May 30
Writing Inspiration: J.K. Rowling
The first Harry Potter book, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” is reported to have been rejected by 14 publishers before it was finally accepted. Since its initial printing in 1997, the Potter series has sold roughly 250 million copies around the world.
Author J.K. Rowling became Britain’s highest-earning woman in 2000, bringing home about $30 million dollars the previous year. The sixth book in the series, “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince,” is scheduled to be released on July 16th.
The first chapter in that upcoming edition was written for an early draft of the first book. Rowling discarded it when she thought it didn’t feel right, then tried it again for the third and fifth books. She says book six is where it finally fits.
Perseverance with an idea — from completed manuscript searching for the right publisher to individual chapter searching for the right volume — can pay off.
Some details from Fact Monster.
