The more things change, the more they stay the same.

heidi8 just pointed me to a thread on FA in which fans are angsting about what will happen to the fandom and to fan fiction when the new book comes out. The new book of which they speak? Is OOTP.

This thread was started in February 2003. The funny thing is that many of the comments there could easily have been said by someone on my flist two weeks ago, and probably were. For example:

I think those who enjoy reading fan fics will continue to read them. And those who don't... meh, well thats they're problem. I know this probably sounds odd but I kinda don't want JK to finish the series (don't get me wrong, I eagerly await anything she might throw @ us). But from the fannon perspective it would be much more fun if she didn't, that way everyone could continue to write without the fear/dred of what may come.

This one is really interesting:

My main concern is whether the fannon craze will die down once the new book comes out. I think that hp fanfiction became so popular because books 1, 2, 3, and 4 all came out within almost a year of it's predecessor. When there wasn't a new book we all turned to another outlet, fan fiction. But what if Rowling picks up her pace and starts releasing books every year again? Will this whole culture we've got here waste away?

Were people really worried about that happening? It's almost hard to believe, with two more books to come after OOTP. This one made me smile, because it sounds like something I could have said:

Fan fic, in and of itself, is one big alternate universe. It doesn't matter how good an author gets at mimicing JKR's style, her fan fic is never going to be cannon. The glory of fan fiction is the ability to use a universe as Silly Putty(tm), stretching it, molding it, picking up Sunday comics with it, and making of it whatever your mind comes up with.

That same person goes on to suggest what the future holds:

Years from now, when all 7 books are out, there will even be authors who will specifically write stories set in year 1 or year 5 in a wave of nostalgia. It won't be the same as fic written while the books are coming out because it will be tinged with the knowledge of future events; there will be unconscious foreshadowing. Now is the innocent time.

Interesting, isn't it? The thread is here, if you're interested in reading more.