Harry Potter - JKR's Website

* Marauder's Child * · 05-15-2004, 03:24 PM

J.K.Rowling's official site has been redesigned.

JKR (or Jo) herself said that her official site used to be "boring", just a list of links to her publishers. It is now a design of a cluttered desk strewn with gum wrappers, an empty teacup (points to the one who can divine the dregs), newspapers and of course a notebook.

But that's not the important bit about it. The the contents of the site are now written by J.K. Rowling herself. And what's more is that it contains what she calls "Potterania" (clues, trivia & small tidbits about the books). She has divulged some interesting (albeit somewhat less significant) plotpoints, including some "deleted scenes", and the first drafts of Harry Potter.

I thought some of the information that we got might make an interesting discussion.

- What do you think about the character backgrounds that she has shared? (Specially Molly's, Dean's & Nott's) Do you think she could still incorporate those somehow in the future books?

- Why do you think she decided to edit some of the scenes out? And in which part/s do you think she "transferred" those plotpoints to?

- Regarding Dean: Do you think that he'd play more of an important character now since Ginny said she "choses him" at the end of OoTP?

- What is the imporatnce of the Notts?

- Sirius has grey eyes, Draco has grey eyes... do you think there's a connection? Except for the fact that they are related of course! :tongue:

This is for the Aurors

:
- What do you think of the "Pirates of the Carribean" feel of the first draft of Philosopher's Stone? (see third post)

*** I'll edit this post constantly to put up all the questions and subtopics that we'd be discussiong at the course of thus thread

*starts rolling the ball around*

======================================================================

A Portkey has been created for this topic.
Just click on this title in the list and be transported immediately.

* Marauder's Child * · 05-15-2004, 03:25 PM

I'm expecting that the site would be getting lots of hits from now on, and it might slow it down and/or consume it bandwidth. So, to those of you who might not be able to get in, or is too lazy to find your way around

(or is getting dizzy navigating her site, and would just like to read everything she has to say without going thru all the hassle of clicking around her "desk"), here's MOST, if not ALL, the information that was shared in the site. The only things I didn't include were the 4 Easter Eggs that I found. I won't include them here for the meantime, so I wouldn't spoil "the surprises" to you guys. I'll probably post them here after we get a new Discussion thread.

HINT: Click on some of the things scattered about, even if they don't appear to be "Portkeys".

Also, I hope this would somehow make it easier for you to "quote" passages to get your point across better, so we know which "part" you're talking about.

NOTE: I've divided it into 2 parts
Part 1 - All about JRK: some trivia, and her answers to some Frequently Asked Questions
Part 2 - All about the Books: Character Background, "first drafts", and "deleted scenes"

Part 1:

Welcome words from JKR:

Welcome!

Until very recently, JKRowling.com was a list of links to my publishers - boring, I think you'll agree. So I thought I'd liven it up a little.

I receive so many thousands and thousands of letters these days that it is impossible to read, let alone answer, them all. A proper website seems like a great way to communicate directly with Harry Potter fans. Everything on here was written by ME, J. K. Rowling. This is where I can tell you the truth about rumours or news stories, where I can share the extra information I haven't put in the books, where I can give you hints and clues about what's going to happen to Harry next, and where I can announce I've finished book six... and no, that's not going to happen very soon.

Occasionally the Dark Mark will flash at you. This is a SPOILER WARNING. It refers only to information hidden in book five, The Order of the Phoenix - if you haven't yet finished reading the other four, proceed at your peril!

Anyway, I really hope you enjoy wandering around my desk (which was specially tidied for your visit). Don't knock anything over, please. And watch out for Peeves.

With love from JK Rowling
(Jo to you)

News:

FORGED JKR SIGNATURES

If you or any of your loved ones is thinking of buying a �signed� Harry Potter book, please be careful. The number of forged signatures has increased greatly over the last few years.

You should be particularly suspicious of signed copies of �Order of the Phoenix�. I have never done a book signing for �Phoenix�, so signed British copies are very rare, American copies even rarer and other foreign editions (so far) virtually non-existent. Any copy of �Phoenix� purporting to have been signed at the �Picadilly� signing is highly likely to be a fake, for instance.

I sign books for charity and in special circumstances but, as explained in the FAQ section, I can no longer begin to keep up with the demand for signed books. Unfortunately there are unscrupulous people who are only too ready to step into the breach and exploit Harry Potter fans.

MUGGLENET CHATROOM UNINTERESTED IN JKR�S THEORIES

A few weeks ago I did something I�ve never done before and took a stroll into a Harry Potter chat room: specifically, MuggleNet�s chat room. Although I was concerned to find that many of the moderators feel their spiritual home is Slytherin, this is a great site. Nobody was remotely interested in my theories about what�s going to happen in book seven, though. In the end, I gave up trying to impart any gems of wisdom and joined in the discussion about SpongeBob SquarePants (don�t ask).
I would like to take this opportunity to say that the practise of calling Lord Voldemort �Voldie� must stop, as must the insistence that with a bit of therapy �Voldie� would be a real sweetheart.

I might drop in again some time to check that you�ve done as you�ve been told. Look out for �Squidward�.

