J.K. Rowling's Biography
J.K. Rowling's character Harry Potter was also 'born' on 31 July.
She graduated in Classics, having switched from modern languages. She had a short first marriage and became a single mother.
For a while she worked at Amnesty International.
J.K. Rowling's initial book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997) was to lead to a global phenomenon. Within a few years adults and children alike would be queuing up to get their hands on the latest adventures of Harry and his chums at Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
The Harry Potter books have sold in their hundreds of millions and have been translated into over 60 languages.
J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was published on 21 July 2007.
According to the BBC, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows "was released in 93 countries, with a print run of 12 million in the US alone and more than 2.2 million ordered in advance from internet retailer Amazon."
J.K. Rowling's second husband is Neil Murray.
In 2010 JK Rowling donated £10m to the University of Edinburgh to set up a multiple sclerosis research clinic.
Below is a fascinating speech by J.K. Rowling on the benefits of failure and of using your imagination.
J.K. Rowling Speaks at Harvard Commencement from Harvard Magazine on Vimeo.
In 2012, J.K. Rowling wrote her first adult novel, The Casual Vacancy.
In 2013, she a crime novel The Cuckoo's Calling under the guise of being a male debut writer called Robert Galbraith.
In January 2016, she won the Pen/Allen Foundation Literary Service Award.
November 2016 saw her debut as a screenplay writer with Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them - the first of five Harry Potter spin-off movies based on the Newt Scamander character.
In June 2020, JK Rowling revealed she spoke out about transgender issues in part due to her own experience of domestic abuse and sexual assault.
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