Stephenie Meyer cemented fan base through Web

Mania is almost too sedate a term to describe the ongoing frenzy surrounding "Twilight," Stephenie Meyer's mega-hit young-adult series about a devastatingly handsome vampire and the plain-Jane human he wants to sink his teeth into.

Since 2005, when the first of the four books was published, more than 25 million copies of the "Twilight " saga have been sold worldwide. At least 350 fan sites have cropped up online. And the movie, which opened Nov. 21, has been the season's breakout hit; it grossed close to $100 million in less than 10 days.

Yet only five years ago, no one had heard of Meyer. In 2003, she was a 29-year-old stay-at-home mother in Phoenix who spent her days doing what any other mom does: chasing her kids around and trying to keep her sanity. Going from maternal obscurity to cultural phenomenon in a scant five years is no easy feat. Like so many success stories, hers was a combination of hard work, dumb luck and being in the right place — and doing the right things — at the right time. Add on top of that a brilliant and strategic use of the Web.

Although Meyer's manuscript was the object of a bidding war — she eventually accepted a $750,000 deal with Little, Brown — the first printing in October 2005 was an optimistic, if cautious, 75,000 copies. To promote the book, Little, Brown sent Meyer on a brief author tour and set up an in-house Web page to promote the title. But that site failed to pick up on the book's subtler themes — the bridled desire and self-deprecating humor that connected with fans.

So Meyer took things into her own hands. She set up StephenieMeyer.com, a more personal site that revealed aspects of her life, including pictures and stories about her family and her Mormon upbringing.

More important, she directly engaged with her readers. When fans posted messages, Meyer's responses were personal. She'd write back or blog about it.

In being so approachable and responsive, she unwittingly cemented her fledgling fan base, revealing herself as affable and human, surprised to have fans and genuinely delighted by their interest.

"Stephenie was somebody who was early to use a new medium and to use it effectively," technology expert Tim O'Reilly said. "An authentic connection really matters."

So does a two-way street and connecting with the right people. It wasn't just that Meyer's fans came to her blog, but that she went to theirs, writing posts and commenting on the things they had written.