PROGRESS ON BOOK SIX

Book six is well underway, hooray, though I am still at the stage where I have a large and complicated chart propped on the desk in front of me to remind me what happens where, how, to whom and which bits of crucial information need to be slipped into which innocent-looking chapters.

I started writing Harry Potter Six before my son David (who has just turned one) was born, but then took a bit of a break during the serious sleep-deprivation phase of his babyhood. I am really enjoying writing this book, though for the first time I am conscious that I am approaching the end of the series. So much of what happens in book six relates to book seven that I feel almost as though they are two halves of the same novel.

Regular visitors to this site will find information about what�s in book six if they can work out where to look. Patience is the key.

Biography:

My mother and father were both Londoners. They met on a train travelling from King's Cross station to Arbroath in Scotland when they were both eighteen; my father was off to join the Royal Navy, my mother to join the W.R.E.N.s (the women's equivalent). My mother said she was cold, my father offered her a half share in his coat, and they got married just over a year later, when they were nineteen.

Both left the navy and moved to the outskirts of Bristol, in the West of England. My mother gave birth to me when she was twenty. I was a rotund baby. The description in 'Philosopher's Stone' of the photographs of 'what appeared to be a beach ball wearing different coloured bobble hats' would also apply to the pictures of my early years.

My sister Di arrived a year and eleven months after me. The day of her birth is my earliest memory, or my earliest datable memory, anyway. I distinctly remember playing with a bit of plasticine in the kitchen while my father rushed in and out of the room, hurrying backwards and forwards to my mother, who was giving birth in their bedroom. I know I didn't invent this memory because I checked the details later with my mother. I also have a vivid mental picture of walking into their bedroom a little while later, hand in hand with my father, and seeing my mother lying in bed in her nightdress next to my beaming sister, who is stark naked with a full head of hair and looks about five years old. Although I clearly pasted together this bizarre false memory out of bits of hearsay when I was a child, it is so vivid that it still comes to mind if I ever think about Di being born.

Di had - and still has - very dark, almost black hair, and dark brown eyes like my mother's, and she was considerably prettier than I was (and she still is). As compensation, I think, my parents decided that I must be 'the bright one'. We both resented our labels. I really wanted to be less freckly-beach-ball-like, and Di, who is now a lawyer, felt justifiably annoyed that nobody had noticed she was not just a pretty face. This undoubtedly contributed to the fact that we spent about three quarters of our childhood fighting like a pair of wildcats imprisoned together in a very small cage. To this day, Di bears a tiny scar just above her eyebrow from the cut I gave her when I threw a battery at her - but I didn't expect to hit her, I thought she'd duck! (This excuse didn't cut much ice with my mother, who was angrier than I had ever seen her).

We left the bungalow when I was four and moved to Winterbourne, also on the outskirts of Bristol. Now we lived in a semi-detached house with STAIRS, which prompted Di and I to re-enact, over and over again, a clifftop drama in which one of us would 'dangle' from the topmost stair, holding hands with the other and pleading with them not to let go, offering all manner of bribery and blackmail, until falling to their 'death'. We found this endlessly amusing. I think the last time we played the cliff game was two Christmases ago; my nine-year-old daughter didn't find it nearly as funny as we did.

The small amount of time that we didn't spend fighting, Di and I were best friends. I told her a lot of stories and sometimes didn't even have to sit on her to make her stay and listen. Often the stories became games in which we both played regular characters. I was extremely bossy when I stage-managed these long-running plays but Di put up with it because I usually gave her star parts.

There were lots of children around our age living in our new street, among them a brother and sister whose surname was Potter. I always liked their name, whereas I wasn't very fond of my own; 'Rowling' (the first syllable of which is pronounced 'row' as in boat, rather than 'row' as in argument) lent itself to woeful jokes such as 'Rowling stone', 'Rowling pin' and so on. Anyway, the brother has since cropped up in the press claiming to 'be' Harry. His mother has also told reporters that he and I used to dress up as wizards. Neither of these claims is true; in fact, all I remember of the boy in question was that he rode a 'Chopper', which was the bicycle everybody wanted in the seventies, and once threw a stone at Di, for which I hit him hard over the head with a plastic sword (I was the only one allowed to throw things at Di).

I enjoyed school in Winterbourne. It was a very relaxed environment; I remember lots of pottery making, drawing and story writing, which suited me perfectly. However, my parents had always harboured a dream of living in the country, and around my ninth birthday we moved for the last time, to Tutshill, a small village just outside Chepstow, in Wales.

The move coincided almost exactly with the death of my favourite grandparent, Kathleen, whose name I later took when I needed an extra initial. No doubt the first bereavement of my life influenced my feelings about my new school, which I didn't like at all. We sat all day at roll-top desks facing the blackboard. There were old inkwells set into the desktops. There was a second hole in my desk, which had been gouged out with the point of a compass by the boy who had sat there the year before. He had obviously worked away quietly out of the sight of the teacher. I thought this was a great achievement, and set to work enlarging the hole with my own compass, so that by the time I left that classroom you could comfortably wiggle your thumb through it.

