HBP and Spoilers. Is all the hush-hush necessary? (none mentioned, so you can read it guilt free)

[swordmage]

Am I the only one who thinks JKR/her lawyers/publishers/etc are going a bit overboard?

Spoilers are a part of life in this age-there are spoilers for books, movies, tv shows, you name it. We accept them, and know they're out there and easy to find.

So why the extra security over Half Blood Prince?

Yes, it's an obscenly popular series. But does that make it much different from any other book or movie? I understand the want to preserve the surprise of what's going to happen, it's part of the joy of reading a book. But when about a dozen copies are accidentally sold, must the people be asked to return the books unread and swear not to talk about them? Seems a bit excessive. The security around them? Again, excessive. I doubt that, eager though they may be, fans will storm the warehouses they're being held in.

By now, all the books are in place for release on Friday night, at a standard, pre-set time (so those in Australia don't et them before those in the US and UK). The best thing to do is let the spoilers stay out there, I suspect that the people who read them already have purchased the book, or are planning to do so very quickly. It's not going to seriously (if at all) affect sales-a few copies here and there aren't going to make a difference in the 10 million plus already sold.

But no matter what, spoilers or not, around the world, fans will be lining up tomorrow night to get their hands on the book. Nothing now is going to stop this from jumping to the top of any best-seller list it's not already on. It's been anticipated for a few years*, and it's going to be flying off shelves like as if it was only going to be on sale for a few hours.

*-Two years (has it been that long?) isn't that bad really, I waited four for The Amber Spyglass, which was well-worth it. This'll probably be the same. And yes, two years is still a crazy amount of time to wait for a book you seriously want to read. especially when you're young.

Comments

[lightpoint.livejournal.com]

You friended zaralya, right?

Did you check her link to the spoilers that JKR's lawyers are all over??

I didn't, because that'd be peeking...

[swordmage.livejournal.com]

*looks innocent*

Now why would I do that...?

D_S

[ixtoh.livejournal.com]

I work for a retail company that will be selling the book. Memos have been sent out daily for the past week, reminding associates that the boxes are NOT to be opened before midnight, and that this includes associate previews either on the salesfloor or in the back room.

Excessive?

Yeah.

To quote a manager from a different location, "Get over it. It's our product, we've paid for it. We should be able to open the boxes any damn time we want to." Which hasn't kept him from following the memo's to the letter anyway.

=(

[princessdot.livejournal.com]

Just from a marketing perspective? Damn good job of keeping it on everyone's mind, no? ;)

[imkalena.livejournal.com]

I suspect you're right -- that's the basic idea. :)

[thelastgoodname.livejournal.com]

Rowling's argument regarding the secrecy is that she wanted all the little children all over the world to be reading the book at the same time. (Of course, her difficulty with math means she probably forgot about the time zones, but we'll leave that.) She has a point: for an 8 year old, discovering that someone else has read your book and then proceeded to tell you all about it before you got a chance to read it is pretty devastating. (We'll also leave aside that eight year olds maybe shouldn't be reading these books, what with all the death and murder and stuff.) Moreover, the note about publicity is important: I don't think there has been a sustained repeated affection for reading since Dickens' serials. (Dickens caused riots; I'm not sure Rowling is there yet, but maybe she wants to be. Also, most people at the time thought Dickens was an awful writer, pandering to his immature audience; I'm sure Rowling wants to have that kind of obituary.) Regardless, it works: as opposed to most other creative endeavors lately, there were no significant spoilers until very recently; compare the end of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, or even the recent Doctor Who.

[purple-ladybug1.livejournal.com]

I think it made for very good publicity. I've followed every article about books sold early, and the steps taken to keep spoilers from leaking. Even my family, who isn't nearly into HP as I am, has found the articles interesting.

[randomblade.livejournal.com]

I think it's probably because HP has become some people's religion. TPTB want people to remain invested in that, so they provide the mystique and the smoke and mirrors necessary to infuse the release of a book with the significance of a Major Event. They want to demonstrate that HP is Not Just A Book; it is a Way Of Life.