JKR updated her site...

[heidi]

Spoilers behind the cut.



She wrote:

The Order communicates in a way that requires nothing but a wand. You saw the Order’s method of communication in use even before you knew about the existence of the Order; it was employed by an Order member.

It's here.
That's likely the silvery thing that Dumbledore sends to Hagrid in GoF when Mr Crouch is wandering around Hogwarts, right?

Also - WAH! She shot down The Government Stole My Toad!
: sends her a magnet anyway as the icon is just cute.



She also wrote:

Meanwhile, the distance between the keyboard and yours truly increases day by day as my third child races Harry’s next adventure into the world. I will soon need extendable fingers to type.

I am just quoting that to have an excuse to use this icon. La, HP baby boom, again.

And as I told melissa_tlc, no I will not have a fourth just to hasten JKR's writing of Book 7.*



* I had Harry within six weeks of the release of Book 3, and Jon within six weeks of the release of Book 5. Melissa believes that my spring due date for Baby Girl Tandy will hasten in the release of HBP. I hope she's right.

---

Also, is this bit new?

Comments

[dramaturgy.livejournal.com]

I think it is new, I don't remember having seen it there before. Although I have seen a chart like that.

[riibu.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the info!

WAH! She shot down The Government Stole My Toad!

WAH indeed! That would have been a great ship in my opinion...

[musikologie.livejournal.com]

JKR wrote a lot in the FAQ today, too. Including a new poll!

::laughs at the "will Ron ever get with a girl" question::

[smilie117.livejournal.com]

I think it's new - nothing like some HP news to help brighten a rainy Friday :) whee *fingers crossed we get HBP in Spring* :D

[shelaghc.livejournal.com]

( So, wow, I get into some canon analysis! Woah. )

(pssssst! It's spelled whoa.)

::::crawls back into a corner::::

[psychic-serpent.livejournal.com]

That's likely the silvery thing that Dumbledore sends to Hagrid in GoF when Mr Crouch is wandering around Hogwarts, right?

Heee! I think I guessed it right! That's how I've been having Dumbledore communicate to Order members in Replay, which has been up since mid-February! Not quite as good as getting Percy's birthday on the exact day, but I'm still going to take this opportunity to feel rather smug now. :D

[risti.livejournal.com]

When was Percy's birthday stated, and when is it? I'm writing a Percy fic, which has this as part of the plotline, and I thought I'd gathered all the Percy info she's mentioned...

[psychic-serpent.livejournal.com]

She posted it on her site on the day itself, August 22. This is my LJ post from that day.

[lena-pink.livejournal.com]

I loved seeing the new information, but was most shocked after discovering Hermione's a year older than the boys, intead of a few months younger. That'll sure change my views on her. It also made me wonder if you can be older (an adult, even) and still start attending Hogwarts with the eleven-year-old children, since she said you have to be at least eleven. Marauder information makes me terribly giddy and wand cores were very interesting.

I agree on the silvery thing. I was trying to remember what it was when she mentioned it, but yes, that's probably it.

And yay for the baby girl :)

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

I loved seeing the new information, but was most shocked after discovering Hermione's a year older than the boys, intead of a few months younger.

I WAS SO UPSET TO READ THIS.

However, it does mean Hermione is going to be 17 a few chapters into HBP, and thus of age in the wizarding world. Hmmmmmmm.

Oh! And thanks for the YAY. :)

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Really, that actually pleases me. I always thought of her as being older. Break the stereotype of the girl having to be with older boys, even if it's only by a few months.

[livii.livejournal.com]

But I thought this was common knowledge? The timeline on the CoS DVD had confirmed Hermione was born in 1979 vs. 1980 for Harry and Ron. The Lexicon treats this as factual, as well.

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

No, the info on the DVD said she turned 12 during CoS, and JKR approved that info - I confirmed it with WB myself back when the DVD came out. So this is contrary to that. Le sigh.

[psychic-serpent.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's what I thought it had on the timeline as well. :: sigh :: Of course, that's why I hold the books up as the ultimate canon source. Until it's in a book she can contradict herself back and forth all she likes. Perhaps we should reassure her that Hermione CAN be younger than Harry and Ron so that she doesn't need to worry about Hermione being of-age at the start of the book. (It's sounding like she neglected to take this into account. Another Flint in the making?)

I reckon what this REALLY means is that Steve can be extremely smug about the Lexicon being the source for the timeline, because this came from him, didn't it?

[wednesdayschild.livejournal.com]

I never trust anything in the DVDs as canon - there are too many deviations from canon (James Potter as a seeker, for example, and 'Mooney' rather than 'Moony'). I can imagine that she simply didn't really check properly - she's rather free and easy with dates and ages.

[goldie-black.livejournal.com]

I noticed that on the DVD, Moony is on the map on the features. Mooney appears in the movie.

I've never seen the DVD timelines, but I wouldn't trust them either probably, unless it was known that JKR did them herself.

[lena-pink.livejournal.com]

I was upset too. And yes, contradicting the information that she supposedly approved earlier. It disturbs me quite a bit, really, I'm not sure exactly why.