My secondary school, Wyedean, where I went when I was eleven, was the place I met Sean Harris, to whom Chamber of Secrets is dedicated and who owned the original Ford Anglia. He was the first of my friends to learn to drive and that turquoise and white car meant FREEDOM and no more having to ask my father to give me lifts, which is the worst thing about living in the countryside when you are a teenager. Some of the happiest memories of my teenage years involve zooming off into the darkness in Sean's car. He was the first person with whom I really discussed my serious ambition to be a writer and he was also the only person who thought I was bound to be a success at it, which meant much more to me than I ever told him at the time.

The worst thing that happened during my teenage years was my mother becoming ill. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which is a disease of the central nervous system, when I was fifteen. Although most people with multiple sclerosis experience periods of remission - when their illness stops progressing for a while, or even improves - Mum was unlucky; from the time of her diagnosis onwards she seemed to become slowly but steadily worse. I think most people believe, deep down, that their mothers are indestructible; it was a terrible shock to hear that she had an incurable illness, but even then, I did not fully realise what the diagnosis might mean.

I left school in 1983 and went to study at the University of Exeter, on the south coast of England. I studied French, which was a mistake; I had succumbed to parental pressure to study 'useful' modern languages as opposed to 'but-where-will-it-lead?' English and really should have stood my ground. On the plus side, studying French meant that I had a year living in Paris as part of my course.

After leaving university I worked in London; my longest job was with Amnesty International, the organisation that campaigns against human rights abuses all over the world. But in 1990, my then boyfriend and I decided to move up to Manchester together. It was after a weekend's flat-hunting, when I was travelling back to London on my own on a crowded train, that the idea for Harry Potter simply fell into my head.

I had been writing almost continuously since the age of six but I had never been so excited about an idea before. To my immense frustration, I didn't have a functioning pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me. I think that perhaps if I had had to slow down the ideas so that I could capture them on paper I might have stifled some of them (although sometimes I do wonder, idly, how much of what I imagined on that journey I had forgotten by the time I actually got my hands on a pen).

I began to write 'Philosopher's Stone' that very evening, although those first few pages bear no resemblance at all to anything in the finished book. I moved up to Manchester, taking the swelling manuscript with me, which was now growing in all sorts of strange directions, and including ideas for the rest of Harry's career at Hogwarts, not just his first year. Then, on December 30th 1990, something happened that changed both my world and Harry's forever: my mother died.

It was a terrible time. My father, Di and I were devastated; she was only forty five years old and we had never imagined - probably because we could not bear to contemplate the idea - that she could die so young. I remember feeling as though there was a paving slab pressing down upon my chest, a literal pain in my heart.

Nine months later, desperate to get away for a while, I left for Portugal, where I had got a job teaching English in a language institute. I took with me the still-growing manuscript of Harry Potter, hopeful that my new working hours (I taught in the afternoon and evening) would lend themselves to pressing on with my novel, which had changed a lot since my mother had died. Now, Harry's feelings about his dead parents had become much deeper, much more real. In my first weeks in Portugal I wrote my favourite chapter in Philosopher's Stone, The Mirror of Erised.

I had hoped that when I returned from Portugal I would have a finished book under my arm. In fact, I had something even better: my daughter. I had met and married a Portuguese man, and although the marriage did not work out, it had given me the best thing in my life. Jessica and I arrived in Edinburgh, where my sister Di was living, just in time for Christmas 1994.

I intended to start teaching again and knew that unless I finished the book very soon, I might never finish it; I knew that full-time teaching, with all the marking and lesson planning, let alone with a small daughter to care for single-handedly, would leave me with absolutely no spare time at all. And so I set to work in a kind of frenzy, determined to finish the book and at least try and get it published. Whenever Jessica fell asleep in her pushchair I would dash to the nearest cafe and write like mad. I wrote nearly every evening. Then I had to type the whole thing out myself. Sometimes I actually hated the book, even while I loved it.

Finally it was done. I covered the first three chapters in a nice plastic folder and set them off to an agent, who returned them so fast they must have been sent back the same day they arrived. But the second agent I tried wrote back and asked to see the rest of the manuscript. It was far and away the best letter I had ever received in my life, and it was only two sentences long.

It took a year for my new agent, Christopher, to find a publisher. Lots of them turned it down. Then, finally, in August 1996, Christopher telephoned me and told me that Bloomsbury had 'made an offer.' I could not quite believe my ears. 'You mean it's going to be published?' I asked, rather stupidly. 'It's definitely going to be published?' After I had hung up, I screamed and jumped into the air; Jessica, who was sitting in her high-chair enjoying tea, looked thoroughly scared.

And you probably know what happened next.

F.A.Q. About Me:

Can I be your penpal?

I have picked up a few penpals over the last few years (thought I'm sometimes a bit unreliable when I'm working hard on a book!) but to be very honest, I don't think I have room for any more. Jessica and David have to come first: the rest of you have millions of penpals to choose from, but they can't choose an alternative mother, so they really do need my time most!

What is your advice on how to get published?

Firstly, you need to write something that a publisher would want to publish (it only takes one, but it might take a while to find them. If you are turned down by every single publisher in existence, you will have to consider the possibility that what you have written is not publishable).

