This is really long, but I've gone through and copied and pasted some interviews from JKR. I've included the links as well, so you can look at the info yourself. It will help in our theories!



The wand chooses the wizard, of course, but what magical creature would you select for your own wand?
I'd like a phoenix feather, which is why I gave it to Harry!

Is Voldemort some sort of relative of Harry's? Possibly his mother's brother?
I'm laughing...that would be a bit Star Wars, wouldn't it?

In your first book there is a secret message on the Mirror of Erised. Are there any other secret messages throughout the book that we should be watching for?
Not secret messages of that type, but if you read carefully, you'll get hints about what's coming. And that's all I'm saying!

In the fourth book, when Harry tells Dumbledore about his fight with Voldemort and how Voldemort could touch him after he took Harry's blood, Harry thinks he sees Dumbledore smile slightly. Why? Is Dumbledore really on Voldemort's side after all?
Hmmmm....like all the best questions I get asked, I can't answer that one. But you are obviously reading carefully. I promise you'll find out!

Do wizards and witches have to go Muggle school before they go to Hogwarts?
No, they don't have to.

How does the Dark Lord affect American wizards and witches?
He affects everyone, but his plan is European domination first.


Which house was Lily Potter in, and what is her maiden name?
Her maiden name was Evans, and she was in Gryffindor (naturally).

Does Harry have a middle name?
Yep, James after his dad.

From where did you get the name for Harry Potter?
'Harry' has always been my favourite boy's name, so if my daughter had been a son, he would have been Harry Rowling. Then I would have had to choose a different name for "Harry" in the books, because it would have been too cruel to name him after my own son. "Potter" was the surname of a family who used to live near me when I was seven years old and I always liked the name, so I borrowed it.

There are an extraordinary number of names that start with "H" (Harry, Hermione, Hedwig, Hogwarts, Hagrid, Hufflepuff). Is there any reason for that?
Erm...no!

Harry Potter for grownups again! Is Voldemort the last remaining ancestor of Slytherin, or the last remaining descendent of Slytherin?
Ah, you spotted the deliberate error. Yes, it should read "descendent." That's been changed in subsequent editions. (Keep hold of the "ancestor" one, maybe it'll be valuable one day!)

Is there something more to the cats appearing in the books than first meets the eye? (i.e. Mrs. Figg's cats, Crookshanks, Prof. McGonagall as a cat, etc.)
Ooooo, another good question. Let's see what I can tell you without giving anything away....erm....no, can't do it, sorry.

Is it true that since Voldemort took Harry's blood by force, that Harry can kill Voldemort, but Voldemort can't kill Harry?
It's an interesting theory, but I wouldn't trust it too much!


Is the Mrs. Figg with all the cats in the Dursleys' neighborhood the same Arabella Figg that Dumbledore mentioned at the end of book 4?
Well spotted!

How many students attend Hogwarts, and how many students per year per house?
There are about a thousand students at Hogwarts.

You said Ron's cousin was taken out of Book 4, and you developed Rita Skeeter more after that. Do you still think that it would have been more fun to keep her? Can you tell me anything about what she was going to be like?
Well, maybe I will use her in another book, so I don't want to talk about her too much. I had never "killed" a character before (in either sense) until Goblet of Fire, so that made writing the book a little more stressful!

How old is old in the wizarding world, and how old are Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall?
Dumbledore is a hundred and fifty, and Professor McGonagall is a sprightly seventy. Wizards have a much longer life expectancy than Muggles. (Harry hasn't found out about that yet.)

How does the wizarding world protect Muggle banks and vaults, etc. from wizards apparating into them and stealing the contents?
Well, the Ministry of Magic keeps tabs on people apparating. That's why you have to have a license to do it, and the moment you abuse it you can find yourself in serious trouble (or Azkaban!).

What position did James play on the Gryffindor Quidditch team? Was it seeker like Harry, or something different?
James was Chaser.

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript2.htm


What makes some witches/wizards become ghosts after they die and some not?
You don't really find that out until Book VII, but I can say that the happiest people do not become ghosts. As you might guess, Moaning Myrtle!

What did the Potter parents do for a living before Voldemort killed them?
I'm sorry to keep saying this, but I can't tell you because it's important to a later plot. But you will find out later!

In the first book you said Slytherin house Quidditch captain was sixth year Marcus Flint. If there are only seven years of Hogwarts, why is he in the third book?
He had to do a year again! :-)

Since Harry Potter's parents were sorcerers and Petunia was Harry's mother's sister. Shouldn't Petunia be a witch or wizard?
No. As Hagrid explains in Book I, sometimes a witch or a wizard occurs in an otherwise Muggle family, just as a Squib is a non-magic person who occurs in an otherwise magic family.

Do you think that you will write about Harry after he graduates from Hogwarts? Isn't there a University of Wizardry?
No, there's no University for Wizards. At the moment I'm only planning to write seven Harry Potter books. I won't say "never," but I have no plans to write an eighth book.

Will we ever get a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who lasts more than a year?
I'm not telling you. ;-)

Is Harry Potter ever going to fall in love with Hermione or is he going to fall in love with Ginny Weasley?
In Book IV Harry does decide he likes a girl, but it's not Hermione or Ginny. However, he's only 14, so there's plenty of time for him to change his mind. ;-)

Will Harry ever get a break and not live with the Dursleys?
I'm not going to tell you! ;-)

Will we ever see Scabbers again?
Yes. You will see Scabbers again.


Do you have an actual floorplan for Hogwarts? Do you use it when writing the books?
I haven't drawn it, because it would be difficult for the most skilled architect to draw, owing to the fact that the staircases and the rooms keep moving. However, I have a very vivid mental image of what it looks like.

Why are the gnomes bad? What do they do?
Gnomes eat the roots of your plants, and make little heaps of earth, like moles do. They are also a bit of a giveaway that wizards live in a house.

Where were you born and what was your childhood like?
I was born in a place called Chipping, so perhaps that explains my love of silly names.

How can two Muggles have a kid with magical powers? Also how does the Ministry of Magic find out these kids have powers?
It's the same as two black-haired people producing a redheaded child. Sometimes these things just happen, and no one really knows why! The Ministry of Magic doesn't find out which children are magic. In Hogwarts there's a magical quill which detects the birth of a magical child, and writes his or her name down in a large parchment book. Every year Professor McGonagall checks the book, and sends owls to the people who are turning 11.

Where is Azkaban?
In the north of the North Sea. A very cold sea.

Why did you choose the lightning bolt as a trademark for Harry Potter?
Just because I decided that it would be an interesting and distinctive mark.

Will we see the Marauders map in a future book?
Yes, you'll see it in Book IV. :-)

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript1.htm

Can you tell me where and when Quidditch was invented?
Quidditch started in the 11th century, at a place called Queerditch Marsh which you probably won't find marked on maps. But obviously that's because wizards have made the place unplottable (which means you can't plot it on a map). Originally it was quite a crude game played on broomsticks, and over the subsequent two centuries they added more balls until it became the game we know now.

Could Harry have a pet dragon?
You can't domesticate a dragon whatever Hagrid thinks. That's simply impossible. So no. He's got more sense. He might get a different pet at some point but I'm saying no more at this moment.

Has Harry ever used the Internet?
No. He's not allowed near Dudley's computer and Dudley's the only one who's got a computer. He gets beaten up if he goes too near the keyboard. So no, he's never used the Internet. I use it a lot but not Harry. Wizards don't really need to use the Internet but that's something that you'll find out later on in the series. They have a means of finding out what goes on in the outside world that I think is more fun than the Internet. Could anything be more fun than the Internet? Yes!

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/author/transcript3.htm

E: Do you know already who is going to die in the next books?
JK: I know all of them who are going to die, yeah.
E: And some characters we might love and you might love?
JK: I'm definitely killing people I love, yeah. (Waves to fans outside) It's horrible, isn't it? (Laughs) It is actually. I cried during the writing of that one [Book Four] for the first time ever. I cried doing the actual writing of it. It really upset me.
E: People love Ron, for example. Kids think you're going to knock off Ron because he's the best friend.
JK: Kids do, exactly, because they're sharp and they've seen so many films where the hero's best friend gets it. So they think I'm going to make it personal by killing Ron. But maybe that's a double bluff… (Laughs)
E: Now that you know they expect it, do you give it to them?
JK: No, I decided…It's not that I sat down with a list and decided to write, 'You're going, you're going, you're going.' There are reasons for the deaths in each case, in terms of the story. So that's why I'm doing it.
E: This is the crucial book, because after this book, everything changes. The whole world seems to go through a radical transformation.
JK: Well, it's the end of an era. Book Four is the end of an era for Harry.
E: He's grown up. This is a right of passage.
JK: Exactly. He's no longer protected. He's been very protected until now. But he's very young to have that experience. Most of us don't get that until a bit later in life. He's only just coming up to 15 and that's it now. (A photographer sticks his camera against the window and snaps off a bunch of pictures.) He's very exposed now, as you know if you've read the book. If you haven't read the book, I'm not going to give it away.
E: She's somewhat condescending to the elves who don't have rights.
JK: She thinks it's so easy. It's part of what I was saying before about the growing process, of realizing you don't have quite as much power as you think you might have and having to accept that. Then you learn that it's hard work to change things and that it doesn't happen overnight. Hermione thinks she's going to lead them to glorious rebellion in one afternoon and then finds out the reality is very different, but that was fun to write.
E: The Daily Mail said that there was a stalker. Is this the dark side of fame?
JK: You know, they really might want to get in touch with me and tell me about this alleged stalker, because I think I'd probably know if I was being stalked. This is not a nice thing, ok, but I sometimes get a feeling of almost, 'Oh, come on, someone stalk her! We've run out of stories. Where's your initiative? Come on, surely she's worth stalking?' Well, no, no one is stalking me. So I'd like to thank the Daily Mail for inviting them to do it because it's very sweet of them.

EVAN: Time to talk about the Dementors.
J.K. ROWLING: Ah, the Dementors, yeah.
E: The Dementors, um, they are the personification of depression. (JK - Mmm hmm.) Now, I hate making biographical links between characters and authors but that's (laughing)…
JK: You might as well. (Laughs) Go for it.
E: But there is a biographical link and we've talked about it, about a depression in your life being, not just obviously a horrible time, but something in the end that was important to your life.
JK: Um, I was depressed, um, I'd say - would it be 1994 - I did suffer a spell of what I was told was clinical depression. I don't know, I was told it was. Yeah, I was depressed for a while. I'm not ashamed of that, plenty of people get depressed and I've never suffered from it again and I got through it. But the Dementors, uh, it's so hard to trace the origin of something. I saw these things and I knew what I wanted them to do, but they became, as I really thought about what they did, I realized that's what I was doing. That's normally the way it happens with me. I don't consciously think 'And now, I will create the personification of depression' but as I'm creating them I realize what I'm doing. You know, what unconsciously is going on. So they create an absence of feeling, which is my experience of depression. It is an absence…
E: That is your definition of it.
JK: (Nods) Mmm.
http://www.cbc.ca/programs/sites/hottype_r...ngcomplete.html

I got this from Mugglenet's Interviews page. I did edit out some of it that seemed non-essential.

Interviews with JK courtesy of Mugglenet

© Scholastic, February 3, 2000


Interview with Scholastic, 2003


Did you make up the plot in every aspect first by charting the characters and knowing exactly what you would do with them, or did you just piece a lot of it together as you wrote?
I always have a basic plot outline, but I like to leave some things to be decided while I write. It's more fun. :-)

When is your fourth book coming out and what will it be called?
It's coming out in July. I prefer not to say the title at the moment. I'm superstitious about my titles.


Why does Professor Dumbledore like sherbet lemons?
Because I like sherbet lemons! And he's got good taste. :-)

Was it hard to think of the monsters' names?
Some of the monsters are from folklore, so I didn't invent them. In Book IV you'll see some creatures I did invent, and I had fun making up their names. But I'm not going to say what they are. :-)

What do you think has been your greatest experience because of Harry Potter's success?
The last American tour. Because for the first time I realized how many children love Harry. It was a moving experience for me.

What makes some witches/wizards become ghosts after they die and some not?
You don't really find that out until Book VII, but I can say that the happiest people do not become ghosts. As you might guess, Moaning Myrtle!

How long have you been writing?
As far back as I can remember. The first story I finished was when I was six years old.


