** Minor HBP spoilers ahead.

Of all of the sections on JKR.com, I think that the "Rumors" section (when you click on the magazine) is perhaps the most helpful. The FAQ Poll bothers me in general, since JKR never answers any questions that are particularly relevant to the plot of upcoming books (and even if she did deal with those sorts of questions, do we really want to know the answers prior to the release of Book Seven?), and it seems as though there are very rarely any new hidden "Easter eggs" added. The debunked rumors, however, can sometimes be useful to the fandom. I know that I was not alone in believing that Arthur Weasley would be the new Minister of Magic in HBP, and had she not told us that this would not happen, we probably would have abandoned the whole Minister of Magic discussion without addressing other candidates (though I don't think anyone really picked out Scrimgeour!). Even the Neville/Luna knockout changed the face of many shipping debates.

I think that JKR would do well to debunk a couple more rumors that are clogging up the fan discussion boards throughout the years leading up to the release of Book Seven. I know it's impossible for me to pick out exactly which rumors I'd like to see debunked, since the whole point is that we don't know whether they are rumors or in fact viable plot points as of now... but I've got a couple nagging suspicions, based on the theories leading up to OotP and HBP.

The main one is the question of how Lily's eyes and wand and James's career will influence the plot of upcoming books. Now, don't get me wrong -- it's quite possible that all of these items actually will play crucial roles in Book Seven, but I don't think so. We've had that rumor pre-OotP, pre-HBP, and now pre-Book Seven. I feel as though it's something that some fan picked up from an interview back around the SS or CoS release that has just stuck around for a while but really isn't going anywhere -- maybe it's been edited out of plot plans or something. So for the sake of argument, pretend that it is purely a rumor, and Lily's wand and eyes and James's profession will have absolutely nothing to do with Book Seven. Wouldn't it just be kinder of JKR to shoot down that theory now? We're using up valuable time and energy discussing issues that are going absolutely nowhere, when we could talk about things like whether the Hogwarts Houses will unite or other ongoing themes instead.

Your thoughts?

I think that would be grand! The items you chose chose to illustrate your point were also very keenly chosen, I thought. They would certainly free up a lot of fan energy if they were to be debunked...

I visit the JKR site daily, always ready for some new information or juicy tidbit... Haven't reallt seen anything too exciting there lately, but hope springs eternal!

Cheers!

I agree with you 100% Anthony...I too vistit the site like at least 3 times a week hoping each and every time that I will see SOMETHING new...I agree that rumors should be debunked if JKR knows it will have nothing to do with the plot...or very little...the ones, as Omerous said, that you picked Allie are brilliant examples...I only wish JKR would take some time to read these suggestions...

Hey, Would you rather have new stuff on Jo's website, Or the 7th book coming out faster? Given the choice between the two, I would take the book!

MOD EDIT: Please don't use excessive characters in your posts; one exclamation point will suffice. Thanks!

Yeh, I'd like to see the book out quickly as well (I'm dreading the 07/07/07 release rumour that was going around- make it O6/06/06 and I'd be happy, but that's not going to happen), however given that JKR has pretty much said she's not writing this year (raising children) I think she could spend a little bit of time.

Some of the rumours have been going around for YEARS. It would be great if she'd just say- Yes, this is still to come or No, Sorry I didn't squash that one earlier or even Well that USED to be important but got scrapped in the editing for the 5th book or something.

There's a lot of rumours that could be created by confirming or denying other rumours. For example, the rumour that Snape has a son (but not a daughter) could be answered with a simple 'yes'. This would then cause further speculation as to who the son was.

Naturally, I , like the rest of the world, would like Book seven as soon as is humanly possible, but I do think that rumor can be an amazing thing. The slightest rumer can spark thousand of pages of discussion.

For example, the title of Book six - HBP - Who is the HBP, is it a real prince, are they male or female, what part do they have in the book - one simply thing and look what spanwded from it.

also - the release of the knowledge that there would be a death in book 5 - Who is it, what will the reprecussions be etc etc

Rumors, in my opinion, in regards to HP, can only do good.

To sum up (as I tend to bable), I obviously want Book seven NOW, but I would like to see just a few rumors appear inbetween.

Good news. A few questions answered in the rumors section of the site. Some are HBP spoilers, so beware!

Oh, those debunked rumors are excellent, HP_Fan -- and they really prove the point that I was trying to make earlier. Those FAQ poll options sound tantalizing, I'll admit, but just looking at the questions, you can tell that JKR's answers are going to be cryptic, incomplete, or somehow otherwise frustrating. The rumors, on the other hand... they're dead useful. I'm glad that it's officially out there that the "Pettigrew will kill Lupin with his silver hand" theory is negative, and that "Harry is a Metamorphmagus" is stamped out. We've spent so much time debating over some of those issues for so many years, it's sort of nice to be able to put them at bay and think about other things instead. I was hoping that we'd finally see some good updates at JKR.com -- she hasn't added new content in ages.

Merry Christmas to those who are celebrating!

oh i love all those wild rumours that JKR shoots down its so funny. yes i love that section of the site infact i love all of the site. i just wish that annoying door would open. yeah definately rumours section is great.

Man, she sure denied some popular rumors in this most recent update. That title thing was, of course, always bilge. However, the Mrs. Norris/animagus theory has always been pretty popular and that Sorting Hat/horcrux theory had some ground too. "Horcruxes do not draw attention to themselves by singing songs in front of loud audiences." Heh.

I notice she didn't debunk any rumor concerning Harry and Hermione getting together. I almost wish she would either dispell the rumor or confirm it. I wonder why she opted not to address it?

Although JKR hasn't really addressed shipping on her site (aside from debunking Neville/Luna), I think she gave the whole Ron/Hermione vs. Harry/Hermione issue more than adequate coverage in her interview with The Leaky Cauldron and Mugglenet, Dumbledore's Widow. I don't know whether or not you've read it, but JKR does indeed make some rather enlightening statements on the romance front in that interview, and we've got a thread where you can discuss it here.

i think you are right jkr must tell us if these things would have some significance at all and end all our thoughts of some unrelated things............