J.K. Rowling is a British author, philanthropist, film producer, and screenwriter. She is famously known for writing the Harry Potter series. With sales of more than 500 million copies, these books are the best-selling book series in history. Everything about J.K. Rowling is extraordinary and inspirational.
A lot of people don’t know the hurdles she faced before she reached stardom. From almost facing poverty to being named the world’s first billionaire author by Forbes, her story is very inspiring. Here’s her incredible success story.
Early life and struggles:
The real success comes after a string of failures. That’s exactly what happened with J.K. Rowling. Her professional life wasn’t so good, as she was facing a new challenge every day. You can archive any dream with the proper tools and technologies.
But sometimes life creates a situation in front of you to stop you. On a train from Manchester to London one morning in 1990, Rowling had an idea for the great story of Harry Potter, which she developed on that journey.
Unfortunately, her mother died while she was writing the story of Harry Potter, which caused her a massive shock as well as a delay in that great story. She moved to Portugal to teach English in 1992. Here, she met her husband, married him, and had a daughter. One year later, in 1993, she filed for divorce from him.
During this time, Rowling was jobless, divorced, and a single mother. It was the most devastating period of her life. She contemplated suicide and was diagnosed with clinical depression. But she always found a way to create light in a dark tunnel. So she continued to write Harry Potter.
Rejections before success:
In 1995, Rowling finished the manuscript for her first book but had no money to publish it independently. So, she approached around 12 major publications, but all rejected the Harry Potter script. But she didn’t give up and kept approaching other publications.
Finally, a small magazine agreed to print 1,000 copies of Harry Potter, so all of her hard work paid off. After that, the book won many awards, such as the British Book Award and the Nestle Smarties Book Prize for Children’s Book of the Year.
As of 2013, 500 million copies of Harry Potter had been sold worldwide and translated into 73 languages. And finally, the book was adapted into a movie series and became a billion-dollar business. In addition, she has consistently been ranked among the highest-earning authors in the world.
Lessons for all of us? —
The biggest lesson that comes from J.K. Rowling’s life is to keep believing, trying, and acting on your dreams. And one day you will get it, no matter whether it’s to publish a book or become a successful entrepreneur.
You just need to keep believing in your dreams and work hard every day. There is no shortcut to success. Hard work is the only key to achieving it. It teaches us discipline, dedication, and determination.