Next, you need to approach the publisher, either directly, or (which is advisable if you can manage it) by securing an agent who will act on your behalf. The best way to find agents' and publishers' addresses is to consult 'The Writer's and Artist's Yearbook', which is updated every year. (Double-check that you are writing to the right person/people; don't, for example, send science fiction to a publisher of medical textbooks.) Wait. Pray. This is the way Harry Potter got published.

Are there to be book signings anywhere in the future?

Watch this space!

Will you put Americans/characters of other nationalities into the books?

I'm afraid the answer to this is 'no', although you have glimpsed Americans and other nationalities at the Quidditch World Cup. The reason is obvious: I am writing about Britain and a British school and there is no logical reason to insert foreigners for the sake of it, because I'm sure they would feel gratuitous. I often get suggestions about what I ought to insert into Harry Potter books, but these are my stories and mine alone; if anyone wants to write about American wizards they are of course free to write their own book!

How widely have you travelled?

I've travelled quite a bit within Europe and I've been to the States several times, mostly on book tours though, which means I see a lot of hotel rooms, book stores and television studios with brief glimpses of famous landmarks in between. The exception is New York, which I've visited as a normal human, and which I love. I went on safari in Africa for the first time last year, which was a challenge as David was only five months old at the time, but which was really wonderful.

Can I do work experience with you?

I am really touched that anyone would like to do this, but the truth is that there's nothing much to do! I just sit in a room or a cafe and write and I'm more than capable of doing that without assistance!

What has been your most embarrassing moment?

I cannot possibly reveal the full horror of my most embarrassing moment, but it took place in a pub in Exeter (which is a town in the south coast of England, where I went to university) in 1984 and involved a joke made by me that backfired spectacularly. The whole debacle was witnessed by my friend Pauline, who is mentioned elsewhere on this fansite (I have to keep her happy in case she TELLS).

Other F.A.Q.s:

Will you use some of my ideas in the next Harry Potter book?

The books have been planned for so long that there isn't room for any more ideas! Fan fiction is really fun, though, and I am so proud to think that Harry Potter inspired so much creativity!

Can I be in the film?

I have No Control Over Casting, I�m afraid. Your best bet is to write to Warner Bros.

Where can I write to you?

My publishers will forward letters.

Will you sign my book?

Every one of my sixty-something publishers, my agent, my friends, my relatives and my neighbours are constantly approached by people who want me to sign their books. The sad truth is I couldn't sign all of these books even if I gave up writing, eating or sleeping. These days the only books I sign are for charities or in very special circumstances. I am truly sorry about this, but I think you would all rather I wrote books six and seven than spent my life signing books one to five. So please, please, please do not send me your books for signature. I no longer get to see the books that are being sent, which are returned to the sender.

Extra Stuff:

Harry Potters

There are quite a few real Harry Potters out there. So far I have heard of a newborn baby who actually has Harry's full name (Harry James Potter), a barrister in London, a grandfather who was very pleased that he had become cool in his grandchildren's eyes, a soldier who died in the second world war (I was sent a picture of his tombstone) and a clockmaker who worked in London in the last century.

Minesweeper

In the bad old days, when I wanted a few minutes' break while writing, I used to light up a cigarette. I gave up smoking in the year 2000 and now chew a lot of gum instead (hence the state of my desk). However, chewing a bit of gum does not give you an excuse for a nice little brain-resting break, so instead I like to escape the complexities of the latest plot by playing a quick game of Minesweeper. Since giving up smoking I must boastfully inform you that I have become rather good and that my current best time for expert level is 101 seconds.

Places to Write
It is no secret that the best place to write, in my opinion, is a cafe; you don't have to make your own coffee, you don't feel that you are in solitary confinement while you work and when inspiration fails, you can take a walk to the next cafe while your batteries re-charge. In my opinion, the best writing cafe is just crowded enough so that you blend in, but not so crowded that you end up sharing a table with somebody who tries to read chapter twenty upside down, has staff who don't glower at you if you sit there too long (though these days I can afford to keep ordering coffees even if I don't drink them, so that's less of a problem) and doesn't play very loud music, which is the only noise that disturbs me when I'm writing.

The Irish Quidditch team and West Ham Football Club

The Irish Quidditch team players are all named after people I have known. 'Moran', 'Troy' and 'Quigley,' are good friends. 'Troy' is one of my very oldest friends and she also happens to be a passionate supporter of West Ham Football Club. It is in her honour that the only soccer team ever mentioned in the books is West Ham.

* Marauder's Child * · 05-15-2004, 03:27 PM

Part 2:

Rumours:

The mysterious 'Icicle'
I have been told that I once promised a character with this name during an interview. I can only think that somebody misheard what I said because at no stage have I ever planned a character called 'Icicle.'

Professor Bicycle, on the other hand, will be a key figure in books six and seven.*

*this is a joke

Professor Dumbledore is Harry's real grandfather/close relative of some description.

If Dumbledore had been Harry's grandfather, why on earth would he have been sent to live with the Dursleys?

Voldemort is Harry's real father/grandfather/close relative of some description

No, no, no, no, no. You lot have been watching much too much Star Wars. James is DEFINITELY Harry's father. Doesn't everybody Harry meets say 'you look just like your father'? And hasn't Dumbledore already told Harry that Voldemort is the last surviving descendent of Salazar Slytherin? Just to clarify - this means that Harry is NOT a descendent of Salazar Slytherin.

