Next on the list of exciting news is that we now have a twitter account: http://twitter.com/Ink_Puddle and I’m working on getting the Networked Blogs up and running on Facebook but every time I go to set it up, the website is down. So as soon as that’s working, you’ll be the first to know. Now onto all that snazzy Harry Potter news…
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Pottermore With the release of the final Harry Potter movie this weekend, it’s a bittersweet time for you Hogwarts graduates. H.P. is the prime example of how one book can get a child reading who hated the idea before, open new doors for the paranormal and fantasy world altogether and kept an entire generation anxious and waiting for more. Just as everyone thought that our beloved characters were moving on somewhere without us, J.K. Rowling pulls out something else from her sleeve. How many of you stayed up to hear J.K. Rowling’s announcement concerning Pottermore the night of June 23rd? From the friends that I’ve talked to about this, there seem to be a lot of mixed feelings over the subject. So let’s start from the beginning.
What is Pottermore?
Pottermore is a website that J.K. Rowling is creating to make all Harry Potter books available digitally for the first time ever. However, the excitement doesn’t stop there: by signing up on Pottermore.com you’re going to be able to have interactive reading experiences with your favorite books through your most treasured moments with Harry and the gang. You’ll also be able to do things such as learn spells, try on the sorting hat to find out which house you belong in, as well as visit Diagon Alley.
So when is Pottermore available?
For the first one million fans to complete their registration, the website will be released on July 30th, the birthday of both Ms. Rowling and Harry himself. Don’t fret if you miss the initial registration though, October is when the site opens to the public.
There are just a couple of bumps in the road…
What is Pottermore?
Pottermore is a website that J.K. Rowling is creating to make all Harry Potter books available digitally for the first time ever. However, the excitement doesn’t stop there: by signing up on Pottermore.com you’re going to be able to have interactive reading experiences with your favorite books through your most treasured moments with Harry and the gang. You’ll also be able to do things such as learn spells, try on the sorting hat to find out which house you belong in, as well as visit Diagon Alley.
So when is Pottermore available?
For the first one million fans to complete their registration, the website will be released on July 30th, the birthday of both Ms. Rowling and Harry himself. Don’t fret if you miss the initial registration though, October is when the site opens to the public.
There are just a couple of bumps in the road…
Rowling wants to make the Harry Potter series available to every e-reader on the market. However, as the Apple iPad, Barnes & Noble’s Nook and most other digital readers support books formatted as electronic publications (ePubs), Amazon’s Kindle doesn’t. And currently, according to paidContent, Kindle readers make up 60% of the e-reading market. So who gives in? Does Rowling cave and make her books available in Kindle format? This could be possible if she chose to go the route of SmashWords.com, which provides multiple formats of e-books for download. Or does Amazon begin to accept and sell other formats of e-books? The second seems to be the more likely choice. After all, who wants to be known as the e-reader that wouldn’t work with Harry Potter? And while it’s understandable that Amazon could fear the decrease in sales from the Kindle library, who’s going to ignore the simplicity and convenience of their Whispernet downloading system? When it comes down to it, Amazon will rise and be just as powerful as before no matter their choice. Just as businesses like Google and Apple have.
We will just have to see how all of that plays out but we will definitely have an update as we get closer to October. Until then, what do you think this means for authors? Now that someone has stepped up, put their foot down and cut out the middle man, is it only a matter of time before other writers do the same? What about readers? Is this the hopeful beginning of reasonably priced traditionally published e-books?You’re turn! Respond and let us know what you see coming from all this.-J
We will just have to see how all of that plays out but we will definitely have an update as we get closer to October. Until then, what do you think this means for authors? Now that someone has stepped up, put their foot down and cut out the middle man, is it only a matter of time before other writers do the same? What about readers? Is this the hopeful beginning of reasonably priced traditionally published e-books?You’re turn! Respond and let us know what you see coming from all this.-J
2 comments:
Thank you for writing about Pottermore. I had heard about but never researched it to see what it was. I'm signed up now!
I had the hardest time finding information! It's like the whole world was all pumped, then she said what it was and it didn't matter anymore. lol
But I'm glad I could help inform you. :)
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