Category: Entertainment Author : Kyle Brady Posted: October 14, 2009
Tags : fan fiction, George Norman Lippert, GNL Series, harry potter, James Potter, JK Rowlingm, potterverse, Warner Bros

Of Harry Potter, James Potter, and Warner Bros. Studios – The Interview, Part II

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This is a part of a series on George Norman Lippert, “America’s JK Rowling”, creator of the spinoff “James Potter” novels set in the Potterverse and often compared to the original “Harry Potter” .

GNL Series: The Story – The Interview, Part I – The Interview, Part II

Recently, it seems that Warner Brothers Studio has contacted you regarding James Potter – regarding what?

I received a rather lengthy email detailing some new requests for how I should present and promote the James Potter stories. Specifically, the lawyer requested that I change the James Potter logo, since they feel it is too similar to the Harry Potter film logo (although I did work to make it merely similar, and not a direct copy). Also, the lawyer requested that I remove references to my own original books from the James Potter-related website. Finally, they asked for more and larger disclaimers.

Regarding the logo issue, I can’t help wondering why this has suddenly become a problem, since my initial dealings with Warner Bros. legal (during the releases of both books in the series) bore no reference to any issue with the logo. The logo does, in fact, appear in many places (many of them fully animated and rendered using computer graphics), and will require a very substantial investment of time, but I suspect it is a change I will have to make, nonetheless. I have already begun work on it.

Regarding the references to my own books, I also feel I have no choice but to comply, although I can’t imagine why the presence of my own stories on the website should constitute any confusion, since my name is clearly visible on the covers of all the books, including the James Potter stories.

What is your response and course of action going to be?

I pride myself in being an honest, above-board kind of person, therefore when someone implies that my actions are sneaky, underhanded or outright illegal, I take the allegation very seriously. I have said from the beginning that if Ms. Rowling wished me to take down the website and the James Potter stories, I would do so immediately out of respect for her creation. While I do not understand or agree with some of the requests of the Warner Bros. lawyers, I do mean to keep my interactions with them as amicable as possible, for the sake of my own conscience, if nothing else. Therefore, over the following weeks, I will work to make the changes they have requested, although it will probably affect the release of the third James Potter story.

My primary reaction to Warner Bros.’ concerns is one of confusion. Basically, aren’t we both two entities trying to promote the same creative universe? I’d much rather pool our creative resources than continue to function as combatants, or worse, as a mere legal nuisance.

Since WB only holds the rights to movie productions, how do you imagine this conflicts with the interests of Rowling?

I will surely incite a letter of admonishment from someone for saying so, but as the original creator of the Harry Potter universe, I suspect Ms. Rowling would view my stories exactly as I intended them—not as a legal threat or a “dilution of the brand”, but as a compliment and a creative homage.

I don’t view Warner Bros. as the bad guy in this instance, but I do view them as merely a gigantic business protecting an extremely valuable asset that they have paid a lot of money for. I don’t expect them even to consider (as I believe Ms. Rowling would) that my stories might be creatively interesting, evocative, or even complimentary to their end goals. Which is a shame, really, since I think that if they did, we might be able to make something very cool.

What are your plans for the future? Will the James Potter series continue to the expected seven books? Do you intend to write outside of the Potterverse in the future, or remain loosely on the edges like “The Girl on the Dock”?

I have an entire seven book series in my head at this point. I know what the “mega-plot” of the full series is, and book three, which is due out on December first, will set that fully into motion. However (and that’s a big however) I don’t know if I will write all seven books. This may be the last one, primarily because it is increasingly tiresome to invest such time and energy into a project that continues to be viewed, by the powers that be, as a threat and an annoyance. It has only been the consistent encouragement and high hopes of the worldwide cadre of James Potter readers that has led me to write book three. From here on out, I can’t guarantee anything (even though book 3 will, in effect, end on a monstrous cliff-hanger).

I am writing my own original work, however. Between JP2 and JP3, I wrote a novel called “The Riverhouse”, which I am dubbing a “grown-up ghost story”. It is intended for a rather different audience than the James Potter books, although I suspect there will be a large degree of cross-over. For now, I am seeking literary representation for it, with the hopes of getting it published.

Kyle Brady is a contributing columnist for the Inquisitr, an entrepreneur, and has a future in science fiction. He can be found at his blog, via email, or on Twitter.

Of Harry Potter, James Potter, and Warner Bros. Studios – The Interview, Part II

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