Gen. Articles - Am I Pathetic?

Discussion for the Madam Puddifoot's General article - Am I Pathetic? (http://www.mugglenet.com/editorials/madampuddifoot/edit-bram01.shtml) by Adam D. Bram.

Psst.....I'm Adam, in case people see me sleazing around here. Sirius27 was already taken, and even though I like Luna a lot, I'm not going to cross-dress here. :p

Why hasn't anyone posted yet? ARG! Hi adam, I'm Jenna, you might remember me emailing you about how much I love Sirius Black. Still do - man last night I finished ORder of the Phoenix again - my reaction to his death is getting worse. Moving on...

You know, I think it's healthier to crush on fictional book characters, than say... Orlando Bloom [not that I don't love HIM!] - because it's they're personality we like - not the looks of someone we really know nothing about.

Also, I think it's fantastic how many people can actually admit to having a crush on a HP character, because it gives me a surge of pride in Jo's writing. She writes characters so well, so believably, so realistically complex with the same reliable traits as people in the real world. And not only does she do it with one character, or even the three main ones, but almost every character we meet is clearly three-dimensional. It's fantastic ;)

Of course there's nothing wrong with it, unless you go too far, of course. It's a healthy little obsession. It gets serious if you raise your real-life standards just because you like Harry, or something, but as long as you keep it quiet and not overly obsessive, there is nothing wrong with it.

And that is why I, like the millions of other girls, am in 'love' with Draco Malfoy.....^^

It's not pathetic that you like Luna. Luna is a really cool character. But, like some other girls out there. I went for Oliver Wood. Draco just doesn't appeal to me, at all.

Am I really the only person who thinks that Draco Malfoy is an evil, disgusting jerk - who even if you're equally evil would find revolting because he's really a whiny coward? Just asking

I'm in 'love' with Draco Malfoy as well, but I think it has a lot more to do with all the fanfics I've read than it does with actual canon. And no, I have no good reasons WHY I love him so... I just do.

I think people here are claiming they like the characters but really mean the actors that play the characters, right now I am passionatley inlove with Daniel Radcliffe the actor that plays Harry in the books but that doesnt mean I am in love with Harry Potter...I dont think I am in love with any of the "book" characters even though if you think about it Cedric Diggory has a really great personality and lets just call it alittle crush :blush: aka: but that does NOT mean I like the actor that plays Cedric lol just making sure you understand lol.........noone can posably take that place of Dan in my heart! :blush:

Actually, LunaStar, I'm just the opposite of you. I quite fancy Draco Malfoy, but Tom Felton does NOTHING for me.

Thanks for all your feedback. I blush that people like my work even that much.

I am going to set something straight once and for all which I never bothered to type in my e-mail replies.

The "Am I Pathetic?" is not me asking you if I'm pathetic, it's the inner thought that comes to mind of anyone when they first realize they like a character, or at least I speculate.

I know I'm pathetic sometimes in other areas of love. Not this one. Thanks to everyone who took the time to reassure me, though. And to that one guy who said I was, well, whatever.

Somebody said you were pathetic? That's terrible! But to take the time to read an editorial and then respond to tell the author he's pathetic... well, that's a little time-consuming for someone who has a life, so don't worry - he's the sad one.

LunaStar - you like Daniel? I think he's quite cute, and can be kind of sexy sometimes [i shouldn't say it cause he's underage, but whatever] - but he's really...err....gay. I mean, not literally gay [though we can't be sure] but sometimes when he smiles, or definitely the entire time he's speaking in the Trio Interview on the PoA DVD, he just is a little, well,pansyish. I prefer Rupert.

Well, since this really is a thread discussing the editorial, I'm going to steer my tangent in that direction.

I find it interesting that Adam likes Luna. I mean, she's not presented as the kind of person you can have any real kind of conversation with, but I'm starting to see a lot of people who 'crush' on her - much more than Hermione or Ginny. It's unusual.

Not that I'm saying anything bad about Luna - truth be told, I'm a little like her myself.
I'm like some Hermione-Luna hybrid. I'm controlling, possessive and have a tendency to come off with a superiority complex. I also retain a frightful amount of information. But I don't realize how I affect people until it's too late, hehe. But I'm really quirky, people think I'm crazy. Sometimes I've actually seen people look at me like "Whoa, she's psycho".

Anyway, I just recently boarded the H/L ship, so hopefully we'll get to see the more in depth side of Luna, I think she's probably very smart [ravenclaw, anyone?] and it will be interesting when she gives Hermione a run for her money. Oh - and if Harry does get with her, then adam will get the chance to, what is it again, live vicariously?

[note: I haven't read the editorial again since the first time I emailed the author about it, but I'm quite sure he did use those words at the end... retaining information, you see. And yes, I am better than all of you. Free the house-elves and the aquavirus maggots!]

Interestingly enough, the insulter was (with the possible exception of some ambiguous foreign names) to my recollection the only male feedbacker out of 20-something e-mails, and certainly the only negative one. Hmm....

I wrote back to him with the AA joke: "Is that it? Or is it that you just can't admit you have a problem?"

I do hope Luna ends up with somebody because she deserves someone for being so cool. I hope Harry ends up with her, but I wouldn't be upset of Harry ended up with Ginny instead. Luna needs someone though. And she's not real, so I can't help. Ah, well.

i love ron. he's so great. he's funny, sweet, and he can stand up for himself. but i also love fred and george, so if i was at hogwarts, ron would be my boyfriend and fred and george would be my best friends. Oh and i also have a soft spot for draco. that boy has a messed up life. he needs someone who understands him to be there for him.

You're not pathetic. The only boys that I could really see myself marrying are all fictional characters: Cedric Diggory, Faramir, and a two characters in some stories that I am writing.

I am actually quite depressed at who they picked to play Cedric, because my definition of handsome and the popular opinion definition of handsome are two very different things.

:angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: Cedric Diggory :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel: Faramir :angel: :angel: :angel: :angel:

Voldemort II: I love ron too, but could you imaging actually trying to go out with him. You'd have to be very untraditional and go for yourself. So, hopefully, if Ron's the kind of guy you go for, you have the ability to make the first move in real life too.

Rosie Cotton - I adore Feramir. The scene in RotK with the Steward [aka dear old daddy] in which is he says he wishes Feramir would have been in Boromir's place just breaks my heart. I'm so glad he got with Eowyn and his dad ran burning off the very top of Minas Tirith. BTW - I'm not a huge LotR freak, but I do love them and the rest of it kind of rubs off from my thirteen year-old brother...

But Sirius is still my true love.

I think it's easier to fall for a character in a book than one on screen - to love someone in a film their character and their looks are both factors but in fiction if you're reading about someone whose character you love they can look however you like in your head. Personally, as big an HP fan as I am I wouldn't say I'm in love with any of the characters. My heart belongs to Captain Carrot of Terry Pratchett's Discworld books. Sigh.

Am I the first guy that doesn't think you're pathetic? I hope not....I don't have a crush on any HP character, but a few years ago I had one for another Potter, Josephin Potter....and I've always found Nadia and Lamù (you know, the Anime....ET girl with the tiger bikini and little hornes) very sexy...(OK, maybe this is quite pathetic, but honestly I don't care....and you should do the same!)
Ah, I don't believe that there's a single guy that has never experienced at least a liiiittle love for a fictional character!

I think the only Anime crush I've ever had was on Misty from Pokémon when I was 13.

I hate that show now, but I love the games and the first 150 monsters still (Mewtwo rocks!)

Check out "Bat in my Belfry" at Flourish & Blotts. It's a fanfiction involving a character I would have loved JKR to have written so I could play him in a movie. There's a good portion of Luna in it. ;) I only have the beginning now, but I'll be adding more in the future.

Am I really the only person who thinks that Draco Malfoy is an evil, disgusting jerk - who even if you're equally evil would find revolting because he's really a whiny coward? Just askingNo, IrishPhoenix711, you're not; I'm with you on this one. Even Jo herself has said she's scared of how many of her females fans are falling for the bad guys. Seeing how many people are just in love with Malfoy and with Snape, I was wondering if I was really missing something in the reading, because I don't find anything attractive about either of the two.

PHEW! I was beginning to worry. I despise Malfoy completely [this is very obvious if you read my fanfic, he's a total brat] - Snape, I don't know why people are attracted to him, but he is an amazing character, a literary achievemet. It causes me to love him as a character, but that's all. He is vindictive, loathesome, begrudging, is a favoritist, etc; I think parts of his character are very weak, and I think he's handled what happened to him as a child in a very bad way.

But I can understand a little what it's like to crush on a bad guy.. I love Lucius Malfoy [only with Jason Isaacs playing him though] I think he is very sexy, but I despise Malfoy with a passion, esp. from the end of GoF throughout OotP - he's pure evil! So this is where the movie bit comes into play, when I read LM, I see the scumbag he is - but when I see him on screen, the hair, they eyes, the voice, the mannerisms... I love to hate him, and I hate to love him!

I think it's awesome you have a crush on Luna. She reminds me a ton of one of my friends, actually. I think the most unfair thing in people's treatment of Luna is that the only reason she's considered a 'freak' is that she doesn't have a boisterous personality. Think of that crazy lion hat. If Fred and George had come up with the idea and worn that to a match after they'd been banned, everyone would have loved them. But because Luna doesn't have that lively, jokey kind of mannerism, people just laugh at her and treat her meanly.

Simply Becky and Irishphoenix, I agree with you. Malfoy is an unattractive, spoiled, slimy, evil, brat! I don't know why people like him! I'm with you on Snape too!

And yes, Faramir is quite nice, isn't he IrishPhoenix. Especially in the books, when he isn't character slaughtered! Oh, well. I'm not talking about the actor either. Heck, I can't even remember his name, and I'm an obsessive LOTR fan!

Again, I think it's wonderful all the feedback you're giving me. :D

Thanks a bunch, everyone! And keep it coming. :gryff: :huff: :rave: :slyth:

I love Lupin. That might seem kind of weird seeing as I'm only 14 and he is supposedly around 30/40. I really love his caring character. Snapes okay too. I don't think its weird or pathetic to "love" or like a fictional character. The character only portrays what kind of people you truly like in real life.

If you like my writing, then please check out my fic in Florish & Blotts ("Bat in my Belfry") and if you already have, don't be afraid to leave me feedback there. :welcome:

I always fall for story book charcters. You can always create them into more of what you want them to be as well as what the author describes. I don't know if I really have a crush on anyone from HP, I was in high school when they came out, so they're still pretty young to me, but I always end up falling for the mysterious guys in books. And I must admit I do suffer from "bad-boy syndrome" as I have heard it coined, but being attracted to that brat Malfoy is too much. He deserves to beaten with The Nimbus 2001 that his dad bought to get him on the Quidittch team (sorry if I didn't spell that right). But in OotP, Harry does seem to become somewhat of bad boy, especially at the end when he's throwing things around in Dumbledore's Office and you know that he really wants to swear his head off at Dumbledore. But with Harry, you know he is a good guy at heart. So it just makes him more attractive. K, enough babble from me. :agree:

I always fall for story book charcters. You can always create them into more of what you want them to be as well as what the author describes. I don't know if I really have a crush on anyone from HP, I was in high school when they came out, so they're still pretty young to me, but I always end up falling for the mysterious guys in books. And I must admit I do suffer from "bad-boy syndrome" as I have heard it coined, but being attracted to that brat Malfoy is too much. He deserves to beaten with The Nimbus 2001 that his dad bought to get him on the Quidittch team (sorry if I didn't spell that right). But in OotP, Harry does seem to become somewhat of bad boy, especially at the end when he's throwing things around in Dumbledore's Office and you know that he really wants to swear his head off at Dumbledore. But with Harry, you know he is a good guy at heart. So it just makes him more attractive. K, enough babble from me. :agree: Bad-boy syndrome. Yes. I'm writing a novel and most of my readers on the writer's site think that the girl is going to fall in love with the absolute baddest of bad-boys. Not spoiled, bad...and I was about to scream, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Yes, I'm still-- Faramir! :drool:

Cedric! :drool:

(I have wanted to use the drooly smiley forever!)

"You're not pathetic. The only boys that I could really see myself marrying are all fictional characters: Cedric Diggory, Faramir, and a two characters in some stories that I am writing."--Rosie Cotton

:sigh: (relief)
Glad to see that I'm not the only one who falls for my own characters. :blush:

I spend most of my time wanting to kill Malfoy and Snape, I don't know why some people find them attractive...although one of my own characters that I find attractive isn't exactly a nice guy...

I fall in love with book characters constantly! In HP I loooove Draco and Harry. I also adore TV characters (InuYasha anyone?)

Adam,
Contrary to the somewhat depressing impression you have of females up to this point, not all of us are interested in the "bad boy."
And...
I must say I am a hard-core Ron fan. I hate Draco, and Harry's just too dark and introverted at the moment; Ron is the nice, sort of unaware funny guy I just have to love, and thoroughly obsess over.

I always get crushes on fictional characters. My HP crush is Ron, I fell for him in OOTP. But I've always imagined Harry and Ron as being very hot, so...yeah. I also like Cedric and Krum quite a bit.

I'm so happy everyone's liking my writing. :blush:

I'm feeling bad for poor Draco already..
I really enjoyed your article, very brave of you to fess up ;)
Let me try and explain the appeal, or should I say allure? of Draco Malfoy, especially for those of us enamoured with him in fandom. Not only does he get points for the 'bad boy' appeal, but it's his potential that has us all smitten. He has been so sheltered, so (not to sound too harsh but) brainwashed from his upbringing that it would be thrilling to see what would happen when he breaks free of that (as so many teens do when they hit the 'rebelling stage') and looks at the world froma different angle. Now, I'm not saying he <i>is</i> going to do that, but he could.. he has such potential to do anything his little heart desires..

Not to mention the fact that we see so little of what he really goes through, being only privy (albeit there are a couple exceptions) to his interactions with his 'mortal enemy' Harry.

just my 2cents... -lovelymedea (whose boyfriend doesn'tseem to mind that she spends large amounts of time writing stories about Draco... :blush: )

I am actually quite depressed at who they picked to play Cedric, because my definition of handsome and the popular opinion definition of handsome are two very different things.


