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about J.K. Rowling
About J.K. Rowling
Joanne
Kathleen Rowling was born July 31, 1965 in Yate, near Bristol, England to Rolls
Royce engineer Peter and Anne Rowling. Her childhood was spent in the Bristol
area where she was raised with her younger sister, Diana. Her early history is
peppered with names of people and places that later appeared in her writing: her
parents met on a train as it left King's Cross Station; childhood friends Ian
and Vikki Potter; the nearby town of Dursley. Joanne began writing stories at
age six. Her dream of becoming a writer stayed with her although she began her
career as a teacher upon graduating from Exeter. She dreamed up the Harry
Potter stories in 1990; it took six years to write the first book.
Meanwhile, she taught in Portugal where she met and married, had a baby girl,
Jessica, divorced, and returned to Great Britain where she finished Harry Potter
and the Sorcerer's Stone. She was quickly signed by literary agent Christopher
Little; however, several (presumably very rueful) publishers turned down the
book before it was purchased by Bloomsbury in 1996. Joanne married Neil Murray
in December 2001. The couple has one child, David, and is expecting another in
early 2005. Joanne was awarded the O.B.E. in 2001; the prestigious award was
presented by one of her fans, Charles, Prince of Wales.