What would your advice be to any other young people that would want to write stories?
The most important thing is to read as much as you can, like I did. It will give you an understanding of what makes good writing and it will enlarge your vocabulary. And it's a lot of fun! And also, start by writing about things you know-- your own experiences, your own feelings. That's what I do.

I heard a lot of rumors as to why the fourth book isn't out yet in the U.S. What is the truth and when will it be out?
The reason it's not out yet is because I haven't finished it. :-) The first book took me five years to write, so I'm speeding up, a lot! But I still can't produce a novel in six months.

What did the Potter parents do for a living before Voldemort killed them?
I'm sorry to keep saying this, but I can't tell you because it's important to a later plot. But you will find out later!

In the first book you said Slytherin house Quidditch captain was sixth year Marcus Flint. If there are only seven years of Hogwarts, why is he in the third book?
He had to do a year again! :-)

How do students at Hogwarts get educated in Muggle subjects? Do they even need to know other things besides magic?
They can choose to study Muggle subjects. In the third book, Hermione takes the class Muggles Studies, and that's where they learn about Muggles in school.

Since Harry Potter's parents were sorcerers and Petunia was Harry's mother's sister, shouldn't Petunia be a witch or wizard?
No. As Hagrid explains in Book I, sometimes a witch or a wizard occurs in an otherwise Muggle family, just as a Squib is a non-magic person who occurs in an otherwise magic family.

Do you think that you will write about Harry after he graduates from Hogwarts? Isn't there a University of Wizardry?
No, there's no University for Wizards. At the moment I'm only planning to write seven Harry Potter books. I won't say "never," but I have no plans to write an eighth book.

Will we ever get a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who lasts more than a year?
I'm not telling you. ;-)

Is Harry Potter ever going to fall in love with Hermione or is he going to fall in love with Ginny Weasley?
In Book IV Harry does decide he likes a girl, but it's not Hermione or Ginny. However, he's only 14, so there's plenty of time for him to change his mind. ;-)

If you had to choose one teacher from your books to teach your child, who would it be and why?
It would be Professor Lupin, because he is kind, clever, and gives very interesting lessons.

How many countries have you visited since writing Harry Potter?
Um... let me think. Spain, Italy, France, America. That's all. I will be visiting lots more, but because my daughter's still so young, I don't like to travel too much. Unless I can take her with me.

Will Harry ever get a break and not live with the Dursleys?
I'm not going to tell you! ;-)

Will we ever see Scabbers again?
Yes. You will see Scabbers again.

Will Harry ever get to go with his godfather (Sirius Black)?
He is in contact with Sirius Black in Book IV, but as Sirius is on the run, it's difficult for them to be together at the moment.

Is it true you're doing 7 books, one for each year that Harry will be at Hogwarts?
Yes, it is true.


What made you think of the people's names and dormitories at Hogwarts?
I invented the names of the Houses on the back of an airplane sick bag! This is true. I love inventing names, but I also collect unusual names, so that I can look through my notebook and choose one that suits a new character.

Do you take real people you know and put them in your books?
The closest I've come to putting a real person in my books is with Gilderoy Lockhart, who is an exaggeration of someone I once knew. Ron Weasley is a little bit like my oldest friend, a man I was at school with, whose name is Sean. But neither of them are accurate portraits.

How long does it take to write one Harry Potter book?
It depends. The quickest, so far, was a year.

How does it feel to know that millions of kids are reading your books?
Amazing! I don't think I really realized how many there were until I visited the States in October, and met thousands and thousands of people at book signings.

How did you come up with Harry Potter?
Harry just sort of strolled into my head, on a train journey. He arrived very fully formed. It was as though I was meeting him for the first time.

Why are the gnomes bad? What do they do?
Gnomes eat the roots of your plants, and make little heaps of earth, like moles do. They are also a bit of a giveaway that wizards live in a house.

Did you ever meet a boy like Harry?
I probably met a boy like Harry, since I've been meeting readers of the Harry books. But he wasn't based on anyone real.

Are any of your female characters, like Hermione, modeled after your own daughter?
No, if Hermione was based on anyone, she was based on me when I was younger. But my daughter is turning out to be a bit like me, so she is a bit like Hermione. :-)

Was there a particular teacher who encouraged you to write when you were a child? If there was, how did he or she encourage or help you?
I had some wonderful teachers, but I never confided that I wanted to be a writer. So, no. Writing for me is a kind of compulsion, so I don't think anyone could have made me do it, or prevented me from doing it.

Where were you born and what was your childhood like?
I was born in a place called Chipping, so perhaps that explains my love of silly names.

How can two Muggles have a kid with magical powers? Also how does the Ministry of Magic find out these kids have powers?
It's the same as two black-haired people producing a redheaded child. Sometimes these things just happen, and no one really knows why! The Ministry of Magic doesn't find out which children are magic. In Hogwarts there's a magical quill which detects the birth of a magical child, and writes his or her name down in a large parchment book. Every year Professor McGonagall checks the book, and sends owls to the people who are turning 11.

Does Harry give Christmas gifts to his friends? The books mention only gifts he receives. I am interested in knowing whether he gives gifts and if they are appropriate for the receiver.
Ron is very sensitive about his poverty, and Harry knows that Ron might be offended if he tried to give him too much. You will see in Book IV that Ron feels awkward accepting too much from Harry.


Do you have a role model, if so, who?
I don't really have a role model, but I have a heroine! Her name was Jessica Mitford, and she was a human rights activist.


Where is Azkaban?
In the north of the North Sea. A very cold sea.

We are Windy Hills Elementary. Do you write every day, and for how long do you write?
I write nearly every day. Some days I write for ten or eleven hours. Other days I might only write for three hours. It really depends on how fast the ideas are coming.


Where did Sirius Black and Buckbeak go after they went into hiding?
Somewhere nice and warm!

Do you have any pets/animals? If so, did any of your ideas for monsters come from watching them?
I have a very violent rabbit. ;-) If I'd known what her personality was like, I would have called her Fluffy, after Hagrid's dog!


Would you get a mythical pet from one of your books? If you could, which one?
If I could, I would choose a Phoenix, because they have such useful properties, as Harry finds out in Book III.

Did you have any help writing any of the books?
No, I did it all by myself! :-)

Why did you choose the lightning bolt as a trademark for Harry Potter?
Just because I decided that it would be an interesting and distinctive mark.

Do you still write in cafes, or do you have to stay out of public places while you write so people won't bother you?
I still write in cafes, but I go to different ones now!


Is the island that Azkaban is on located at the southern end of the U.K. since Black had to pass the Dursley's place on his way to Hogwarts?
No, he didn't have to pass the Dursley's place. He just wanted to.

Who is your favorite character?
I love, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Hagrid, and Professor Lupin.


When the seventh book in the series is finished, are you going to start on a new topic?
Yes, but what it is, I don't yet know!


How do you visualize Hogwarts in its entirety?
A huge, rambling, quite scary-looking castle, with a jumble of towers and battlements. Like the Weasley's house, it isn't a building that Muggles could build, because it is supported by magic.

Were you ever involved in a school like Harry Potter's school?
No, I wish I had been! :-)

Would you ever want to consider another job if you had the opportunity?
No. I'm doing the thing I love best in the world! Although I did enjoy being a teacher. :-)

Do you already have titles for all seven Harry Potters?
Yes, I do. And I'm still not going to tell you what they are. ;-)

Does your daughter help you with ideas for the books?
No, the ideas are all my own. But my daughter does love the books. :-)

Who is you favorite author?
Jane Austen. I find her un-put-downable. :-)

What kind of books did you read when you were young?
My favorite books when I was younger were by Paul Gallico, Elizabeth Goodge, and E. Nesbit.

When you were stuck on the train was there anything that triggered your imagination, and did that incident inspire Book III?
I have no idea where the idea came from, it just fell into my head!

Another interview courtesy of Mugglenet's interviews page. I did edit out a couple things I thought were non-essential.

Mugglenet's Interviews with JK Page

© BBC, Fall, 2001

BBC Interview 2001



So King's Cross, all those people, all those press-- what an amazing reception!
It was wonderful. It was the best. All those children, it was wonderful.

Is this the best part of doing publicity for a book like this, going round the country meeting everyone?
My favourite things are writing, then when you have to do the odd promotional bit, meeting children is by far my favourite thing. It's wonderful. And the not so young children too!

What's the weirdest thing a child's ever asked you at an event or signing?
The most startling things are when children ask me questions which reveal they're following my thought processes a lot more closely than I would have guessed. There was a boy who asked me in San Francisco [before Book Three appeared], where did Scabbers come from, what's his history? For people who don't know, Scabbers is a rat who turns out not to be a rat at all; and I found it quite spooky that he'd homed in on that, because I'd known from the first book that he wasn't a rat. I think children are reading the books twelve times, and they're really starting to know the way my mind works.

Is that a danger with the Internet?
The Internet! Twice I've been on the Internet. Friends of mine were telling me what's on there and I'd never gone looking before. First time, I thought I was never coming back, it's too scary. Some of the stuff that's out there is very weird. Second time I went in there someone had set up an unofficial fan site where you can be sorted, they have a Sorting Hat, and I was Hufflepuff. I wasn't that pleased! If anyone's meant to be Gryffindor, it's me.

Do you find there's a worry that you can say one thing in a conversation somewhere and something else in an interview and these people will draw conclusions that are close to what you're doing to do in the books?
Mostly, people have put together something I've said, something they'd like to think I'd said, and something that someone else has said which was completely false, and drawn completely the wrong conclusions. That just happens. No one yet has guessed what's going to happen, or come anywhere close.

Now, Book Four. Very scary ending. How difficult was it to write that?
The first time ever, I cried while writing. I actually cried twice during the ending of Book Four. It's a powerful ending, but there's a reason why-- something VERY important happens. I have said all along that if you're writing about evil you should have enough respect for children to show them what that means. Not to dress up a pantomine villain and say, isn't it frightening?, when it isn't. It's the ending I planned and I was very happy when I re-read it.

Do you rewrite a lot?
A huge amount. Only once have I said down, written something end to end, and let it stand. That was the chapter in Philosopher's Stone when Harry learns to fly. I remember vividly-- the old story we've heard a million times-- my daughter fell asleep, it was a beautifully sunny day, I sat in a café, and wrote that chapter from beginning to end. And I think I changed two words. That's very unusual for me. I think there's a chapter in Book Four which I rewrote 13 times. At one point I thought this book would never happen.

And how vital is Book Four in the 7 book series for Harry?
Crucial. Book Four's a very very VERY important book. Something very important happens in Book Four. But also, it's literally a central book. It's almost the heart of the series, and it's pivotal. It's very difficult to talk about all seven books. I can't wait until the day when someone's read all seven and I can talk completely freely about them, but it's a very important book.

I know you write for yourself, not for a target audience, but it must have some effect, the expectation and pressure that's built up around Harry.
Actually the expectation doesn't bother me at all-- because I do my readers the justice that they want to hear the story I want to write. If they've stayed with me for three novels, I hope they just want to find out what happens next, as I see it. There are other pressures with having a successful book, like Azkaban. That was difficult at times. But the weight of expectation doesn't bother me.

Book Four explores several themes-- some we've seen before like prejudice in Chamber of Secrets. We see more of that with foreign students and people with different parentage. Is that something you've been wanting to explore?
From the beginning of Philosopher's Stone, prejudice is a very strong theme. It is plausible that Harry enters the world wide-eyed: everything will be wonderful and it's the sort of place where injustices don't happen. Then he finds out that it does happen and it's a shock to him. He finds out that he is a half-blood: to a wizard like Lucius Malfoy, he will never be a true wizard, because his mother was of Muggle parentage. It's a very important theme.

Voldemort's a half-blood too...
Like Hitler! See! I think it's the case that the biggest bully takes their own defects and they put them on someone else, and they try to destroy them. And that's what he [Voldemort] does. That was very conscious-- I wanted to create a villain where you could understand the workings of his mind, not just have a 2-D baddie, dressed up in black, and I wanted to explore that and see where that came from. Harry in Book Four is starting to come to terms with what makes a person turn that way. Because they took wrong choices and he [Voldemort] took wrong choices from an early age.

