ALREADY PLANNING FOR BOOK 7

I know it's a long time from now, but ...

It is my intention to make the final Harry Potter release party the best ever:

This time I really will work up a marauder's map invitation and issue it as a flyer to all the local neighborhoods! We'll get everyone and their house-elf to come to our store, instead of Barnes and Noble.

I will give the Gilderoy Lockhart act one last hurrah. But this time will be the best ever. I will work up a fantastic costume.

Maybe I could persuade Marie to be my lovely assistant (if she'll do it). She could be a character, or simply wear her sexy witch costume. Lots of fun could be had as Gilderoy runs away in fear, from the dementor, and his assistant saves the day.

My dementor act will be honed to perfection.

I hope to get Jordan for Professor Dumbledore, and Amanda for Professor Trelawney.

Obviously, David/Dani is the quintessential Snape, but if he can't/won't make it, we'll have to enlist someone from the ranks of Borders employees (Dustin?). Either way, Snape could do trivia again, and a few potions.

We'll need a Mad-eye Moody, too. Somebody good. (Justin?) Moody will need an act. A maze?(Too much trouble, possibly. LP issues, too.) The unforgivable curses? But how?

If Jerry leaves, we'll be short a Hagrid, so we may have to persuade some giant person (Aaron?) to do it; maybe Jerry, himself, if he'll come back and volunteer (which I doubt he would). And, this time, we really will have to work up a good Care of Magical Creatures Class for him. Maybe we could make a fake hippogriff and kids could get their pix taken on it w/Hagrid?

If Amanda reads fortunes, that should pretty much take care of itself. (She could entertain a terminally ill misanthrope and have him in stitches.) Maybe we could build her a big tent and fill it with dry ice fog, for effect.

Jordan could work the sorting hat event (perhaps assisted by Julia or Tara as McGonogall), but this time, we could really do it up with a walkie-talkie inside and someone doing a voice for it.

Who could little Annette be? Tonks? Moaning Myrtle? Dobby?

Maybe Mara could volunteer? She'd make a good McGonogall, too. Or Bellatrix Lestrange.

We'll need a Harry, Ron, and Hermione, too (more volunteers). Their main job would be to sign autographs and pose for photos. Perhaps we could place them in front of a matte of Hogwarts and print it up for the kids.

And there will be extra fun because, this time, for the finale (If I have anything to say about it) we'll issue awesome prizes to winners of the costume contest. These will include a UK version of Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone (which I can get cheap); a magic wand or two (also cheap and/or easy to make); autographed pix of Harry, Ron, and Hermione (which I actually have); a witch's broom; various and sundry other items like Bernie Botts Every Flavor Jelly Beans, a Hogwarts banner, and self-made copies of various books from the stories (like Snape's potion book, Gilderoy's publications, Hogwarts a History, etc. etc.) Our prizes were lame last time, but these will be impressive.

A grand prize? The broom.

Remember to invite Bookstore Terry for atmosphere.

So let's see:
Dumbledore and McGonogall = sorting hat
Trelawney = fortune telling
Lockhart (and sexy witch?) = dementor attack
Snape (and Bellatrix?) = trivia w/prizes
Hagrid = care of magical creatures (go for a ride on a magical creature?) Moody = magic tricks?
Harry, Ron, Hermione = pix and autographs

However, it is still a long way off. So much can and will change before then.