Not-too-complex characters allow the reader to project themselves into the character and the narrative. They don't require too much brain space or effort.
And Star Wars and Harry Potter are hardly unique--if you poke around, you'll notice that nearly anything really wildly successful has some of the same
See also:
James Bond Nancy Drew The Hardy Boys Jack Ryan Piers Anthony Lillian Jackson Braun Dan Brown The Bridges of Madison County mid-period Elvis music
There's also a certain amount of luck in it. Not only do you have to put together the right formula, but you have to get discovered, and the viral thing has to happen. And then after a while it becomes self-sustaining: people read the new Harry Potter novel because *everyone* is reading the new Harry Potter novel.
The person upstream who said it was doritos and coke is correct. And the secret ingredients are corn syrup, salt, and grease.
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Date: 2007-07-22 12:08 pm (UTC)And Star Wars and Harry Potter are hardly unique--if you poke around, you'll notice that nearly anything really wildly successful has some of the same
See also:
James Bond
Nancy Drew
The Hardy Boys
Jack Ryan
Piers Anthony
Lillian Jackson Braun
Dan Brown
The Bridges of Madison County
mid-period Elvis music
There's also a certain amount of luck in it. Not only do you have to put together the right formula, but you have to get discovered, and the viral thing has to happen. And then after a while it becomes self-sustaining: people read the new Harry Potter novel because *everyone* is reading the new Harry Potter novel.
The person upstream who said it was doritos and coke is correct. And the secret ingredients are corn syrup, salt, and grease.