Was it difficult balancing the light and dark in the book-- you've got some dark moments, and some wonderful moments of humour. Mad-Eye Moody who can't tell the difference between a handshake and an attempted murder. And a slightly dodgy joke about one of the planets in solar system.
Yeah, slightly dodgy! I was glad my editor let me get away with that joke, because she really laughed. Is it difficult? No. My experience is that, in a very limited way, even when life is not that bright, people still laugh. In the most tragic situations. The ending of the book is very important to me because Harry says, we're going to need some laughs. That is what is so admirable about human beings because even when they're in the direst situations, there's still humour.

Why was it important to show some of the strained friendships developing in this book?
Well in Book Four for me, Harry, Ron and Hermione are all starting to find their own identities-- that means, in their various ways, facing up to what their parents have imposed on them, or the school. For Harry, that's facing up to fame, really facing up to it for the first time. He's been put into a situation where for the first time he'll get the weight of outside interest. So that's scary. Ron has to deal with his jealousy. He's made friends with the most famous boy in the year and that's not easy. And Hermione gets a political conscience. Yeah!

Is this your idea of Hermione lightening up as you've said before? She didn't seem that light to me.
No, she will! She's a good girl. I agree with you-- she's not that light in this book. But people made the mistake of assuming that my answers referred to Book Four. There are another three books to go. But in some ways-- she's more of a rule breaker now. Where her convictions are concerned, she's prepared to do stuff that she's really not supposed to do. But she will lighten up. I promise you. I did.

Last time we spoke you said there'd be a Weasley cousin. It didn't appear. You've deceived me!
It got pulled. Sorry about that. What happened on Book Four, and one of the reasons why it was easily the most difficult to write, which had absolutely nothing to do with Harry being famous or me being famous, was that for the first time my plan fell down. I got halfway through and realised there was a huge gaping plot hole. The two ends just didn't meet. It was entirely my own fault: I should have had the sense to go through it very carefully before I started writing. So I had to do an enormous amount of unpicking and in the process I'm afraid the Weasley cousin disappeared.

Will we see her again?
Possibly. I really like her as a character but it's quite a complex plot I'm dealing with so I'm not sure that she'll fit anywhere else. She'll be the "character that might have been."


Are you tired of being asked where you got Harry from?
Yes. I get frustrated with myself because you'd think by now I'd have an intelligent or amusing answer to that question, but no I haven't found one yet! The truth is, I do not know where he came from-- he walked into my head, fully formed, a scrawny little boy, and I knew he was a wizard and I knew he didn't know he was a wizard and I worked backwards from there. I felt this incredible upsurge of excitement about writing the story.


There's a character in this book, Rita; how true is this a depiction of your relations with the press?
Well I'll tell you the truth but I doubt very much that anyone's going to want to hear this. I tried to put Rita in Philosopher's Stone-- you know when Harry walks into the Leaky Cauldron for the first time and everyone says, "Mr. Potter you're back!", I wanted to put a journalist in there. She wasn't called Rita then but she was a woman. And then I thought, as I looked at the plot overall, I thought, that's not really where she fits best, she fits best in Four when Harry's supposed to come to terms with his fame. So I pulled Rita from Book One and planned her entrance for Book Four and I was really looking forward to Rita coming in Book Four. For the first time ever, my pen metaphorically hestitated over writing her, because I thought, everyone will think this is my response to what's happened to me. But the fact is, Rita was planned all along. Did I enjoy her a little more because of what's happened to me-- yeah I probably did!

A little more venom in her?
Venom? Would you say so??! No-- I wouldn't call it venom...

Now the future-- Lupin comes back in Book Five...
You see Lupin in Book Five. Do you like him? (Lizo: Yes, he's one of my favourites.) And me. I always looked forward to writing Book Three because of Professor Lupin. I love him. Yes you see a lot of old characters in Book Five. Yes. I'm not even going to tell you what happens in Book Five! I'm just recovering from the stress of Book Four!!


Does it annoy you sometimes when the press and people just talk about children's books and they only talk about Harry Potter, without realising there's a whole wealth of other children's books out there?
Yes it does. Yes it really does. Childrens books have exsisted for quite a long time in press terms in a bit of a ghetto, when you look at the coverage adult books get. You hope that that might change. People say to me, adults read Harry Potter as well, so it's this big crossover book; but loads and loads and loads of children's writers deserve to be read by adults. They might not be quite as famous for it as Harry is, but there are people like Jaqueline Wilson, David Almond and Aidan Chambers who just won the Carnegie. Henrietta Brownford I really admire, though she died unfortunately two years ago. There are loads of people out there-- Philip Pullman too-- wonderful writers.

Now in an interview you said that Firenze, the Centaur, was based on a friend of yours-- but we've hardly seen anything of Firenze.
Well, just keep your eyes open.

And the Centaur's Prophecy at the end of Philosophers Stone…
He'll come back-- enough said. Not everyone has read book four.

And Gilderoy Lockhart, one of my favourite characters...
Gilderoy, bless him, is still in Saint Mungo's hospital for magical ailments and injuries, ‘cos his memory's just gone. So I'm making no promises about Gilderoy.

Was he good fun to write, because he's the opposite of everything you wanted to be?
Fantastic fun to write. The best one ever. I loved writing Gilderoy, but I've got Rita now you see. I love writing Rita in the same way that I loved writing Gilderoy.


Now we've seen hormones kick in in this book. Are we going to see Harry becoming even MORE like Kevin the teenager, you know, [does Kevin impression] ‘Sirius, huh, I hate you, I wish you were back in Azkaban'?
I think Ron's more like that isn't he? Ron's more Kevinish. Harry's got so many worries, he needs his friends-- he can't afford to alienate them.

He's delicate isn't he?
He is. He's more your sensitive hero. And more of that stuff happens.

Now, can I ask you: are there any special wizarding powers in your world that depend on the wizard using their eyes to do something? Bit like...
Why do you want to know this?

I just vaguely wondered.
Why?

Well because everyone always goes on about how Harry's got Lily Potter's eyes.
Aren't you smart? There is something, maybe, coming about that. I'm going to say no more. Very clever.

And I'm going to ask one other question which you'll say isn't clever at all. The significance of the place where Harry and his parents lived, the first name--
Godric Gryffindor. Very good, you're a bit good you are, aren't you?


Thank you.
I'm impressed. My editor didn't notice, I said to her haven't you noticed any connection between where Harry's parents were born, not born, where they lived, and one of the Hogwarts houses and she's sitting there going erm... I'm not being rude about Emma she's a brilliant editor, the best I've ever [had]. But no she didn't pick that up either. You're a bit good you are.

Another interview with JK courtesy of Mugglenet. I did edit out some things I thought were non-essential.

JK interviews thanks to Mugglenet


AOL Online Chat Transcript


© AOL, October 19, 2000

AOL Chat Transcript, October, 2000



Good evening. This is a real treat-- the most popular writer in the world. Welcome, J.K. Rowling.
Thank you!

Ms. Rowling, do you think that making a Harry Potter movie will help people understand the books better or will it ruin the imagination for the books?
I don't think people need help understanding the books. I hope the film will be really good and not disappoint the fans. Personally, I can't wait to watch Quidditch.

Ms. Rowling, why did you write about witchcraft and wizardry?
I had the idea of a boy who was a wizard and didn't yet know what he was. I never sat down and wondered, "What shall I write about next?" It just came, fully formed.

When people trade in Muggle money for Wizard money, what does Gringotts do with the Muggle money?
Those goblins are sneaky people. They manage to put the Muggle money back into circulation. They are like "fences"-- British slang, do you understand it?

What did James and Lily Potter do when they were alive?
Well, I can't go into too much detail, because you're going to find out in future books. But James inherited plenty of money, so he didn't need a well-paid profession. You'll find out more about both Harry's parents later.

If YOU went to Hogwarts, which house would they put you in?
Good name, Wizard. Well, I'd hope for Gryffindor, obviously, but I suspect they might want to put me in Ravenclaw.

Ms. Rowling, where do you come up with the names of the characters, like Quidditch?
Quidditch is a name I invented. I just wanted a word which began with the letter 'Q' (I don't know why, it was just a whim). Many of the names are taken from maps-- for instance, Snape, which is an English village.

Ms. Rowling, have you ever made a map or blueprint of the school?
No, because all those staircases keep shifting around and rooms pop out of nowhere, and stuff just moves too much. But I have got a notebook that reminds me what floor everything is on, just to keep track. Of course, if anything moves, I can blame it on magic, not my mistakes.

What do you think of the people who want to ban your books?
I think they are... uh... what's a good word? Misguided. I think these are very moral books. Everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but not to impose their views on others!

Does the animal one turns into as an Animagi reflect your personality?
Very well deduced, Narri! I personally would like to think that I would transform into an otter, which is my favorite animal. Imagine how horrible it would be if I turned out to be a cockroach!


When is Hermione's birthday?
Hermione's birthday is September 19th.

Did you consider having a girl be the main character?
Well, I didn't-- purely because Harry came to me as a boy. And after I'd been writing about him for a few months, he was too real to me to change. However, Hermione is such a good friend too, that I don't feel I have short-changed girls!

There are so many people with "Harry Potter" screen names! One asks: Why did Dumbledore have a look of triumph in his eyes at the end of book four?
Good question... excellent question, in fact, and like all the best questions I get asked, I can't answer it! Because it would give too much away. However, well-spotted. Have fun guessing... someone's bound to get it right!

Why do some wizards/witches become ghosts and others don't?
Another superb question, and this time I can tell you that you will find out much more about that in book five.

Ms. Rowling, after the first book, you stopped converting English words to American words. Is there any reason for this?
Actually, we didn't stop, but the number of words that were changed has been greatly exaggerated! We only ever changed a word when it had a different meaning in "American," for instance, the word "jumper," which in England means "sweater" and here, I believe, is something that only little girls wear!

I think the color of Harry's eyes will matter in the books to come. Yes?
Hmmmm... maybe!

Ms. Rowling, will Voldemort ever die?
Do you really, really think I will answer that?!

Where did James get his Invisibility Cloak?
That was inherited from his own father-- a family heirloom!

Does everyone have a little magic in them? Even if they are Muggles? And if not, how did magic start?
I think we do (outside the books), but within my books-- do you really think there's any magic in Uncle Vernon? Magic is one of those odd talents which some have and some don't.

Ms. Rowling, what's your favorite spell?
My favourite spell (so far) is "expecto patronum"-- the spell that conjures the Patronus.


Ms. Rowling, will Voldemort's evil ways rise again, such as Muggle killings?
Well, his temper hasn't exactly improved while he's been away, has it? So I think we can safely say, yes.


Why stop at seven books when you could make up Harry's whole life?
I notice you're very confident that he's not going to die!


Why did you make Quirrell the bad guy instead of Snape?
Because I know all about Snape, and he wasn't about to put on a turban.

Is there a reason Fleur's name means "flower of the heart"?
Ah, Narri, you're nearly there... in fact, it means "flower of the court," like a noblewoman. Heart is "coeur." (I used to be a French teacher, sorry.)


Ron and Hermione give Harry gifts... does he ever give them birthday presents?
Yes, Harry does buy presents back! But I've never focused on their birthdays yet-- there hasn't been room!

Ms. Rowling, which character besides Harry is your favorite, and why?
I think that would have to be Hagrid-- but I love Ron and Hermione too, and I also love writing characters like Gilderoy Lockhart, Snape, the Dursleys... it's such fun doing horrible things to them.

Will Harry time-travel again?
Not telling!

Thanks to Mugglenet for another interview. I did edit out some parts I thought were non-essential.

Mugglenet's Interviews with JK Page


© Larry King Live, October 20, 2000


Larry King Interview, October 2000


Was "Potter" the first thing you wrote?
No, I've been writing since I was six years old, so it's--

Really.
Yes, probably the 23rd thing I wrote, really.

Children's books.
No, never children's books. That's the weird thing, I thought I was going to be a writer for adults, but "Harry" was the first I tried to get published.

You never submitted anything before.
No.

Why?
Because I was acute enough to know they weren't worth much. I think, you know, one of my strengths as a writer is normally I know when I haven't come up to scratch and I just knew I wasn't ready.

So if people come over and say let's publish some of those works...
No one has, but that's because I've made it very clear that they're due for the shredder. I wouldn't want them published.

Is "Potter" all you're ever going to write?
No, I'll be writing until I can't write anymore. It's a compulsion with me. I love writing.

Do you remember how, it's impossible to say how an idea came about. Do you remember, though, the creation of this concept?
Yes, it came to me on a train going from Manchester to London in England and it came very suddenly. I just...

