Time-Turning Back Seven Books

Where did the magic begin? Is it possible to go back and look at the inception of Harry Potter to discover exactly what technique it was that, with a flick of her wand, made JKR's story rise so far above all those other magical fantasy stories which had come before? As writers, we are told that we either win or lose our audience within a few first pages. Can we look at JKR's first 17 (23 from Bloomsbury) and find that extra savory morsel that lured her readers in with such large numbers?

This post started out as a long analysis of chapter one of Philosopher's/Sorcerer's Stone as it is here that the world-wide publishing phenomenon began. That is not to say that the WHOLE reason for why Harry Potter achieved the heights that it did can be found here, but rather the seed. From this seed, as JKR enhanced her craft and deepened her tone, Harry's story sprouted roots and shot forth, encompassing an ever-widening audience, until it blossomed into the phenomenon that it still is today, even four years after the release of the last and final book.

However, in writing this post to cover the whole first chapter, I quickly discovered that there was way too much to say to burden one blog-sized post with. So, I have broken the analysis down into six upcoming parts:

1. characterization
2. world building
3. mystery
4. stakes/conflict
5. backstory
6. voice

Usually, when I give workshops or otherwise analyze the series, I say that I believe the key to JKR's success rests on the first three key qualities above:

1. her quirky, fun, full-bodied cast of characters
2. her fully developed, magical, I-so-want-to-live-there world building, and
3. her trail-of-clues mysteries that engaged the reader and spanned all seven books

With Harry Potter, and in particular this first chapter, it is hard to decide which is greater -- the world building or the characterization. Both are freshly and genuinely developed and draw the reader into the story, but neither of them are at full-force in "The Boy Who Lived."