[wednesdayschild.livejournal.com]

I was, personally, delighted by the information :D

It's interesting, because most of the other Brits I know have agreed that she should be older than the boys, and most Americans/other non-Brits have thought she should be younger. Is it partly because your cut-off dates are different, and so it's more natural for you to think of her as younger? Those who've studied in the British school system will automatically assume that she is older (I think she acts older, as well, but that's just my personal opinion, so YMMV) - it would have been a big thing if she was up a year. As someone who was, indeed, not in her correct year at school, my classmates would not let me forget it; I think that something would have been made of it otherwise.

[hiddenhibiscus.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure you can classify it so, as most of my American HP friends (myself included) have actually hoped she was older than the boys. *hopes it's truly true*

[mogliecat.livejournal.com]

I don't think the cut-off dates are that different in the US, at least they weren't when I was a child. Back then a child had to have reached the proper age for a grade by September 1st. Of course, that could be different now.

My brother, for example, was one of the oldest in his grade because his birthday was September 11th.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Weird. I was one of the youngest in my (US) class because my birthday was September 11th. So I guess it can go either way!

[mogliecat.livejournal.com]

I think it also depends on the state and how old a person is now. :) Dear brother was born in the early 70's, and back when my brothers and I were very young school always started on September 1st or the monday after the 1st (should the 1st be on a weekend).

Now it seems most schools start earlier than 9/1. And I have no idea how the cutoff age is decided now.

[frozen-jelly.livejournal.com]

I definately agree with this, I was extremely surprised to find that the general opinion of Hermione was that she was younger. I always assumed that Hogwarts = 11+. Isn't it only around his birthday that Harry gets his letters!

[alegriagraciela.livejournal.com]

Also - WAH! She shot down The Government Stole My Toad!
: sends her a magnet anyway as the icon is just cute.

WAH indeed! Thank you for being nice about this Heidi, instead of some of the 'Ha! I knew it! TGSMT sucks!' I've seen already. I have a fondness for Neville/Luna (as well as many different pairings - if a writer can make believe it, I'll ship it, is my general motto), and now I wonder if anyone will bother writing that pairing anymore with Jo's announcement. :(

[moondroplette.livejournal.com]

oh please, like anything has ever stopped a shipping group before. :P

[alegriagraciela.livejournal.com]

:-? You do make a good point. :P

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

Er, I still ship Draco/Hermione, so I know from whence I speak when I have sympathy-schnoogles for the Neville/Luna people.

(Of course, the concept of D/Hr dating wasn't ruined at all - she just said they wouldn't end up together, and since Draco's going to be dead by the end of the series...

[alegriagraciela.livejournal.com]

>:D< And thank you for that.

She's certainly put a cloud over it, hasn't she? With the sinking of the ship and her little tidbit about the Lestranges targeting the Longbottoms...I'm starting to wonder if my fearful musing after reading OOTP that Neville will end up dead by the end of the series might come true after all. Matthew Lewis (http://www.the-leaky-cauldron.org/MTarchives/week_2004_11_28.html#005309) seems to think so. :)) Well, he hopes so, anyway!)

[furiosity.livejournal.com]

(daily_snitch skeery lurker-type of person)
Draco's going to be dead by the end of the series? Fact or speculation? If fact, please link, as I can't find anything to that effect anywhere official.

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

Sorry, it's just my speculation based on a few jkr hints including the use of "end up" in the d/hr matter.

[furiosity.livejournal.com]

Thanks for replying; I spent a half an hour searching for this going "OMG I can't believe she's going to kill Draco (and I missed it!)," but for a different reason entirely (HP/DM). *flails*

Has anyone started a "Do not kill Draco" petition yet? >.<

[mafdet.livejournal.com]

I don't think that JKR's shooting down a pairing should stop fanfic writers from writing it. Fanfic is for experimentation. As long as the pairing is presented in a plausible way.

Just for instance, we probably will never see rampant Lucius/Severus coition in the books yet that hasn't stopped fanfic writers. :D

Right now, I'm just happy that JKR did not torpedo the Loonies & Lions...

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

Yes, fanfic does incorporate discussing the canon and characters through alternative narratives.

But does this mean any archives will now boot any fics with Neville/Luna in them? Or can one still argue that they might have a date or two without technically hooking up & snogging?

[stellahobbit.livejournal.com]

I'm just stunned that JKR used the term 'shippers'. Hell, I thought we were doing a good job of hiding from her!

Here via the Snitch, devote Harry/Snape shipper thus I realise I will never see anything good for me in canon ;-)

[subliculous.livejournal.com]

totally freaked ME out.

[stellahobbit.livejournal.com]

I think she secretly loves it. I'm positive she ships Ron/Hermione and Sirius/Remus.

[hermione-like.livejournal.com]

*echoes your "Wah!"* I think people will still write N/L, though, as others pointed out. Ah well. Still leaves hope for my fanon OTP, Luna/Zacharias. ;)

[momebie.livejournal.com]

*sigh* I think I need to take a fandom break. Except that the semester just ended and I can officially write all the fics that have been bumbling around in my head for the last month or two. But I think this because read this under rumours:

"...but I am happy to say that he leaves the Dursleys early for a much pleasanter reason than a court case."

And the only thing that popped into my head was "THEY SAVED SIRIUS!!" Hehe..is that bad? I feel like it says something about me but I don't know what. Maybe that I'm just your average everyday cockeyed octopus. \~_~/

[bronze-eagle.livejournal.com]

Yes, that bit is new. And also the bit about squibs here (http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/extrastuff_view.cfm?id=19).