What came?
The idea for this boy who didn't know what he was until he was 11 and then got this invitation to go off to wizard school and I had this very physical response to this idea. I felt so excited. I just thought it would be so fun to write.

So you went right away and started writing.
Literally, got off the train, went home and started writing.

Do you know, J.K., where you're going?
Yes.

You do? You plot it out?
Yes, I spent five years-- it was five years before-- between having that idea and finishing the first book and during those five years I was planning the whole seven book series, so it's already written in stone. That's how it's going to happen.

Now they're doing a movie, now. I ran into Mr. Rickman, who is going to be one of the stars of the movie.
Yes, he's playing Snape. Good choice.

Have you approved the script?
I have script approval and the writer Steve Kloves has been incredibly generous in allowing me to answer questions. You know, it's actually been a lot of fun for me because I've seen other-- writing is a very solitary business and to work collaboratively on something although-- I mean, it's Steve's script, as I say, he's allowed me some input. Yes, it's been a really interesting experience.

But it is apples and oranges, movies and books?
Very much so.

You can't film a thought.
Absolutely. Absolutely true, and my true media is definitely the novel. I work best alone, probably. I love writing novels. I have no desire to do anything else.

Do you like the young man they've selected to play him?
I love-- Dan is great. It was a very difficult process. Finding Harry was very hard. It was like trying to find Scarlett O'Hara, this one. And I think everyone was getting slightly desperate. And I was walking down the streets of Edinburgh and London and looking at boys who passed me in a very suspicious looking way. You know, I was thinking could it be him. And then the producer and director walked into the theater one night and they found Dan. And Dan is an actor. And he's just perfect. And I saw his tests, and I really had everything crossed that Dan would be the one, and he is.


Anything in the selection of the name, Harry Potter?
Harry, Harry was always my favorite boy's name or has been for a long time. And if my daughter had been a son, I was already writing "Harry Potter" when she was born, she probably would have been Harry and then Harry would have been called something else because it's too cruel to name...

Is it more common in Great Britain? It's the name of one of the princes, right?
Yes, but don't ask me did I name him after Prince Harry. It's not that common a name. It's one of those names that's always slightly unusual. It's quite an old-fashioned name. I like it.


Here's a question from a youngster for J.K. Rowling.

I'd like to know if any of your characters of the "Harry Potter" series are like any real-life characters you've ever met.
Right. Yes, a few people were inspired by living people. I have to be careful what I say here because some of my characters aren't too pleasant, but Hermione, who is one of Harry's best friends, she was most consciously based on a real person, and that person was me. She's a caricature of me when I was younger. Ron, who is Harry's other best friend, he's a lot like my oldest friend, who is a man called Sean. I was at school with him and the second book is dedicated to Sean.

Did you think it would do as well with adults?
No. In all honesty, I didn't think it would do this well with anyone. I thought I was writing quite an obscure book that if it ever got published would maybe have a handful of devotees because I thought-- it is kind of a book for obsessives. I thought, well, maybe a few people will like it a lot. I never expected it to have broad appeal.

You might have thought it would be a cult following, a small intense group.
Yes, I think if you'd sort of given me a multiple choice one and one of them had been mass acclaim and one had been cult I'd have picked cult, yes.

A group-- a family group with a question for J.K. Rowling taped in Washington. Watch.

I'd like to know how you come up with the spells and if you have to research those, if that's something that you come up entirely on your own out of your imagination or whether it's something that you researched and had to find out about magical spells and potions?
I'd say at least 95 percent of it is made up by me just out of nowhere. And then I meet people at book signings who whisper to me, "We are trying the spells." And I think: Well, don't bother, because I know I just made them up. They don't work. But there's a small percentage of the stuff in books that is my modification of what people used to believe was true. For example, there is an object in the second book, which is the Hand of Glory. This is very macabre, but people used to believe in Europe that, if you cut off the hand of a hanged man, it would make a perpetual torch that gave light only to the holder, which is a creepy, you know-- but a wonderful idea. So I used that. That's a very ancient idea. I didn't invent the Hand of Glory.

How do you for think for an 11-year-old when you're not 11?
Because I find it phenomenally easy to think myself back to that age.

You can put yourself back to 11.
Very easily. This is where it all comes from. I often get asked: Do you get ideas from children? Do you ask children what they're interested in? No. This is entirely about my memories of childhood.

Why not then a heroine? Why isn't this Helene Potter?
Very good question. I was-- this is weird-- I was writing the books for six months, before I stopped and thought: Well, he's a boy. How did that happen? Why is he a boy? Why isn't it Harriet? And number one, it was too late. Harry was too real by then for me to try to put him in a dress. That wasn't going to work. And then there was Hermione-- and Hermione is an indispensable part of the books and how the adventures happen. And she so much me that I felt no guilt about keeping the hero who had walked into my head. You know, it was uncontrived. It wasn't conscious. That's how he happened. So I kept him that way.


In our remaining moments, let's get another question. A pair of sisters are together. Watch.

I want to know why you-- or where you got the names for certain things like the literary references behind them, like why is Hogwarts called Hogwarts?
I love names, as anyone who has read the book is going to see only too clearly.

You are a name freak.
I am a bit of a name freak. A lot of the names that I didn't invent come from maps. Snape is a place name in Britain. Dumbledore means-- dumbledore is an old English dialect word for bumblebee, because he is a musical person. And I imagine him humming to himself all the time. Hagrid is also an old English word. Hedwig was a saint, a Medieval saint. I collect them. You know, if I hear a good name, I have got to write it down. And it will probably crop up somewhere.

And yet, another interview. I did edit out some things I thought were non-essential.

Thank you once again to Mugglenet!


© BBC, March 12, 2001

BBC Chat, March, 2001



How do you choose the names for your books?
With difficulty... I've changed my mind a few times, that was a problem with Goblet of Fire which was originally called 'The Doomspell Tournament'.

How old is Prof. Dumbledore and Prof. Snape?
Dumbledore's about 150 years old... Wizards have a longer life expectancy than us Muggles. Snape's 35 or 36.

What's the favourite Harry Potter Book that you've written so far?
Probably Goblet of Fire, though it's very hard to choose. It's usually the book you've done most recently.

Will the Weasley twins open their joke shop, where and when?
Come on... do you really really think I'm going to tell you that?!


How do you choose the names for the creatures in your stories?
I make up most of them, but some of them are obscure old English words I like and merrily abuse by applying them to some horrible creature. I also get a lot of names from maps. I don't imagine I'm very popular in Dursley.

Do you need a Wand to do Magic?
You can do unfocused and uncontrolled magic without a wand (for instance when Harry blows up Aunt Marge), but to do really good spells, yes, you need a wand.


Does it bother you that in America they changed the names of your books?
They changed the first title, but with my consent. To be honest, I wish I hadn't agreed now, but it was my first book, and I was so grateful that anyone was publishing me I wanted to keep them happy...

Has Harry got a middle name and if so what is it?
Yes, he has, it's James, of course!


How carefully do you plan your books?
So carefully I sometimes feel as though my brain is going to explode.


Why were there no pictures in your books?
Actually, I drew some pictures for book one, and the publishers didn't want them. They felt that putting in pictures implied the books were for younger children, but I drew the pics for Quidditch Through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts, so that was fun.

What is the approximate value of a galleon?
About five pounds, though the exchange rate varies!

If you could travel to Hogwarts for an hour, what would you do there?
Go straight into a certain room, mentioned in book four, which has certain magical properties Harry hasn't discovered yet!

How many rough copies do you have to do before you get it right?
Loads and loads and loads. The worst ever was thirteen different versions of one chapter (chapter nine in Goblet of Fire). I hated that chapter so much; at one point, I thought of missing it out altogether and just putting in a page saying 'Chapter Nine was too difficult' and going straight to Chapter Ten.

You have mentioned that there are wizard schools all over the world. Is there any possibility that you may write about some of them?
Well, as you'll know if you've read Goblet, I've already written about a couple of them, but a whole series, no... I'm loyal to Hogwarts!


Which character do you most enjoy writing for?
Good question... Gilderoy Lockhart was loads of fun, but he was a bit of a one-joke character, and I think I did as much as I could with him. I love writing Hagrid and the Dursleys, too. Oh, and Fred and George... all of them, now I come to think of it.

I love the idea of Harry getting older, do you think you might be tempted to write books about Harry when he is working and has a family of his own?
Hmmmmmm... yet another person who is convinced I'm not going to kill him off! Where you people get the idea I'm soft-hearted I don't know. I'm joking. Or am I?


Is J.K. Rowling your real name or is it your 'writers' name?
My real name is Joanne Rowling. My publishers wanted another initial, so I gave myself my favourite grandmother's name as a middle name 'Kathleen'.

When is Ron's Birthday?
First of March, in case you're thinking of sending him a card, and Hermione is the nineteenth of September.

What was Professor Trelawney's first genuine prediction?
You'll find out! The best questions - the ones from really attentive and thoughtful readers-- are always the ones I can't answer-- they give too much away!

Have any of the Hogwarts professors had spouses?
Good question-- yes, a few of them, but that information is sort of restricted-- you'll find out why.

Will Harry ever notice the long-suffering Ginny Weasley?
You'll see... poor Ginny, eh?


Does Hermione like Ron as more than a friend?
The answer to that is in Goblet of Fire!

Do we find out more about James Potter's family history in the next books?
Yes, you do...

Where did you get your idea for the house elves?
House-elves exist in folklore. I didn't invent the tradition that if you present them with clothes they will leave. I thought it would be funny if they thought clothes were a disgrace. Except, of course, for Dobby.

What happened to Neville's Toad?
He's still lurking.


If you could pick your own wand core what would it be?
Phoenix feather and... let's see... possibly walnut. I love walnut wood.

In the first of the interviews it states that James was a Chaser, why thereofre does it say on the film that James was Seeker? As well as well into the books including Book 5 where he is walking with the Snitch. Anyone help?

More for our hungry eyes . . .

Regarding book 5

JP: So there will be some pairing up will there in this book?

JKR: Well in the fullness of time.

JP: Unlikely pairings? Not Hermione and Draco Malfoy or anything like that?

JKR: I don't really want to say as it will ruin all the fan sites. They have such fun with their theories... and it is fun, it is fun. And some of them even get quite close. No-one has ever - I have gone and looked at some of it and no-one's ever... There is one thing that if anyone guessed I would be really annoyed as it is kind of the heart of it all. And it kind of explains everything and no-one's quite got there but a couple of people have skirted it. So you know, I would be pretty miffed after thirteen or fourteen years of writing the books if someone just came along and said I think this will happen in book seven. Because it is too late, I couldn't divert now, everything has been building up to it, and I've laid all my clues.

JP: Is Harry going to become a bolshy teenager?

JKR: He's a lot, lot, lot angrier in this book. He really is quite angry a lot of the time and I think justifiably so, look at what he has gone through. It is about time he started feeling a little bit miffed at the hand life has dealt him.

JP: How far are you into it?

JKR: Not that far because I had a baby. But yeah, I started it when I was still pregnant with David. And I actually did get some writing done the other day, and that's not bad going considering he's only ten weeks. So he's pretty full time at the moment. But yeah I did a bit more the other day.

JP: Are we going to discover anything more about Snape ?

JKR: Yes.

JP: And Harry's mother? Did he have a crush on Harry's mother or unrequited love or anything like that?

JKR: Hence his animosity to Harry?

JP: Yes.

JKR: You speculate?

JP: I speculate, yes, I'm just asking whether you can tell us.

JKR: No I can't tell you. But you do find out a lot more about Snape and quite a lot more about him actually.

JP: A horrible death of a significant figure.

JKR: Yeah. I went into the kitchen having done it...

JP: What, killed this person?

JKR: Yeah. Well I had re-written the death, re-written it and that was it. It was definitive. And the person was definitely dead. And I walked into the kitchen crying and Neil said to me, "What on earth is wrong?" and I said, "Well, I've just killed the person". Neil doesn't know who the person is. But I said, "I've just killed the person. And he said, "Well, don't do it then." I thought, a doctor you know... and I said "Well it just doesn't work like that. You are writing children's books, you need to be a ruthless killer."

JP: So you know what is going to become of all the major characters over the span of the series?

JKR: Yeah... yeah.

JP: Why stop when they grow up? Might be interesting to know what becomes of Harry as an adult.

