There’s always 2 sides to a coin, and its good that the media is fairly giving SVA a voice to be heard because all we’ve been hearing about lately are JKR’s statements. Then everybody can hear and decide for themselves who they think is in the right.

That said, I’m with Jeanne. Specially now that I’ve heard that SVA had indeed made efforts to work a solution, meaning he never kept the plans to print the Lexicon in secrecy. Suddenly, you ask who is lying?

SVA has been working on his site for free for 7 years, as he said, and made only enough money to keep the site going, covering only operating expenses. I know, having gone to his site a lot before, that fans have been requesting him to print the Lexicon since 2005 at least which is the time I started visiting his site.

Ms. Rowling has declared that she will no longer write any HP book again, she said she would like to take a break for a while. But now she’s hard at work on one more HP-related book. If she had still had the same amount of humility that she once had when she was just starting and before the franchise changed her into something else, she could chosen to work with something that she only needed to edit and she no longer had to work so hard for 2 or 3 more years and she can release the book earlier which would have made fans happier. She can still ask for royalties and she can still demand a certain percentage of each book go to charity. She can actually limit the number of prints and she can still go on to write her own Scottish book without much pressure.

Why she didn’t choose any of these more peaceful options imply nothing but negative selfish reasons on her part and the monstrous conglomerate she supports.

honestly, i just think steve wishes he created harry potter, and this lexicon book is his way of pretending that he did… i do not believe any 50 year old man should behave in the fashion he is.

I honestly cannot believe this man. How can he justify taking another person’s work. As a published author myself, I stand for JKR 100%. She is not being greedy, she is protecting her work. Something she toiled away at for years and years. Now some dirt bag wants to feed off of that. Unfortunately not many authors can afford to defend their works like this. It will be a dark day in literature if this sad excuse for a human being wins the case. A dark day.

@ josh: cheers, man. well said.

@sarqswati: Don’t take Steve’s word for the truth when he says that he tried to work with JKR in the interview. The evidence shows otherwise as was brought out in the trial. There was no evidence of him working to find a compromise before publishing. On the other hand, several attempts by JKR’s agents to communicate with RDR (Steve’s publisher) were shunned aside in hopes of getting to publication in an “under the RADAR” fashion.

I was actually blown away by SVA’s arrogance at making those statements after a trial in which the evidence clearly showed they were false. I actually think Steve may be delusional. He has contradicted himself, and been contradicted by the evidence so many times now that his credibility is below zero. I don’t believe anything he or RDR says anymore.

RDR and SVA’s credibility do not have a bearing on this case, the fair use laws do. These laws are highly subject to interpretation, and the judge may well find that SVA is within his legal right to publish his book. That will not affect my judgement, however, of his character and that of RDR. it is not the character of a person I would wish to deal with in either a business or personal relationship. I think that his character has taken a beating that will be difficult for him to recover from no matter which way the case goes.

“I bet most of the fandom will boycott the lexicon book. Only a true fan of Harry Potter would buy a Harry Potter encyclopedia, and a true fan of Harry Potter i s also a true fan of J.K. Rowling.

Posted by Sophie on April 21, 2008 @ 10:01 AM “

This is just one of the many comments that are scaring the bejesus out of me on this thread! Seriously! Have none of you learned anything from reading the HP series? “Only a true fan of Harry Potter is also a true fan of J.K. Rowling”? Um…call me crazy, but this little statement sure does bring back feelings of all the pureblood talk in the books. Among other feelings in regards to real life historical events…

At this time, I don’t know how I feel about this case one way or another. I see the point for both sides and think both are right about some things and yet think both are wrong at the same time. That’s what makes this such a tricky case. I do not envy the judge who has to make the decision on this at all.

@amanda

That statement does not relate to pureblood talk in the books at all. So, I will call you crazy. If you feel like arguing that point, tell my why it is similar to the concepts of specie extermination and supremacy contained mostly in a small inbred community.

