J.K. Rowling Talks “Casual Vacancy” and the Chances of a New “Potter” Book

Fans from around the world flew into Bath, England, yesterday to attend the annual Bath Literature Festival, where J.K. Rowling made a headline appearance.

Speaking to a crowd of 1,600, Rowling discussed her latest novel, confirming that it was likely to be for a younger audience than Potter and most probably shorter. She also went on to talk about The Casual Vacancy and the themes surrounding the novel’s teenage characters. Stating that she was “very attracted to writing about [teenage years]” since they are a “very interesting time of life,” she showed her distaste for the representations of young people in popular culture today. Rowling denigrated the presentation of teenage issues in television programs, believing them to “romanticize adolescence.” With The Casual Vacancy currently being developed for television, it will be interesting to see how the young characters in the novel are subsequently portrayed on screen.

Unsurprisingly, the conversation turned to Potter, where Rowling talked of her conflicting feelings of both freedom and bereavement as she finished the series and how she realized, back in 2000, that she “will never top [Potter].” As for another Potter novel, “I’m never going to say never, but I have no current plans.” When asked about the likelihood of a Marauders story, she stated that “prequels are not generally very successful.”

Watch a brief clip of the interview currently featured on the Independent.

If anyone attended the event, do let us know your thoughts on the talk in the comments section below.