JKR: How do you know he'll still be alive?

JP: Oh. At the end of book 7?

JKR: It would be one way to kill of the merchandising.

JP: And these scraps of paper which you've filed elegantly in a carrier, they're plot ideas or...

JKR: Well some of them are totally redundant now because its been written and I keep them out of sentimentality's sake, I suppose. But some of it has backstory in it like this - in here is the history of the Death Eaters and I don't know that I'll ever actually need it - but at some point - which were once called something different - they were called the Knights of Walpurgis. I don't know if I'll need it. But I like knowing it. I like to keep that sort of stuff on hand.

JP: We know that you've written the ending.

JKR: I've written the final chapter of book seven.

JP: So you know where you are going to get to. Do you know how you are going to get there?

JKR: Yes. Yes. I mean I allow a margin. It would be so boring if I really knew. It would be joining the dots, wouldn't it? It's not that well worked out. But it's fairly well plotted. I mean it would be worrying if it weren't at this stage, wouldn't it, if I slid off book five and wondered what shall I write out in book six? You know, it's a complicated story so I need to know what I'm doing.

JP: So you didn't have writer's block. The reason this book has been - what three years... Three years since the last one isn't it? Why has it taken so long?

JKR: Well it hasn't.

JP: Huh?

JKR: Well it hasn't. The book didn't take that long. I decided... What happened was, so Goblet of Fire, I was really in quite a state by the time that book was finished, and I mean at that point I really did feel a lot of things came together with Goblet of Fire. I mean the press attention had reached an hitherto unknown level, and I couldn't work outside the house anymore, and just a hell of a lot of stuff was going on, you know. It was the fame thing. Do I still feel like that? No. But that's because I took the time off.

And I was still writing during those three years because I never stop writing. But I didn't want to be published again. That was the big difference. So when I finished Goblet of Fire, I said to - there were only two publishers who had bought the next book - and I said to both of them, I want to repay my advance. And both of them, you could almost hear them having cardiac arrest on the end of the phone. "Why do you want to repay your advance?" And I said, because I don't want to publish next year. I want to write this book in a more leisurely way and I want to take some time off.

Because I had... I finished Philosopher's Stone, I literally started Chamber of Secrets that afternoon. I finished Chamber of Secrets, I started Prisoner of Azkaban the next day. And I finished Azkaban and I'd already started Goblet of Fire because they overlapped - so there was absolutely no let-up. And I knew I couldn't do it. I just knew I couldn't do it; my brain was going to short circuit if I tried to do that again. So they said "Well, how about we do still get the book when you finish it, but we don't have a deadline?" So I said okay. So that's how we worked it. So there was no deadline. So, just once and for all, and for the record, I didn't miss the deadline. Because there was no deadline.

JP: Has Book Five - that thing that's the size of a house brick - it was originally much longer than that, was it?

JKR: No, actually it wasn't . It's about the size - originally I thought it would be slightly shorter than Goblet of Fire - and what is the phrase? The tale grew in the telling. It did. The thing is, I've got so much now, so much backstory to tell, but I really mean it this time. Six will not need to be that long. I had to move them around a lot in there, there's a lot of to-ing and fro-ing in there.

More . . .

Moderator Here's one from Emily: When people trade in Muggle money for Wizard money, what does Gringotts do with the Muggle money?

J.K. Rowling: Those goblins are sneaky people. They manage to put the Muggle money back into circulation. They are like ?fences? -- British slang, do you understand it?

Moderator Here's one from Tiger Lily: What did James and Lily Potter do when they were alive?

J.K. Rowling: Well, I can't go into too much detail, because you're going to find out in future books. But James inherited plenty of money, so he didn't need a well-paid profession. You'll find out more about both Harry's parents later.

Moderator Jasmine asks: When is Hermione's birthday?

J.K. Rowling: Hermione's birthday is September 19th.

Moderator There so many people with "Harry Potter" screen names! One asks: Why did Dumbledore have a look of triumph in his eyes at the end of book four?

J.K. Rowling: Good question... excellent question, in fact, and like all the best questions I get asked, I can't answer it! Because it would give too much away. However, well-spotted. Have fun guessing... someone's bound to get it right!

Moderator Samoran asks: Why do some wizards/witches become ghosts and others don't?

J.K. Rowling: Another superb question, and this time I can tell you that you will find out much more about that in book five.

Moderator Jeanie asks: I think the color of Harry's eyes will matter in the books to come. Yes?

J.K. Rowling: Hmmmm... maybe!

Nimbus: Ms. Rowling, will Voldemort ever die?

J.K. Rowling: Do you really, really think I will answer that?!

Moderator Another "Harry Potter" asks: Where did James get his Invisibility Cloak?

J.K. Rowling: That was inherited from his own father -- a family heirloom!

Moderator From Emily: Is there ever going to be female Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher?

J.K. Rowling: Emily, I can exclusively reveal (because I'm feeling guilty I'm not answering so many good questions) that there WILL be.

Moderator Why did you make Quirrell the bad guy instead of Snape?

J.K. Rowling: Because I know all about Snape, and he wasn't about to put on a turban.

Moderator Narri asks: Is there a reason Fleur's name means "flower of the heart"?

J.K. Rowling: Ah, Narri, you're nearly there... in fact, it means ?flower of the court,? like a noblewoman. Heart is ?coeur.? (I used to be a French teacher, sorry.)

Moderator Sam asks: Will Harry time-travel again?

J.K. Rowling: Not telling!

http://www.fronskiefeint.com/jkinterviews.html

How do you come up with all the unique names, places, and things that help make Harry Potter so intriguing?
Many of the names are invented, for example "Quidditch" and "Muggle." I also collect unusual names, and I take them from all sorts of different places. "Hedwig" was a saint, "Dumbledore" is an old English word for "bumblebee," and "Snape" is the name of a place in England.

http://www.mugglenet.com/etoysinterview1.shtml

How old is Prof. Dumbledore and Prof. Snape?
Dumbledore's about 150 years old... Wizards have a longer life expectancy than us Muggles. Snape's 35 or 36.

What is the approximate value of a galleon?
About five pounds, though the exchange rate varies!

I love the idea of Harry getting older, do you think you might be tempted to write books about Harry when he is working and has a family of his own?
Hmmmmmm... yet another person who is convinced I'm not going to kill him off! Where you people get the idea I'm soft-hearted I don't know. I'm joking. Or am I?


Is J.K. Rowling your real name or is it your 'writers' name?
My real name is Joanne Rowling. My publishers wanted another initial, so I gave myself my favourite grandmother's name as a middle name 'Kathleen'.

When is Ron's Birthday?
First of March, in case you're thinking of sending him a card, and Hermione is the nineteenth of September.

Have any of the Hogwarts professors had spouses?
Good question-- yes, a few of them, but that information is sort of restricted-- you'll find out why.

Will Harry ever notice the long-suffering Ginny Weasley?
You'll see... poor Ginny, eh?

Does Hermione like Ron as more than a friend?
The answer to that is in Goblet of Fire!

Do we find out more about James Potter's family history in the next books?
Yes, you do...

http://www.mugglenet.com/bbcchat1.shtml

Q: What is the meaning behind Harry's lightning bolt scar?

A: There are some things I can tell you about it and some things I can't. I wanted him to be physically marked by what he has been through. It was an outward expression of what he has been through inside.

I gave him a scar and in a prominent place so other people would recognize him. It is almost like being the chosen one, or the cursed one, in a sense. Someone tried to kill him; that's how he got it.

I chose the lightning bolt because it was the most plausible shape for a distinctive scar. As you know, the scar has certain powers, and it gives Harry warnings. I can't say more than that, but there is more to say.

http://www.mugglenet.com/hcinterview1.shtml


JK: For my own mental health it's best not to go onto the internet and type in Harry Potter too often because it's scary!

I will say that while the court case was going on someone told me to go and have a look at a couple of the fan sites and I did and they were very very supportive of me.

It meant a lot to me at a time when I was wondering whether anyone would ever believe that I hadn't stolen from someone else -I'd like to say thank you to those people.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/uk/newsi...000/2269270.stm

Steve, Hermione is a character that you have said is one of your favorites. Has that made her easier to write?

Steve:
Well, I like writing all three, but I've always loved writing Hermione. Because, she's just one... she's a tremendous character for a lot of reasons to a writer, one being she can carry exposition in a wonderful way because you just assume she read it in a book.

JKR:
Very true, I find that all the time in the books, if you need to tell the readers something just put it in her. There's really only two characters that you can put it convincingly into their dialogue: One is Hermione, the other one is Dumbledore. In both cases you accept, it's plausible that they have, well Dumbledore knows pretty much everything that's going on anyway... but with Hermione that she read it in a book. She's really handy that way.

Steve:
Yeah, she's really handy. And she's also, I think, just tremendously entertaining. There's something about her fierce intellect coupled with her complete lack of understanding of how she affects the other people sometimes that I just find charming and irresistable to write.
http://www.mugglenet.com/cosdvdint.shtml

very interesting dij!!! very good work the whole thing about the invisibility cloak and money inherited from james and being family heirloons etc makes me believe even more that they were related to godric griffindor

the way she said 'poor Ginny eh' is a bit cryptic......makes me think that she's not going to be a poor Ginny after all.....maybe Ginny will inherit loads of money? Maybe Harry will leave everything to her or the Weasleys?
Bunny

Lilly potions hmm i dont think so remember what they said bout her wand it was good for charm work but im sure james may have been defence against the dark arts teacher its just to much of a coincidence (was it cursed before he took it or not until after) it was also said in an interveiw he didnt need a well paid job i discussed this on the old board if u can find it

Right, I belive that Lily may have been a charms teacher, but I think that McG already had that job by then, But james definitely the DADA teacher. Also, rremember that Ollivander says that he recalls selling Lily her first wand - why her first? Did he then have to sell her a second? What happened to the first?

yes more . . ..

Couric: “Any snogging with Hermione?”

Rowling: (slight frown) “Hermione and Harry! Do you think so?”

Couric: “No I’m kidding.

Rowling: “Ron and Hermione, I would say, have more potential (or did she say “tension”) there”

Couric: “You said when the last book came out that the death of one character was quote, ‘the beginning of the deaths.’ Yikes!”

Rowling: “Yeah, that’s nice, isn’t it. There’s going to be a blood bath [laughter].”

Couric: “Warm and fuzzy.What does that mean?”

Rowling: “It’s a war. Essentially a war has broken out again and when I say the beginning of the deaths, I mean the deaths that are meaningful, I suppose, to the reader. In this book, what I consider to be a major character dies. It was awful to write. It was absolutely awful.

Rowling also dispelled the rumor there would be more than the seven Harry Potter books she’s promised. (JKR: “I don’t know where that rumor came from.”) And true to form, she says she won’t accept a deadline for writing the last two. But one thing is for sure — now that the word “muggle” has been added to the Oxford Dictionary, Jo Rowling’s assured of literary immortality.

http://www.quick-quote-quill.org/articles/...line-couric.htm


Stephen Fry: How wonderful! Particularly in America where they’re more perhaps theatrical than we are about these things – you get boys dressed as Harry and girls as Hermione?

JK Rowling: Many boys dressed as Harry. Lately I’ve noticed people like dressing up as Draco a lot more, which I’m finding a little bit worrying. You’re all getting far too fond of Draco )

Stephen Fry: The dark forces are rising Jo )

JK Rowling: The dark forces are indeed rising!

Stephen Fry: And the names I have to mention the names, you mentioned Mundungus being tobacco…. A lot of the names have very particular meanings; Albus Dumbledore is on the side of light his name means “white” in Latin. Alba was an old name for Britain.

JK Rowling: It also means wisdom in Latin.

Stephen Fry: Yes, “Alb” - What about Malfoy? What does that mean?

JK Rowling: Malfoy is a made-up name but you could say it was old French for bad faith. It really suits him.

Stephen Fry: Bad Faith…Malfoy…perfect isn’t it. I’m sure the boys and girls nave noticed that the Hogwarts School motto is Latin and what is it?

JK Rowling: Well, you’re one of the few people I’ve met who knew what it meant “Never tickle a sleeping dragon”.

Question from Neil Sierra Sidney Australia

Video: “Have you ever considered writing a book about Harry 5 or 10 years later - after he’s left Hogwarts?”

