Imagine if someone had received 12 rejections from publishers and still not burnt the manuscript! That person is none other than J.K. Rowling, the famous author of the Harry Potter Series. Her success story feels like the mythological Phoenix is rising from ashes. This mythical bird is reassembled with renewal whose tears can heal any wounds. It’s a symbol of strength, resilience and rebirth. Rowling’s road to success itself is an extraordinary story of perseverance, determination and imaginary power. It may be an inspiration to anyone. Let’s explore J.K. Rowling’s odyssey to success.
Joanne Rowling also known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author and philanthropist. She was born on July 31, 1965, in Yate, Gloucestershire, England. Her early life was full of hardship and struggle. Because her parents had a difficult marriage and were not rich. Their constant bickering led to a divorce. Her mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when Rowling was only 15, at that time, Rowling was attending Wyedean School and College in Chepstow, Wales. Her sister, Dianne who is two years younger than her, was also attending there.
Rowling and her sister had to rely on government welfare programs to survive. They often missed basic necessities, such as food and heating. To them, reading books were a escape from the reality. During her 20s, Rowling experienced much struggles with depression. At the same time, she was so much involved in caring for her mother. At the time of her mother’s death, Rowling was 25 years old and working as an English teacher in Portugal. Her sister, Dianne, was working as a nurse in Scotland.
After their mother’s death, Rowling and her sister went their separate ways. Rowling attended the University of Exeter, where she studied French and Classics. After university, Rowling took a course to become a bilingual secretary. She also worked as a researcher. After that, while working as a temp, she began writing adult novels, but those were never published. During this time, she first began writing the Harry Potter series.
She got the idea of the series while was on a delayed train from Manchester to London in 1990. The characters Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger came plainly into her mind. Over the next few years, she wrote the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
An advertisement in The Guardian led her to move to Porto, Portugal, in November 1991 to teach night classes in English as a foreign language. She continued writing during the day. Rowling described herself as being in a state of “fight or flight” at that time.
Rowling was married to Arantes in 1992. She experienced domestic abuse during her marriage. Her husband slapped her without regret. Rowling described the marriage as “short and catastrophic“. According to her interview :
“ There came a night where he became very angry with me and I cracked and I said, “I want to leave.” He became very violent and he said, “You can leave but you’re not getting Jessica, I’m keeping her, I will hide her.” “
Rowling and Arantes separated on 17 November, 1993. She was thrown out of the house and returned with the police to retrieve Jessica, her only child, and went into hiding for two weeks. In late 1993, with a draft of Harry Potter in her suitcase, Rowling moved with her daughter to Edinburgh, Scotland. As a single mother living in poverty, she had to learn to be resourceful and resilient to face many challenges.
Rowling completed Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in June, 1995. The manuscript was submitted to twelve publishers, all of them rejected it. Barry Cunningham, who ran the children’s literature department at Bloomsbury Publishing, bought it. But he said back then,
“You’ll never make any money out of children’s books, Jo.”
On 26 June 1997, Bloomsbury published Philosopher’s Stone with an initial print run of 5,650 copies. The book was an instant success, selling out its first print within months of its release. Before the Chamber of Secrets was published, Rowling had received £2,800 ($4,200) in royalties.
The Harry Potter series was an international success. Millions of copies were sold worldwide. Got translated into more than 80 languages. This success made her one of the richest person on earth, with a net worth of over $1 billion. She has since regarded as one of the greatest storytellers of our time.
Rowling has created a marvellous world of wizardry by her imaginary power where readers can easily dive into and lost themselves in. Her level of compiling characters is amazing. Books cover important themes such as love, friendship, courage, prejudice, and good vs. Evil. Rowling is a master at crafting a plot that keeps readers engaged from start to finish. Rowling’s books are also filled with humour and wit.
After the success of the Harry Potter series, Rowling went on to publish several other books, including The Casual Vacancy, a novel for adults and the Cormoran Strike series under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. The latter series has also been adapted into a television series. The Harry Potter series was adapted into a successful film franchise, which grossed over $7 billion at the box office worldwide. Throughout her career, Rowling got so many awards and honours for her contributions to literature and philanthropy.
In conclusion, J.K. Rowling has faced many challenges throughout her life. She has demonstrated a similar resilience and strength of a Phoenix, that never give up on it’s life or on it’s dream to grow. Overcoming obstacles along with continue creating wasn’t easy for Rowling also. Her writing has inspired so many young struggling people. Like the Phoenix, she, herself was able to rise from the ashes of struggles. At the end of day, J.K. Rowling really created something truly remarkable.
So, let’s take inspiration from J. K. Rowling’s odyssey and rise like the Phoenix rises!
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Writer :
MD Rakib Rayhan
Intern, Content Writing Department,
YSSE