Lily Potter is still alive

No, afraid not.

Lily Potter Was Once a Death Eater

How dare you?!

I am going to write a book about Lily and James once I've finished the seven books about Harry Potter

Hmm... once again, too much Star Wars can do this to a person. No prequels are planned.

Crookshanks is an Animagus

No, he's not, but he's not pure cat either. If you buy Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (all royalties to Comic Relief, which means you're helping some of the poorest children around the world) you might just be able to work out what Crookshanks really is.

Neville Longbottom is Peter Pettigrew's son

See response for 'Lily Potter was a Death Eater' above.

Professor Lupin has a twin

No, but this obviously sprang from the fact that Lupin's Christian name (Remus) comes from one of the mythical founders of Rome who had a twin called 'Romulus'. (They were raised by wolves, incidentally).

Book six is going to be called 'Harry Potter and the Green Flame Torch' or 'the Mountain of Fantasy' and book seven is going to be called 'Harry Potter and the Fortress of Shadows' or 'the Forest of Shadows'

Not even close! Who makes these up?! And this green torch business seems to be cropping up everywhere. Do you really think getting rid of Voldemort would be that easy?

I am 'Witch No. 1' in the film of 'Chamber of Secrets'.

Nope, not true, sorry. The filmmakers did ask me to play Lily Potter in the Mirror of Erised scene in the first film, but I really am not cut out to be an actress, even one who just has to stand there and wave. I would have messed it up somehow.

Harry will be asked to become Minister of Magic in book seven

Seventeen is much too young to enter politics.

F.A.Q.s About the Book:

Can prefects take points or not? A prefect took points from Gryffindor in the Chamber of Secrets, and then there was a reference to prefects not being allowed to dock points. What are the rules?

Ron got it wrong in 'Phoenix', from which we deduce that he hasn't been a very authoritarian prefect thus far; he clearly hasn't been taking points from anybody.

Does Hermione love Ron or Harry?

I can't believe that some of you haven't worked this one out yet, but I'm not going to answer because that would spoil the arguments, which I enjoy.

Could there please be a book of Hogwart spells?

Hmmm... well, I've got no plans to write one, I'm afraid. There really aren't special 'Hogwarts' spells, in any case, just general wizarding spells such as any accomplished witch or wizard could perform if they'd consulted the right textbook.

Could there be some Harry Potter magazines produced?

Sorry, but that's not going to happen. I really think books and films are enough to be going on with!

What is the seventh book going to be called?

Never give up, you lot, do you? I suppose you think that one of these days I'll crack under the pressure and let slip that book seven is going to be called - wow, I nearly gave it away then.

Is every book going to be bigger than the previous one?

No, definitely not, or book seven would be around the weight of a baby hippopotamus. According to the plan for book six, it will be quite a bit shorter than 'Order of the Phoenix'. I am not going to swear on my children's lives that that is going to be the case, but I am 99% certain of it.

Edits / Cut Scenes:

Dean Thomas's background (Chamber of Secrets)

Anybody who has read both the American and British versions of 'Philosopher's Stone' will notice that Dean Thomas's appearance is not mentioned in the British book, whereas in the American one there is a line describing him (in the chapter 'The Sorting Hat').

This was an editorial cut in the British version; my editor thought that chapter was too long and pruned everything that he thought was surplus to requirements. When it came to the casting on the film version of 'Philosopher's Stone', however, I told the director, Chris, that Dean was a black Londoner. In fact, I think Chris was slightly taken aback by the amount of information I had on this peripheral character. I had a lot of background on Dean, though I had never found the right place to use it. His story was included in an early draft of 'Chamber of Secrets' but then cut by me, because it felt like an unnecessary digression. Now I don't think his history will ever make it into the books.

Dean is from what he always thought was a pure Muggle background. He has been raised by his mother and his stepfather; his father walked out on the family when Dean was very young. He has a very happy home life, with a number of half-brothers and sisters.

Naturally when the letter came from Hogwarts Dean's mother wondered whether his father might have been a wizard, but nobody has ever discovered the truth: that Dean's father, who had never told his wife what he was because he wanted to protect her, got himself killed by Death Eaters when he refused to join them. The projected story had Dean discovering all this during his school career. I suppose in some ways I sacrificed Dean's voyage of discovery for Neville's, which is more important to the central plot.

Mafalda (Goblet of Fire)
I have spoken before now about the Weasley cousin who made it quite a long way into 'Goblet of Fire' before I cut her. I really liked her as a character and did not want to sacrifice her, but she just wasn't doing the job she was supposed to do so she had to go.

Mafalda was the daughter of the 'second cousin who's a stockbroker' mentioned in 'Philosopher's Stone'. This stockbroker had been very rude to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley in the past, but now he and his (Muggle) wife had inconveniently produced a witch, they came back to the Weasleys asking for their help in introducing her to wizarding society before she starts at Hogwarts. The Weasleys agreed to taking her for part of the Summer, including the Quidditch World Cup, but regretted this almost immediately. Mrs. Weasley suspected that Mafalda's parents simply wanted to get rid of her for a while, because she turns out to be the most unpleasant child Mrs. Weasley has ever met.