JK Rowling: I get asked this question about whether I’m going to write about Harry when he’s grown up. I always say “You’ll have to wait and see whether he survives to be a grown up”

Stephen Fry: Uhn..that’s a frightening thought…isn’t it my goodness!

JK Rowling: Sorry. I’m not saying he won’t but I don’t want to give anything away at this point.

Stephen Fry: Malfoy, Goyle and Crabbe are almost irredeemably bad – certainly there’s almost nothing attractive about about Goyle and Crabbe, repulsive – Malfoy is reasonably stylish…

JK Rowling: Malfoy is certainly stylish in the film –

Stephen Fry: Yes, and even in the books there is a certain flair. Most characters like Snape are hard to love but there is a sort of ambiguity – you can’t quite decide - something sad about him – lonely and it’s fascinating when you think he’s going to be the evil one a party from Voldemort obviously in the first book then slowly you get this idea he’s not so bad after all.

JK Rowling: Yes but you shouldn’t think him too nice. It is worth keeping an eye on old Severus definitely!

Stephen Fry: Why does Dumbledore …(simplifies) one of the most awful things in the world when we are young, is injustice – when something’s unfair it makes us so angry. One of the things is I get upset on Harry’s behalf about how people tell lies about him. We know he’s brave and actually saved the magical world on numerous occasions, yet he has to start all over again in each book and do all over again and prove himself again. Dumbledore knows how good he is and how bad the fathers of Deatheaters, Crabbe and Goyle are.

JK Rowling: I don’t want to say too much but Dumbledore is a very wise man who knows that Harry is going to have to learn a few hard lessons to prepare him for what may be coming in his life. He allows Harry to get into what he wouldn’t allow another pupil to do and he also unwillingly permits Harry to confront things he’d rather protect him from. As people who’ve read the Order of The Phoenix will know; Dumbledore has had to step back from Harry to teach him some of life’s harder lessons.

Stephen Fry: But it doesn’t matter that it sounds corny … it’s desperately important that the way Harry solves all his problems is really through his courage, his friendship, and his loyalty and stoutness of heart.

JK Rowling: “Stoutness of heart” – is a very good phrase!”

Harry is not a good enough wizard yet to even attempt to take on Voldemort as wizard to wizard. He’s escaped him three, four times if you count the encounter with Tom Riddle. He keeps doing it because there is one thing that Voldemort doesn’t understand and that’s the power that keeps Harry going. And we all know what that power is.

Stephen Fry: Where were you at school?

JK Rowling: In the Forest of Dean – that’s why Hagrid has that accent; He comes from The Forest of Dean.

Jackson: “Professor Snape has always wanted to be Defence Against Dark Arts teacher. In book 5 he still hasn’t got the job. Why does Prof Dumbedore not allow him to be Defence Against The Dark Arts teacher?”

JK Rowling: That is an excellent question and the reason is that I have to be careful what I say here. To answer it fully would give a lot away about the remaining two books.

When Prof Dumbledore took Prof Snape onto the staff and Prof Snape said “I’d like to be Prof of Defence Against the Dark Arts please” and Prof Dumbledore felt it might bring out the worst in Snape so said “I think we’ll get you to teach Potions and see how you get along there”.

Stephen Fry: Now, Snape, we talked about him a little before, there’s something about letter “s”, isn’t there especially with that ”n” with it, you can’t help saying it without sneering or snarling… Snarl, sneer…

JK Rowling: Snake! I could have very easily called him, Snicket instead but it’s a funnier, kinder word so I didn’t.

Stephen Fry: Or sneeze is pleasant and of course and the Founder of the House (at Hogwarts) was Salazar Slytherin - another snaky thing. Snakes feature a lot – is a Parselmouth a real thing or did you make that up?

JK Rowling: Parselmouth is an old word for someone who has a problem with the mouth, like a hare lip.

JK Rowling: No… I didn’t, I will say this. I had to put in some things because of what’s coming in books 6 and 7 and I didn’t want anyone to say to me “what a cheat you never gave us clues”. If I didn’t mention things in Order of the Phoenix I think you’ve said “well, you sprang that on us”! Whereas I want you to be able to guess if you’ve got your wits about you.

Stephen Fry: To set up surprises..

Stephen Fry: Yes, there are few surprises coming.

Stephen Fry: It is another one of the most horrible and brilliant inventions of the books is this snobbery this idea of purebloods and mudbloods and this idea of mingling, mixed breeding which is a reflection of some of the things like racism and intolerance that we have in our world. Is that deliberate or did it come to you in a flash again or did it just suddenly…

JK Rowling: That was deliberate it was always there from the beginning as you saw with Draco – even from first book with Draco Harry discovers him first being rude about Muggles. I was also playing with that when I created Professor Lupin having a contagious disease so people are frightened of him. I really liked him as a character but he also has his failing though he’s a nice man and a wonderful teacher – in fact he’s the one time I’ve written a teacher… the kind of teacher I’d have loved to have had. McGonagall is a good teacher but scary at times. Lupin’s failing is he likes to be liked. That’s where he slips up – he’s been disliked so often he’s always pleased to have friends so cuts them an awful lot of slack.

Stephen Fry. Luna Lovegood lets talk about Luna Lovegood ……….

JK Rowling: Yes! I don’t know where she came from but I really like Luna – really fun to write. She’s slightly out of step in many ways but she’s the anti-Hermione. Hermione’s so logical and inflexible in so many ways and Luna is likely to believe 10 impossible things before breakfast…

Email: “Harry saw his parents die so why hasn’t he been able to see the Thestrals before?”

JK Rowling: I knew I was going to get that one…that is an excellent question. And here is the truth. At the end of Goblet of Fire we sent Harry home more depressed than he had ever been leaving Howarts. I knew that Thestrals were coming, and I can prove that because they’re in the book I’d produced for Comic Relief (UK) “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”.

These are lucky Black Winged Horses. However, if Harry had seen them and it had not been explained then it would cheat the reader. So, to explain that to myself, I decided you had to have seen the death and allowed it to sink in a bit… slowly…these creatures became solid in front of you. So that’s how I’m going to sneak past that one.

Stephen Fry: Absolutely, I mean if you can’t write new characters in new books that would be a bit hard on you. Can you explain in words of not more that two syllables, What is Arithmancy?

JK Rowling: Well your guess is as good as mine Stephen. Arithmancy is predicting the future using numbers. I’ve decided there’s a bit of numerology in there as well but how you do it I really don’t know.

http://www.msn.co.uk/liveevents/harrypotter/transcript/

Okay, here's the lastest, HP Fans, and it's a doozy - just from this morning's World Book Day Festival, here's the transcript! I've bolded some important stuff.

JK Rowling says: Hi everyone, I'm here LIVE and ready to answer your questions!
kylie: Thanks for writing such wonderful books, Ms Rowling . Just one question: What are Ron, Hermione and Ginny's middle names? Thank you
JK Rowling replies -> My pleasure:) Middle names: Ginny is Molly, of course, Hermione 'Jane' and Ron, poor boy, is Bilius.
Sirius Riddle: What houses were Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter and Remus Lupin in? Everyone tells me they were all Gryffindor, but I won't believe it unless I hear it from Ms. Rowling herself!
JK Rowling says: This is JK herself saying that they were indeed in Gryffindor!
Stacey, 11 from Plymouth: If you got the chance to make a Polyjuice Potion, who would you be and why? And what would you do in the hour time limit? ****BBC1 NEWSROUND COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> I'd like to be Tony Blair for an hour. I'd call a press conference and announce all the policies I'd like to implement!
Adele: Thanks for the interview! So... will Harry be receiving a second kiss in his last two years at Hogwarts?
JK Rowling replies -> He might well be receiving another kiss (or two) but I'm not saying who the kisser's going to be...
hermione 3: ¿will Harry and Hermione will be together?*sight*
JK Rowling replies -> lol Not saying... but you've had enough clues by now, surely?!
kylie: What does the "J" in Remus J Lupin stand for?
JK Rowling replies -> 'John'. Boring but true!

Rita: Whatever happend to Sirius' flying motorbike?JK Rowling replies -> Ah, good question. You'll find out, but the real sleuths among you might be able to guess.
Rita: What about Wormtail? Is there hope for redemption?
JK Rowling replies -> There's always hope, of course. You'll find out more about our rat-like friend in book six.

Rita: What happend to Harry's grandparents? Will we ever learn about them?
JK Rowling replies -> They're all dead and not particularly important to the story, although you will find out a little bit more.

Kelpie_8: Will the two way mirror Sirius gave Harry ever show up again?
JK Rowling replies -> Ooooo good question. There's your answer.

Shannon from St Mary Magdalen's Junior School - LondonHow do you feel when you see children reading your books? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> I feel incredibly proud. Sometimes I want to poke them in the back and say 'guess who?' but I restrain myself.

Cathedral: Will we be hearing anything from Sirius Black's brother, Regulus, in future books?JK Rowling replies -> Well, he's dead, so he's pretty quiet these days.

SiriuslyLovinSirius: If we ever see Sirius again, what form will he be in?JK Rowling replies -> I couldn't possibly answer that for fear of incriminating myself.

Rorujin: Did Wormtail used Voldemort's wand to kill Cedric? Is it why Cedric comes out of Voldemort's wand even though was Wormtail who killed him?
JK Rowling replies -> Correct!


Potter47: Will Harry tell Neville about the Prophesy?
JK Rowling replies -> Harry will tell his nearest and dearest about the prophecy when he's ready. He needs time to digest the news himself first.

Potter47: What is the sixth book going to be called? The seventh?
JK Rowling replies -> It will be called 'Harry Potter and...' something. Catchy, don't you think? And I think I'll follow the same model for seven.

Rorujin: How is Dobby abele to apparate inside Hogwarts if no one else can?
JK Rowling replies -> He's a house-elf, they've got powers wizards haven't got (but wizards have also got powers that house-elves haven't).


polly weasley: Will Harry fall for another girl in book six, or will he be too busy for romance?
JK Rowling replies -> He'll be busy, but what's life without a little romance?

Field: Regarding Harrys subconscious feelings, how has it changed from book 1 to book 5?
JK Rowling replies -> Well he's obviously been through a lot since book one and book five was the book when he cracked up a little. In book six, the wizarding world is really at war again and he has to master his own feelings to make himself useful.
Jangles: Are you going to write books about harry after school?
JK Rowling replies -> Probably not, but I'll never say never because every time I do I immediately break the vow!

Kirk Wilkins: Will you ever publish all your notebooks of information on the series? I am very interested in reading 150 pages on the history of the dementors!
JK Rowling replies -> lol Who said there were 150 pages on the dementors??? I certainly didn't! I don't think I'll ever publish my notebooks. Too many revealing doodlings!

coolbeans3131: Would you like to see the same actors portray the trio in all 7 movies?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, I would. I really like all three of them.

Kirsten from Kirkintilloch High School: If Hagrid was a real person and came to your house, what would you cook him for dinner? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Something like an entire side of beef, I think. And I'm quite good at Yorkshire puddings, so a couple of dozen of them, too.
snowball: Do you think a film no longer than the first two films can do justice to a book as long and complex as Goblet of Fire?
JK Rowling replies -> I think that they will have to simplify the plot somewhat. Steve Kloves, the scriptwriter, is really good and if anyone can do the essence of the book justice, he can.
Potter47: Did you come up with "Sugar Quills" from Charlie and the Chocolate factory? I believe there were "Sugar Pencils" in that book.
JK Rowling replies -> Oh dear, I don't know whether I did or not. Not consciously, anyway. But it's not a very difficult idea to come up with; we all suck the ends of pens and pencils (or I do), so it seemed logical to make them taste nice, and at Hogwarts, obviously, they use quills!


Delleve: Are there any plans for any more background books like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch Through the Ages in the future?
JK Rowling replies -> Possibly. If I do them, it will be for charity like the first two.


Jami: Is Harry related to Godric Gryffindor?JK Rowling replies -> People are always wondering who Harry might be related to. Maybe he is


Calliope: Are the Muggle and Magical worlds ever going to be rejoined?
JK Rowling replies -> No, the breach was final, although as book six shows, the Muggles are noticing more and more odd happenings now that Voldemort's back.


Sirius Kase: Will we get to know the Grangers? Is Hermione an only child?
JK Rowling replies -> I always planned that Hermione would have a younger sister but she's never made an appearance and somehow it feels like it might be too late now.


mnich: Is it true Harry will get a more permanent injury in the sixth book?
JK Rowling replies -> I've read this rumour on the net and I'm not sure where it came from. I don't really want to get into what happens to Harry in book six, but I certainly never said that he would have a 'more permanent injury'.

