J.K. Rowling’s Pottermore has announced several big changes for users, including the removal of comments and fan art.

In a post on Pottermore, the website says they are taking out several features to prepare for “developments to come,” including the release of Deathly Hallows — which, by the way, Pottermore says will not mark the end of new material (“As for what’s after that, it’s certainly not the end — in fact, far from it,” they say).

Pottermore has removed the ability to comment, upload/view fan art, and update your status. The site purposely did not give users any warning about the removal of these features because they didn’t want people who incorrectly use them to take advantage of the news before closing.

Sadly, Pottermore is not letting anyone who uploaded their fan art to re-download it.

Pottermore admits that moderating these features became too large a task. “We concluded that some features were no longer properly serving the interests of our users,” they write. “Additionally, the Pottermore team found that it had become increasingly challenging to monitor and control comments, statuses and drawings. Ultimately, the privacy and security of our users are of paramount importance to us.”

Users were not happy about the news:

Pottermore’s last major update featured the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. It remains to be seen when they’ll release the final book in the Harry Potter series, or their plans post-Deathly Hallows.

It’s surprising that Pottermore was unable to get moderating — an annoying but ultimately important task to foster any community — under control. It seems unlikely that the site will ever introduce another feature that requires moderation. In other words, you’ll probably never be able to write or submit anything to the site.

Thanks to Corneel for the tip.