Mafalda was supposed to convey certain information about the Death Eaters to Harry, Ron and Hermione, because as a nosy, eavesdropping Slytherin who likes to impress, she does not keep her mouth shut when she overhears their sons and daughters talking. Unfortunately, however bright I made her, there were obvious limitations to what an eleven year old closeted at school could discover, whereas Rita Skeeter, whom I subsequently built up to fulfil Mafalda's function, was much more flexible.

The best thing about Mafalda was that she was a match for Hermione. To the latter's horror, Mafalda was highly gifted and a real show-off, so that Hermione was torn between deploring the rule-breaking and longing to join in and beat her.

Malfoy & Nott (Chamber of Secrets/Goblet of Fire)

I liked this scene so much I tried to use it twice; unfortunately, it didn't work in either place so I finally laid it to rest in one of the cardboard boxes where I keep all my old drafts, notes, electricity bills and chewing gum wrappers.

As in the case of Dean Thomas, I know much more about Theodore Nott than has ever appeared in the books. Raised by a very elderly widower and Death Eater father, Theodore is a clever loner who does not feel the need to join gangs, including Malfoy's.

However, in this scene Theodore's father (the same Nott who was badly injured in the closing chapters of 'Order of the Phoenix') goes to visit Lucius Malfoy to discuss Voldemort-related business and we see Draco and Theodore alone in the garden having a talk of their own. I really liked the scene, firstly because it showed the Malfoys' home, and the difference between the place where Draco has grown up and number four, Privet Drive; then because we rarely see Draco talking to anybody he considers a real equal, and he is forced to see Theodore as such, because Theodore is just as pure-blooded as he is, and somewhat cleverer. Together these two Death Eaters' sons discuss Dumbledore's regime at Hogwarts and Harry Potter, with all sorts of stories that the Death Eaters tell about how this baby boy survived the Dark Lord's attack.

Mopsy the dog-lover (Goblet of Fire)

When Padfoot returns in 'Goblet of Fire', I initially had him stay with a highly- eccentric, dog-loving old witch on the edge of Hogsmeade. She kept a pack of ill-assorted dogs, was on constant bad terms with her neighbours because of the barking and the mess, and had welcomed in Sirius, assuming him to be a stray.

I think my editor was quite right to ask me to get rid of Mopsy, because she added nothing to the plot. I just liked portraying a batty dog-lover (as opposed to batty cat-lover Mrs. Figg). However, it made more sense to stow Sirius in a nice simple cave to have Harry, Ron, Hermione and Sirius's chat about Barty Crouch Jnr. without distractions.

Opening Chapters of Philosopher's Stone

There were many different versions of the first chapter of 'Philosopher's Stone' and the one I finally settled on is not the most popular thing I've ever written; lots of people have told me that they found it hard work compared with the rest of the book. The trouble with that chapter was (as so often in a Harry Potter book) I had to give a lot of information yet conceal even more. There were various versions of scenes in which you actually saw Voldemort entering Godric's Hollow and killing the Potters and in early drafts of these, a Muggle betrayed their whereabouts. As the story evolved, however, and Pettigrew became the traitor, this horrible Muggle vanished.

Other drafts included a character by the name of 'Pyrites', whose name means 'fool's gold'. He was a servant of Voldemort's and was meeting Sirius in front of the Potters' house. Pyrites, too, had to be discarded, though I quite liked him as a character; he was a dandy and wore white silk gloves, which I thought I might stain artistically with blood from time to time.

The very, very earliest drafts of the first chapter of 'Philosopher's Stone' have the Potters living on a remote island, Hermione's family living on the mainland, her father spotting something that resembles an explosion out at sea and sailing out in a storm to find their bodies in the ruins of their house. I can't remember now why I thought this was a good idea, but I clearly recognised that it wasn't fairly early on, because the Potters were re-located to Godric's Hollow for all subsequent drafts.

The Opening Chapter of Book Six

I have come close to using a chapter very like this in 'Philosopher's Stone' (it was one of the discarded first chapters), 'Prisoner of Azkaban' and 'Order of the Phoenix' but here, finally, it works, so it's staying. And that's all I'm going to say, but when you read it, just know that it's been about thirteen years in the brewing.

Character Background:

Crookshanks

I am not overly fond of cats. Like Hagrid, I am allergic to them and much prefer dogs. However, there was an exception. When I was working in London in the late 1980s I used to eat my lunch in a nearby square on sunny days and a large, fluffy ginger cat that looked as though it had run face-first into a wall used to prowl around the sunbathers there; I assume it lived in a nearby house. I didn't ever get close enough to give myself an asthma attack, but I became distantly fond of this cat, which prowled among the humans around it looking disdainful and refusing to be stroked. When I decided to give Hermione an unusually intelligent cat I gave him the appearance of this haughty animal, with the slightly unfair addition of bandy legs.

Crookshanks, as anybody who has read Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will have guessed, is half Kneazle. And if you don't know what a Kneazle is, you need to hurry up and buy Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (all royalties go to help some of the poorest children in the world).