Fran from Kesteven and Grantham Girls' School: Which character in the Harry Potter books are you most like? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Hermione when I was younger, definitely. But there's a bit of Harry and Ron in me too.

mnich: Was Voldemort born evil?
JK Rowling replies -> I don't believe that anybody was born evil. You will find out more about the circumstances of his birth in the next book.

Softballchicky32: What is the extent of Hagrid's magical powers?
JK Rowling replies -> Not great! He can do magic to a fairly basic standard and occasionally surprises everyone (himself included) by bringing off more impressive bits of magic. Of course, he is somewhat hampered by the fact that his wand is broken and disguised as an umbrella.

LizardLaugh: I love Tonks, she's my favorite new character. Will she play a large role in future books and/or in Harry's life?
JK Rowling replies -> Tonks is hanging around. I really like her, too.
Arianna: Can we believe everything the sorting hat says?
JK Rowling replies -> The Sorting Hat is certainly sincere.

mnich: If you had a job in the wizarding world, what do you think you would be?
JK Rowling replies -> I can't think of anything I'd rather do than write, so I suppose I'd write spellbooks!

Fenny: Will Lord Voldemort get more 'screentime' in the upcoming books?
JK Rowling replies -> You will see him again, but like most evil dictators, he prefers his henchmen to do his dirty work.

HG: Will we see Moaning Myrtle again?
JK Rowling replies -> Oh yes, I love Myrtle, I couldn't shut her out for long.

HPFreak7: How did Harry get the Marauder's Map back, when Crouch Jr. had it last?
JK Rowling replies -> Loads of people have asked me this, I knew I should have shown Harry nipping into Moody's empty office and getting it back, but I assumed you'd all know that's what he did. Sorry!

Denise from Blackheath High School for Girls – London: If Harry Potter was a girl, do you think his adventures would have been different? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, I do think they would be different. I imagined Harry as a boy from the start, so I've never thought about 'Harriet Potter', but I'm sure lots of things in the books would change, Ron for a start, he'd have to be Ronalda.
***
HG: What is Trelawney's middle name (the one with the P)?
JK Rowling replies -> Patricia.

Rita: Will Neville have a bigger part to play?
JK Rowling replies -> I think he's already got a much bigger part. Neville has changed a lot as he's become older and more confident. Book five was a real turning point for Neville.

Cathedral: Don't want to rune the ending, but will we be finding out more about the significance of the shape of Harry's scar in future books?
JK Rowling replies -> The shape is not the most significant aspect of that scar, and that's all I'm going to say!

Adele: Will poor Harry be stuck at the Dursleys' all next summer?
JK Rowling replies -> Not all summer, no. In fact, he has the shortest stay in Privet Drive so far.

MauraEllen: Did the debt Wormtail has to Harry carry over to Voldemort when he sacrificed his arm to restore his body?
JK Rowling replies -> No. Can't say any more than that!

Echo: Was Percy acting entirely of his own accord in Order of the Phoenix?
JK Rowling replies -> I'm afraid so.

Wild Rose: Will we see more of Narcissa Malfoy now that Lucius is unavailale?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, you will.

queenmarion: I noticed in the Black Family tree that everyone is named after a constellation. Is this intentional? Does this have any bearing on the plot?
JK Rowling replies -> It's just one of those family traditions, although Narcissa breaks the trend. I had always thought of her as 'Narcissa' so I decided not to change her to match the others when I came up with their names. There's been a lot of speculation that she is in some way linked to Lily and Petunia, because of the flower theme, but I can put that rumour to rest here: she isn't related to them.

kelly_holland: When you turn into an Animagus, can you choose what animal you become? Or does this get "assigned" to you?
JK Rowling replies -> No, you can't choose. You become the animal that suits you best. Imagine the humiliation when you finally transform after years of study and find that you most closely resemble a warthog.

Josh from Cottenham Village College: Right at the beginning, when Voldermort tried to kill Harry, how did Voldermort and Harry both survive? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> That is the crucial and central question and if I answered it there would be hardly any point writing books six and seven... so I won't!

hanna: How did you feel when your first Harry Potter book came out?
JK Rowling replies -> Elated, ecstatic, extraordinarily happy!

Amy: What did Dudley see when he faced the Dementors in book five?
JK Rowling replies -> Ah, good question. You'll find out!

Chibimono: Do you have any future plans in particular for Draco Malfoy?
JK Rowling replies -> I've got plans for all my characters. Actually, this is a really good place to answer a question about Draco and Hermione, which a certain Ms. Radcliffe is desperate to have answered. Will they end up together in book six/seven? NO! The trouble is, of course, that girls fancy Tom Felton, but Draco is NOT Tom Felton! (My daughter likes TF very much too, because he taught her how to use a diablo)

ashvital: Which of your books does your daughter like best?
JK Rowling replies -> It would be between Goblet of Fire and Order of the Phoenix. She likes ACTION!

HPFreak7: How are muggle parents convinced to let their kids go to Hogwarts, a strange place they never heard of before; and wouldn't they think it was a practical joke?
JK Rowling replies -> In the case of Muggle parents, special messengers are sent to explain everything to them. But don't forget that they will have noticed that there's something strange about their child for the previous ten years, so it won't come as a complete bolt from the blue.

Helen from Ulverston Victoria High School - Cumbria: Do you realise Harry & co sit on their broomsticks backwards? You can't balance like that? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> lol You clearly haven't read 'Quidditch Through the Ages', or you'd know about the cushioning charm! Buy it at once, it's for charity!

renata: What happened between hermiona and viktor krum during the summer?
JK Rowling replies -> Ron would like to know that, too.

Persia: If a muggle looks at hogwarts what will they see? love Persia
JK Rowling replies -> Nice name, Persia. They will see nothing but a ruined castle with large signs on it saying 'keep out, dangerous building.'

katty: if you were to have a magical power what would you chose to have apart from the ability to write cos yyou;ve already got that
JK Rowling replies -> I would like to fly. And sometimes to turn off other people's voices.

starlinguk: Do you believe in prophecies in real life?
JK Rowling replies -> No, I don't. And even in the wizarding world, as McGonagall explains in Prisoner of Azkaban, true Seers are very rare.

Cris: One answer we're all longing for: How's the writing of book 6 going and when will it be released?
JK Rowling replies -> I can't say when it will be released [load groan that JKR can hear from here] because that's down to my publishers. But it's going really well. I am loving writing it.

Andrews: Does Voldemort die in the last book?
JK Rowling replies -> Now, do you really really think I'd answer that?!

Ernie: I wonder if you can let us know what form will Professor Snape's Boggart and Patronus take? I am very curious.
JK Rowling replies -> Well, I'm not going to tell you Ernie, but that's because it would give so much away. I wonder whether Ernie is your real name? (It was my grandfather's).


bertieana: Will we be seeing Krum again any time soon?
JK Rowling replies -> You will see Krum again, though not soon.

Adele: Who are the two "unknown Gryffindor girls" in Harry's year?
JK Rowling replies -> Oh, I've just understood what you mean. I haven't got the notebook to hand and I can't remember! That's terrible. I'll try and remember before the end of the chat!

Fiona from St Richard’s Catholic College: Hubble, Bubble, Toil & Trouble, Answer this question for which I have trouble, Frogs legs, bat wings, cow dung bell, How do you come up with all of those spells? Easter, Birthday, Christmas cards 'cause I have found it really hard! ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Sometimes I use elements of 'real' spells that people used to believe worked, but mostly I make them up.

Field: Do you plan for GInny to take on a major character role in the next two books?
JK Rowling replies -> Well, now that Ginny has stopped being mute in Harry's presence I think you can see that she is a fairly forceful personality (and she always has been, remember Ron saying that she 'never shuts up' in Chamber of Secrets)?

alixnecole: were you consulted at all when the actors were chosen for the movie?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, Chris Columbus, who was the director of the first film, asked me if there was anybody I thought would be good and I said 'RobbieColtraneForHagrid' in one breath.

Will: What is your favourite magical beast
JK Rowling replies -> The phoenix, definitely.

amanda: i want to be a writer, any tips
JK Rowling replies -> Read as much as you can. Keep writing and then throwing it away until one day you do something that you don't think belongs in the bin. Stick to writing what you know about. Don't give up.


RAXTA: How did you invent the sport 'Quiddicth'
JK Rowling replies -> I sat in a hotel room after a row with my then boyfriend and invented it. Looking back, I can understand why I liked the idea of Bludgers.

Saskia: Hagrid mentioned he`s allergic to cats in PS why has he never sneezed when Crookshanks was around?
JK Rowling replies -> He's never around Crookshanks very much. I'm allergic to cats and I can be in a room with one briefly. But of course, Crookshanks isn't all cat. Read 'Fantastic Beasts...'!

Phoenix_Tear: Do you ever get a dream which helps you in writing the Harry Potter series?
JK Rowling replies -> No, and I wish I had! I did once have an incredible dream about Nicholas Flamel, though.

Luisa: How old are Charlie and Bill Weasley in relation to their other siblings?
JK Rowling replies -> Oh dear, maths. Let me think. Bill is two years older than Charlie, who is two years older than Percy.

Leanne from Eastbrook Primary School - Hemel Hempstead: If you could spend a day in real life with one of your fictional characters, who would it be and what would you do? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> I think I'd most like to spend a day with Harry. I'd take him out for a meal and apologise for everything I've put him through.

Kyla: What made Sirius decide to send Snape to the Willow?
JK Rowling replies -> Because Sirius loathed Snape (and the feeling was entirely mutual). You'll find out more about this in due course.

zwimmey: Have you considered writing childrens' science fiction, or will you move on to a completely new genre?
JK Rowling replies -> I don't think I'd be very good at science fiction; you need to know some science! Probably a completely different genre.

kai: Where do wizarding children go to school before Hogwarts?
JK Rowling replies -> They can either go to a Muggle primary school or they are educated at home. The Weasleys were taught by Mrs. Weasley.

faye109: Is 12 the maximum possible number of OWLs one can achieve?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, I think it is off the top of my head.

Debbie: What will Ron's job be when he leaves school?
JK Rowling replies -> Well, assuming he lives to leave school... I'm not going to tell you

Krish: Do you think that the films reflect well on the books?
JK Rowling replies -> I think they're pretty faithful to the books. Hogwarts looks just as I imagined it; I had a lot of input on how the various locations look.

spud: What type of books did you read when you were younger?
JK Rowling replies -> Anything; books for adults and children alike.

julesrbf: Where did you come up with the word "muggle"?
JK Rowling replies -> I was looking for a word that suggested both foolishness and loveability. The word 'mug' came to mind, for somebody gullible, and then I softened it. I think 'muggle' sounds quite cuddly. I didn't know that the word 'muggle' had been used as drug slang at that point... ah well.

Siriusstar: Is Remus a pureblood?
JK Rowling replies -> Half blood.

bibwhang: Will Ron ever get on the Gryffindor quidditch team?
JK Rowling replies -> Well, he's already there! The question is, whether the new Quidditch Captain will allow him to stay!

Lucy: what happened to worm tale?
JK Rowling replies -> You'll find out in book six.

Bradley y4 Griffyndor: Why did you call the school Hogwarts
JK Rowling replies -> I tried all sorts of different versions of the name and then this word floated into my mind and I knew it was the right one.

Sussie: Does Harry's eyecolour become important in the future books, like we've heard?
JK Rowling replies -> No comment!

bubbles: if you were harry potter for a day what would you do?
JK Rowling replies -> If I, personally, were Harry Potter I think I would go and hide somewhere, but that's because I know what's coming!

Luisa: Is Draco an only child?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes. You wouldn't want more Dracos, would you?!

**

Majeed from Bristol Grammar School - Bristol: To what extent did you conceive Harry Potter as a moral tale? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> I did not conceive it as a moral tale, the morality sprang naturally out of the story, a subtle but important difference. I think any book that sets out to teach or preach is likely to be hard going at times (though I can think of a couple of exceptions).

Maidenhead Library: Why did you choose to do books about wizards?
JK Rowling replies -> It chose me... the idea just sprang into my head and I knew I had to write it.

