One reporter reacts to JKR's revelations

[Tiffany B. Clark]

Pippin:

The difference is that if JKR ever said that Harry wasn't a real 
person, that he's just a character in a book and doesn't exist 
outside the matrix of words that she's written about him, a million 
children would go to bed in tears. And their parents would  justly be 
furious.

Of course aside from the truly troubled, no one believes in Harry. But
as my young cousin once said of Santa, "I don't believe in him. But
I like to pretend I do!"

If a parent says, in answer to one of those awkward questions about
chimneys, "I leave it to your imagination" then the game is over. And
that's too bad, IMO. 

Maybe the fandom will split the way the Sherlock Holmes fandom has,
between those who study the literary works of Arthur Conan Doyle, 
and those  whose fondest pleasure is to pretend that there really
was a Watson and a Holmes,  and Doyle was simply their  somewhat
careless literary agent. I've heard relations are strained, so I hope
not. 

Pippin

Tiffany:

I see it in a similar light to Pippin, Harry is only as real outside 
of the books & movies as we let him be.  It's a lot like any other 
famous other literary, TV, or movie character, how much life outside 
of the canon the person has is up to the people who are in love with 
it.

I think that JKR is right to give him life outside of the books 
because it would be a nightmare scenario in terms of therapy bills & 
mental health issues because of how hooked into Potter both in & out 
of the books & movies that folks can get.  It's up to the actual 
person to decide how real that Harry himself, Hogwarts, the 
Potterverse, & WW are.  I know of folks who have their homes 
decorated with Potter stuff like it's a museum.

I don't really fear a split in the fandom of Potter, but there'll 
always be some folks who treat it like Star Trek & those who aren't 
so passionate & obsessive over it.  Potter is my 3rd passionate hobby 
in life after music & card games; both have been around for so long 
that nothing could knock them off their respective mantles.