases and social hierarchy share some shocking similarities with our own world. And I think we need to stop and take notice.”

Rowling herself has stated in various interviews that the series is a “prolonged argument for tolerance.” And it is at least encouraging that one of her readers has chosen to focus on this message.

I was wondering where God is in the Harry Potter books. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve read them all and I plan on reading the next one when I can get my hands on it - all seven thousand pages, or whatever monster volume J.K. Rowlings comes out with, because nobody edits her anymore. (I’m not such a huge fan, but I find these books pleasantly diverting enough so that I read each one all the way through).

But as to my question, after reading all of these books I was just struck by the fact that nobody ever goes to church in her books. Even the cruel Aunt and Uncle who care for young Harry in the muggle(non-magical) world never go to church. It seems to me that she Rowlings posits a sort of agnostic or secular type of England where no one much seems to have any sort of spiritual philosophy, outside of perhaps just the existence of magic.

There are ghosts in her books which indicates some sort of after life. They function sort of as a comic relief and they don’t do much of anything except basically hang around and make conversation every now and then. There’s no indication that they ever faced judgement or will or might go either to Heaven or Hell or even what unfinished business they might need to finish on the Earth. Major characters who have died, Harry’s parents, Sirius Black, don’t become ghosts. So, what happens to them?

There’s never any mention of God. There’s also no mention of the Devil. And there’s never any mention of where magic comes from or why there’s even magic in the world. (I know. The evangelical answer is: The Devil. But these are her books and it’s for her to answer). This finally makes her books rather unsatisfying because she lacks a unifying framework to put all of her stories in.

I haven’t dismissed the idea that her books are in themselves metaphors for a Christian theology. In this case, Hogwarts schools would represent the world, the students are us, Lord Voldemort would be the Devil (obviously) and Dumbledore would be God, you know with his long white beard and all-knowingness. Maybe then Harry is Jesus. Well, I’m sure I’m not the first person to come up with this interpetation.

Generally, I don’t think Christian symbolism works too well in fantasy. I’m thinking of C.S. Lewis’s Lion, Witch and Wardrobe books, whichI read when I was eight or nine. I read a few of them and then stopped when I figured out what was going on. The fantasy elements were fun, but the preachiness turned me off. And I got enough of that in church, anyways.

To all those who feel a bit magical and have decided to fly out to Rome on a Nimbus 2000 on a very special weekend for the magic world. Nothing to be missed. Rome is behind to nobody and all the major bookstores will be open at 08:00 am sharp on the 21st of July for the last chapter of the Harry Potter saga. Book your Rome accommodation and you will spend a very original weekend with the most known wizard in the world.

Feltrinelli International, one of the major bookshops in Rome is located in the Termini area, therefore you could book one of the very many hotels around there. 4 star hotels as well as 2 star guest houses and bed and breakfast to satisfy all kind of wizard and witch. It would be nice to stay in the area since the bookstore is organizing events that will go on for the whole day. At 08:00 breakfast with Potter, at 17:00 Tea Time and at 18:00 reading with Alison Victoria. Not to be missed!!

The Almost Corner Bookshop is doing something even more original. It will be open from 01:00 to 01:30 am which is exactly 12:00 Greenwich time. The bookstore is located in the Trastevere area which is once again rich of nice bed and breakfast and cosy hotels. Trastevere is, according to many, one of the most characteristic, more mysterious areas of Rome. It is full of narrow alleys and gloomy ends. Some parts of the area are so quite to seem nearly inhabited, just the perfect spot for a nice trip abroad of the Hogwarts students. Rome is even organized to host a real quidditch game. Circo Massimo could be the ideal location to enjoy a super cool quidditch match besides of course… that is full of history.

After you have purchased your book you could spend a few hours in the Avalon Pub. Wood tables and benches, gloomy atmosphere, gates, armours, it resembles a castle. You could really feel at Hogwarts. Avalon takes its modern name from the celtic Annwyn, or rather the fairy godmother island. Nothing better! Enjoy.

