J K Rowling

The Biography of J K Rowling - "Hard work is the key to success"

She has come a long way from her early days of struggle to become one of the most popular writers of our time. She is a perfect example of person who has raised from poverty to wealth.

Joanne Kathleen Rowling or better known as J.K. Rowling was born on 31 July 1965. Rowling has a sister who is 2 years younger to her. To keep her sister entertained, Rowling had to create stories, which was probably the reason why she is one of the most successful story writers.

From an early age J.K. Rowling had an ambition to be a writer. As a child she often wrote fantasy stories which she would read out to her mother and sister. When she was six, she wrote down her first story about a rabbit called Rabbit. As a child she was shy and had no sports abilities, but she had a great love for literature.

After finishing school, her parents encouraged her to study French. She fulfilled her parents wish by studying French though she preferred to study English. After graduating, she moved to London and worked in several jobs. One of the jobs were to work as secretary. She soon resigned from the job because she was not organized and she would be day dreaming while at work. She was not happy with her life. She has resinged her job, her mother fell ill, she had a difficult relationship with her father.

In the early 1990, she had to travel from Manchester to London and the train was delayed for more than four hours. During the course of time, she first had the idea for a story about a young boy who goes to study at a school for wizards. Rest of the characters also popped up in her mind. She wanted to write it down but she did not have a pen. She was too shy to ask for a pen, so nothing has been written. As soon as she arrived at her destination, she started writing down "Harry Potter" book. She lost her mother in the same year due to her prolonged illness.

Rowling got a job as a English teacher in Portugal. It was here that she met her first husband, and together they had a child Jessica. The couple split after few years and Rowling was thrown out of the house. She had no other other choice but to return to England. She had to work in cafes for full time and as a single parent she had to take care of her child. She struggled to take time out to finish her first book 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'. It took her 7 years to complete the book. After finishing the book, she sent to many agents. One of the agent had to spend more than a year to find a publisher. The book was published in 1997 and Rowling was paid an advance of £1500. She also received a grant from the Scottish arts council, which enabled her to write full time. After the books initial success in the UK, an American company Scholastic agreed to pay a remarkable £100,000 for the rights to publish in America. In 1998, Warner Bros secured the film rights for the books, giving a seven figure sum.

The seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series was published in the year 2007. It was one of the fastest selling books of all time. The potter books have gained worldwide attention and sold more than 400 million copies. According to Sunday Times, Rowling's estimated wealth stands at £530 million. Rowling has attributed her considerable achievements to her ability to focus all her attention on the things that mattered to her the most. She says that everyone has a hidden talent within him or her, you just have to reach out for it and allow it to bloom.

Some of the famous quotes by J K Rowling:

1. "Anything's possible if you've got enough nerve."
2. "It is our choices... that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."
3. "If you want to see the true measure of a man, watch how he treats his inferiors, not his equals."
4. "It matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be."
5. "Wit beyond measure is a man’s greatest treasure."
6. "The only way out is through."
7. "I believe in hard work and luck, and that the first often leads to the second."