Gilderoy Lockhart

I have only once set out to depict somebody I have met and, unlikely though it might seem, the result was Gilderoy Lockhart. I assure you that the person on whom Gilderoy was modelled was even more objectionable than his fictional counterpart. He used to tell whopping great fibs about his past life, all of them designed to demonstrate what a wonderful, brave and brilliant person he was. Perhaps he didn't really believe he was all that great and wanted to compensate, but I'm afraid I never dug that deep.

You might think it was mean of me to depict him as Gilderoy, but you can rest assured he will never, ever guess. He's probably out there now telling everybody that he inspired the character of Albus Dumbledore. Or that he wrote the books and lets me take the credit out of kindness.

Hermione Granger

In the old days the question I was asked most often was, 'how do you pronounce the girl's name?' As I expect you have noticed, I cunningly inserted the answer to this question in 'Goblet of Fire', when I had Hermione instruct Viktor Krum how to say it properly: Her - my - o - nee. I used to hear 'Her - moyne' a lot, but my favourite mis-pronunciation ever was 'Hermy - one.' I think I like it better than the proper way.

In the dim and distant past Hermione's surname was 'Puckle', but it didn't suit her at all and was quickly changed for something a little bit less frivolous.

Hermione's birthday is September the 19th.

When we were editing 'Philosopher's Stone' my editor wanted me to cut the scene in which Harry, Ron and Hermione fight the troll. Although I had accepted most of the smaller cuts he wanted me to make I argued hard for this one. Hermione, bless her, is so very annoying in the early part of 'Philosopher's Stone' that I really felt it needed something (literally) huge to bring her together with Harry and Ron.

I have often said that Hermione is a bit like me when I was younger. I think I was seen by other people as a right little know-it-all, but I hope that it is clear that underneath Hermione's swottiness there is a lot of insecurity and a great fear of failure (as shown by her Boggart in 'Prisoner of Azkaban').

Nearly Headless Nick

In the first draft of 'Chamber of Secrets', Nick sang a self-penned ballad explaining how his head had (nearly) come off. My editor was not very fond of the song and so I cut it. However, for those who are curious, here is the story of Nick's decapitation in his own moving words.

It was a mistake any wizard could make
Who was tired and caught on the hop
One piffling error, and then, to my terror,
I found myself facing the chop.
Alas for the eve when I met Lady Grieve
A-strolling the park in the dusk!
She was of the belief I could straighten her teeth
Next moment she'd sprouted a tusk.
I cried through the night that I'd soon put her right
But the process of justice was lax;
They'd brought out the block, though they'd mislaid the rock
Where they usually sharpened the axe.
Next morning at dawn, with a face most forlorn,
The priest said to try not to cry,
"You can come just like that, no, you won't need a hat,"
And I knew that my end must be nigh.
The man in the mask who would have the sad task
Of cleaving my head from my neck,
Said "Nick, if you please, will you get to your knees,"
And I turned to a gibbering wreck.
"This may sting a bit" said the cack-handed twit
As he swung the axe up in the air,
But oh the blunt blade! No difference it made,
My head was still definitely there.
The axeman he hacked and he whacked and he thwacked,
"Won't be too long", he assured me,
But quick it was not, and the bone-headed clot
Took forty-five goes 'til he floored me.
And so I was dead, but my faithful old head
It never saw fit to desert me,
It still lingers on, that's the end of my song,
And now, please applaud, or you'll hurt me.

Some Random Facts About The Weasley Family

Ron was the only one of three major characters whose surname never changed; he has been 'Weasley' from start to finish. In Britain and Ireland the weasel has a bad reputation as an unfortunate, even malevolent, animal. However, since childhood I have had a great fondness for the family mustelidae; not so much malignant as maligned, in my opinion.

There are also many superstitions associated with redheaded people and most state that they are in some way unlucky (Judas Escariot was supposedly red-haired), but this is nonsense; I happen to like red hair as well as weasels.
Although I never meant him to be like Sean, once I got Ron onto the page he often behaved like my oldest friend, who is both very funny and deeply loyal. However, there are also substantial differences between Ron and Sean. I have only once set out to faithfully depict a real human being (see Gilderoy Lockhart); everywhere else, though I might have borrowed the occasional real person's characteristic, they are at least 90% imaginary.
Before her marriage Mrs. Weasley was Molly Prewett. As you will note from chapter one, Philosopher's Stone, she has lost close family members to Voldemort.

Arthur Weasley was one of three brothers. Ginny (full name Ginevra, not Virginia), is the first girl to be born into the Weasley clan for several generations.

Fred and George were born - when else? - on April Fool's Day.

Little Tiger · 05-15-2004, 04:29 PM

Haha! That rough draft of the beginning is very POTC....hmm...H/Hr...hehe...shamelessly promoting h/hr... bad girl...

hmmm..to your comment about Dean and Ginny... I think he is important, but I think Neville is who she'll get with...especially the Harry Potter parallel... and she herself stating that Neville will play a more central role....like he already hasn't?

But her name: Ginerva is an italin form of Guinvere.... I hope this is foreshadowing...it won't be a happy ending if it is....

Fred and George born on April Fools Day..now that's funny! But Mrs. Weasley's story is very sad!!!