Rome offers nice lodgings and cheap bed and breakfast around the Vatican area for the muggle world, for those who don’t believe in magic and for those who refuse to see its positive aspects; for those who agree with Rev. Amorth who condemns Harry Potter novels affirming it can easily lead to Devil and could confuse a young child who reads the novel. For those who believe that magic is Evil, Rome offers nice hotels with or without private facilities for those who are on a budget but still want to enjoy the protected atmosphere of a holy world. Relax. Don’t be so uptight. Don’t worry, Christian parents. Harry Potter is not the real world! It is an imaginary world. Children know the difference between the two.

Come on then! The pro Harry Potter could spend the weekend in Rome without having to hide. They could purchase the last book of their favourite hero and spend a nice weekend booking a hotel room where Harry Potter would book it too. For the others….oh well Rome is big enough. The Eternal city will accommodate you as well.

Almost 2 months from now, on July 21, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will hit bookshelves. Already, stores are taking pre-orders and planning midnight release parties. Fans are craving every nugget of plot detail they can find on the Internet.

According to Amazon.com, it’ll be a 784-page book. Who has time to read all of it? Who has that kind of attention span? Who reads anything these days?

Apparently, lots of people do. Combined, the books in the Harry Potter series have sold over 250 million copies worldwide. Somebody’s reading all those words. Words that are typeset on pages. Pages that are bound in book form.

So why the hell do my clients think a paragraph with 3 sentences of copy is “too long” for their audience?

It’s not consumers who have the short attention spans. It’s the clients. Because today’s clients aren’t concerned with brand equity, customer relationships, or long-term initiatives. It’s a project-to-project, deliverable-to-deliverable existence. They’re worried about their jobs—and surviving in those jobs for one more month.

For a CMO, the figure that’s popularly kicked around is 18 months—as average tenure on the job. Add to that all the underlings who report to that CMO. They all need to kiss ass and meet their numbers, whatever those numbers may be. Marketing’s middle managers subsist from PowerPoint deck to PowerPoint deck. So it’s no wonder that they’re smitten with bullet points, three-word sentences and immediate gratification. Context? Forget it. Storytelling? No time. Patience? “Fuck that, we have to get this piece out ASAP.”

These days, you can’t even explain to a client the importance of a well-written or well-designed ad. Why? Because they’re not paying attention. They’re checking their BlackBerry or stare into space, preoccupied with that afternoon’s meeting with the boss.

That’s why they don’t believe consumers read. Most of us, and our clients, can no longer remember what it’s like to be on the receiving end of an ad message.

The problem isn’t that consumers don’t read. It’s that they don’t give a fraction of a shit about the products or services our clients make. Our client’s product is not the solution to some perceived problem. It’s just another widget on the shelf. No one cares, and bullet points aren’t the answer.

The problem isn’t that consumers don’t read. It’s that creatives rarely give them anything worth reading these days. No clever turns of phrases. Nothing to make a reader or viewer think, pause, or reflect. Nothing to make them even go, “What the fuck are they talking about?” No, the message is dumbed down to the same dull copy points every time.

The problem isn’t that consumers don’t read. It’s that we’ve given up on them. The idea that people won’t listen to us has become a self-fulfilling prophecy in the ad industry. They won’t read or listen, so we won’t try to say anything interesting. In turn, the work increasingly stinks, consumers increasingly turn away, and our work becomes increasingly ineffective. Quite a death spiral, if you ask me.

Actually, not everyone believes today’s conventional wisdom. Here’s one example. StrawberryFrog recently placed an ad for itself in Fortune magazine. An ad with no whacked-out visuals or Web 2.0 components. Just a simple headline that asked a question and 3 paragraphs of body copy that answered the question and explained the agency’s core beliefs. It feels so retro it actually seems daring, even more so given that they bothered to advertise themselves. This from an agency often cited as one of the “new breed” of agencies that’ve cropped up lately. Obviously, they’re out to find that rare CMO or CEO who does read.

