I was a huge Potterhead back in the day (well...I still am, just not as obsessed). I know the books are great and all, I know how addictive her writing style is, that she can create such vivid and engaging characters and places, and the stories keep you hungry for more...but IMO that still does not completely explain the insane hype that generated. I don't think there has ever been this level of mania and craze for a book -- a children's/YA book for that matter. So I am wondering, what are some of the factor that led to the hype? I've heard things like the rise in Internet (and internet fandom), JKR's rags-to-riches story, etc all contributed. So for those who have been there, what was the mania like at that point, and what factors (aside from the quality of the books themselves) that lead to it?
One factor to consider is the state of the YA genre c. 2000. Nowadays, kids ages 13-17 have TONS of books they can read that are targeted to their demographic, especially in the fantasy and paranormal category. But when Harry Potter was popular, young adult wasn't established as it is now. In short, there were fewer options.
Presumably Scholastic publishing the books in the US also helped a lot as Scholastic basically had (and still has to an extent) a monopoly on book sales at schools.