In my opinion, this issue should have never been brought to court. Whether or not Jo wins does not matter, the outcome will undoubtedly distort the truth of this issue. Steve is disrespecting Jo. Steve, supposedly is a fan of the work, but apparently not a supporter of the author. What he is doing may be legal, but that does not affect my judgment of him. Disrespecting the creator of such a beautiful part of your life is inherently wrong. Steve is essentially calling his mother a bitch.

@Jake

I’m not really into arguing the point, per se…I’m just writing how I’m feeling based on some of the very closed minded comments made previously. Also, I’m not sure where “small inbred community” comes into play, but the reason it makes me feel like it’s similar to the pureblood talk in the books is because it is such a close-minded remark. Is the writer of the comment I call into question saying that I’m (or any other fan) not a true fan of HP if I’m not also 100% behind Jo in this case? How can I be 100% behind either party when I don’t really know or understand all of the history behind the case? I truly don’t feel that we have all of the story when it comes to it. But that doesn’t make me less of a HP or JK Rowling fan. Just like it doesn’t make a wizard any less of a wizard if they have less than 100% pure blood (my comparison, for you, to the pureblood stuff).

Also, using words such as “only” and “true” are very strong words when used together in the context of how that particular commenter used them. As strong, I feel, as some of the pureblood talks and arguments inside the books themselves.

Anyway, I’m not saying I’m right about my comparison, but it is how I feel.

Saraswati, while I appreciate your thoughtful input, I worry that Steve may not be the most trustworthy person out there. If you recall, Jo’s attorney and WB attempted several times to get a copy of the Lexicon book. How could they work out a solution if they weren’t allowed to see the book?

Also, I think SVA’s credibility is evident when it was stated in court that he lost his job because he lied about his credentials and education. That is just sad, and I really feel for him because now he has to live in the hole he dug for himself.

I agree with Amanda. Sophie saying things like that just makes me uncomfortable and a little embarressed at some HP fans…

@ jake, i really like how you stated your case. i think you make an excellent point in that is irrelevant, ultimately, the legality of steve’s actions… it’s a thoroughly disrespectful action he’s taken, and, you’re right: he basically is calling his mom a bitch. well said.

I’m still baffled by those of you making remarks along the lines of “Well, Jo wasn’t interested in writing another Potter book until STEVE decided to do one.” That’s completely untrue. She has mentioned many times over the years, well before Book 7 was out, that she might well end up doing an encyclopedia of sorts once the main story was told. To cover all of the small details and information that have been left out over time. This ISN’T news.

I do think that most of us aren’t blindly picking a side here, or at least I hope so. I support Jo here, and not because I’m a Potter fan and/or because I’m expected to. I read and enjoy books from plenty of authors that I think are jerks in real life. I just honestly feel that she’s in the right here, legally and morally. It’ll be interesting to see what the judge decides.

@ should be working:

You make 2 very good observations. I think all the fans wish they could come up with something even half as imaginative and successful as these stories.

I’m a few years younger than he is and I would be worried about myself if I had the level of… commitment, I’ll say, to these books that he appears to have. However, at this point I suspect he will lose all the enjoyment he ever had in Harry Potter, whether he winds or loses.

You know, initially she was really asking for so little. A few extra punctuation marks and maybe a few footnotes? Cut out a few of her words and add a few more of his own? How long would that have taken, a couple more weeks? Such a shame.

@ Mrs. de Mimsy-Porpington

It was stated in court that Steve was fired from his job because he lied about his credentials? Where did you get that? The last I heard, Melissa asked posters to stop jumping to that conclusion in the comments.

I think there’s a lot of “assuming” going on (for both sides) and this is disheartening. Everyone thinks they know all the details about what both JKR and Steve think and feel and have done, but the only people who do are the parties directly involved.

Cathie, I have always heard Steve refer to himself as a librarian. In the trial it was confirmed he does not have a degree in library sciences. It also said he worked in a school library so there must be a way to do that without that degree.

I believe that is what people are referring to.