Of course, technology has truncated everyone’s timelines and attention spans. That won’t change. The massive stream of information has given us all a bit of A.D.D. But it’s especially brutal in the ad industry, because technology plays such an integral role in how we create the work we create—and how our work is seen or heard by the public. But beyond our profession lies a world full of people who are living, breathing, eating, shopping and yes, reading without the innate desire to be plugged in to the latest gadget or the latest craze at every waking moment. I wonder if we still know how to reach them.

Harry Potter and the PowerPoint Deck? Sure you could sum up a book with bullet points, but it will be shortly forgotten. Nor will it seep down to readers’ imaginations. And of course, you won’t sell 250 million copies.

Because to do that, you’d truly need to be living in a fantasy world.

Late in June of 1997 in London a publishing company released what was to become a cultural phenomenon. The book’s author, a teacher, would go on to become a household name. Her journey took her from Gloucestershire, England, where she was born, through Exeter, a town in the south coast of England where she went to university, to a job as a research assistant for Amnesty International and on to teaching. Joanne Rowling’s lifelong dream was to be a writer…she succeeded.

Since the release of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (the title was edited to Sorcerer’s Stone in America because it was thought we wouldn’t associate magic and wizardry with the word Philosopher), the book now a series, has garnered world-wide attention, countless fans, numerous awards and accolades, drawing attention from film producers, video game makers and merchandisers.

The list of awards Rowling’s has received?

- 4 Whitaker Platinum Book Awards in 2001

- 3 Nestle Smarties Book Prizes in ‘97 and again in ‘99

- 2 Scottish Arts Council Book Awards

- the first ever Whitbread children’s book of the year award in ‘99

- and in 2006, the WHSmith book of the year

Oh, and her little friend, Harry Potter, who borrows his name from Rowling’s childhood neighbors, is a legend FROM her own mind.

Fans waited in long lines as the hours tick down to the official release date of each new book… many times at midnight! Special security measures had to be taken to ensure no books were sold before the actual date. Book store owners had to sign legal documents insuring they would not even open the boxes before then.

Numerous conventions, conferences and symposiums have sprung up all over the world. People couldn’t and apparently still can’t get enough of Harry and his clan. These gatherings feature speakers, book and film discussions, games and costumes. Just recently (May 2007)the was a conference in New Orleans - Phoenix Rising which ran from May 17th to the 21st.

From the site:

“The conference will examine the novels, the movies, and the extraordinary fan phenomenon during the day; then, attendees will revel with the beat of the Crescent City herself rising from ash and flame when evening advances.”

For those of you who might have missed it, don’t worry, there’s another schedules for August 7-11, 2008, in Chicago.

The impact on the publishing world was immense. So great was the clamor for each new book in the series that the New York Times was persuaded to reformat its best-seller list. Harry was taking up too many slots on the list. In 2002 just before the release of Goblet Of Fire the Times created a separate list for Harry Potter and the children’s book category.

The New York Times wasn’t alone. FedEx used 9,000 trucks whose sole purpose was to deliver the Goblet Of Fire to eager fans. Book retailers like Barnes and Noble, Amazon and Borders pre-sold books in spectacular amounts - 700,000 copies of Goblets Of Fire. Sales records were shattered with each new release.

In all the books alone have sold over 325 million copies worldwide. With the subsequent films, video games and merchandising that followed, Joanne, aka J. K. Rowling by her fans, is a billionaire.

In spite of her success, or maybe because of it, she and Harry have their critics. Right wing conservatives claim the premise of the series is designed to entice the younger generation over to the dark side by glorifying witchcraft. Personally, I think Bewitched already did that. But if you’re really that concerned that a work of pure fantasy will convince your child it’s ok to turn his 6th grade math teacher into the next slimy little spokesman for Geico, then learn calculus and help your child with his homework! On a side note - I have nothing against the Geico gecko, I think using cute little animals to sell insurance is brilliant.

