MANILA, Philippines—The young wizard didn’t receive this much protection.
For days after the release of “Breaking Dawn,” online forums devoted to the “Twilight” saga were shut down, to make sure the book’s secrets wouldn’t be spilled by speed readers. Shoutboxes were disabled as well and comments on websites and author Stephenie Meyer’s MySpace page needed to be approved before being posted for the world to see.
Yes, “Twilight” fans hate spoilers.
Internet police
Weeks before the book was released, Stephenie posted a message to fans on her official website. “I want to ask you guys for a favor. If someone, somewhere, somehow, gets a copy early, I’m asking you to please not post any spoilers on the Internet. And if you see something, please don’t spread it around.”
Stephenie said that the fourth book is to be “experienced in a certain way” and she didn’t want that to be ruined by spoilers.
Fans helped by acting like her Internet police, reporting copyright violations they’ve spotted. “Twilight” fans have proven their loyalty once again—just like they did during the release of the third book “Eclipse.”
Fiercely protective
The readers of “Twilight” are fiercely protective and not just when it comes to spoilers.
When people logged into Yahoo! Answers to ask where they can download “Twilight’s” audio books for free, they were met with disgust.
Redunicorn said, “If you downloaded the “Twilight” audio book for free, that would be stealing from the author, publisher, and the actor that read the story. Don’t be a book pirate.”
Chelsea Jacob wrote, “That’s stealing. And duh, nothing’s free today, hun.”
Fans in the country and all over the world had been waiting to devour the continuation of the vampire-werewolf-human saga. “Breaking Dawn” hit Philippine book shelves last Monday, Aug. 4. Fully Booked in Bonifacio High Street kept its doors open on Sunday night for eager fans who wanted to be among the first to grab a copy when midnight struck.
Pre-launch party
On Monday, while a lot of Twilighters were stuck in school, Moms lined up in bookstores buying copies for their kids.
Two days before the release date, a pre-launch party was held at Powerbooks Greenbelt. There, creative “Twilight” followers had the chance to showcase their Bella, Jacob and Edward-inspired fan art and photos. A trivia contest was held and fifth grader Veronica Ygońia from Victory Christian School bagged the top prize, winning The “Twilight” saga special boxed set and gift cards and a gift pack from Powerbooks. Psychology student Elisha Roque from San Beda College and high school sophomore Maxine Arcenas from Assumption College won second and third place, respectively.
The event (and the girls who kept screaming in the bookstore every time Edward’s name was mentioned) was a testament to “Twilight” mania and just how big the saga’s following is. “Breaking Dawn” was one of the year’s most anticipated books and now that it’s finally out, no one is happier than author Stephenie Meyer. “I can’t wait to finally be able to discuss everything that happens in ‘Breaking Dawn’ with you,” she told fans on her website.
“Breaking Dawn” may be out but the fun is far from over. Although Stephenie says she may decide to explore the stories of other “Twilight” characters years from now, Twilighters don’t have to wait that long for other doses of vampire and werewolf goodness. The movie version of “Twilight” will be released in December and Stephenie is working on “Midnight Sun,” a retelling of “Twilight’s” events from Edward’s perspective. We know girls will be screaming for that one.
