From an economic point of view, why should someone make money from Harry Potter besides Rowling? From years of working at a book store, I can tell you that this new Lexicon would have sold like hot cakes. When something is as hot as the Potter series, anything remotely connected with it flies off the shelves. That includes books that are "kinda" like it. She hasn't tried to stop publication of the various fantasy/witchcraft young adult books obviously "inspired" by the incredible success of her series. Some are painfully close to plagiarism. But she has let other writers profit in this way from her success. She hasn't even made tacky remarks. I'm sure I couldn't have restrained myself when the main characters are named something almost as blatant as Henry Porter.
Apparently her concern is only with her own characters. And this is essential in maintaining copyright because you can lose some protection if you don't actively pursue those who try to use your copyright. It's why Disney prosecutes all the piddly stuff like children's cakes sold commercially with Mickey on them. The Mouse is the franchise. Lose him, lose the company. Rowling wants to maintain a tight hold on her own work.
The next point gets so sticky that I'm not sure how I feel about it. The person writing the Lexicon says it falls under the same category of any other critical work about a piece of literature. This means that Tolkien guides and guides to James Joyce and all sorts of explanations of books could only be published under the watchful eye of the author or and here's the real catch, the author's estate. This has caused all sorts of misery for literary critics and biographers. What can someone say without going beyond the limit for quoting material?
My experience with other critical works makes me side with the Lexicon author here. I would never have made it through Ulysses without lots and lots of critical help. And sometimes, especially with place names, I was so lost in Middle Earth without some sort of guide. I'm glad someone did the work so I could look up all the places and get situated.
That being said, I don't think Harry Potter is that complex. I don't see what you actually need a lexicon for. Exposition is at the ready in all the books. And the place names and spell names, etc. are puns. Diagon Alley, indeed. If you need someone to explain that as diagonally, you are way too slow on the uptake to be reading these books.
I'm at impasse along with the judge in the case. This is a part of the law that is ill-defined. My puritan soul says you shouldn't profit from someone else's labor. Or words. But my sense of fair makes me wonder how bad it would be for this guy to make several thousand on a dictionary. If it were a novel that used the characters, no contest. But criticism is different. Absolutely. So if it's criticism, fine. If it's her novels broken into smaller units, not fine. Where's Solomon when you need him?
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