In defense of my obsession

This post is not about Ecuador. I have entirely too much to think about and to do before Friday, and at the moment my blog is my refuge from all of that.

Last week, I got really mad at a good friend. This friend and I are both really sarcastic, and much of our relationship is based on making fun of each other, so the two of us shouting is not an uncommon occurrence, but we actually kind of had a real fight. He thinks my obsession with Harry Potter is really nerdy and ridiculous, and while I'm aware I'm a big nerd, I was getting pretty tired of the negative comments about it. So we shouted it out and it's been agreed that Harry Potter is off the table as far as teasing goes, and everything is hunky-dory. But I know a lot of people don't understand my obsession, so I thought I'd spell (no pun intended!!) it out...

For starters, I read A LOT, and the Harry Potter books are, without exaggeration, the best books I have ever read. I've lost count of how many times I've read them (somewhere around ten each for the first four books), and each time I go back to them I discover something new, whether it's a joke I never got or a bit of foreshadowing I never noticed before. The basic plot isn't that complicated --the classic good-underdog-triumphs-over-evil-super-power deal-- but I'm always amazed all over again by the level of detail that Jo put into the Wizarding world...sports, government, candy, books, cities, all of it!! The books have themes with which I really identify, such as the importance of friends and the power of love, and they're full of insightful parallels to the real world. They've sharpened my critical thinking skills, and they've also helped me improve immensely as a writer.

Beyond those things, I'm fascinated with the global phenomenon Harry Potter has become. In the age of television and video games, it's astounding that a book series has spawned fan conferences, a theme park, an entire new genre of music, and the Harry Potter Alliance, a nonprofit organization that functions as a real-life Dumbledore's Army both at home and in some of the darkest places in the world. All of these crazy things were set in motion by one woman who put pen to paper, who never dreamed she would become one of the richest people in the world in less than a decade. Jo Rowling is an inspiration to me, not only because she's such a talented writer, but because she's committed to her family and her many charitable projects, she's always classy in the face of criticism, she truly cares about her fans, and she had the courage to take that leap and send Philosopher's Stone off to an agent. If she can do amazing things, so can I.

The third level of my obsession is the community of Harry Potter fans, or the "fandom"...other crazy people like me who are passionate about the books, travel for hours to go to cons or wizard rock shows, and are committed to changing the world through love. There are also so many offshoots or related groups that I've been introduced to through the HP fandom, like Room 3428, the Vlogbrothers and the Nerdfighters, and Team StarKid. When you're a member of the fandom, it's okay to be a geek; it's okay to like to read and to use big words and proper grammar; it's okay to sing songs about fighting zombies, Quidditch, Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, and nargles; it's okay to serve bacon at a wrock concert. There's no need to be embarrassed or to hide who you are, because "Every outcast, they can find their place / At Hogwarts," as the Remus Lupins have been known to sing. It sounds too good to be true, but that's really how it is.

So that's my obsession in a nutshell. I could literally write about the fandom for hours, but fortunately a much better writer than me has published a book about it. Whether you're a Potterhead, you have one in your family, or you're still just wondering what all the fuss is about, Harry, a History: the True Story of a Boy Wizard, his Fans, and Life Inside the Harry Potter Phenomenon by Melissa Anelli is the book for you!!