JK Rowling is one of the most famous authors in the world. She is best known for her Harry Potter series, which has sold over 500 million copies and has been translated into over 80 languages. Rowling has also written several other books, including The Casual Vacancy and Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. She is currently working on a new Harry Potter play, which is set to premiere in London in 2016.
Early Life
JK Rowling was born on July 31, 1965, in Yate, England. Her birth name is Joanne Rowling. Her father, Peter, was an aircraft engineer and her mother, Anne, was a science technician. She has one sister, Dianne. When she was a child, her family moved to Tutshill, a village near Chepstow, Wales. When she was nine years old, her mother died of multiple sclerosis. After her mother's death, Rowling's father sent her to live with her grandparents in England.
As a child, Rowling was an avid reader. She especially loved British children's books, such as the "Narnia" series by C.S. Lewis and the "Beverly Cleary" books. In her teens, she became interested in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. When she was eleven years old, she began writing her own stories.
After graduation from Exeter University, Rowling began working for Amnesty International in London. She married Jorge Arantes, a Portuguese journalist, in 1992. The couple had one daughter, Jessica, before divorcing in 1995.
In 1990, while on a delayed train from Manchester to London, the idea for Harry Potter came to Rowling. Over the next five years, she wrote the first four Harry Potter books. The first book, "Philosopher's Stone," was published in 1997 under the pseudonym J.K. Rowling. The second book, "Chamber of Secrets," was published in 1998. The third book, "Prisoner of Azkaban," was published in 1999. The fourth book, "Goblet of Fire," was published in 2000.
Rowling's success with the Harry Potter series has made her one of the richest women in the world. In 2004, Forbes magazine estimated her net worth at $1 billion.
Career Beginnings
Joanne Rowling, who goes by the pen name J.K. Rowling, is a British author and screenwriter best known for her Harry Potter book series. The books have sold more than 500 million copies and have been adapted into eight blockbuster films.
Rowling was born in Yate, England in 1965. When she was a child, her family moved to the village of Tutshill, where she attended primary school. She then attended secondary school in nearby Chepstow.
Rowling began writing stories as a child and finished her first book, "The Rabbit," when she was just six years old. She always loved reading and writing, and she knew from a young age that she wanted to be a writer.
After graduating from the University of Exeter in 1987 with a degree in French and Classics, Rowling moved to London to work as a researcher and secretary for Amnesty International. It was during her time at Amnesty International that she began writing the first Harry Potter book.
Rowling has said that she was inspired to write the Harry Potter books after she had a "delay on a train from Manchester to London in 1990." She has also said that she wanted to write a story that would appeal to both children and adults.
The first Harry Potter book, "Philosopher's Stone," was published in 1997. The seventh and final book in the series, "Deathly Hallows," was published in 2007.
Rowling has also written several non-Harry Potter books, including "The Casual Vacancy" and "The Cuckoo's Calling." She has also written the screenplay for the upcoming film "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."
Harry Potter
JK Rowling is the author of the series, which has become one of the most popular book series of all time. The books follow the adventures of young wizard as he attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, makes close friends and powerful enemies, and struggles against the evil forces that seek to defeat him and conquer the wizarding world.
The series has been loved by readers of all ages and has sold over 500 million copies worldwide, making JK Rowling one of the most successful authors of all time. She has also been awarded numerous prestigious awards, including the Order of the British Empire and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
JK Rowling was born in England in 1965 and grew up in a small town in Scotland. She always loved reading and writing, and her favorite book growing up was The Lord of the Rings. After graduating from college, she moved to London to work as a secretary, where she began writing the first book.
The series has brought JK Rowling both commercial success and critical acclaim. Her books have been translated into over 80 languages and have been made into hugely popular films. The series has also inspired a theme park, a Broadway play, and numerous other spin-offs.
JK Rowling is a true success story, and her series will continue to enchant readers for generations to come.
Later Works
Rowling's later works include The Casual Vacancy (2012), a political novel for adults, and the Cormoran Strike series, written under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. The first book in the series, The Cuckoo's Calling, was published in 2013 to positive reviews. In December 2016, Rowling released Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, an original screen story for Warner Bros. Pictures, inspired by her 2001 book of the same name. A prequel to the Harry Potter series, set seventy years earlier in the Wizarding World, it follows Newt Scamander, the author of a textbook read by Potter's generation as he travels to New York. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them became a critical and commercial success, grossing $814m worldwide, and Rowling received an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Grammy Award for the film's screenplay.
Personal Life
JK Rowling was born Joanne Rowling on July 31, 1965, in Yate, England. Her father, Peter, was an aircraft engineer at the Rolls-Royce factory in Bristol and her mother, Anne, was a housewife. She has one younger sister, Dianne. When Rowling was a child, her family spent their summers in the village of Tutshill, near Chepstow, Wales. When she was eleven, her family moved to Winterbourne, a suburb of Bristol.
As a child, Rowling often wrote fantasy stories which she would read to her sister. When she was nine, she wrote her first story, about a rabbit called Rabbit. At the age of eleven, she wrote her first novel, which she titled Rabbit's Bad Habits. She also attended secondary school at Wyedean School and College, where she studied English, French, and German.
In 1982, Rowling began attending the University of Exeter, where she studied French and Classics. After graduating from Exeter in 1986, she moved to London to work as a researcher for Amnesty International. In 1989, she began working for the London office of Amnesty International, where she met her future husband, Jorge Arantes. The couple married in October 1992, and their daughter, Jessica, was born in 1993.
In December 1994, Rowling's mother died after a ten-year battle with multiple sclerosis. Rowling has said that the death of her mother had a profound effect on her life and work.
In 1995, Rowling moved to Edinburgh, Scotland, with her daughter, to be near her sister. It was there that she began writing the Harry Potter series. The first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, was published in 1997, and the seventh and final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, was published in 2007.
Rowling has said that she is now working on a new book for children, but has not given any further details.