Letters to the Editor
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The opposite of authorship
Rowling's inclination to tell "off-page" stories about the Potter universe indicates, I think, the very opposite of authorship. Since it reflects an assumption that the story exists independently of any book, the act of authorship becomes meaningless and the author becomes merely a privileged window for readers and listeners. Children's writers seem to be particularly prone to this attitude towards their work - Enid Blyton used to do the same thing, albeit without Rowling's Oprah-influenced public-confessional flourish.