I'm so on the fence about seeing an actor portray Cedric. In JKR books there doesn't need to be a detail description of what Cedric looks like. Every girl (or boy) has an image of what they percieve to be dashing, handsome, or prefection. Cedric, as is many of the characters we admire, are a personal reflection in our minds. Cho's descriptions in the books is limited to being "very prety," "really good looking." Anyone casted in these parts are never going to fit the bill for every admirer.

W00t! Ok. Yes, I do realise how late I am to discuss this article (well 2 pages apparantly), no Oliver Wood does nothing for me and yes, I still like to fold my underwear symmetrically.

Yeah, just my two knuts worth here: Loved the article, it was very well written :D - it made me giggle quite a lot which does nothing to help me as my parents think I've gone 'round the twist ("..laughing at the computer -- John, I think something's wrong with her") Ahem. And yeah, I admit I have an obsession, er, soft spot for Draco Malfoy and Sirius Black :blush:

:scared:


Right. Well. Now that I've admitted that, I'd best go find myself a fan club to join where I can nest, and grow these 'soft spots' of mine..

You know, a lot of girls have e-mailed me feedback saying they love Black.

I don't blame them. Sirius is definitely my fave overall character. As the saying go, "Women want him and men want to be him".....except for the whole Azkaban trip and the whole falling through the veil thing.....

Adam,
Contrary to the somewhat depressing impression you have of females up to this point, not all of us are interested in the "bad boy." Relief. I hate bad-boys.

I have this romance that I'm writing and all my editors/friends are falling in love with the bad-boy, and I'm saying, "Nooo! She doesn't fall in love with the bad-boy!" (referring to the female love interest)

I'm so on the fence about seeing an actor portray Cedric. In JKR books there doesn't need to be a detail description of what Cedric looks like. Every girl (or boy) has an image of what they percieve to be dashing, handsome, or prefection. Cedric, as is many of the characters we admire, are a personal reflection in our minds. Cho's descriptions in the books is limited to being "very prety," "really good looking." Anyone casted in these parts are never going to fit the bill for every admirer. Of course, but I can be disappointed can't I? Anyways, I was mostly saying that to prove that I didn't like the actor but the character.

Yeah, I usually NEVER fall for the bad boys, but in the movies, I'm :love: with Draco and Snape. If it were different actors, I probably wouldn't be the same way.

In the books, however, I adore Fred and George Weasley. I'm absolutely flippy for them. It's just a shame the actors that play them aren't exactly the best looking blokes they could have picked. :upset:

I think Snape is hot. The way he talks..... (movies of course)...but in the books... i dont know... Maybe Harry since he is so kind... and Ron but thats because of Rupert.
And Krum.... he is so serious about Hermione and everything.... so sweet to find a guy like that....

Relief. I hate bad-boys.

I have this romance that I'm writing and all my editors/friends are falling in love with the bad-boy, and I'm saying, "Nooo! She doesn't fall in love with the bad-boy!" (referring to the female love interest)
Yeah, I normally don't like them either. There's one in a story I'm writing that I have a bit of a soft spot for, but that's because I feel sorry for him--he has "issues." He's also not as bad as everybody thinks (although, he's an assassin, so I guess that's pretty bad!).

finally! i am not the only one who has a crush on a fictional character! yayy! that was a pretty ballsy article, as it can be tough to admit you love someone who does not exist except in our minds and in books. nice work!
I am in love with Ron Weasley. He is funny, with a great laid back sense of humor, hes loyal and just awesome. Hes someone I want to be friends with (or more...). I kind of live vicariously through Hermione, leaving me to feel that they have to get together, or else i will be devasted. I really will. I'm so lame.
But anyway, yayyy thank you so much for the article, as it made me feel like less of a freak and more comfortable about loving Ron Weasley!!!!

As a 20-year old guy myself, I must admit to agreeing with you on many issues you bring up. I fall in love with many fictional characters, although I believe this is mostly because such characteristics as nobility, honor, and virtue seem to be all but gone from this world. Eowyn from LotR and MJ from Spiderman are the two that come to mind, though the latter may be the classic case of "liking the actress, not the character".

I think Emma is going to end up being drop dead gorgeous in a few years, but seeing as she is quite younger than I, and her arrogance and know-it-all ness in the books, I don't really fancy Hermionie. Ginny I could see myself really liking, but she is so young in the books, and does not really show herself to be "grown-up" until the 5th book. Therefore, we just don't know enough about her "teen" or "young woman" side to really fall in love with her as a character.

Luna I disliked for nearly the entire book... until the end. I think that is also where the whole Luna/HP relationship becomes possible, after that last conversation with her. You kind of see the real Luna, the sensitive and understanding nature that is usually not displayed, as JKR has really been using her more as Comic Relief in my opinion.

I'm sure I could lust after Lavender or the Patils, but they seem the whole "preppy blond airhead type" that I was never attracted to in real life, besides on a basic carnal level.

Cho is not my type, WHATSOEVER. I don't care how pretty she may be, I need a strong woman who cares about me. I could not date someone who cried ALL the time, as I get seriously depressed whenever I see a girl cry. I always want to make them smile again and be happy, and it kills me when I cannot. Cho's tears come from something that I do not control, so I would be continuously depressed with her.

As for the guys, I cannot really judge that matter. I think girls like Draco because of the whole "bad boy" fascination that I have never been able to understand. All the girls who are close to me say they would never date a person like me because I am too nice. Rather, it seems, the want a guy who annoys them and doesn't take some very common courtesies when around them.

Ron, Draco, and Harry get a lot of attention because of the actors that play them too. Lupin I don't understand how anyone could like. Harry is the main character and therefore the "hero" and therefore he gets a lot of "love" because of that.

However, in my honest opinion, my favorite character in the books is probably Sirius. And from his description in the books, I do not understand why all the women in the world do not adore him. Part of this may be the casting choice made for the movie, which completely upset me by the wat, but whatever. Sirius has all the characteristics I would think women would be attracted to (going strictly from the book now). He's handsome, funny, loyal, has the "bad boy" thing, but yet has a golden heart and deep-down is a very caring and loving person. Plus, it appears as if he would make a great father. The only thing going against him is that people usually do not like to love those who they know will die, but hey, no body knew that until OotP.

Anyway, I am quite done here, as it appears I have nearly written an article here myself. Consider this my introductory post, and I hope to see many of you in the future as I hope to begin contributing to these forums rather than mearly just being a viewer.

Peace.
MasterWolf

...except for the whole Azkaban trip and the whole falling through the veil thing.....

wow... that really hurt. right there ::clasps heart:: :upset: people think I'm kidding when I feel hard-hit by "sirius is dead" comments - but I really am unhealthily obsessed with the guy.

Oh, and on lighter note [she said in a deadened tone]. This whole thing really reminds me of lemony snicket's quote about Harry Potter being a nice young fictional man. Just thought I'd say that. Let me go cry now. :sad:

Yay! First Post!! :cool:

I, for one, am entirely bonkers over Severus Snape. And as to why he's so appealing... I can't even guess. Maybe it's his way with words, maybe that dark, almost theatrical presence he has in both the books and the films. Movie Snape is old enough to be my father, however, so I shall restrict my intrest to Book Snape. He's just so *******' troubled that you can't help but to give him a fictional hug.

--Angela

I totally agree with you EnglishMuffin! For some unknown reason,Snape is so attractive. I, for one, love the way he talks... both in the movies and books...

I totally agree with you EnglishMuffin! For some unknown reason,Snape is so attractive. I, for one, love the way he talks... both in the movies and books...

Oi... seriously. In PoA, when he's subbing for Prof. Lupin in DADA.... "No one? How disappointing..." That voice is velvet. I blame it on Alan Rickman.

I also can't help but think that a character like Snape would be really fun to write. Which is why, I think, Snapefic is generally a step above the rest :p

I used to be in love with Harry, and to a degree I guess I still am. But (oddly enough) the movies kind of damped that down because (A) They brought home how much younger he is than me (I'm 19) and (B) Daniel Radcliffe, although very cute, looks disturbingly like my 14-year-old brother. I guess the thing that I like about his character is his intensity--the way that he seems to feel everything more strongly.

I absolutely love Sirius, and I cried hysterically when he died. Snape appeals to me in a complex kind of way--He's a real jerk on the surface, and he may not have the proverbial "heart of gold," but I think that deep down, he has a sense of justice and honor. I don't think he is a good person, but I think he could have been, had his childhood and adolescence not been so horrific.

it is definately not insane to be ...i'm guessing 'attracted' would be the best word to use.. to a fictional character. when i was little i liked the guy in the animated disney versoin of 'the hunchback of notre dame' (the skinny loud mouth gypsy). but hsa far as hp goes.. am i alone in liking the weasley twins? after reading them i loved their irrevernt humor and seeing them in the movies doesn't hurt either (phelps twins: very good looking) i think i just have a thing for the tall wirey comical type :eyebrows:

Yay! I'm not the only one with a crush on a fictional character! Ok, here I go. I am a 13 year old female with a crush on......Kingsley! Wow. I feel better saying that. I think I fell for his voice mostly. That deep slow calming voice. *sighs*. But I'm kinda glad he's a fictional character because it'd be kinda weird having a crush on real person who's way older than me.

I don't understand how people have a crush on Draco. Yes I do have a small crush on the Draco in my fanfic where he turns good but the "real" Draco is really mean. I also do have a crush on Tom Felton. He's sooo cute! *sighs again*.

It's interesting how people have crushes on Snape, Draco, Luna etc. but I haven't met a lot of people with a crush on Harry. I think Daniel kind of turned me off of Harry. No offense to anyone but I think he looks better as Harry than himself.

Actually, LunaStar, I'm just the opposite of you. I quite fancy Draco Malfoy, but Tom Felton does NOTHING for me.


*GASP* I thought I was the only one!! (though I admit, I used to fancy Tom Felton.... But I got distracted by Aragorn mwahaha)

*sings in happyness* wow im sooo glad people feel the same way :D
i personaly am completely obbsessed with neville and snape i think i go for the kind of misunderstood guy. and yes i do belive that snape is misunderstood hes been so hard done to in the past he must have become bitter.
oh n dont get me started on neville hes soo cute and clumsy and matthew lewis *faints* hes sooo anazingly cute.

o n 4 all u luna lovers if u like crazy/missunderstood women then you would love my friend az shes just like luna. lol

Okay, well, I hafta admit that I have a teensy crush on Neville. I know, I know...but he's such a cutie! Granted, he's bumbling and all, he's got the problem that whole issue with his parents...but you can't help liking him! (and Matt Lewis is cute, too, so that helps...)

horrahhhhh someone else. i totaly think there shud be a neville apreciation tread because theres one for everyone else.
maybe there is one and i just dont know about it.

im gunna stop rambling nnow lol

Hey!

I really enjoyed your article! I my self has a minor crush on Lee Jordan! i thinks he is a lot of fun and a very good quidditch commentator :p .... Besides my own sick fantasies i understand why you are fond of Luna! She is a lot of fun, and quite a mystery person too!

With hopes that you (when time comes) will find a non-fictional girlfriend... :eyebrows:

Luna_L

finally! i am not the only one who has a crush on a fictional character! yayy! that was a pretty ballsy article, as it can be tough to admit you love someone who does not exist except in our minds and in books. nice work!
I am in love with Ron Weasley. He is funny, with a great laid back sense of humor, hes loyal and just awesome. Hes someone I want to be friends with (or more...). I kind of live vicariously through Hermione, leaving me to feel that they have to get together, or else i will be devasted. I really will. I'm so lame.
But anyway, yayyy thank you so much for the article, as it made me feel like less of a freak and more comfortable about loving Ron Weasley!!!!

I totally understand!
He is such a funny guy (though i dont want to compete, you can have him :angel: )
I am quite a freak myself at some point... so FREAKS ROCK :clap:

Luna_L

I think that over the years I have developed enfatuations with at least 30 fictional characters. Most recently Sirius Black. I Probably would have a think for Harry but seeing as I'm 24 it's more of a... hmm I'd want to meet Harry when he's my age.

I think it's a completely normal thing to do, but then I look at what I just wrote, and that little voice inside my head says "you are completely pathetic". Ah oh well.

I'm glad that there are some (other) people out there who like Neville.

My fondness for Neville isn't really a crush, per se--it's just that every time he's mentioned in the books it seems like he's having trouble with something, be it Snape or not being able to do spells correctly...I just want to give him a hug.

This is so cool, i have always loved Ron, hes so slow somtimes, put you know he is really loyal. I've never really gone for the older ones like sirius or snape, but i can understand why people are attracted to them.
Liking a fictious character is great, because more often that not, we can only go by their personality, rather than looks. Your editorial was great to read, and also to know im not abnormal, and Luna Lovegood rocks, i think shes so funny, its definatly nothing to be ashamed of. :eyebrows:

people think I'm kidding when I feel hard-hit by "sirius is dead" comments - but I really am unhealthily obsessed with the guy.

Don't worry, you're not the only one - I bawled my eyes out when I read the end to OotP! My parents thought there was something wrong with me... :sad:

Good editorial - I always had a thing for Harry ;) Though I can't really understand how you could like Luna (she is a bit strange after all), hey, to each their own.

It is weird how anyone could like Draco... I mean he is evil! Harry's such a good guy... :)

First, I really enjoyed the editorial and it was nice to hear that I'm not the only "pathetic ficional character-lover" out there... :p

As I see it, you've divided the women's favorite heartthrobs in two categories: "The really wholesome good guy" like Oliwer Wood, Ron, Lupin etc. and "The bad but I can change him" like Draco and Snape.

Well, in my opinion you left out the character that doesn't fall into any of these catagories. The man who is on the good side but with a genuine bad streak: Sirius Black. (And yes, I do have a HUGE crush on Sirius :love: ) I won't want to change him one bit, maybe it's the bad boy thing that is so appealing?

