Breaks silence, posts about hitting ‘rock bottom’
Rousey posts a quote from JK Rowling’s 2008 Harvard commencement address. In that speech, Rowling said that, seven years after leaving college, she had:
Failed on an epic scale. An exceptionally short-lived marriage had imploded, and I was jobless, a lone parent, and as poor as it is possible to be in modern Britain, without being homeless.
It was only from then she was able to start working on Harry Potter.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BPDxfkgjk65/
Defends casting
Rowling defends Dumezweni’s casting as Hermione Granger. Other Harry Potter actors, including Jason Isaacs and Matthew Lewis, also lend their support.
Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione 😘 https://t.co/5fKX4InjTH
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) December 21, 2015
Children’s novel in the works
Under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith, Rowling, in an interview with the BBC’s Radio 2 Book Club, reveals she is writing a new children’s book. No word was given on the genre of the book or whether it is in any way related to the Harry Potter series.
I will definitely write more novels as J. K. Rowling. Novels in the plural, I have so many ideas in my head. I have an idea for a children’s book. Actually I have written part of a childen’s book that I really love so I’m definitely going to finish that.
Reminds fans of Potter’s son first school day
Rowling reminds Harry Potter fans that today would be the first day at Hogwart’s School for Harry’s oldest son, James Sirius Potter.
I'm in Edinburgh, so could somebody at King's Cross wish James S Potter good luck for me? He's starting at Hogwarts today. #BackToHogwarts
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 1, 2015
Have just heard that James S Potter has been Sorted (to nobody's surprise) into Gryffindor. Teddy Lupin (Head Boy, Hufflepuff) disappointed.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) September 1, 2015
Slams Twitter troll
Rowling responds to twitter trolls against Wimbledon champion Serena Williams.
.@diegtristan8 "she is built like a man". Yeah, my husband looks just like this in a dress. You're an idiot. pic.twitter.com/BCvT10MYkI
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) July 11, 2015
Announces Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Rowling announces an original Harry Potter play, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
I'm also very excited to confirm today that a new play called Harry Potter and the #CursedChild will be opening in London next year.
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) June 26, 2015
Apologizes for death of Fred Weasley
Rowling apologizes for the death of Fred Weasley, who was killed in The Battle of Hogwarts:
Today I would just like to say: I’m really sorry about Fred. *Bows head in acceptance of your reasonable ire*…I thought I might apologise for one death per anniversary. Fred was the worst for me, so I started with him.
Rowling: ‘No’
Rowling says independence would divide the UK and endanger relations:
It will take microsurgery to disentangle three centuries of close interdependence, after which we will have to deal with three bitter neighbours.
Plans crime book spree
In an interview by fellow crime author Val McDermid, the writer reveals her plan to write crime novels that will outnumber her Harry Potter books. She has already written two crime novels under her pseudonym Robert Galbraith, and is half-way through writing the third. The novels follow Cormoran Strike, a private detective and former military investigator in the Special Investigation Branch.
I love crime fiction. I’ve always loved it. I read a lot of it and I think, in many ways, that the Harry Potter books are whodunnits in disguise.
New Harry Potter story
Seven years after completing the Harry Potter book series, Rowling posts an update on her characters to her website Pottermore. The update is written in the form of an article written by the journalist Rita Skeeter. In it, Harry has aged and is now sporting a mysterious cut on his cheek. He is married to Ginny Weasley who is now a journalist. Ron Weasley is still married to Hermione Granger – who is now the deputy head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Shortly after the story is posted, the site experiences multiple crashes as fans rush to read the new piece.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
The final novel of the Harry Potter series is released in the U.S., UK and Canada. Potter continues to search and destroy items that will help to kill Lord Voldemort and prevent another return. He also learns the truth about his past and the history of several main characters. The novel ends the series with a final confrontation between Potter and Voldemort. In the U.K. it sells 8.3 million copies in the first day in the U.S., beating the previous book’s 6.9 copies. When asked by Meredith Vieira if she has had to say goodbye to Harry:
Yes and no. Because…it sounds too corny for words, but I feel as though I know what he’s doing now…so he’ll always be a presence in my life really.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
The sixth installment is released in various countries and sells 6.9 million copies on its first day. In Potter’s sixth year at school, he stumbles upon a mysterious textbook annotated by a person named the Half-Blood Prince. Potter searches for the book’s owner as well as a memory that may aid in defeating the dark Lord Voldemort. He learns more of Voldemort’s past and works alongside his school’s headmaster, Dumbledore, to prepare for battle. Rowling:
A lot happens in the sixth book and a lot of questions are answered. I really have a sense that we are nearly there and it is time for answers, not more questions and clues, although obviously there are a few clues as I am not quite finished yet.
Prisoner of Azkaban
The third novel is released in the UK. Harry, Ron, and Hermoine investigate Sirius Black, an escaped prisoner who may have ties with the villian, Lord Voldemort. The book sells 68,000 copies in 3 days.
Out of the five books I’ve published, writing Azkaban was the easiest, and in some ways I think that shows.
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Rowling releases the second novel in the series in the UK. In this novel, Harry is a student at Hogwards School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. All is well until students who are not from all-magical families come under attack by an unknown assailant. Harry, Ron, and Hermoine investigate the attacks and delve into the story behind the Chamber of Secrets.
I’ve only suffered writer’s block badly once, and that was during the writing of Chamber of Secrets. I had my first burst of publicity about the first book and it paralysed me. I was scared the second book wouldn’t measure up, but I got through it!
Harry Potter and the Philosoper’s Stone
Bloomsbury releases Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone by J.K. Rowling in the UK. The book is about a young orphan boy who learns that he’s a wizard, thus opening him up to an underground magical world. Along the way he becomes best friends with characters, Ron Weasley and Hermoine Grainger. He also learns of the threat to the “wizarding” world, Lord Voldemort, and his connection to the villain. The original print of 500 copies becomes popular in the U.K. Rowling speaks of the book’s creation:
In 1990, I was in Manchester looking for a flat, but I decided to take the train back to London and the idea for Harry Potter fell into my head during the journey. I had been writing since I was six, but I had never been as excited about an idea as I was for this book. Coincidentally, I didn’t have a pen and was too shy to ask anyone for one on the train, this gave me the full four hours on the train to think up all the ideas for the book. I began to write ‘Philosopher’s Stone’ that very evening.