Scholastics Next Big Thing?
Now that Harry Potter is officially over, Scholastic is looking for the next blockbuster. And they think they found it: Scholastic Plans to Put Its Branding Iron on a Successor to Harry Potter
Called “The 39 Clues,” this series will feature 10 books — the first of which is to go on sale next September — as well as related Web-based games, collectors’ cards and cash prizes. The project demonstrates Scholastic’s acknowledgment that as much as the publisher heralded the renewed interest in reading represented by the Harry Potter books, many children are now as transfixed by Internet and video games as they are by reading.
A part of me wishes them well. I really do. The rest of me, however, wants to smack them along side the head and say, "HP was awesome in part because of it's organic growth. You can't force it with another series. Just let it happen with good writing and captivating stories."
Ech, we'll see.
2 comments:
Hmm. Something makes me think it won't work. Yes, I realize that is very glass-half-empty, but I agree: HP's success came from it's organic, word of mouth growth. Trying to force the product and the marketing and the tie-ins just seems too proscriptive.
Harry was successful because of its quality, too. The marketing and movies came later. Let's just keep finding good books for kids to read and stop the madness, already!
Post a Comment