JKR surely know how to make interesting characters. She made me lose my heart to a non-existing man. You evil woman! :evil:

Hmmm. Well, all of my non-husbandy crushes are/have been fictional:

- Captain Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
- Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
- Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Dorme' (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Leto Atreides I (Dune prequel series)
- Leto Atreides II (Dune series proper)
- Daniel Jackson (Stargate: SG-1)

- Spike (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Willow (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Legolas (Lord of the Rings)
- Ron Weasley (Harry Potter)
- Young!Sirius Black (Harry Potter)

- Mr. Darcy (Pride & Prejudice)
- Colonel Brandon (Sense & Sensibility)
- Mr. Knightley (Emma)
- Captain Wentworth (Persuasion)

I might be able to go on, but why? I think the common thread here is a person who is usually somewhat restrained but who, in reality, is deeply passionate and a person of conviction and action. Which, by the way, describes my husband, too. So at least I'm a consistent fantasist.

Liking a Harry Potter character is...well, it's absolutely okay, but I'm such an in-the-closet fan of *whispers name of who I like in the books* that nobody knows...no, I'm not going to drop it and admit who it is I like. It's odd though because I frequently vacillate between my fictional crush and the person I like in real life...it's very odd...one moment I'll be thinking about <Bleep from HP> and then I'm thinking the same things about <Bleep from Real Life> because yes, the two people (i.e. one person, one character) I like are very similar.

Sorry about the confusing rant. About the editorial...I thought it was wonderful that someone "came out of the [character-crushing] closet" about their infatuations.... What annoys me is when people say that Harry Potter looks EXACTLY like Daniel Radcliffe. My friend once said, in response to me asking why she thought Harry was hot, "He's got blue eyes and brown hair...what's not to like?" That's the only thing that annoys me about fictional crushes and movie crushes--while some people distinctly know which one they like, others keep confusing them. For some reason, I get really insulted when this happens.

Lily

Hmmm. Well, all of my non-husbandy crushes are/have been fictional:

- Captain Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
- Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
- Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Dorme' (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Leto Atreides I (Dune prequel series)
- Leto Atreides II (Dune series proper)
- Daniel Jackson (Stargate: SG-1)

- Spike (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Willow (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Legolas (Lord of the Rings)
- Ron Weasley (Harry Potter)
- Young!Sirius Black (Harry Potter)

- Mr. Darcy (Pride & Prejudice)
- Colonel Brandon (Sense & Sensibility)
- Mr. Knightley (Emma)
- Captain Wentworth (Persuasion)

I might be able to go on, but why? I think the common thread here is a person who is usually somewhat restrained but who, in reality, is deeply passionate and a person of conviction and action. Which, by the way, describes my husband, too. So at least I'm a consistent fantasist.

I just have to ask. Do you like Legolas, or Orlando Bloom? Just to check. It's like those people that say Aragorn is hot. Aragorn, or Viggo Mortensen?

But yes, Colonel Brandon, Mr. Darcy and Mr. Knightley are all dreamy aren't they. (I haven't read Persuasion, so I can't say) Except isn't Colonel Brandon supposed to be sort of old?

Okay, well, I hafta admit that I have a teensy crush on Neville. I know, I know...but he's such a cutie! Granted, he's bumbling and all, he's got the problem that whole issue with his parents...but you can't help liking him! (and Matt Lewis is cute, too, so that helps...)

Neville is my favorite character! He's so brave and sacrificial. He has his own kind of bravery.

*GASP* I thought I was the only one!! (though I admit, I used to fancy Tom Felton.... But I got distracted by Aragorn mwahaha)


See...Aragorn, or Viggo Mortensen

I like Sirius... Who doesn't?

About the "bad boys" thing, I don't really fit into that image. I usually feel attracted to the leaders, and the people not always bothering to follow the rules.

Maybe I'm just mean, but I find that people telling white lies or not wanting to get angry or break any rules as boring and weak. I like strong personalities, as I (sorry if this seems like bragging) am myself. I wouldn't let a guy say a lot of bad things about me or set me in a corner.
Also, my dream guy should have the same interests as me, I'm not at all into the opinion that opposites attract eachother.

I HATE Draco and Snape, even if they are a bit like the persons I like, they are not afraid of rules and dare to say their opinion. But when it all comes to it, Draco seems weak at the end. He'd rather run away from a challenge than face it, and everyone who doesn't fit into his perfect image aren't worthy of knowing him (like anyone would...) I don't like bullies, especially not when they humiliate people. Like Snape always does to Neville, and Draco is trying to do with Harry and most of the other Gryffindors too. To me Draco, at least, seems like a wannabe. He tries to play cool to make people like him, he's having his gang of braindead people who laughs at everything he says, so they can get in trouble while he somehow gets out of it. I'm sure that if f.ex. Goyle was in trouble, and Draco knew that he would get to if he tried to help Goyle, he wouldn't help. He is just a self-centered, spoiled kid who does everything to make everyone think that he's that cool, popular guy, while no one really likes him, because of his arrogance and the need to drag other people down to feel better.

*GASP* I thought I was the only one!! (though I admit, I used to fancy Tom Felton.... But I got distracted by Aragorn mwahaha)

Yeah, count me in that camp, Draco is rather appealing, but sadly Tom is not, I read his site and he seems like a pretty regular teenage boy.. too young for the likes of me. But Draco.. well he'd be just about the right age.. :whistle:

:lol: Then again, my boyfriend looks just like Anakin Skywalker/Hayden Christiansen... so.. :eyebrows:

I'm trying to think of other fictional characters I have crushes on... but it usually comes around to: is it the actor or the character, unless I think of books.

Rober LeBrun from The Awakening. I don't know how, but I have the hots for him ;)

I adore Mr. Darcy, too - I believe a couple of people mentioned him.

I love Seth from the OC, but some of that might be Adam Brody.

And doesn't EVERYONE love Legolas, isn't that like a standard crush. I remember when FoTR came out and everyone is like 'the hot elf with the long blond hair and pointy ears is H - OH - DOUBLE T..." and anyone who hasn't seen it is all 'you're kidding, right?"

I love Sayid from Lost ;)

I think someone mentioned falling for your own fictional creations? I am somewhat guilty.

My Molly and Arthur romance fic: Shane Casey. I love him ;)
It's funny, because I wrote him and then some reviewers were like 'He reminds me of Sirius" and I'm like, 'really?' and now I really see it. I just keep writing him as 'Shane', and I have this image of him in my head, and people keep saying - 'he's like Sirius'...

So basically, my love for Sirius is now escaping my subconscious and injecting itself into my writing...

head_girl_katie.... i so agree. i also am very much in love with Ron (the character not the actor) --- he is so sweet and loyal and sharing and cute and funny, and i think his whole clueless and hesitant attitude makes him even more endearing. And he's afraid of spiders! how adorable is that?!?!?! that whole bit in CoS where Ron explains about Fred turning his teddy bear into a 'dirty great spider' is too sweet. and how he gets all mad whenever Malfoy or Snape is mean to Hermione, and how jealous he is over Krum and Lockhart...i am totally living vicariously through Hermione as well. or whoever else is lucky enough to get Ron. (i hope its Hermione). Seriously... if Ron dies im going to cry so much :upset: . i mean, i already cry over fanfic. how pathetic is That!

i must say though that if i were older..... at least a century older that is.... Dumbledore would be lovely too. im very attracted to his personality and attitude. i'm surprised no one claims to be in love with Dumbledore. He's such a nice old man. :eyebrows:

I've thought about it, and Dumbledore isn't a crush person. He's more like the father/grandfather everyone wish they had, someone who always understands you, you know... What would Harry do without him? What if he dies? *cries out loud*

Hooray for fictional crushes! I have a major fictional *crush* on Sirius the character, definitely not the actor (nothing against Gary Oldman).

I think fictional cruches are ok, as long as they don't get out of hand. *cough*fangirls*cough* :rolleyes: I do find myself sometimes wanting to give Harry a hug, or have a conversation with him or something, because he always just seems so depressed and I just want him to feel better (like at the end of OotP when he was sitting by the lake after Sirius died) but usually I just roll my eyes and think I'm crazy, but there you are.

Alright, the unrequited love of fictional characters can be at times embarassing. I have been blushingly ashamed to admit my childhood love of Darkwing Duck. I cringed when I announced that I felt more for the Beast (of Beauty and the Beast, of course) than for my first boyfriend. And now, despite the 157 year age gap, I quite fancy Albus Dumbledore (that one's entirely based on personality). Fiction has a way of sometimes turning out better than truth, and dreams are maliable. I am no longer ashamed of whatever I felt, it is worse to deny the honesty of those feelings. Let us all embrace the love. We are not pathetic.

I think fictional cruches are ok, as long as they don't get out of hand. *cough*fangirls*cough* :rolleyes: I do find myself sometimes wanting to give Harry a hug, or have a conversation with him or something, because he always just seems so depressed and I just want him to feel better (like at the end of OotP when he was sitting by the lake after Sirius died) but usually I just roll my eyes and think I'm crazy, but there you are.

I absolutely agree!

Rosie Cotton, I do in fact like Legolas; Orlando Bloom leaves me cold as a fish. And by the by, although I find Viggo nice eye candy, Aragorn's personality is too passive, too avoidant for my taste; hence his absence from my earlier list.

And Colonel Brandon is 35 years old, which of course seems very old to his crush Marianne, who is only a little above sixteen in S&S. But to a woman of 36 years old, such as myself, that's not such a drawback. After all, younger men can be hot!

Lovelymedea, about your boyfriend's looks -- lucky you!

Rosie Cotton, I do in fact like Legolas; Orlando Bloom leaves me cold as a fish. And by the by, although I find Viggo nice eye candy, Aragorn's personality is too passive, too avoidant for my taste; hence his absence from my earlier list.

And Colonel Brandon is 35 years old, which of course seems very old to his crush Marianne, who is only a little above sixteen in S&S. But to a woman of 36 years old, such as myself, that's not such a drawback. After all, younger men can be hot!

Lovelymedea, about your boyfriend's looks -- lucky you!


So, I guess you go for personality. That's good. Because you know, Legolas' looks are NEVER described in the books. And Viggo Mortensen is okay looking when he's not in costume (he looks like a grease-ball when he is). I like Aragorn's personalilty though. He's not on my fictional loves list, but I like his personality for a friend.

I guess, but I'm only fourteen, so that would be cradle-robbing! (If I got Colonel Brandon)

I was really laughing out loud at the David Thewlis part. The "small mammal" looked rather pathetic on his face. I truly have had a crush on Lupin since I read the 3rd book. For some reason, I never thought myself pathetic, mainly because I am young and I see ( very often ) girls who are in love with Sirius or someone else on the internet writing or chatting about him.

fictional characters are so easy to crush on-----partially because if they dissappoint you, you can always fix them in a fanfic.
i happen to have a crush on fred and george (mainly fred. don't ask why). i was very upset that jkr wrote them out of the 5th book when she did.
i recently read "pride and prejudice" and now i too have a crush on Mr. Darcy. at least now i know i'm not the only one!

Well, people say, "Any girl who reads Pride and Prejudice and doesn't fall madly in love with Mr. Darcy, must not be reading the same book." :lol:

Well, people say, "Any girl who reads Pride and Prejudice and doesn't fall madly in love with Mr. Darcy, must not be reading the same book." :lol:
No arguments here.

Well, people say, "Any girl who reads Pride and Prejudice and doesn't fall madly in love with Mr. Darcy, must not be reading the same book." :lol:

agreed!
:lol:

Now the question is, would we say the same thing about Mr. Knightley? (Even more so I would say. I think Mr. Knightley is dreamier than Darcy)

I'm not sure that i feel that way about Mr. Knightley yet....maybe when i read more of the book i will. For the time being, I can't imagine anyone being dreamier than Mr. Darcy.

Mr. Knightley is nicer than Mr. Darcy, and that's saying something

Yes, Mr. Knightley lectures Emma, but she deserves it. And other than that, he's very generous to those whose station in life is below his, even those who are ridiculous -- which you can't say about Mr. Darcy for most of P&P.

My favorite on-screen Mr. Knightley is Jeremy Northam (oh so dreamy), but I also like his equivalent, Josh Lucas (played by Paul Rudd), in Clueless.

Have any of you seen Sir Laurence Olivier's Mr. Darcy (with Greer Garson as Elizabeth)? Though I think he's very good, I think I still like Colin Firth's portrayal better.

And speaking of comparing characters to actors, I must say that in many ways I am disappointed in the film versions' overuse of Ron Weasley as the frightened person. He's a much more aggressive person in the books, and I admire him all the more for it. I hope that the remaining films will show more of his willingness -- even eagerness -- to attack those who mock or threaten his family and friends.

I agree Persephone (I like the name by the way). I agree with the Ron thing and I agree that Emma deserved to be yelled at when Knightley does.

Harry is a sweetie, I don´t have a crush on him but i´d like to finsd someone like him...if...that...makes...any...sense.

Ok I´ll go now

Are you being pointed, pumpkin_piexxx?

Do you play Super Smash Brothers: Melee by any chance Adam? I have a friend that is always yelling "Mewto ROCKS!" in my face because he always beats me with him.(but thats all going to change one day... :evil: )


By the way, I'm a guy and I have a crush on Hermione, but I'm not sure why.

I've played the original SSB on N64, and wanted SSB Meelee but won't pony up the dough to buy a GameCube (I'm more of a PlayStation man myself). However, I have played Pokémon many times and thought the show sucks bunnies, the games are pretty cool and Mewtwo is on my list of top 10 fave characters. Who couldn't love a 6'7" psychic cat?

A couple of comments:
First of all, I loved your editorial.
That being said, I totally agree with you in the Malfoy/Snape part. What’s up with that? I honestly believe that most girls like them only because of Tom Felton (yes, he is very cute) and Alan Rickman (I love him, but… Snape? That’s another thing entirely). I have never believed (and dear Jo has agreed with me… well, sort of) that Snape and Malfoy are “real softies” deep inside. They are fascinating characters and I like them as that, but as human beings? Come on!!! Are you kidding me? They are the kind of people you want to keep as far from you as possible.
Remus… what can I say, I love him. But I can’t say I love David Thewlis (yes, I’m a mustache hater. I admit it). But then again, I don’t know if this has been established or not, but I’ve always picture Remus as a Cancer and, being one myself I can’t help but being attracted by his kindness and sweetness. He’s perfect (apart from the werewolf thing, of course).
I can understand why you like Luna. And I don’t think you are weird or anything for having a crush on a fictional character. But I understand you because not only I’m in love (I’ve already passed the crush status) with a fictional character, but a dead one. I’m in love with James Potter.