For those of you dealing with separation anxiety over the departure of Harry and his gang, fear not! Although Rowling has decided to retire the teenaged wizard, she does plan to write an encyclopedia, an epilogue, which would detail some background information derived from the narrative, what happens after Deathly Hallows and reveals who will step into the Hogwart Headmaster’s position.

J. K. Rowling is the English writer who has authored all seven beloved and widely read Harry Potter novels. At age 41, her rise to fame and fortune is inspiring. She has sold over 325 million books. The final book in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was the fastest-selling book of all time.

Her fortune is estimated at $1 billion. She is ranked as the 136th richest person in the world. In 2006, Forbes named Rowling the second richest female entertainer in the world and ranked her as 48th on the 100 most powerful celebrities list of 2007.

When this all began in 1990, however, things were very different for J. K. Rowling. She was not a published author. She did not have a lot of money. She was living in London, working as a researcher and bi-lingual secretary for Amnesty International, and her mother had just died. How she got from there to where she is today is a story filled with invaluable tips for small business owners.

Tip # 1: Don’t Rush to Roll Out Your Product.

“Destiny is a name often given in retrospect to choices that had dramatic consequences.”

- Rowling

Although J. K. Rowling had been a writer all her life, she was slow to publish. “I had written two novels before I had the idea for Harry, though I’d never tried to get them published (and a good job too, I don’t think they were very good).”

All too often, as small business owners, we rush to get a product out before its time, before it’s been fully considered or tested. Rowling sets a great example of getting a product just right before presenting it to the world.

Tip # 2: When a Great Idea Grabs You — Grab Back.

“You sort of start thinking anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.”

- Rowling

Great ideas are unmistakably powerful in their announcement and come when least expected. Rowling says:

“Where the idea for Harry Potter actually came from, I really couldn’t tell you. I was traveling on a train between Manchester and London and it just popped into my head. I spent four hours thinking about what Hogwarts would be like. By the time I got off at King’s Cross, many of the characters in the books had already been invented.”

As small business owners, we know when a great idea is upon us. The problem is, we often question it, second-guess it, and rationalize it away. Not Rowling. She recognized the mark of a powerful idea, seized upon it and went with it.

Tip # 3: Persevere, Persevere, and Persevere.

“It is our choices . . . that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”

- Rowling

Rowling moved to Portugal to teach English as a Second Language in 1991 and married her first husband in 1992. They divorced in 1993. The next year, she moved to Scotland. At this point, she was an unemployed single mother living on welfare. In 1995, she completed her manuscript for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, typing it out on an old manual typewriter. She handed in the book to twelve publishing houses. They all rejected it.

Rowling never gave up. She did not stop just because life was hard. Despite all the changes and setbacks she was experiencing, she carried on. She persevered. As small business owners, we would do well to keep her example in mind.

Tip # 4: Don’t Let Anyone, Including Yourself, Sidetrack You from Your Goal.

“If you’re holding out for universal popularity, I’m afraid you will be in this cabin for a very long time.”

- Rowling

Finally, Bloomsbury, a small publisher, agreed to publish the first book. Her editor, though, says that he “advised Rowling to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in children’s books.”

It’s a good thing she didn’t listen. All seven volumes of the Harry Potter series have broken sales records and have been translated into 65 languages. What a shining role model Rowling is for small business owners. She didn’t let anyone stand in the way of her goal—not even herself.

Tip # 5: Each of Us Has a Unique Contribution to Make to the World.

“I just write what I wanted to write. I write what amuses me. It’s totally for myself.”

- Rowling

J. K. Rowling never went searching for the kind of success she’s received. “I just wrote the sort of thing I liked reading when I was younger (and still enjoy now!). I didn’t expect lots of people to like them, in fact, I never really thought much past getting them published.”

