Joanne Rowling (better known as JK Rowling) is an author who is best known for writing the popular Harry Potter series. As well as her work on the Harry Potter series, she is also a well-known philanthropist, and has donated money to charities such as Multiple Sclerosis Society of Great Britain. She also supports the charity One Parent Families, which is a result of her own past experiences of being a single mother.
Early life
Rowling was born on the 31st July 1965 in Yate, Glouchester, in England. At the age of four, she moved with her family to Winterbourne. She attended St Michael’s Primary School after moving to Winterbourne. Later, she attended Wyedean School and College, a sixth form school where she was head girl. She was later a student at the University of Exeter, where she studied French and Classics. In 1990, Rowling’s mother, Anne, died from Multiple Sclerosis, which she had been diagonosed with ten years earlier. It was her mother’s death that led to Rowling offering much support to charities that deal with Multiple Sclerosis.
After her mother’s death, Rowling travelled to Portugal to teach English. Whilst there, she married and had her first child. After the marriage broke down months later, she left Portugal with her daughter and settled in Scotland. In 2001, she married Neil Murray, a doctor. Rowling gave birth to her second child in 2003 and then her third, in 2005.
Harry Potter
It was in 1990, during a train journey from Manchester to London, that Rowling came up with the idea of Harry Potter. She began to make notes as soon as she returned home and continued to work on the first Harry Potter novel after moving to Portugal following her mother’s death. She finally completed the first novel, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone", in 1995. This period of Rowling’s life has become somewhat famous, as it was a time when she was experiencing financial difficulties. She wrote "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" by hand, mostly in cafés and later typed it up using an old typewriter.
After completing the book, Rowling began sending it off to literary agents and publishers. After receiving a few rejections, she received a letter from the Christopher Little Literary Agency asking her to send her full manuscript. A young reader named Bryony Evans had spotted Rowling’s manuscript and immediately liked it, and the agency decided to represent Rowling. Christopher Little spent a year searching for a publisher for "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" and it was eventually accepted by Bloomsbury, who offered Rowling a £1500 advance. Later, Rowling was given a £8000 grant from the Scottish Arts Council, which she used to purchase a new typewriter.
Later, Scholastic Inc won the rights to publish the novel in the United States. It was after this that the book began to become a success, winning a large number of awards.
The second installment, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", was published in 1998, and like the first novel, was successful. The third instalment, "Harry potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", followed in 1999 and like the other two won a variety of awards.
By the time "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" was released in July 2000, Harry Potter had become a phenomenon. In the same year, Rowling received the "Author of the Year" award at the British Book Awards. The fifth instalment, "Harry potter and the Order of the Phoenix", didn’t come until three years later, in June 2003. By now the series had already become one of the most popular fantasy series of all time. Rumours had already begun circulating on the internet about which characters would die and many fansites that had been created early on in the series being released were now receiving thousands of visitors every day.
In July 2005, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" was released, with millions being sold within in first 24 hours. By now, midnight parties were being held for releases of the novels, with the event being televised.
The final instalment, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", was released in 2007, ten years after the release of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone". Like the other instalments, Deathly Hallows broke all records. It is currently the fastest-selling book of all time.
For the novels, Rowling used the pen-name "JK Rowling" rather than her full name, as her publishers were worried that males would be reluctant to purchase the books if they knew that a female had written them. Rowling decided to include "K" in her pen-name rather than just "J. Rowling", as the "K" stands for Kathleen, which was the name for Rowling’s grandmother.
Many of Rowling’s life experiences were inspirations for the Potter novels, such as the head boy and head girl parts. Rowling has said that she based some of her characters on people that she knew. The character of Ron Weasley was loosely based on one of her friends, Sean Harris. He owned a turquoise Ford Anglia, which Rowling included in Harry potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Rowling has also said that the character of Hermione is loosely based on herself. The death of her mother led to her writing the "Mirror of Erised" chapter in "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone", in which Harry sees his dead parents through a magical mirror.
Film Adaptations
The film adaptations, like the novels, have been extremely popular. The film rights were purchased by Warner Bros. In 1998 and the first film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, was released in 2001. All six novels have so far been adapted to film. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be released in two parts, with the second part being released in 2011.