But I understand you because not only I’m in love (I’ve already passed the crush status) with a fictional character, but a dead one. I’m in love with James Potter.

Awww. Here's a cookie. *cookie* :)

i love ron!!!!
I also love rupert, but i already loved ron before the movies, so i think i really like rupert because he "is" ron...and hes cute :)

I read your editorial yesterday and I would like to say, it was very nice.

Having and infatuation with a character (or two...or three...or...) is perfectly fine. Everyone who reads often have such things happen to them. Often, people 'like' characters because they have either a lot in common or because they are close to one's dream partner. For example, I happen to like tall, lanky guys with the mysterious vibe that are under the age of fourty(but of course, having black long hair is a plus for me). So, every time I come across a character like that, I become very interested in him (yes, him only). However, I do not believe in anyone ever 'loving' a character from a book. Why? Because they aren't real most of the time.

Now, back on topic a little, I dislike it when people become a fan of a certain Harry Potter character due to the movies. No offense to those who do, but it just irks me. Of course, I am being SLIGHTLY hypocritical since I started hating Snape less after seeing him being played by Alan Rickman and later became a big Snape fan. But I just don't like it when people assume naturally that the portrayals of the characters in Harry Potter are more accurate than the ones JK Rowling shows us. Why? Because I can spend days or even months pointing out all the mistakes in the movies about a certain character's appearance. Furthermore, people seem to write fanfiction about Harry Potter based off more from the movies. But then again, I read Snape fanfictions most of the time so I'm most likely incorrect about this.

Now...to defend those Snape and Draco fangirls a bit more... Snape fangirls, from what I've seen, most of them became fans of him starting from the movie. However, as that happens, they also take a look at Snape's personality and everything. That is when they start really becoming fans of them or stop being fans. As for Draco, hey, he was never described as ugly persay so I believe he had more fangirls than Snape did before the movies came.

If anything I've written is inaccurate, pardon. This is merely from my point of view.

He was described as having a pointed face, a pointed nose, and pointed features in general. So he's pointy.

I absoutely do not think ththink that it is wierd to start to like a fiction character. I think sometimes i know more about the characters in a fiction book that i have a crush on then men i know in the real world. Just beacue they dont exist doesnt mean thay arent more developed.
What i am having a hard time with however is thinking that most women like draco malfoy. Can this really be true?? Who would like someone like him, who is full of evil. Draco Malfoy is a whiny little brat that i cannot imagine anyone liking. Personally i happen to really enjoy Ron. He is adorable in my mind and a loyal friend to the end. And who wouldn't like having the Weasley's for inlaws :huh: The only "bad boy" i like in these books is Sirius Black. Book five was devastating. Sirius very loyal, caring guy, who has shown that he will die to protect those he loves.
Anyways. i just wanted to chime in my two cents and let you knwo that i dont think your crazy at all. Nothing wrong with a harmless crush :angel:

For some weird reason, I've recently become infatuated with Harry himself. I still love Sirius more, but there's just something about Harry.

Personally, I have always had a great fondness for the Weasley twins. Mostly Fred because he is the goofier more outgoing one and those are traits I tend to be attracted to in members of the opposite sex. He reminds me a lot of one of my best friends when I was in high school. I had a crush on him for two years before I finally told him. We are still good friends. It never would've worked. haha My friend was also a twin. I was good friends with both of them, but my crush was the more outgoing and goofy twin. Maybe that's why I have such a 'crush' on Fred Weasley. hehe

Crushes on fictional characters aren't silly as long as people don't take them too far!

:agree: :gryff:

Crushes on fictional characters aren't silly as long as people don't take them too far!

What happens if you don't mean to take it too far?
Example, Elijah Wood unfortunatly entered my before-deep-sleep head space, and I tossed all night trying to get rid of him (it didn't work). This concerns me greatly, because I have no real romantic intrest in Mr. Wood, and never mind him as Frodo. And yet, whenever I hear the word "wood", I think of Oliver, and my friends also start to drool.

Random thought, for you hockey fans, does Quidditch seem to have the same following as college or university teams? Maybe that;s why I like Wood so much, as he is not really featured in the later books. One can only hope he makes a cameo later on! :evil:

Wow! Four pages of feedback! I'm touched. :blush:

this article is awesome.. it makes me feel better about myself :) i have huge crushes on fred and george weasley...the carefree, funny, and SMART qualities make me want them! lol, i love(d) (hopefully we'll see him again) sirius tho.. but fred and george have my heart ;)

I definitely know exactly how you feel, Adam. I flip flop from being in love with Ron to Harry, back and forth everyday. My friends tell me that I'm crazy, and I probably am. My other friend is SO in love with Malfoy, but I am in love with Ron or Harry, depending on how my mood is. I always go for the nice guy; I'm not a girl who goes for the bad guy, I mean plenty of people do, but I'm not one of them. I also fall in love with other book characters, like Jesse de Silva from Meg Cabot's Mediator series. T.V. show characters are almost as easy to fall in love with, like Alias' Michael Vaughn...Basically any pretend character is easy to fall in love with if he is three dimensional.

Well Im glad I am not pathetic because I ADORE George. If I went to hogwarts I would be after George. Most people wonder why George and not Fred, but I can't explain it, George is just better and sweeter and I love him. Even tho Oliver Phelps is a bi goofy loving I still love him too, but when I think of him I think of George. However; Rupert Grint has given me a new appreciation for Ron, so if things didnt work out between George and me, I would move on to Ron. :eyebrows:

Oh yes I forgot I also had a huge crush on Sirius, I mean huge I though he was greatly attractive (not gary oldman, but Sirius) but for a man my own ge George takes the straw and now Im obsessed, but everyonce in a while Im in a Sirius mood!

this article is awesome.. it makes me feel better about myself :) i have huge crushes on fred and george weasley...the carefree, funny, and SMART qualities make me want them! lol, i love(d) (hopefully we'll see him again) sirius tho.. but fred and george have my heart ;)
and to accio FOG you can have Fred, but don';t you dare take George!!!!!!!!!!

Power to the F&G fans!!

But, sorry, MrsG, George has so been mine, since like, Book 1. :D

Awww. Here's a cookie. *cookie* :)

i don't know why, but that really made me laugh :rotfl: a lot :rotfl:

since you're handing out cookies, would you be kind enough to hand me george? fred would be nice too.

to the harry crushers--->you can have harry. i don't like him very much, mostly because we're too much alike. it's weird reading about harry and not liking the same things about him that i don't like about myself. kinda creepy, actually.

no, your not pathetic or crazy. when people have crushes on fictional charaters (and in other cases to) they know so much about the character and what they really like is their characteristics not the peerson in partiular because they don't "exist"

I don't think having a crush on a fictional character is bad at all, its only a crush. I liked Ron when I first read HP but then I started liking Sirius Black when PoA came out,then Remus Lupin, then Snape, he's mysterious I can't help it, but I have recently started to like Remus again.......I suppose I'm quite fickle :shrug:

See...Aragorn, or Viggo Mortensen
I have to say I do like Aragorn but I like Viggo Mortensen better, sounds stupid I know but still. O and Jack Sparrow or Johnny Depp, I've got to say Johnny Depp although my friend loves Jack Sparrow. I do like Jack Sparrow though because he's just so funny :rotfl:
And I love Alan Rickman ... has to be said, he plays a fantastic baddie :evil:

Yeah, I do it all the time. My current crush is definately Harry, though I've always had an attraction to the dark and mysterious side of Snape. :love:
Good luck with finding a girl like Luna

I don't think I have a crush on a character where I obsess over them. It's more like if they were a real person I could see myself being attracted to them in some way.

I don't understand why people say they have a "crush" on Draco, I could understand from the movies (looks wise) b/c Tom Felton is rather good looking. But as a person Draco Malfoy isn't someone you should have a "crush" on

In a previous post, someone mentioned Fanfiction causing their interest in some characters... and i totally agree. I love fanfiction, it seriously is one of the best ways to broaden your view of a character (good or bad). So for all you fan fic writers, keep writing because there are pple like me who love reading it :tu:

In a word, NO! you are in no way pathetic! personally, i don't often find myself falling for characters in books or movies, but mostly wishing i could be them. HP was totaly different. even though i wanted to be LIKE harry and the others, i never once wanted to be any one specifically. i always made up my own characters as a spin-off on the books (which is where fanfics come in might handy). anther thing that was different about the HP series is that i finaly fell for a character, or at least my alter ego did and she's the one who's writing this so there. by now you've prob figured out i'm waaaaaay off the deep end addicted to Harry Potter, but i find that perfectly ok. i can still function as a semi-normal human being thank you very much. so i guess it's not really me who fell for this wizard-boy, it was all her, and i must say i like her choice:love: Seamus Finnigan:love: gotta love those irish boys! besides, since their both "fictional" in a sense, i see nothing wrong with thier love. who knows, he might even reciprocate!...................oh, and i don't have a crush on harry, cuz dan radcliff looks EXACTLY like my little bro, so it's kinda icky

Who couldn't love a 6'7" psychic cat? I agree!

Loved the article! I think it's quite normal to fancy a fictional character. A good writer like Jo can create a character that can emulate all you would want in a crush and yet be realistic-enough to be at least vaguely believable.

Some people have mentioned having a 'thing' for a character in a story they wrote themselves. I have that! The problem is, the guy doesn't exist in reality... :upset:

As for the bad-boy syndrome... I confess I was a Snape-fan. I DO think Alan Rickman is good for the part but I don't really like him in that way. I'm not a major Snape-fan anymore - although his personality is still very mysterious and so sort of appealing. However, I now have a different interest...

i'm surprised no one claims to be in love with Dumbledore. He's such a nice old man.

I needed to hear that (again, purely personality thing). I was beginning to think I was weird. Wait a minute, am I weird? Yes. Oh dear. I don't even know where the obsession came from. I'm lost in a sea of Sirius/Remus/Draco/Snape/Harry/Ron/Hermione/anyone-moderately-young fans!

Sirius, Ron and Draco do nothing for me. Harry's a nice chap for me but for some reason not crush material. Remus I can understand.

Hi my name is Rachel. :cool: Ever since I've read the first Harry Potter book, I've absolutely LOVED Ron :drool: . I haven't told anyone, fearing that I would be laughed at. I just tell my friends that I think Rupert Grint is cute as an excuse for why I have a bunch of stuff about Ron and things like that laying around my room. My favorite character in the books, though, is Hermione because, honestly, we are EXACTLY alike. And since they really look like there's something going on between them, I feel like I really want Hermione and Ron to get together in the books, feeling like I'm kind of living through her, shall I say? Anyways, this is the first time I've said that I'm in love with a fictional character and it feels good, I must say. I just hope my friends don't see this. :whistle:

:gryff:

My top fav character was always Dumbledore, but seeing as he's so old..s'pose I can't say I have a crush on him. Okay, so maybe it's just admiration. I always liked Weasley twins too, their sense of humor really rocks, so if to choose someone I'd like to date with, it'd be one of them - Fred or George, never mind, they are indistinguishable anyway. :p
But seriously, all characters are so well-written and have such amazing depth that I like them all simply for what they are.

Don't worry, you're not the only one - I bawled my eyes out when I read the end to OotP! My parents thought there was something wrong with me... :sad:

Good editorial - I always had a thing for Harry ;) Though I can't really understand how you could like Luna (she is a bit strange after all), hey, to each their own.

It is weird how anyone could like Draco... I mean he is evil! Harry's such a good guy... :)

I almost got a depression when i read about Sirius' death! It's so horrible! There must be a deeper thought though, our beloved Jo could not just do this to us! :grumble: so.. im am still looking for the deeper meaning with sirus dying...
Se you!

OK...so...I'm still having a hard time admitting anything even after reading the article, which was quite good by the way. I definitely thought I was crazy for having...well...you know...and I was very surprised to learn other people had the same...er...feelings?

I suppose equally surprising was the fact that the article was written by a boy...it gave me quite a different perspective on the issue then I'm sure it would have if it were written by a girl. It was rather sweet, actually.

I feel sooo embarassed though. Maybe I'll start this off slowly, eliminating the possibilities, and perhaps then I'll be able to admit who I'm in love with. Gah.

Ok, then. So first off, I'd like to make it quite clear how much I loathe Snape. I just want to give him a good kick sometimes...he's so unreasonably nasty. I suppose I see the allure in the "bad boy" type, but to me, Snape does not fall into this category. Plus, he's a teacher...he's old. Ugh. *shudders* This, of course, does not apply to older women. But as for us yunguns, if you were going to have a crush on an older guy in this story, I'd be more inclined to understand Lupin or Sirius. And even then...

As for Malfoy...what are people thinking? He's such an obvious coward. Bad boys are desirable for one thing, because they have so much confidence in themselves. Draco's confidence lies in his father's power and Crabbe and Goyle's muscles. Not at all impressive... To add to that, I don't even understand the girls who like the actor who portrays Draco in the movies. Come on, ladies.

Now for Ron. Ron's...well...I guess I don't have much to say about him. I like his character...he can be pretty funny at times. It's just...he can be so immature about some things...yes I realize that by the 5th book they're only 15...but I was the same age as they were when the books came out. Then it took some three years to write OotP :grumble:, and well...now I'm three years older... In fact, I'll be turning 19 here in a few days, widening the gap even more. But that's beside the point.

I love Gred and Forge...oops...I mean Fred and George. They are soo funny. The only times I've bust out laughing during the books is due to the twins. They're really great characters..and at the same time they have a sort of serious side, an ambitious side to them. Very charming indeed. But, alas, not for me. Hmm, I'm sure by now you've guessed who it is...I've purposely avoided him so far... But I'm not done talking about the others yet...

