Harry Potter fans will be invited on a global online "treasure hunt," according to media reports Thursday citing a leaked memo on "Pottermore", creator J.K. Rowling's latest project.
The multi-million selling writer of the boy wizard's adventures is due to officially announce details of her new enterprise later Thursday after a week of fevered speculation since a teaser was discovered on the Internet.
But several British newspapers said they had received an email with details about the project, apparently sent by mistake by a public relations company that appears to be behind it.
The memo sets out the marketing strategy for Pottermore and suggests it is an online game with clues to prizes hidden in the real world, including magic wands concealed in Britain and the United States, the reports said.
The PR company, Adam and Eve, previously set up an online treasure hunt using Google maps to publicise a video game.
The Times newspaper warned however that the email "could be a canny marketing exercise."
Last week a spokesman for Rowling said the new enterprise was not a new book and was "not directly related" to the release next month of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2," the final film in the epic saga.
A Pottermore website features a purple screen containing two owls and the scrawled message "Coming Soon".
A click on an owl redirects the user to a YouTube page with a clock marking down time until Rowling's announcement and the message "The owls are gathering - find out why soon".
A Pottermore Twitter account has more than 85,000 followers.
The "Pottermore" trademark is owned by Warner Bros, the films' distributor.
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