Ben · 05-15-2004, 05:39 PM

Where does it mention anything about Pirates of The Carribean?

Lady_Hatchkoff · 05-15-2004, 09:27 PM

Took me one whole hours (or even more) but i've finally finished reading it. (gee it's 01:30pm)

LOVED all the info, Sad�! Thanks SO MUCH for having posted them! ^_^

BTW, what kind of name is Ginevra?

And red-heads rule! *_*

And JK rocks me socks!

Ok, i'll stop.

hehe

Ben · 05-15-2004, 10:41 PM

I've just about discovered all the secret things. I don't think I should say how to get them, because that miht ruin the fun.

I've found four secret things. Such as old versions of chapters and scripts for parts of the book and various drawings that JK did in the early stages.

Very interesting.

- Alex - · 05-16-2004, 02:38 AM

Now I'm sooooooooooooooooo confused about the Ginevra thing. Now I wonder where did the name of Virginia come from? I don't know what to think ....

fetch · 05-16-2004, 06:57 AM

Quote:

Sirius has grey eyes, Draco has grey eyes... do you think there's a connection?

Hmm. Cedric had grey eyes, didn't he? I remember before we found out in OotP James' eye color, some people thought it was grey and connected it to Cedric---> they both died young. But, eh.

Crossbow · 05-16-2004, 07:32 AM

It's not like grey eyes are uncommon.

So, when I click on the link, I just get the list of her publishers. What happened?

ETA:

Responses to above posts:

Alex - "Ginny" is usually a diminutive of "Virginia" so I'm sure people just assumed that was her full name. In fact, I know four people named "Virginia," and three go by "Ginny."
The fourth goes by "Cathy."

I laughed so hard about the question of whether Hermione loves Ron or Harry and she said "I can't believe some of you haven't figured it out yet!" I can't believe it either.

Sometimes I look at shipper threads and wonder what the heck book THOSE people were reading, because it certainly wasn't the same one I was!

*leaving to point and laugh at shippers*

* Marauder's Child * · 05-16-2004, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Ben
Where does it mention anything about Pirates of The Carribean?

ehehehe... sorry about that Ben, it was just a little Auror inside joke.

You see, most of the Aurors thought that PoTC was a very Aurory film, but I was one of those people who just didn't SEE the connection.

But then I read this part:

Quote:

The very, very earliest drafts of the first chapter of 'Philosopher's Stone' have the Potters living on a remote island, Hermione's family living on the mainland, her father spotting something that resembles an explosion out at sea and sailing out in a storm to find their bodies in the ruins of their house.

- excerpt taken from Opening Chapters of Philosopher's Stone
Cut Scenes area of JKR's site

It showed that JKR did plan on getting baby!Harry rescued by Hermione's father in the earlier drafts... And that little PoTC reference was sort of my "apology" for doubting them all this time.

==========================================================

Quote:

Originally posted by Lady_Hatchkoff
Took me one whole hours (or even more) but i've finally finished reading it. (gee it's 01:30pm)

LOVED all the info, Sad�! Thanks SO MUCH for having posted them! ^_^

BTW, what kind of name is Ginevra?

You're welcome Liv

Remember, JKR chooses a name for a reason. I'll probably research the origin of the name Ginerva after this

But based on what Rebecca (Little Tiger) said:
(BTW, thanks for that Becks!)

Quote:

Ginerva is an Italin form of Guinevere

It just might be a reference to her father's name: Arthur,
since her middle name: Molly is from her mother.

As we all know, Giunevere was King Arthur's Queen.

Quote:

Originally posted by - Alex -
Now I'm sooooooooooooooooo confused about the Ginevra thing. Now I wonder where did the name of Virginia come from? I don't know what to think ....

Actually "Virginia" is just the HP Fandom's most popular guess of Ginny's complete first name. JKR has never said anything about it until now.

In her last chat (Book Day) she however said that Ginny's middle name is Molly, as well as saying that Hermione's is "Jane" & Ron's is "Bilius".

.
.
.

You know, after reading all these, I just realized that JKR really does make an effort to get to know her Fandom. She just became cooler to me if that's still possible.

*Elle* · 05-16-2004, 10:59 AM

Ok this a question about the site...

Does anyone know what happenes when you click on the pony-tail holder, (next to key), for me it just goes to a door. How do I get past the door? It's really driving me nuts!

If anyone knows can you PM me?? Thanks a bunch.

fetch · 05-16-2004, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Sometimes I look at shipper threads and wonder what the heck book THOSE people were reading, because it certainly wasn't the same one I was!

So in the books you're reading, does she love Ron or Harry?

It made me laugh what she said right after, though- that she'd tell us, but that's stop the fighting, which she enjoys

About the door- no one knows how to get past it yet. Some people think that the "patience is key" is a clue- either that if we wait long enough we'll be able to open in, or we'll be able to open in in due time.

Ben · 05-16-2004, 12:34 PM

I've waited nearly all day and nothing much has happened apart Peeves coming along. So I don't know how to get past the door yet.

Ben · 05-16-2004, 03:23 PM

Yes, I've had the phone ring. I answered it.

Just someone saying "Hello? Hello? Anyone there?"