As for Harry, whom the story is about, well I'd have to say this... I couldn't help but fall in love with him. Gotcha, didn't I? At the end of the last paragraph, I bet you were thinking Harry, but then you saw the first line of this one and thought, oh no...it can't be Hagrid, can it? Or *groan* Oliver Wood, Cedric Diggory, Neville...or...God forbid...Percy? Haha, well..no. It's defintely Harry. And it makes perfect sense...as he's probably the most developed character in the books. So..well then...I've admitted it. I have a crush on Harry Potter. It's sounds so crazy. I first noticed it in PoA when I found myself get a bit jealous of how Harry reacted to Cho. I never did like her... I don't know..I think I found myself relating completely to Harry's feelings and thoughts. There are times when my reactions to the situations in the books are the exact same as his. But, I'm sure this is the same for loads of people, boys and girls. I mean, JKR wants us to be somewhat sympathetic to Harry. The only time I didn't like him was in OotP when he went off on Hermione and Ron. One of the reasons Ginny Weasley is my favorite character is because she called Harry on it, which is exactly what I would have done. Not that people aren't allowed to be grumpy or angry at times, but he was being pretty unreasonable. She reminded him he wasn't the only one who'd been affected by Voldemort. So...here's hoping those two get together eventually. I suppose there are other reasons why I like Harry, but I'm not entirely sure what they are. I think it's more than my being sympathetic to him...I relate very easily to his feelings of being wronged (i.e. Snape, Umbridge), or his feelings of frustration because he can't understand why people act the way they do (i.e. Cho).

I guess I'll move on to the other possibilities anyway. Dumbledore, for one, has an excellent personality, and I'd love to have him for a grandfather. Lupin and Sirius...Well, Sirius I may have liked as a boy, but both he and James seemed a bit more arrogant than I would have liked. I really like Sirius, but I think I look at him as a sort of father-figure. He's protective and all that. I think any potential he had was taken away by Azkaban. If you think about it, he wasn't given much of a life after Hogwarts...and now he's dead. Again, I relate well to Harry's feelings at the end of OotP. The anger he feels when the mirror doesn't work, his false hopefulness and mingled frustration when he asks Nick about the dead, the aimlessness...the feeling lost when he avoids the great hall and sits by the lake, and the not wanting to be with people but not wanting to be alone. I felt so much of the same when my father died. I should also mention Luna. The conversation she and Harry had made me cry the most...and I was surprised to find such a strong connection to her as well...as I'm sure Harry probably did. She was so matter-of-fact about the death of her mother..and yet so hopeful.

And last but not least, I'll mention Lupin. He's probably a close second in favorite charcters. He's pretty mysterious, and it's frustrating to see him suffer for being a werewolf. He seems so sad. And yet, he's very intelligent. And calm...

Ok, so this has become far too long a post. I'll end here.

that was sooooo beautiful. i have a crush on the fictional and actor ron weasly. also i used to have a crush on (i cant belive im saying this) the harry on the cover of the GOF book. but that stopped when the movies came out. so here i sit. Ron-less. we can only be together in my dreams. [I]sigh

[/FONT]Of course there's nothing wrong with it, unless you go too far, of course. It's a healthy little obsession. It gets serious if you raise your real-life standards just because you like Harry, or something, but as long as you keep it quiet and not overly obsessive, there is nothing wrong with it.

And that is why I, like the millions of other girls, am in 'love' with Draco Malfoy.....^^


I think that the reason that the girls like him so much is because he is so hot in the movies. And because I personally have a serious waekness for blondes. :cool:

Hello Adam,
My name is Elizabeth and I recently read your editoreal and i think you are completley correct with the falling in love with a fictional charecter! :tu: I'm 15 and I have fallen deeply in love with Draco Malfoy, and James Potter. No reason just did. Everyone thinks i'm mad. .but i'm not the only one so i'm glad to hear that i'm not mad! That editoreal really helped me so thanks for discussing this topic. Laters Adam

I enjoyed this editorial. I thought I was weird for having crushes on fictional characters. (Well, maybe I am...but at least not alone). I love Ron and Lupin. They are different in a lot of ways but both have characteristics I find attractive in guys.

I thoroughly enjoyed this article and thought it one of the most intelligent things that I've read in a while. For the longest time I've been trapped in the cycle of being in love with fictional characters, even to the extent where I was considering writing something titled, "I was in love with a fictional character."

Why it's so appealing to fall in "love" with someone from books we read over and over again is that the characters are perfect in our eyes. Sure, they have flaws, but the flaws only add to their charm and depth. Having insequrities and lack of confidence is also attractive, for often the character doubts their worth based solely on the opinions of others alone. Imagining sequences that don't exist in the books add to hours of wonderful daydreams...I'm sure everyone is somewhat familiar with those, often horrible, self-insertion fics, which really are created to fulfill the author's fantasties, and everyone can relate to that.

Personally, I tend to fall for characters that are highly intelligent yet tragically misunderstood and often question if anyone loves them. Though these things create sympathy right off the top, it makes one understand the amazing sense of strength that the characters posess. Obviously a huge problem is those that become attracted only to how a character is portrayed in a movie and thus make assumptions based on this. Sure, the actor might be good looking but that doesn't mean the way they acted or the script they were given was true to the book!

Since I might as well admit, I am hopelessly in love with Harry and also Faramir (book Faramir, mind you, with raven hair). These two just want to make me go off on insensible fangirl rants, and of course they contain everything I love about fictional characters.

I appreciate all the thought that you put into your article, especially since it is a topic that hits so close to home for many individuals. ;)

Here, 20 people, take this quiz: If you click here, you can make my wish and yours come true...if you believe in that sort of thing (http://www.comclub.org/lj/fsquiz.php)

In my case, this has to do with romance...

I totally believe in Fiction-Crushes. I'm not sure if anyone has read the fan-fic "Lily's Diary" by JennyO on HPFZ forums, but I now have a total crush on James Potter, even if he was a little smug and big-headed from what we saw of him in OotP. But Lily married him, didn't she, and she has pretty good judgement of people, so he must be nice.

In the Original Harry Potter books, I am in love with Ron. Harry is all moody and I just want to strangle him. Malfoys a little git, as Ron says. Ron has a sense of humour, and is a really good, loyal friend. I really hope he ends up with Hermione, since Hermione is my other favourite character.

hey adam! it is perfectly fine to fall madly in like or love(whatever the case may be) with fictional characters. I in fact am quite smitten with several of the colorful characters of the Pottervers to include but not limited to Draco, James, Harry, Ron, the twins, and Lupin. so it's perfectly ok :tu: :cool:

First of all, I dont understand how some girls can be attracted to Draco and Snape, but to each their own. Personally, I like Ron, although we would never get together because neither one of us would make the first move, and because Ron is a fictional character. *sigh* Oh well! And Adam you are not pathic. Honestly I wish there was some one like you in Kearney.

I have to admit to a bit of a crushie on Tonks. As a not-very-straight individual, I hope JKR does not invent some male character to stick her with...simply because it's nice to have a somewhat ambiguous character in the series (and I think Tonks is). :cool:

Additionally, though I'm not a Snape fan, I must admit that I luuuurv me some Alan Rickman. What a charming fella...so suave!

I'm new but I figured I'd post on this. I personally really like Draco and dislike Ron. Ron makes me want to smack him around... though in all honesty so does Draco. Draco has the potential to be a great character and as of yet Rowling hasn't made him a dynamic or round character like she has Snape and Sirius etc. I actually hope something bad happens to Draco because I like him that much... even though that doesn't make much sense. It would give him a point to grow from. He has the POSSIBILITY to grow into a different person as we all change when we grow up. Draco however hasn't shown any type of character growth between the first and fifth books. Only his threats have gotten worse. I think the movies make it a bit too extreme but it gives you the picture. I would even think Draco dying in the books would be ok and I'd be certainly curious how that affects Harry from Rowling's perspective. I do likeses my Drac-y Draco though. No killing him unless it helps plot!

I also don't see how you can like Snape. I LOVE his character...(he is my favorite character even if he isn't the one I like) its so wonderfully Snape. But... he's not someone you really love. The perfect showing of Snapes character I've seen was a fanfiction by Cybele called If You are Prepared... (NOTE: WARNING! this story contains LOTS of things not suitable for children so DO NOT look it up if you are young and read all the warnings on the page to make sure you're not getting into something you won't want to read. :eyebrows: ) And Snape's an alcoholic in it which I could sooooo see him doing. This fanfic made me sob in the end. I cried for like a few hours. Fanfiction definately gives a different perspective on characters which might sway some girls minds.

Lets see most of my fiction crushes are from anime :rotfl: . Kyou (Fruits Basket), Hatsuharu (Fruits Basket), Wufei (Gundam Wing), and then of course Draco. I don't like Tom Felton though.... not at all like I picture Draco.
Hmm... long post.

Finally found my Luna the other day :love: :love: :love: :love:

Finally found my Luna the other day :love: :love: :love: :love:


awwww.... good luck w/ that. :eyebrows:

Hi
You're not pathetic! I think everybody has liked a made up character at least ones in their lives. I'm totally in love with Harry Potter, i just love him!
excuse my english, im from sweden :P
/julia

I've got to admit that I have a little bit of a crush on Hermione. Well, maybe a big crush. Don't tell anyone hehehe. When I'm reading Harry Potter books, I am living through Harry and that's one of the biggest reasons I want Harry to end up w/ Hermione, as I would be like YES! so I guess I do live vicariously through the characters in the book. And I'm a 17 year old (as of today =D) male. Hope I'm not too pathetic.

Welcome to the fold, brother! ;)

(Unintentionally?) Hilarious.

I absolutely love your writing. :tu:

If the Marauders were younger now, I would like James, Sirius, and Lupin. Althouh Sirius in the books is a kind of hot anyway, not so much in the movie. If Sirius were actually dead, my favorite character would probably be Luna. I really hope Harry and Luna get together eventually, major Harry/Luna shipper. Right now, I'm trying to analyse everything about Luna to understand her fully even though we're kind of alike anyway. I'm not quite as carefree and I'm shy where as I think she's just more quiet (for the most part) than she is shy.

I, for one, am of the very biased opinion that there is NOTHING pathetic about having a crush on / being in love with a fictional character. The way I see it, it's actually a pretty good deal because you never have to worry about rejection or growing apart, and you can always go back a few pages and relive your favorite scenes.

Of course, like I said, I am particularly biased about this sort of thing. As someone who has been an avid reader of, well, anythin and everything she can get her hands on since the age of three (no lie!) I've had more than my fair share of fictional crushes. At the moment I am torn between two. Well I suppose torn isn't really the right word, because I can imagine either at any time I wish...but, I digress.

My two (current) fantasy crushes are Clayton Danvers, a hot young werewolf from Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series :drool:, and (drumroll please) Charlie Weasley :love:. Don't ask me why I like Charlie, 'cause I have no clue. I guess I've just always like they way he came across as the sporty, fun-loving, yet still responsible Weasley brother and also I guess because I just have a natural inclination for redheads. :eyebrows:

I also really like Neville as a character and I'm glad that we're going to continue to see him grow, but I like him in a more platonic way (if it's even possible to have a platonic relationship with a person who only exists in the imagination, but hey, I can be flexible about these things) because he reminds me a lot of one of my best friends. Sweet and incredibly loyal as well as one of the bravest people I know, but somehow always winding up as the butt of the joke. Poor kid. (except both Neville and my friend are older than me, so I guess technically "kid" isn't really the right word there is it? :lol: )

As for the question of why do so many women/girls seem to like Malfoy and Snape, I've thought a lot about this, and I think I have the answer. In my (admittedly limited) experience, women tend to like men who they think they can change for the better. They see Snape as the tortured soul who is for the light, but remains forever in the shadow, and they want nothing more than to be able to draw him out of his "shell."

The same goes for Malfoy. People see the potential he has as a character, but no one (or at least very few) wants to be in love with the "bad guy," so they romanticize him and give him all sorts of excuses for his rotten behavior. That way they don't feel bad or wrong when they fantacize about him. They want him to be good so much that they are willing to look beyond the fact that he is a complete and total jerk. (I'm not a big Malfoy fan, could you tell? :grumble: )

To sum up my rather lengthy response:

I love Charlie; I see my best friend in Neville; I find Snape and Malfoy to be perfectly detestable, but still like them in the sense that they are excellently done characters (the fact that I care enough to dislike them shows that); and I think it's perfectly natural to fall for a fictional character. There. hope I didn't leave anything out. It was a great article and very gutsy.

Later,
Danielle

So this is my first post in these forums, and I just had to admit that I have the most wonderful crush on Remus Lupin. Which is quite remarkable considering my biggest irrational fear my whole life has been of werewolves. I think a large part of the attraction is that I need to take care of the guys I like and Remus truly needs someone to look after him. And the whole disheveled tortured guy thing is a huge turn-on.

HI!
You know, I thaught that I was the only one who had crushes on people in Jane Austen's books! But WOW you have bunch, and yeah Darcy is just the MOSt adorable person, ever! :blush:
I'm so into him!
By the way Lee Jordans cool to! He's everything a guy sholuld! Funny, nice, intelligent and caring (i don't know where all this comes from that's just the impression i get, since he is so good friends with Fred and George :rotfl: )
Sincerely
Luna_L_



Hmmm. Well, all of my non-husbandy crushes are/have been fictional:

- Captain Jean Luc Picard (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
- Jadzia Dax (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine)
- Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Dorme' (Star Wars: Attack of the Clones)
- Leto Atreides I (Dune prequel series)
- Leto Atreides II (Dune series proper)
- Daniel Jackson (Stargate: SG-1)

- Spike (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Willow (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer)
- Legolas (Lord of the Rings)
- Ron Weasley (Harry Potter)
- Young!Sirius Black (Harry Potter)

- Mr. Darcy (Pride & Prejudice)
- Colonel Brandon (Sense & Sensibility)
- Mr. Knightley (Emma)
- Captain Wentworth (Persuasion)

I might be able to go on, but why? I think the common thread here is a person who is usually somewhat restrained but who, in reality, is deeply passionate and a person of conviction and action. Which, by the way, describes my husband, too. So at least I'm a consistent fantasist.

Had to check this "shipping" thing out because they are talking about it everywhere. So I tried this one and it was hilarious!

Hopefully this won't make me an old middle aged letch (or whatever the quote was), cause I'm in my 30's (lord, I can remember when the show Thirtysomething was so popular and I thought it was just ridiculous to base an entire show on being old). But here goes...

