Joanne Rowling was born on 31st July in 1965, in England. She is the most established author to have taken birth on the planet. Her pen name is J K ROWLING, by which she is fondly known across the globe. Rowling is best known for the Harry Potter book series which was later picturised also. Early Life J K Rowling was not the real name of Joanne Rowling. She used the name J K Rowling to publish her content. She was born in Gloucestershire in England. She was born to Peter James Rowling and Anne Rowling. Her father was an aircraft engineer at Rolls Royce and mother a science technician. Her family moved to Winterbourne when she was just four years old. She pursued her primary education from the St Michael’s Primary School.
Rowling wrote fantasy stories from her childhood. She recited the stories to her little sister every night. She later moved to Church Cottage, which is located nearby Wales. She went with her mother to the Wyedean School and College where she continued her education. J K Rowling describes her childhood to be very traumatic as she had many problems to face. Her mother was ill and had a strained relationship with her father. She is not on talking terms with her father anymore. Rowling was inspired by Jessica Mitford’s autobiography which was gifted to her by her great- aunt. She read all the books by Jessica Mitford as she got even more inspired by her. After her high school, she applied for an entrance in Oxford University but was rejected.
She then joined the University of Exeter where she studied B.A in French. Rowling was described as a competent student who did everything that was necessary for academics terms. Rowling graduated from Exeter University in 1986. She settled in London where she worked as a researcher and bilingual secretary. Rowling was hit hard by the death of her mother who was suffering from multiple sclerosis. This was when she began writing Harry Potter. She was immensely affected by the death of her mother. She has partly described her life in the Harry Potter, where she express her loss in Harry’s character. Rowling continued her work by moving to Portugal to teach English. Here she met Jorge Arantes, a television journalist.
She got married to him on 16 October 1992. She suffered a miscarriage before giving birth to her first child, Jessica Isabel Rowling Arantes in Portugal. Her name was inspired from Rowling’s inspiration Jessica Mitford. Rowling separated from Arantes in 1993, just after a year into the marriage. Rowling experienced domestic abuse during her marriage. She moved to Scotland with her baby, to live close to her sister. Rowling’s failure diagnoses her of clinical depression, but she claimed it helped her concentrate on her writing. Rowling continued to write even after her failures. She failed with her marriage and was jobless but never left writing. She described herself as poor to be in modern Britain.
Since then Rowling has overcome every event in her life and became a millionaire. Today she is amongst the most established writers and influential personalities not just in Britain but across the globe. In 1990 on a delayed train to Manchester; Rowling came up with the idea of writing Harry Potter. She wrote Harry Potter initial version during her depression period. She completed her first version of the Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s stone in the year 1995. The book was reviewed by Bryony Evens, who agreed to represent Rowling. The book was given to twelve different publishers but was rejected. It was finally accepted by Bloomsbury publishing house. Alice Newton, the daughter of Barry Cunningham, was the first one to demand the book. This prompted him to publish the book but was uncertain about its success. It was published in 1997 with just 1000 copies printed out of which 500 were distributed in libraries.
Soon after its publish, the Scottish Arts Council enabled Rowling to continue writing. She won her first award for the book at the Nestle Smarties Book Prize. Later, in February, she gained the British Book Award for Children’s Book of the Year. Rowling’s book had become a fantasy for children across Europe. In 1998, Scholastics Inc. won the bid to publish the novel for a big amount. Her book was published in the US in 1998 under the title Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Change which Rowling was against but could not do much to help her. Rowling came up with the sequence, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 1998 for which she again won the Nestle Smarties Prize. She won the same award again for the third time running after the release of her next version, Harry Potter and the Prisoner Of Azkaban. Rowling later withdrew herself from contention for the award to allow the other books a chance. The release of the fourth edition, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire smashed all records as it was released in the US and the UK. A record 3 lakh copies were sold on its first day in the UK.
Rowling won the Author of the Year in 2000 at the British Book Awards. After a much anticipated three years, Rowling came up with the fifth version, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix denying speculations of a writer’s block. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince got released in the year 2005 selling over 9 million copies on its first day. Rowling again won the British Book Awards for her sixth edition. In 2007, Rowling came up with the last edition of the Harry Potter series, The Deathly Hallows. It broke all previous records as over 11 million copies were sold on its first day. Today, The Harry Potter is a global brand worth 15 billion. The book has been breaking records throughout the world and got translated into 65 languages. Harry Potter series is regarded amongst the most successful series across the globe. During a time where books were being abandoned for technology, Rowling sparked the reader inside every child.
The series gained such mass recognition that in 1998, the Warner Bros purchased the right to film the first two edition of the series. The films also became a success across the globe and won uncountable awards. Rowling has announced her partnership with Warner Bros to plan another series of films. While her success stories were told across the UK, she married Neil Murray in 2001 with whom she has two kids. In 2012, Rowling targeted the adult audience with the release of The Casual Vacancy. Over 1 million copies were sold across the globe, and it was later announced that the book would become a television drama on BBC. Her next release was a crime novel, The Cuckoo’s Calling. Rowling has guided her success in many directions. She donates heavily to charity. She has been working hard for Anti-poverty and children’s welfare. She has contributed money in support for treatment of multiple sclerosis, a problem which her mother lost out to.
She supports many reading plans across Britain to promote reading. Rowling has donated 1 million for the Labour Party to support Prime Minister candidate Gordon Brown. She is also friends with Sarah Brown, wife of the former prime minister as they collaborate at many charity events. Rowling has influenced a generation with her writings. From being a single mom with financial issues to being depressed to being abused, Rowling never let the writer in her die ignoring all the failures. She is today an inspiration to many of the youngsters, and she will continue to inspire a generation of writers to come.
Rowling denied writing any Harry Potter series but later confirmed a two-part play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which would focus Harry’s son Albus. The tickets were sold out in just hours. She plans to write an encyclopaedia on the Harry Potter tale., which she says would take her ten years to complete. Rowling plans to continue her work for as much as time possible.
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