urn:lj:journalfen.net:atom1:atouchofbadness A Touch of Badness A Touch of Badness 2008-08-11T00:08:41Z urn:lj:journalfen.net:atom1:atouchofbadness:1233 Charmian 2008-08-11T00:08:41Z 2008-08-11T00:08:41Z Harry Potter: Many have discussed its flaws. But what is it about the series that makes it so overwhelmingly popular, from a writing perspective? (In other words, besides things like publicity in the media, the influence of the movies, etc.) <br /><br />What do aspiring writers have to learn from JKR? urn:lj:journalfen.net:atom1:atouchofbadness:988 Charmian 2008-08-07T00:39:45Z 2008-08-07T00:39:45Z The title says it all. Or Best Worst books, if there is any difference. <br /><br />I notice in the interests list we also have Dan Brown, Eragon, and Cassandra Clare (huh, so what is her secret? Besides stealing the lines of more talented authors?), as well as Harry Potter. (Although I am not sure if I would consider HP objectively an outstandingly awful series. Possibly if it hadn't become so popular, it would be more respected, or at least, less disliked.) urn:lj:journalfen.net:atom1:atouchofbadness:718 2008-08-06T04:49:39Z 2008-08-06T04:51:09Z The <i>Twilight</i> series built its fandom on huge, pulsating, throbbing, shiny shiny heaps of ethically twitchy girly wish fulfillment. The "final" book, <i>Breaking Dawn</i>, was the biggest, shiniest, most pulsating heap of wish fulfillment of all, a professionally written version of the eternal, deathless "happy family" fanfic.* And yet the readers rejected it. Why? Where did the book's emotional appeal go wrong?<br /><br /><br /><a name="cutid1"></a><div class="ljcut" text="* footnote">* You know the one--two random canon characters fall in wuv, get married, and proceed to fill their house with babies, adopted kids, traumatized war orphans, assbabies, and a menagerie of pets. Cooking, sex, and wacky hijinx ensue. The most important question is: Which of Family A's children (who are carbon copies of their parents) will fall for which of Family B's children (ditto)? Often involves masterpieces of the "assbaby labor scene" genre.</div> urn:lj:journalfen.net:atom1:atouchofbadness:302 2008-07-29T17:01:38Z 2008-07-29T17:01:38Z Welcome! Please feel free to start discussions.<br /><br />One organizational point I'm interested in is: Do you want this to be both a writing group and a discussion group, or would you prefer to have the writing group split off? I founded it to be both types of group because I didn't know what kind of demand there would be, but if there's enough demand, I'll make a bad_writing community as well.