My first choice would be Sirius. Handsome, roguish, slightly dangerous and all the other things our Moms told us to stay away from. Following Sirius would be Lupin. He's really just a very self-contained Sirius.

But if I were student age it would be WOOD. And I never went for the jock type. But Wood is Da Man. And having his character on film only made him better (unlike Lupin and Sirius, who were better in my imagination than on film).

Anyway, you're not nuts. I fell in love with Rhett Butler when I was about 12 and, about a thousand years later, met and married a man very like him. You admire the traits you admire, whether the person is standing in front of you or on the page or on the screen.

And you must have hit a nerve, for people to still be posting on this thread after all this time!

Happy trails all! :D

I fell in love with Rhett Butler when I was about 12

lol, I fell in love with Ashley Wilkes at about that age.

I, Arimalka, am shamelessly in love with the Weasley twins.
Both of them. ;-)

Oh ya, and Wood's not so shabby, either.

I have a crush on James Potter. I realise we haven't actually seen him much in the books, its more based on fan fiction, but he's so sweet, brave, sensitive, romantic... I wish I could find my real James.

:lol: :lol: This article was really funny and cute. It cheered me up after a bad day! :)

I dont think its pathetic to have a crush on a fictional character. Its only dangerous when you get obessesed with one.

I have semi-crushes on both Harry and Ron. Ron has some of the qualities of a guy I prefer in real life though - he's so funny, yet so dense at times that I want to smack him!

I cannot speak for all women, but I personally do not like the proverbial "bad boy". Tom Felton is cute, but I think Draco Malfoy is a prat and a turn-off.

I do feel sorry for Snape at times, but he's too vindictive and unwilling to forgive and forget. Nothing in his personality attracts me.

there is nothing wrong with a little fantasy, it is very healthy, you can put your self in another life and imagine that you are someone else and with someone else. ofcourse like it has been said before as long as it does not go to far, but it is healthy and fun and as you probably are thinking i am like you, and i bet you all are wondering who it is that i fancy.


well it is professor snape. i guess the reason why i am attracted to his charactor is because he is misterious, appears to be a villian yet underneath you can see that he is a good guy and has a heart that is bigger than most of you realize.

Thanks for all your feedback. I blush that people like my work even that much.

I am going to set something straight once and for all which I never bothered to type in my e-mail replies.

The "Am I Pathetic?" is not me asking you if I'm pathetic, it's the inner thought that comes to mind of anyone when they first realize they like a character, or at least I speculate.

I know I'm pathetic sometimes in other areas of love. Not this one. Thanks to everyone who took the time to reassure me, though. And to that one guy who said I was, well, whatever.
its KIND OF weird..just cuz luna anoys me so incredibly much.

Love the article!
I think it's perfectly normal to have a crush on a fictional character. After all, they are usually very interesting and colorful (especially when it comes to JKR!).
I have fallen for two characters in the HP universe, one in the JKR universe and one in the universe of fanfiction ^^
In the universe of JKR, I have something of a crush on Bill Weasley. Cool and kind with a fang earring... *sighs happily*
In the universe of fanfiction, however, I only have eyes for one guy: Draco Malfoy. Sure, I agree with many people that he's an annoying brat in the books, and I really hope he will grow up soon. I think he will eventually team up with Harry and Dumbledore, but I sure hope he stays "bad" ^^
As for fanfiction-Draco... Wonderfully evil young man with the strength to stand up for himself and take whatever he wants... Need I say more?!

Here, 20 people, take this quiz: If you click here, you can make my wish and yours come true...if you believe in that sort of thing

In my case, this has to do with romance...

Originally posted by Lupin 27

This is hilarious if you put wierd songs in the song thing. Liked the article. I'll admit it, I'm in love with SMIKE!! He's the best character, from Nicholas Nickleby. I love him in the movie, and not the actor, the character. I also love Lupin and Sam Gamgee. I like sweet guys, and nice guys. Colonel Brandon from Sense and Sensibility makes me like SNape.

You're supposed to think that Malfoy is a horrid person. I don't think he's ever going to become "good" because he JK's books aren't fairytales. I think maybe he'll do something good for Harry, help him out, but never make a complete trasition.

I've never had a crush on a fictional character, but I have become inspired and tried to model myself after a character before. So, I guess I can see this as completely normal. But yes, people shouldn't get obsessed.

By the way, Lupin 27 is an awesome writer. You're little entry flowed quite nicely!

Personally, I’m in love with Ron Weasly, James Potter (as a 15-year old, mind…not dead) and Sirius Black (also as a 15-year old…)….

I think it’s perfectly normal to fall in love with fictional characters. I often “fall in love” with female characters, even, though not in the same way as I fall in love with male characters, of course. In those cases I just love the character and its personality and often attitude and wit…

I see a lot of people seem to be in love with Draco Malfoy… Well I’m going to have to agree that I couldn’t ever fall in love with him…The evil coward…That being said, I am currently in love with a Draco in a very random fanfic my friend wrote, where Draco is kind of out of character and extremely fit…With an eyebrow piercing…Though what else was there to expect, when the fic is about all the characters being gay, and going to a **** muggle school, cuz the wizarding world never excited…Ok, so I guess I’ve broken my promise of never ever going to fall in love with him…But fanfiction is different…The characters aren’t written like Jo does them, cuz the authors can change them any way they want, especially if the fic is supposed to be off canon…Which this one is.

Though I am in love with Tom Felton, which is a different thing entirely in my opinion…Talking about HP actors, I’m also in love with Sean Biggerstaff, though I somehow have not managed to fall in love with Oliver Wood….My relationship with him is more like the one I sometimes get with some female characters…meaning I love their characters’ personality….I’m in love with Fred and George like that, for instance…They are soo cool!!! ;)

I’m in love with their brother, though…Aaaah, Ron. So clever but clumsy…so funny…And dim…*rolls eyes* open your eyes, mate!!! You and Hermione are MADE for each other!!!...God, he is the cutes idiot I’ve ever…erm…encountered…

As for James Potter…I think I fancy him because when I lived in England I was in love with this guy for 3 years, who strongly reminds me of James Potter…plus, he was also called James… He had black hair as well… Though he only wore glasses for reading…or to see the board…Well, he wore them in class, anyway….So I’ve never pictured James Potter with glasses…Other than when he was older…Thankfully, Jo never described James’ 15-year old self wearing glasses…That said, he was never described NOT wearing them either, making me imagine him without them…

Sirius Black, then….Well. I think I fancy him mainly because of his good looks….And for being so laid-back…dunno why… I hate both James and Sirius for being so bloody big-headed, of course…and for what they did to Snape…But apart from that, I’m very much in love with their 15-year old selves.

This got very long…what else to expect of me…I very rarely reply to things on messageboards…I only registered here cuz I really wanted to reply to that editorial…But as you can see, when I DO reply, it ALWAYS gets WAAY too long…oh, well….

Thanx!
Luv,
Nemi (you might have seen me on the Quarantine messageboards on www.hisdarkmaterials.org, with the same name, if you’re a fan of the HDM-triology too…

I read this article and had to write, because you made me laugh when you were talking about how some ladies (understandably) like Remus J Lupin and others (inexplicably) prefer Severus Snape. As a HUGE fan of both, I feel I may be able to shed a little light on the attraction to Snape (without coming off as nuts, b/c I love Lupin as well).

I am a person who falls in love with the same kind of guy consistently--the misunderstood one. From Captain Jack Sparrow to Aragorn to Mr Darcy to Raistlin Majere to Severus Snape... It's all the same. These are men who are (at heart) honorable and loyal, but others judge them prematurely and wrongly and they tend to be thought badly of--but they NEVER complain and NEVER try to explain their actions so these others understand what is in their hearts and most of all, NEVER change their behavior to make others more disposed to like them. In SS, for example, Snape makes himself referee of the Quidditch match that could potentially put Gryffindor ahead of Slytherin for the Cup, an act which Quirrell later told Harry made him "very unpopular" among the PROFESSORS, let alone the students! And he did this to protect Harry. He took the blows and the judgment stolidly, undeserved though it may be. And possibly my favorite thing that Snape has done--in OotP, when Harry is captured by Umbridge and Snape is called in, as he's about to leave, Harry shouts that "He's got Padfoot in the place where it's hidden!" From this, Snape BRILLIANTLY deduces that Harry had a dream sent by dear old Voldie that Voldie had captured Sirius Black and was holding him in the Department of Mysteries. He checks in with Sirius (honestly, does anything prove his loyalty more than this?) to make sure he's alright, even though he despises him, and then even goes looking for HARRY, who he hates as well, when he disappears. Harry of course thinks Snape didn't understand b/c he pretended not to (what did he expect, a conspiratorial wink from SNAPE??? GET REAL!!!).

But that's just it--Snape is constantly doing things to protect people he hates--Harry, Sirius, even the potion he makes for Lupin. He's dedicated to his job, though it's not the one he really wants. He's loyal, trustworthy, brilliant, strong... but everyone hates him. Yes, he's sarcastic and yes, a bit cruel, and I certainly won't say that deep down, he's an old softie who means well, b/c he's clearly not, but he doesn't deserve the distrust that he gets. I'm attracted to the misunderstood ones, and it doesn't get much more misunderstood than Snape. ...except for Remus, who is mistrusted and hated despite the fact that he's clearly a good guy on the outside and inside, whereas Snape on the outside is cruel and on the inside is honorable.

Good article. I can most certainly relate.
I'm in love with Harry. And while yes, Daniel Radcliffe is amazingly sexy, I'm not one for him as a person. Harry all the way! Lupin certainly has he's quirks (if he wasn't so gay with Sirius! ****), but Harry is just the one for me.
I think one of the main reasons that I'm a H/Hr shipper is because I feel like I am quite a bit like Hermione, so I'm vicariously living through her and acting on my love for Harry. Plus I hate Ron (sorry!) and therefore hate the idea of her ever liking him. *shudders*
I'm afraid it will be H/L. Examine end of book 5 closely. fealkfejkeawj... I'm not going to like this...

love the article! Its not pathetic at all, im absolutely in love with Ron, i dont know hes just so down to earth ill just have to convince him that im better than hermione!

Good article. I can most certainly relate.
I'm in love with Harry. And while yes, Daniel Radcliffe is amazingly sexy, I'm not one for him as a person. Harry all the way! Lupin certainly has he's quirks (if he wasn't so gay with Sirius! ****), but Harry is just the one for me.
I think one of the main reasons that I'm a H/Hr shipper is because I feel like I am quite a bit like Hermione, so I'm vicariously living through her and acting on my love for Harry. Plus I hate Ron (sorry!) and therefore hate the idea of her ever liking him. *shudders*
I'm afraid it will be H/L. Examine end of book 5 closely. fealkfejkeawj... I'm not going to like this...

Remus? Gay with Sirius? -laughs- I must say, I think you've been around in the Fanon a little too much. ;-)

I admit it, though, I fell for Remus since PoA, and was rooting for his return
as happened in OotP. I was so thankful to J.K.R. for that. :)

This is a fantastic article, Adam, by the way. I was pleasantly surprised not only by its content, but by its flow. Very, very nice. (Although I can't see what you see in Ms. Lovegood - but then, what would crushes be if not personal to the owner? ;-))

That was a great editiorial and I think it's great that people admit to having crushes on h.p characters, I'm all for character/celeb crushes, as long as it's in reason i.e you know they aren't real or that your NEVER going to be with them.
I use to have a crush on Snape, mostly due to his character representation in the first film, although I don't have a grush on Alan Rickman in any other films. But now I have a crush on Sirius and although I don't have a crush on Gary Oldman either, thought he was perfect for the part.
I totally get the who liking the actor/character though, I love jonny depp in all his films, not just as a specific character, but like i said before i like sirius not gary oldman!
oh well that was really random- but fun! :rotfl:

Ok, so I haven't read all the replies yet (though I intended to before I posted...) but it is getting late for one who has stayed up until four and gotten up at five. Ah, well, I didn't come here to discuss my sleep schedule... I mainly wanted to put in my two cents about the human need to find "that perfect person" and that sometimes, when we get frustrated, we suddenly find a blessing in the form of a book. ;) I myself am particularly partial to Lupin, Sirius (who I refuse to believe is dead) and Snape. I know. Bad-boy syndrome. I think he's just misunderstood. Read a very interesting theory about Snape and a lost love once... Probably not true, but a girl can dream, no? Anyway... that's my two cents... I suppose I'll have to stick with it now... By the by, Adam, not every girl underestimates the value of a hopeless romantic guy before the age of 30. Keep your hopes up. ;)

I completely agree with the article. Because in life there are just some people who look on the outside but when you read a book you get to know their personality and their weird quirks, and stuff like that. I my self am have a crush on Ron and the Twins, but i did like Oliver Wood(just in the movies, he kinda got on a nerve sometimes in the books!). I think that it is because how they poise themself and what they do, if they were real people i would totally be attracted to that. But i for some reason an only attracted to the "bad boys" for a short period of time until they anoy me into obliation. then i drop them. but through all of the books and movies i think that it is kinda more healthy to do that, because they are closer to you then say...Brad Pitt or whoever. I dont really like obsessing over stars and my english teacher always says,"it is good to always have a crush in a book you are reading, because then you enjoy the book 1000 times more!" she is kinda wierd but that is ok, i totally agree(unless it is a book that is set in a retirement home-no offense to anyone). I think that it only becomes wrong if you like plan and carry out a wedding and then ball your eyes out when that *someone* "stands you up". well that is just my opinion so do not take it to heart, please. I think that it is so awesiome to have one, sometimes it is just better to read the book, and be with that character in your head then to chase around some guy or girl!

I think when we read a novel, or a collection of books, because of the constraints of the size, and the basic need for imagination, we create characters as we would like to see them. In the case of Luna Lovegood, I believe I quite agree with you that I think she should end up with Harry, simply because she is the best character in the book. But then again, my perception of Harry and Luna must differ from yours, thus creating a boundary that causes you, as a heterosexual male, to 'love' Luna. The little known about Luna's character enables you to see her as someone you would like.

