Will I see you at Lumos 2006? From July 27 through July 30 in Las Vegas, Nevada, I'll be surrounded by Harry Potter fans and talking and writing about Harry Potter. It's six months away, and I'm excited already.
People are serious about Harry Potter.
Lumos 2006: A Harry Potter Symposium is a three-and-a-half- day conference packed with Harry Potter-related workshops and presentations. Featured topics are Literary Criticism, Education, Social Sciences, Legal, Film, and Fandom Culture. John Granger, various writers, and academics will make presentations and offer in-depth discussions and a lot theorizing.
The symposium will take place at the JW Marriott, which will be decked out like Hogwarts, with House common rooms and everything…and all the rooms are sold out. Figures. I had to settle for a nearby (lesser) Marriott. It won't be the same, but I'm not complaining. Much.
The trip to Las Vegas will be business and pleasure. I'm a member of Pajamas Media and will cover the symposium as a member of the press. I hope to meet and interview all you die-hard HP fans. 
Even if you can't attend, you can get free publicity for your blogs by signing up for the banner exchange.
Related news: As you may know, filming for Book/Movie 5 "Order of the Phoenix" begins next month. More than 15,000 girls between the ages of 13 and 16 auditioned for the role of Luna Lovegood, the otherworldly blonde with the "protuberant" eyes. Four hundred girls were selected for the second round. Can you imagine how excited they must be?
Well fans, it's almost over. J.K. Rowling will spend 2006 writing the seventh and final book of the Harry Potter septology. The final chapter, she says, is already written and locked in a safe. After the book arrives in 2007, we'll read and discuss it for months on end while waiting for the sixth movie, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," to hit the scene. The series is almost complete, but the fandom will continue reading the books, watching the movies, and theorizing (yes, even after it's all over) for years to come.
Melissa Anelli of The Leaky Cauldron interviewed Arthur Levine, publisher of the American version of Harry Potter. I wonder if she got on him (as I would have) about changing the title of Book 1 from Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone…
Later…Oops! Just read the post on TLC. Melissa did ask about the title change.
January 17th, 2006 at 4:22 pm
I live a half-mile away from the J.W. Marriott. Hopefully you'll be able to take time from your Lumos schedule to visit a mere muggle.
January 17th, 2006 at 4:32 pm
No kidding? How delightful! We simply must do coffee.
January 19th, 2006 at 7:49 am
LaShawn Barber, who will be attending, has a more extensive post on the conference. We're looking forward to hearing her reports at the end of July (especially those of us who can't make it).
January 19th, 2006 at 5:15 pm
This sounds like a blast and I'd love to go. But being a dad of three little guys, Merlin is more likely to make it to Vegas for Lumos and be a Granger-groupie - but we'll see!
January 21st, 2006 at 5:41 pm
"protuberant eyes" = thyroid problem.
Possibly I've been watching Dr. House too much.