All of the main actors in the Harry Potter films are British. Rowling made it clear that she wished to have an all-British cast and so far the only film in the series to include foreign actors is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, where the students of two foreign schools visit Hogwarts.
Early life
Rowling was born on the 31st July 1965 in Yate, Glouchester, in England. At the age of four, she moved with her family to Winterbourne. She attended St Michael’s Primary School after moving to Winterbourne. Later, she attended Wyedean School and College, a sixth form school where she was head girl. She was later a student at the University of Exeter, where she studied French and Classics. In 1990, Rowling’s mother, Anne, died from Multiple Sclerosis, which she had been diagonosed with ten years earlier. It was her mother’s death that led to Rowling offering much support to charities that deal with Multiple Sclerosis.
After her mother’s death, Rowling travelled to Portugal to teach English. Whilst there, she married and had her first child. After the marriage broke down months later, she left Portugal with her daughter and settled in Scotland. In 2001, she married Neil Murray, a doctor. Rowling gave birth to her second child in 2003 and then her third, in 2005.
Harry Potter
It was in 1990, during a train journey from Manchester to London, that Rowling came up with the idea of Harry Potter. She began to make notes as soon as she returned home and continued to work on the first Harry Potter novel after moving to Portugal following her mother’s death. She finally completed the first novel, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone", in 1995. This period of Rowling’s life has become somewhat famous, as it was a time when she was experiencing financial difficulties. She wrote "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" by hand, mostly in cafés and later typed it up using an old typewriter.
After completing the book, Rowling began sending it off to literary agents and publishers. After receiving a few rejections, she received a letter from the Christopher Little Literary Agency asking her to send her full manuscript. A young reader named Bryony Evans had spotted Rowling’s manuscript and immediately liked it, and the agency decided to represent Rowling. Christopher Little spent a year searching for a publisher for "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone" and it was eventually accepted by Bloomsbury, who offered Rowling a £1500 advance. Later, Rowling was given a £8000 grant from the Scottish Arts Council, which she used to purchase a new typewriter.
Later, Scholastic Inc won the rights to publish the novel in the United States. It was after this that the book began to become a success, winning a large number of awards.
The second installment, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets", was published in 1998, and like the first novel, was successful. The third instalment, "Harry potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban", followed in 1999 and like the other two won a variety of awards.
By the time "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" was released in July 2000, Harry Potter had become a phenomenon. In the same year, Rowling received the "Author of the Year" award at the British Book Awards. The fifth instalment, "Harry potter and the Order of the Phoenix", didn’t come until three years later, in June 2003. By now the series had already become one of the most popular fantasy series of all time. Rumours had already begun circulating on the internet about which characters would die and many fansites that had been created early on in the series being released were now receiving thousands of visitors every day.
In July 2005, "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" was released, with millions being sold within in first 24 hours. By now, midnight parties were being held for releases of the novels, with the event being televised.
The final instalment, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows", was released in 2007, ten years after the release of "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone". Like the other instalments, Deathly Hallows broke all records. It is currently the fastest-selling book of all time.
For the novels, Rowling used the pen-name "JK Rowling" rather than her full name, as her publishers were worried that males would be reluctant to purchase the books if they knew that a female had written them. Rowling decided to include "K" in her pen-name rather than just "J. Rowling", as the "K" stands for Kathleen, which was the name for Rowling’s grandmother.
Many of Rowling’s life experiences were inspirations for the Potter novels, such as the head boy and head girl parts. Rowling has said that she based some of her characters on people that she knew. The character of Ron Weasley was loosely based on one of her friends, Sean Harris. He owned a turquoise Ford Anglia, which Rowling included in Harry potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Rowling has also said that the character of Hermione is loosely based on herself. The death of her mother led to her writing the "Mirror of Erised" chapter in "Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone", in which Harry sees his dead parents through a magical mirror.
Film Adaptations
The film adaptations, like the novels, have been extremely popular. The film rights were purchased by Warner Bros. In 1998 and the first film, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, was released in 2001. All six novels have so far been adapted to film. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows will be released in two parts, with the second part being released in 2011.
All of the main actors in the Harry Potter films are British. Rowling made it clear that she wished to have an all-British cast and so far the only film in the series to include foreign actors is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, where the students of two foreign schools visit Hogwarts.