I think the same goes for Malfoy. Although, personally I do not understand what people would see in him, the creation of a 'bad guy' in any imaginative world, attracts those more interested in the 'bad guy' image. It is almost human instinct for us to believe that 'there must be some sort of good in Malfoy- he can't be all that bad'- causing a lot of females to react in that protective, or hopeful manner (in which they believe they can pull the good out of him). Or on the other hand, they are captivated by the supposed 'masculinity' of the guy, by his evil nature. (Personally, I believe it's utter codswallop, and that 'masculinity' really arises in men who use their brain to think and not follow what they are taught blindly- but everyone is different).

I cannot agree with you that I found any of the characters that pleasing that I fell in love with them, but I do have a lot of respect for a lot of them. Luna Lovegood's character is beautiful- she's got a real 'life' sort-of-thing going for her, and her oddity makes her stand out. McGonagall, Dumbledore, Lily, each Marauder respectively, Hermione, etc, all have their own amazing personalities, which to a certain extent do create an amazing aura around them, but nothing that really makes me want to 'fall in love' over them.

Good editorial, though.

of course, we're the ones they marry in our 30s, but we like instant gratification too

*laughs hysterically*

That was a great essay, Adam. So... what you're saying is that it might be a bit unhealthy for me to have daily mental conversations with one Blaise Zabini, which often end in me begging for a neck massage as he coos Italian niceties in my ear...? :eyebrows:

Honestly, I am so glad you wrote this, and it's nice to get a male perspective. (All of you straight males really have the bad end of the deal, as there are far more male than female HP characters.) I think most of it, as you pointed out, is projection. We see in these characters traits of the people we want to be and the people we want to be with, which is normal. And as opposed to "movie stars"... actors or actresses or pop stars or anyone real... the ultimate interpretation of fictional characters is up to each of us, as the reader. (e.g., Mad-Eye Moody will always be so gruffly sexy, in my opinion. Missing chunks of nose and all. Rawr.)

Anyway, I just wanted to write and thank you for the laugh this morning. And for the reassurance that I'm not the only pathetic one out there. :D

:tu: I can understand your point very well. Some of my friends find me odd for actually admitting my crush(es) on fictional characters. But, I find them odd for different reasons as well. And if we cannot reveal our true "oddness" to our friends, who can we reveal it to?
I just have to say that I'm glad someone is finally giving Luna some credit for who she is (or her character) - she was the only female character I could really relate to.

I love the essay that you wrote, it really is great in the way that it explains something that others, like myself, cannot even being to explain.
Most of my friends that like Harry Potter are females so it is great to see your view on this subject, my guy friends think it is weird of me to have a crush on a fictional character, I never really though it was that weird and everytime I tried to explain it to them they just didn't understand.
I am glad that there are other people I can relate to.

you are not pathetic. i agree that some girls are in love with oliver wood and malfoy, but personally, i am head over heels for harry! every time i read a harry potter book i fall in love all over again! i definately think its ok to be in love with a fictional character!

I had a crush on Tom Riddle(the teenage version in looks, not the ressurrected) since I read the Chamber of Secrets when I was in sixth grade. The film version of him wasn't bad at all, I must say. I always thought Luna would be a somewhat attractive girl, so I don' think you're mental.

i loved the article...Love the poem from "So I married an axe murderer" (luv that movie)... I personally heart Ron :love:...

I just had to admit that I have a huge crush on Remus Lupin and I also have to say that Jason Isaac's portrail of Lucius Malfoy is quite a turn-on! Yes, he's nasty and no I wouldn't want to know him, but there is just something hot about that hair and that snarl! ;)

I fall in love with book characters constantly! In HP I loooove Draco and Harry. I also adore TV characters (InuYasha anyone?)


I love Inuyasha - Lupin - Aragorn.


:rotfl: :eyebrows:

I used to really be in 'love' with Harry... And if he were real I would probably really be in love with him! ;)

I don't like Draco, at all. But, the book wouldn't be anything without him. There's always a kid like that.
My friend and I have always thought that Fred and George would be so cute!! (in the books!)

I have 'loved' Sirius for years. I just imagine him to be so hot and I feel sorry for him for being locked in Azkaban for 12 years. But since he died (curse you JKR) I have transferred my affections to Ron. I just think he's so adorable and funny, even if he is a bit clueless. And liking Ron has kind of made me like Rupert Grint more too. If that makes sense.

Of course you're not pathetic! (I'm so late......)

I'm rather fond of Ron myself, but the Fred and George are a very close second. :D Maybe I'm just fond of the younger Weasleys. *shrugs*

I don't get the whole Draco and/or Snape fascination either. Maybe in the movies (Tom Felton isn't that bad looking, and the guy who plays Snape, who I can't remeber his name, has a nice voice), but in the books, both characters urk me. Bad boy appeal, I guess. :shrug:

In the article "Am I Pathetic?" I see that the author failed to mention the objects of practically every female's admiration, Harry Potter and Sirius Black. Were those characters too obvious and therefore not worthy of mention, or was the writer truely pathetic and didn't know. Essentially a girl's "type" comes down to good boy, bad boy. Harry=GOOD, Sirius=BAD (but in the most charming aspects). Everybody loves Harry, every girl LOVES Harry. And nobody could possibly dislike Sirius, he good looking, sly, genuinely loyal, outspoken, and as said in the books, along with James, one of the biggest trouble-makers Hogwarts ever had liberty to possess. :cool: He's too cool.

oh thank god at last someone said it!!!! I was getting a bit worried till I read a couple of pages back and two thirty-somethings were agreeing to having crushes on fictional characters. I was thinking...I'm 22...surely I should be thinking about real guys!!! But hey, lets face it, the chances of you knowing your 'perfect guy' is pretty slim, so I think its ok to have crushes on fictional characters! I also noticed that your 'fictional crush' is forgotten when you meet a real guy you're attracted to...which I hope makes my crush a healthy one. I can totally identify with ppl with crushes on Ron (if he were my age!!!), Oliver Wood and Lupin. However my big HP crush is Bill WEasley. He seems so laid back and has a good sense of humour, but he's also very intelligent, but not in a patronising way like Percy. So there it is, my secret love confessed at last!!!

I would have posted sooner, but I have a really dumb computer :sigh:

I don't think you're patetic at all! :p I've got 2 crushes on people from Harry Potter. Harry and Ron! :blush: That's just me though I guess.

I think that I fell in love with Sirius sometime during/after GoF was released (When I was 10...hmmm...?) and then in OotP he went and...well, we all know what happened in OotP! There was denial. 99% of which I am over now. And well I moved on and fell in love with one of Sirius' fellow characters-he would have wanted it this way! Snape-well, maybe he wouldn't have wanted that!
Anyway the point of that little anecdote was to say that I fall in love with many a fictional character...yep, that's it...bye!

****! DRACO is the hottest thing i've ever seen-omg i would pay someone to go on a date with him.!!!!!!!!!!!!

i agree that EVERYONE at one time or another has had a crush for a fictional character. i for one had a crush on oliver wood and a small crush on cedric. but i really do like sirius! (r.i.p.) he was such a great character! lupin also turns me on. *blushes*

as for draco and snape...NO NO NO...i do not find either of them attractive in the least. i dont know what pple see in them. but its all opinion i guess.

and IrishPhoenix711, i pretty much agree w/ u on everything.

great editorial.

hm... one thing you didnt mention in the article is having a "mental crush" (i.e. i liked the description of Ron Weasley b/c he's like me a lot) and having a crush on the actor that plays that certain character. O dear... did i just blurt that out? :blush: oh well.... yes, as i said, i had a "mental crush" on Ron Weasley before the movies ever came out and then...well...u know. i kinda like Rupert Grint too...*cough cough...* :blush: n e wayz.... i gtg.....hem hem... bye...

I actually feel a lot better knowing that I'm not the only one that crushes on characters. Now since we're being honest my personal choice is naturally Harry but I wouldn't take any of the complaining his does in OotP.

I dont know who i like more. Hermione, Luna, or Ginny. They all have great qualities that i find attractive and would like in my girlfriend.

Definitely Ron. And its not an actor thing either, although I think they did a wonderful job casting. I didn't read the books until OotP came out and I read them one after the other. Didn't see the movies until after I read the books (I try to do that for everything, books are always better than movies). I loved Ron from the start, what a great character. I wish more people were like him.

Ginny is absolutely incredible i will admit to having a huge crush on her.

I don't know the actress in the movie but i really don't like the movies in comparison to the books and ive only seen them each once just because i had to... im not a fan of the ginny in the movie not only because of looks but also probably because none of her attractive qualities really begin showing till the fourth book.

but yeah her personality is incredible and is exactly what tons of guys would go crazy over in a girl.

funny, smart, good looking, and most importantly, fun.

Its funny, I am a 16 yr old guy who kinda lives vicariously through Harry. I always liked Hermione, I guess I'm attracted to intelligence and wit. I kinda like her even more because of the actress who plays her. I'm a hopeless romantic...

I'm a 13 yr. old who just got done reading HBP and I've been looking to talk about character crushes. I personally am attracted to Hermione because of her good looks but because she is portrayed by Emma Watson in the movies the attraction has shifted from Hermione to Emma Watson. I also feel like a retard for my jealousy of Ron and Hermione's attraction. If I'm the only guy who feels like this, someone please track me down and shoot me...

Yup, I always knew I wasn't the only one (mostly because I have plenty of friends in love with fictional characters.) My older sister loves Snape but NOT in a romantic way. She always likes villains because she thinks they're interesting charaters usually with very complex personalities. But you have to meet my sister to really believe her...

I, however, have plenty of fictional crushes and have never found this to be strange at all. Like it says in the article and has been reinterated by many here, it's usually a love for the personality and therefore a sort of image of who your ideal mate would be--which many people have, men and women alike. If you asked a man to describe his ideal woman some might give you a name of an actual woman but I'll bet most would actually describe a woman that doesn't (at least not in their general aqauintance) exist--making that woman fictional. Therefore, crushing on a fictional character is only putting a name to that "person" we all have in our heads.

That being said the movies have had a somewhat opposite effect on my in some areas--making me less attracted to some characters. Luckily, I can still call up the image I have of most characters before the movie but in some cases I'm still less attracted to them because let's face it, part of the beauty of a fictional character is they can look attractive in your head.

That said, I have a crushes on:

Lupin--but NOT the actor as is predicted in the article. He's a good actor but yeah...what IS that on his lip?)

Sirius--but I mean, come on, that's a given, dark, handsome, mysterious man...

Oliver Wood--one of my few crushes magnified by the movie! I didn't rarely notice Oliver one way or the other before Sean Biggerstaff. Excellent actor and really cute guy!

Harry--I like Harry as a character but my crush, I have to admit was always based on his looks. Even before Dan I really thought Harry was cute.

Ron--or rather had a crush on Ron. Rupert Grint it one of the best actors in that film but I'm not attracted to him. More importantly, Ron's behavior in the last few books annoyed me. I still really like Ron but I've felt like Harry did in HBP when he said Ron was his best mate but yelled at him anyway when he was acting stupid. I think Ron would be a good friend but I'd end up killing him as a boyfriend.

Yeah, I'm not the...erm...most loyal crusher. But if I had to pick one, I'd go for Lupin (except that Tonks beat me to it.) Usually I crush on a man in whatever book I'm reading at the time.

(I knew it was Luna!! *pats myself on the back*) I think having a crush on a fictional character is a pretty common thing for anyone, male or female. I think we all like the idea of having someone to "mold..." We may love the author's work and the characters they created just as they are, but I believe a small facet of our minds, when beginning to crush on one, sort of claims them as our own. It's certainly easy to imagine that same said character in different fictional situations outside of canon, and a hell of a lot more satisfying if they didn't get the exposure you believe they deserve from their creator in the first place. ...Probably why "side characters" get so much attention in fanfics and art. As for my personal preference, I'd have to say I go with the millions of other gals who would drool before the Weasley men (particularly Ron or the the twins). For me, it was one of those crushes that developed solely from the books themselves, since I think they're absolutely hilarious. Plus, I think Ron's passion for life is adorable. What can I say? *sigh* haha... I wasn't thrilled with Rupert at first, but PoA really "sealed the deal" so to speak and made me appreciate Ron all the more.

Well I've got a thing for Harry. He's just so lush, especially in Half Blood Prince! Dan Radcliffe is also rather fit, even though he is 2 years younger than me!

Oh! I can't believe I forgot to mention Fred and George. When I read first Sorcerer's Stone, I liked them the most. I love a man with a good a sense of humor. And there's two of them! :D Once again, though, I wasn't attracted to the actors but I think they did a very good job.

And when I first saw Dan Radcliff I admit I was a bit upset that a.) his hair was not messy. I mean, come on, how hard is it to but some product in his hair and muss it up? But it seems to have improved and gotten almost messy in the newer movies. b.) He didn't have green eyes. But I eventually conceded to the necessity of this since I heard that they tried contacts but they hurt his eyes, and going back in and computer generating green eyes would probably be a little time consuming... Anyway, I think he's very cute in spite of that so he's grown on me--but only as the image of Harry. I'm not making any assumptions about Dan, but I've never met him or any other actor, so I can't say I'm "in love" with him. I'm actually far more skeptical of people "in love" with movie stars than people in love with fictional characters. Most people know far more about characters than they do celebrities. And in the case of people who think they know a lot about the celebrities it's usually just a carefully cultivated image that's not much better than fiction.