It wasn’t fame or wealth that J. K. Rowling sought. No. She simply wanted to contribute to the world in general, and to children specifically. As small business owners, this is so important to learn. Focus on the unique something we have to offer to the world. The rest will surely come, in ways we may not even be able to imagine.

I finally landed my dream job as an airline pilot. After all the years of training, all the hours logged in the air as an assistant pilot, everything finally came to fruition. There would be a lot of benefits to my new job. A big pay raise is the obvious one. Free airlines tickets anywhere in the world, great heallth insurance … my family was very proud of me, and I was proud of myself as well!

There was one major downfall though - nights away from my wife and four year-old son. American Airlines started me out flying international routes to and from London, which meant overnight stays in England several days a week. I would be spending much more time away from my family as I had in the past, and it would take a lot of getting used to.

My son, Ryan, would take it especially hard, I was sure. Every night before he went to sleep, I would always read to him for 10 minutes. It was our time to bond before he drifted off to sleep. He would look forward to it every day (as would I), and Ryan had difficulty falling sleep if I wasn’t there reading to him.

After my first couple weeks on the job, my wife Linda told me that Ryan just couldn’t fall asleep on the nights that I wasn’t home. He needed his daddy to read to him before he could fall asleep, she said.

I had just started reading him the newest Harry Potter book before I started my London flights. I wondered what I could do to soothe Ryan into falling sleep while I wasn’t there to read to him. Linda tried reading to him a couple nights, but it just wasn’t the same. He wanted to hear my voice.

That’s when I came up with an idea … a crazy one, but one that just might work. I bought an audio cassette tape online of the same Harry Potter book that I was reading to Ryan. I previewed it for free before I bought it to make sure that it was read by a male voice. It arrived in the mail two days later.

I set the tape to where I left off on the book with Ryan the night before, and asked Linda to put the cassette in the radio in Ryan’s room that night and press ‘play’. Before I left for work that afternoon, I told Ryan that I would be gone that night, but that I could read to him that night through the radio. He seemed a little puzzled, but said “Okay daddy!”

The next morning, my wife called me in London and told me it worked like a charm … she pressed play, left the room, and returned 15 minutes later to Ryan fast asleep with a big smile on his face. My idea was a success!

In today’s time, people are completely absorbed in their work that they at times feel lonely and most of them get fed up of their monotonous routine. People choked- off their dull and tedious life. To the rescue, comes the imaginative author J.K Rowling with his hit series of books known as the Harry Potter.

These books are fantasy based where the normal life is not seen anywhere, however, this world includes things that we can not even imagine. This creative fantasy world is very provocative because every person has a fantasy world of their own. And every person loves to read or to know about something that is unusual and different. When a person reads such a book, all the depression of life is washed away and the person is elevated to another world where everything is so extraordinary and thrilling. Just like that, the Harry Potter books are more like a stress buster, which will help get rid of all your tensions and depression. These series include many mystery based stories will captivate you to keep reading the book.

Harry Potter is one of the most cherished and famous books available in the market around the world. The book is immensely popular among the children. These series of books are filled with adventure and excitement. While reading the book, the author J.K Rowling sweeps you away into the magic land. You will get so engrossed into the mystery of the book, and somehow you will feel that you are with the gang solving the mystery and facing the adventure. This adventurous and sporting book is a must read for all. The author has a great style of writing which is very insightful as you can imagine all that is written in the book simultaneously as you read.

This book particularly includes about the Triwizard Champions at Hogwarts which is full of excitement and twist. To make this book more interesting there are many revealing truths which will take your breath away.

The best part about this book is that there is a pop- up on the last page, with the help of which you can easily change or transform the Harry Potter: Magical Creatures Hanging into an actual hanging book. All you need to do is, first fold the cover back and then make use of the ribbon by nicely tie the ribbon and hang it from the ceiling. By performing this act you will feel like you are in the book.