On that vein, I think Tom Felton is good looking, but Malfoy actually looks and acts like a boy who used to torment me as a child. So as far as the character of Malfoy goes, I think I'd push him into a ditch before I'd be interested in him romantically.

i absolutely agree with you. and i love your writing style. anyway, yes i tend to fall in love with certain characters in the book. you find yourself smiling when you read a particularly sweet thing that character said. i am not embarrassed to admit that i have a "crush" on a character. cough ron cough that is what j.k. rowling wanted to achieve, right? likeability. and i think it's cool that you like luna and admit it. and i wish there were more guys like you in the world. :blush:

I have made 'friends' with literary characters for almost as long as I can remember and when I went skiing in Davos had long conversations in my head with Hans Castorp the central character of Thomas Mann's 'The Magic Mountain" And I was 30! Absurd maybe but who cares? Afterall the whole illusion of storytelling relies on the belief of the persistence of a character's being even beyond the frame of the story itself. Why else would we care when they die or even make any sense at all of all speculation about their lives in time frames not covered by the narrative? At one level we don't believe that Lupin, for example, ceased to exist in the interval between when we see him in the Pensieve and turning up on the Hogwarts Express. Yet, if we were to see him strictly as nothing more than a set of words on a page then that is exactly the case. There is a wonderful story by Jorge Luis Borges "The Circular Ruins' in which the hero sets out to dream a man and insert him into reality. Writers do something similar and their readers come to share that dream. Let's just hope that we don't end up finding out as did Borges's hero that we ourselves are dreamed by another! "And if he left off dreaming about you" as Tweedledee says to Alice. I confess I 'love' Lupin not as a flesh and blood human but as an ideal and I 'dream' him in those quiet reflective moments as the White King does of Alice, if Tweedledee is to be believed. As to the relationship between actor and character it is another example of our innate capacity to buy into illusion. I can look at Lupin on the screen and my heart contracts a little but I have no reaction of the kind when I see images of David Thewlis and yet they are in the strictest sense identical. But then again not really. It is a testament to the actor's performance that despite the identity of features, Lupin looks different to Thewlis, he speaks differently both in cadence and accent, his expressions are different as are his mannerisms. It's like the situation of someone attracted to an identical twin - they don't necessarily find the other twin so especially attractive but here of course one twin is an illusion. Is it madness or something to be ashamed of, I doubt it but merely an example of the infinite capacity we humans have to dream without which reality would be far poorer. Madness is not the voluntary and witting digression into fantasy but rather the inability to recognise the difference between fantasy and reality.

This is my first post here and I have to say I made an account just to post here.

This was an AWESOME article and I have to say I agree completely.

Luna is just about the most beautiful(in terms of personality we have seen) charachter I`ve ever seen. From the minute I read about her in OOTP she was so freaking awesome it was almost impossble to keep myself from writing a really bad self insertion about me X her. ^_^;;

I also value personality over looks, and I totally fell in love with hers. She is just so charming and knows exactly what to say, and is also sensitive and understanding. It seems like you can talk to her abut anything and she will know the exact right thing to say.

Her little flaws make her even more beautiful, like the lines in a mosaic. But what really did it for me was this quote:

""Mistletoe," said Luna dreamily, pointing at a large clump of white berries placed almost over Harry's head. He jumped out from under it. "Good thinking," said Luna seriously. "It's often infested with nargles."

If I was harry right then, I would have snogged her like there was no tomorrow. Any girl that says something like that in response to mistletoe is BEYOND awesome.

Adding to that, she`s totally non-threatening. Unlike other ficitonal charachter`s I`ve crushed on, I wouldn`t be afraid to approach her at all.

Unlike a lot of people, I read the first four books in a row, and then read OOTP and HBP right together when HBP came out.

So if you want Luna, you`ll have to get through ME!

Interesting... All right, I didn't want to say it before but, actually, with all due respect, I don't get the Luna crushes. This is fine, since I've crushed on a lot of weird people in my life that others may not have gotten either. I'm just saying rather honestly that she never really captivated me as a character. I dunno. Maybe it's just cause I'm a girl. I felt bad for her at times, but wouldn't it kinda bother you guys that she's not...um...all there? I mean if you just saw her as a really hot chick, I'd get it but you say your in it for the personality.

I know the writer of this article, Adam, said that he was off the wall at times himself, but from the well-written article I can assume that he's at least coherent. You guys say you like her for her personality, but the key feature to her personality seems to be that she never makes any sense... Maybe I'm just a little Hermione-esque here, but I'd prefer to have someone I could talk to and understood what they were saying back.

I do like Neville, though. (Yeah, I know, it's easier to ask who I DON'T like.) But I feel Neville's more capable of a stable conversation. I'm not saying Luna's bad or anything, but I tend to feel how Harry feels around her--a bit confused.

But hey, whatever makes you guys happy. Just don't hurt each other fighting over her. :p

The thing about Luna is that she seems totally innocent, yet extremely aware of the world. She is hopeful and resourceful and her indiosincracies are absolutely charming.

As was said in another article, Luna is a perfect foil to Hermione, who is very analytical and by-the-book. Don`t get me wrong, herm is adorable in her own right and is also very cool. However the two together are also fun to watch with their personalites being almost the opposite. IIRC, it ws never said how well Luna did in classes though.

Luna just is so fresh for lack of a better term, as a charachter. She`s honest, but never brutal. She`s a little eccentric, yet she can be deep and is every bit as courageous as the others in the Ministry group. She is a very hopeful person and is able to hide a lot of pain under apparent cheerfulness. Perhaps, this quality is what attracted me to her the most, her strength to face the world, even though everybody insisits she`s wrong and horrible, she manages to keep her conviction. Harry, too also had to go through this, only for the 5th year and not his whole life, like Luna did. This quality I find extremely admirable, and her personality, as I mentioned before, is quite attractive to me.

Luna is much more than she seems to be or lets on. She is in reality a person with immesurable hope and conviction, as much if not more than harry himself. She has a great capacity for love and compassion, and is a courageous and a true friend.

In other words, Luna Rocks.

I hope I am not pathetic. I fall in love everytime I read a book. My all time favorites though are of course SIRIUS!!!! and James Fraser from Outlander. They both make my heart skip a beat.
Anyway great article! :tu: :tu: :tu:

I loved your article and just had to post a reply (and a confession):

OK, I have the BIGGEST crush on Draco Malfoy.:love:

I know he's like evil and everything, but when he cried in HBP, I realized that he was human! (and,of course, I think Tom Felton's pretty cute, too)

Anyway, that's all for now, sorry if I sound stupid. :)

I'm in love with Ronald Weasley.

Yup, I am. I really don't know how it started, I was just reading the books like everyone else, and the character of Ron just stuck out in my mind. You know, cute, tall, funny, timid at times, scared of spiders, fights with Malfoy... all of those things, I find him to be so attractive...

And then I became a shipper.

Yes, It's true, I went from liking Ron, to loving Ron and since I couldn't have him, why not pair him with a character (that was most like me) that could be with him.

I am a Hermione/Ron shipper.

I love Ron and I'm alot like Hermione, so there you go. While Reading HBP I wanted to slap Ron for even leaving me....I mean...um..Hermione... and going for Lavender. How could he be so thick?????

But anyways.... I think about Ron alot, even in a normal day, if I see a tall guy with light skin, red hair and blue eyes (which I notice more and more), I get competely crazy, but hey that's just me....

Great editorial! I'm just glad that someone reassured me that it's alright to be in love with a fictional character. I couldn't help it since i read the first book, and i became addicted to Ron. His character seemed so genuine, something you wouldn't see everyday. Of course, i've had to get it into my head several times that he isn't real. :upset:

I don't think being in love with Luna is such a bad thing. the great thing about this book is that j.k. rowling created such characters so that they would be perfectly imaged in your mind, and to you, Luna obviously did it. She created such a character so that they would have immense impacts on you, to change your view of the book or how you used to see it. Great work, 100% behind you all the way!

I am a Hermione/Ron shipper.

I love Ron and I'm alot like Hermione, so there you go. While Reading HBP I wanted to slap Ron for even leaving me....I mean...um..Hermione... and going for Lavender. How could he be so thick?????

I don't think I've ever really been a shipper because I only even found out what "shipping" was after HBP and by then it's really pretty obvious. But I think even if I had known about it, I wouldn't have bothered, because I would generally trust in Jo and believe it to be a good story no matter who ended up with who. There have been couples I pretty much saw coming, but I wouldn't say I shipped for them. There really wasn't a need, it was mostly just observation. In the beginning I thought Ron and Hermione would be good together, but I wouldn't have really cared if Hermione had ended up with Draco and Harry with the giant squid! (actually that would have been quite interesting...). I also can't relate to the whole putting one character with another because you relate to one of them. But I never related to Hermione very well, so maybe that's why. I liked Ron in the beginning but that's because I related to him as a character and saw a lot of me in him (although he's been ticking me off in the past couple books because he seems to get thicker and not more mature...) but hopefully now that he's finally got Hermione he'll settle down a bit.

Just yesterday i said to my boyfriend how i use to have a crush on one of the characters from the Harry Potter series, draco malfoy lol by the way. and he thought i was liek an absolute psycho for doing so. i tried to dustify it saying its not that kind of crush you would have on a real person you know just you like that charaters personality and how they are described and also i read alot of harry/draco fan fics so thats more of him well being jealous about it. its not like i want to run away with my storys and books and live happily ever after with them. i love my boyfriend not a ficitonal character, but he'll never get it i wish i wouldnt have mentioned it lol

I must say that this article was remarkably reassuring. I've had a MONSTER crush on Sirius for ages. He fulfills the bad-boy wishes that girls go for in Draco and Snape, but is also incredibly caring, brave, fun, and HOT (though Jo mentioned in PoA that Sirius was handsome, she didn't start to emphasize how incredibly attractive he was until OotP, which is long after I started to like him... so I'm not entirely shallow. I hope.)

But yes. I love Sirius. There. I said it.

I'm in love with Ronald Weasley.

Yup, I am. I really don't know how it started, I was just reading the books like everyone else, and the character of Ron just stuck out in my mind. You know, cute, tall, funny, timid at times, scared of spiders, fights with Malfoy... all of those things, I find him to be so attractive...

And then I became a shipper.

Yes, It's true, I went from liking Ron, to loving Ron and since I couldn't have him, why not pair him with a character (that was most like me) that could be with him.

I am a Hermione/Ron shipper.

I love Ron and I'm alot like Hermione, so there you go. While Reading HBP I wanted to slap Ron for even leaving me....I mean...um..Hermione... and going for Lavender. How could he be so thick?????

But anyways.... I think about Ron alot, even in a normal day, if I see a tall guy with light skin, red hair and blue eyes (which I notice more and more), I get competely crazy, but hey that's just me....
TeeHee! I thought I was the only one who had a Ron Weasley lover craze!
Yeah, I'm in love with Ron also. And i'm a HUGE Ron/Hermione shipper for the exact same reason; she reminds me most of me!
And I like her character, too. She sort of holds things together if you think about it.
But I found Ron and Lavender's 'Lustfest' to be hilarious, funny, and hysterically entertaining.
But we knew that wouldn't last: in the end, us herons will WIN!!!
(Ron's ours. But no one knows it yet. <wink, wink>)

gabrielle_004 and FireKracKer78 I think just like you I LOVE RON, I also became a shipper because of the same reasons!
and about that hole Lavender thing when I was reading I found it very funny but at the same time I got sooo mad and jealous (I'm kidding about the last one :P, well kind of...:P)

Love this thread!!

And I can add some male "crushers" too - most of my friends from the fantasy roleplaying group admit to worshipping assorted elven beauties. (Yep, they're nerds. It's still cute.)

I have had too many crushes on fictional crushes to count them - some of the more memorable ones:

Julian from Enid Blyton's Famous Five (yep, I started this early!)
Bevil Menfrey from Menfreya in the Morning
Galahad and Artus in The Mists of Avalon
Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights
... and the wonderful Mr Darcy...

I know as a teenager I wrote a lot of sequels to my favourite novels. I just didn't have the term fanfiction for it and no internet to share them ;-)

From the Potterverse, I just have a slight crush on Lupin - an intelligent, gentle man with a dark secret, what more could you want?? And I've always had a soft spot for Viktor and his ducky waddling.

One question though... why are so many people detesting Draco while putting Sirius on a pedestal? Granted, he was Harry's parents' best friend. But in his youth, I find he wasn't too different from Draco - slightly less arrogant, less of a bully, less often strutting. But being/doing all of this nevertheless. And in his later years... definitely emotionally unhinged (even if not through his own fault, but very understandably so). Mind, I like Sirius as a character, but there is a lot to criticize about him.

Ah... one very good reason for Sirius vs. Draco!!

I must say that this article was remarkably reassuring. I've had a MONSTER crush on Sirius for ages. He fulfills the bad-boy wishes that girls go for in Draco and Snape, but is also incredibly caring, brave, fun, and HOT (though Jo mentioned in PoA that Sirius was handsome, she didn't start to emphasize how incredibly attractive he was until OotP, which is long after I started to like him... so I'm not entirely shallow. I hope.)

But yes. I love Sirius. There. I said it.

I should be ashamed of myself, being as old as I am, but I am hopelessly in love with Sirius Black. I cried most desperatley when he died. I still can't read or listen to Order without sobbing at his death. Even in HBP when his death is mentioned, I tear up. What is really irritating is that Gary Oldman was cast as him in the PoA movie. JKR said herself Sirius was supposed to be sexy, so why cast someone who is 15 years too old for the part and not at all good-looking? And what is up with the prison tattoos?
I'm glad I'm not the only one who falls in love with fictional characters. Barney Snaith from 'The Blue Castle'

I should be ashamed of myself, being as old as I am, but I am hopelessly in love with Sirius Black. I cried most desperatley when he died. I still can't read or listen to Order without sobbing at his death. Even in HBP when his death is mentioned, I tear up. What is really irritating is that Gary Oldman was cast as him in the PoA movie. JKR said herself Sirius was supposed to be sexy, so why cast someone who is 15 years too old for the part and not at all good-looking? And what is up with the prison tattoos?
I'm glad I'm not the only one who falls in love with fictional characters. Barney Snaith from 'The Blue Castle'


I totally agree..Sirius is probably a little over twice my age but he remains my true love ;) I cried when he died..and even after reading the book about 15 times...I still cry. I also had to grab for the nearest barf bag when Gary Oldman was cast...needless to say.. OLD MAN.

personaly im all over draco, cedric and for some strange reason the weasly twins......

one day i was just watching the thrid movie (for the 5 billionth time) and i just found them quite attractive

as for luna shes seems very nice and very pritty so i think its fine shes just a little strange

o yeah and im totaly in LOVE with harry....

accually im desperatly in love with the twins........*blushes* i dont know why though

I am glad so many others have crushes on characters in the books! I feel better. I have a couple though, I would have to say Fred and George and Sirius are favorites, and Oliver Wood, even though he wasn't quite as prominent. I've also noticed that not as many people like Harry as I would have thought. For me though, I just love all of the characters they are so real! But those four are my secret crushes.