Kings Park primaery school: which position would you like to play if you played quidditch?
JK Rowling replies -> Who wouldn't want to be Seeker? But I think I'd be dreadful at Quidditch, I'm not sporty, I'm not great with heights and I'm clumsy as well. Neville would be about my standard.

Ali: Why specifically does Dumbledore trust Snape?
JK Rowling replies -> Another excellent and non-answerable question. I shall merely say that Snape has given Dumbledore his story and Dumbledore believes it.

Magwitch: If you could be any female character in harry potter and the Philosopher's stone which one would you be
JK Rowling replies -> Hermione. Definitely not Pansy Parkinson.

Madina: are you planning to ever visit Russia?there are a lot of young fans dreaming about meeting you!
JK Rowling replies -> I'd love to visit Russia, it's a long-standing ambition, so you never know! My son's still a bit young for long journeys, though, he's not one year old yet.

class 14: If you were a animagus which animal would you be? and why?
JK Rowling replies -> I gave Hermione my idea animagus, because it's my favourite animal. You'll find the answer in the Room of Requirement, Order of the Phoenix!

LRGS School: Which character do you most dislike ?
JK Rowling replies -> Probably Uncle Vernon.

katrin: What does it feel like when kids tell you that it's thanks to you that they started to read?
JK Rowling replies -> Nobody could possibly say anything that pleased me more. It's the most wonderful thing to hear.

novell: I find moaning myrtle is the saddest character in your books, inspiring a mixture of revulsion and pity. Does she play any further part?
JK Rowling replies -> You do see her again. Don't you like her? I know she's a bit revolting, but that's why I'm so fond of her.

Class A.G: Did you base Voldermort on any real people? If so are you related to them?!
JK Rowling replies -> lol No I didn't base Voldemort on any real person!

gazza: will harry become head master of hogwarts
JK Rowling replies -> I'm not sure I can see Harry in an academic career, he's seen so much action!

Hannah from St Malachy’s Primary School - Armagh: Did you feel the actors suited the characters of your book when you met them? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, I did. Emma Watson in particular was very, very like Hermione when I first spoke to her, I knew she was perfect from that first 'phone call.

dsm: Are Harry's powers going to get even greater?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes, he's really progressing as a wizard now (which is lucky, because I know what's in store for him).

**

book: why did voldemort pick harry and not neville
JK Rowling replies -> Dumbledore explains this in 'Order of the Phoenix'. Voldemort identified more with the half-blood boy and therefore decided he must be the greater risk.

Cookie246122: Why did you kill Sirius? It made me very sad
JK Rowling replies -> I'm really, really sorry. I didn't want to do it, but there was a reason. If you think you can forgive me, keep reading, you'll find out. [I feel really guilty now].

Megan: Is there a link between Snape and vampires?JK Rowling replies -> Erm... I don't think so.


Harry: Has Voldermort any children
JK Rowling replies -> No. Voldemort as a father... now that's not a nice thought.

Joshua from Navigation Primary School: How were you involved in making the Harry Potter films and did Hogwarts look like you had imagined it? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> Hogwarts looked just as I imagined it. It was the most bizarre experience when I walked onto the set of the Great Hall; it really was like walking into my own brain.

eastbrook4: why did Harry have to split up with Cho Chang?
JK Rowling replies -> That's life, I'm afraid. They were never going to be happy, it was better that it ended early!

pablo: If Harry dies in the ending of the books, will Voldemort be invincible?
JK Rowling replies -> Pablo, I can't possibly answer. You'll have to read book seven!

Tanya J Potter: If you could change anything about Harry Potter what would it be?
JK Rowling replies -> There are loads of things I would change. I don't think any writer is ever completely happy with what they've written. One of these days - once seven is finished - I'll revise all seven books.

SnapesForte: Is Mad Eye Moody the real Moody this time? And if he is, is he up to something fishy? Because he's acting too muhc like Crouch jr - sniffing food etc
JK Rowling replies -> It's the other way around - Crouch Jnr. acted just like the real Moody.

Catheldral school: Will wormtail ever pay harry back?
JK Rowling replies -> You'll see... keep reading!

Vicky from Bishop Walsh RC Comprehensive - Sutton Coldfield: How do you react when your books/movies are criticized by critics? ****SCHOOLS COMPETITION WINNER****
JK Rowling replies -> It depends what they say. Sometimes I agree with the criticism, though I can't say that's fun. It also depends who it is. There's a vast difference between being criticized by someone you really admire (which has happened) and someone who you don't admire at all (which doesn't hurt!)

HarriFreak: Who is the 'one that never will return' deatheater?
JK Rowling replies -> You have to work it out, but a lot of fansites have got it right.

Damaged: Will Winky ever recover?
JK Rowling replies -> Poor Winky... she'll never be entirely cured of her Butterbeer addiction, I'm afraid.

AjXTee: How long does it take you to plan a book before you even start writing? Or do you just plan as you go along?
JK Rowling replies -> It's hard to say; book six has been planned for years, but before I started writing seriously I spend two months re-visting the plan and making absolutely sure I knew what I was doing (learning from my mistakes - I didn't check the plan for 'Goblet of Fire' and had to re-write a third of the book.

Kings Park primery school: what will happen to hagrids half brother?
JK Rowling replies -> You'll find out in book six. Luckily he's become a little more controllable.

JK Rowling says: I'm sorry, we're running out of time... how about three more questions?

Kaidi MacKay: Dumbledore is getting older, will it be alot harder for him to fight Lord Voldermort this time around?
JK Rowling replies -> He is getting older, but he didn't do badly at the end of 'Phoenix', so there's life in him yet!

miggs: Is there going to be a new minister of magic in the next books?
JK Rowling replies -> Yes. Ha! Finally, a concrete bit of information, I hear you cry!

Bobby: Any thoughts about a prequel series?
JK Rowling replies -> No, no prequels here. You won't need them by the time I've finished, you'll have all the back story you'll need!

JK Rowling says: That's it, everyone. There have been sixteen thousand questions, so I'm so sorry if yours hasn't been answered, but hopefully somebody else did it for you. I've really enjoyed it, hope you have. Back to the next chapter now... lots of love xxx

Thanks to Quick Quotes Quill, here's a little snippet:

Q3- 1/17/99

Scotland on Sunday

17 January 1999

Already, she's writing Book Four, and the last chapter of the last book has been written. "I've seriously started thinking I should lock it up and put it in the attic, because no-one must know what happens at the end. It's crucial."


When she talks of Harry Potter, his imagined life is clearly more interesting to her than her own. She talks as though he's within earshot: respectfully and with affection: "Harry is changing as he's getting older. He and his friends are 14 now and their hormones are kicking in, so it's really fun to write about. Everyone's in love with the wrong person, it's brilliant."

Although the early publicity provoked her first-ever bout of writer's block, when she was well into Book Two, she doesn't believe Harry has been in any way altered by her fame: "I truly don't think that Harry has been in the slightest affected by anything that's happened to me because the roots go too deep. So when I sit down to write about him, none of that intrudes."

It's obvious that Harry is as dear to her as a son, and she talks about nothing, save her daughter, with such love. There's no exaggeration, you can tell, when she wistfully says: "He feels so real to me, I think it's going to break my heart to stop writing about him."

Another one from Quick Quotes Quill:

Q3-2/16/99

Guardian Unlimited

Tuesday February 16, 1999

There are seven books planned and Rowling has already written the final chapter of the last book in advance. She hints at unexpected twists ahead as Harry, the young wizard, grows up: "And he does grow up - in book four the hormones are going to kick in - I don't want him stuck in a state of permanent pre-pubescence like poor Julian in the Famous Five! And the struggle between good and evil will intensify; there will be deaths - I've thought long and hard about this - I'm well aware of younger readers, but evil is not something you can deal with lightly - there are consequences, there are victims. Children always ask if Harry will get his parents back, but some things, even in the magical world, are irreversible."

And another from QQQ:

Q3-3/1999 B&N

Barnes and Noble Interview

March 1999

How did you decide what to name your characters and places?

I collect unusual names. I have notebooks full of them. Some of the names I made up, like Quidditch, Malfoy. Other names mean something -- Dumbledore, which means "bumblebee" in Old English...seemed to suit the headmaster, because one of his passions is music and I imagined him walking around humming to himself. And so far I have got names from saints, place-names, war memorials, gravestones. I just collect them -- I am so interested in names.


How many more sequels will you be writing about Harry Potter?

There are going to be seven Harrys all together. He will be 17 in the final book, which means he will have come of age in the Wizarding World. In Book 7, he will become a full wizard, and free to use his magic outside school.

I want to know what Dudley does with his life.

That is a question I would love to answer, but it will ruin some surprises. I will only say that Dudley's privileged existence starts to change for the worse in Book 4.

Hi, Ms. Rowling. How does a Muggle-born like Hermione develop magical abilities?

Nobody knows where magic comes from. It is like any other talent. Sometimes it seems to be inherited, but others are the only ones in their family who have the ability.

Will there be, or have there been, any "late blooming" students in the school who come into their magic potential as adults, rather than as children? By the way, I loved meeting you, and hearing you speak, when you came to Anderson's in Naperville. I can hardly wait until you tour again.

Ahhh! I loved the event at Anderson's. It was one of my favorites. That is completely true. No, is the answer. In my books, magic almost always shows itself in a person before age 11; however, there is a character who does manage in desperate circumstances to do magic quite late in life, but that is very rare in the world I am writing about.

And another:

Q3

Family Education

Summer 1999

Q: What are you going to call the fourth book?

A: If you've been on the Internet and seen that it's called Harry Potter and the Quidditch World Cup, that's a lie. But I don't want to give it away.

Q: Who's your favorite character besides Harry Potter?

A: It's very hard to choose. It's fun to write about Snape because he's a deeply horrible person. Hagrid is someone I'd love to meet.

I would be very, very disappointed if that were the case.

mmmm... mr. Filch, could be... but Hagrid already has his wand and he can do magic... i was thinking more about Aunt Petunia....

Another, thanks to Quick Quotes Quill.

CBS News: This Morning

28 June 1999


ASSURAS: Now, it is a series of books, right?


ROWLING: It will be, yes. It will be seven.


ASSURAS: My understanding though is that you already have the outline for the seventh in mind. Is that right?


ROWLING: Yes, they`re all plotted. I`ve actually got the final chapter of book seven written; just for my own satisfaction so I know where I`m going. And children have kind of turned up and come around to my house and start edging towards my study. And I`m starting to feel like I should lock that chapter away in the attic.

ASSURAS: What is it that intrigues you about Harry Potter and magic and all of this?


ROWLING: I could see the comic potential. There is a lot of comic in magic and magic going wrong and also it is a dramatic subject. I like frightening people. The books are getting scarier and scarier as we go.


ASSURAS: Oh, no, why?


ROWLING: Just because -- without giving too much away -- Harry`s arch enemy is getting stronger.


ASSURAS: Oh. But as all children`s -- I want you to tell me the ending -- as all children`s books go, most -- there will there be a happy ending.


ROWLING: Depends whether or not your favorite character dies because there are going to be deaths.

And another from QQQ:

Book Links: July 1999 (v.8 no.6)

JOM: Did you know from the beginning that Harry Potter would have to be a series of books?

Rowling: Yes, I planned it to be a series from the very start, and when I first met my British editor face-to-face, I knew that, at some point during that first lunch meeting, I would have to say, very tentatively, Do you think you might want a sequel . . . or two? Because, basically, I have planned seven. Bits of some of them were already written even then, so I kept thinking, please want more. Thank God, after the first course, he turned to me and said, So, obviously were thinking sequels. And I was so relieved. I think I said something like, Well, yes, I think I can probably manage one-or six. And he was fine with that plan. There are a couple of unexplained questions at the end of each of the books, so the story can go on. As I imagine it, there will be seven years at wizards school, then Harry is a fully qualified wizard and it is then that hes allowed to use magic outside school. So, youll see him into his final year at Hogwarts. The final chapter of the seventh book is written. Thats for my own satisfaction, so that I know where Im going as I write the other books. And that last chapter deals with what happens to the survivors afterward. Because there will be deaths.

JOM: Harry is very subversive in how he gets back at his terrible relatives. Hes a fully developed character, not a victim or saint.

Rowling: Yes, he wants to get back at Dudley. Hes a human boy, and we the readers want him to get back at Dudley. And, in the long term, trust me, he will. But Harry is also innately honorable. Hes not a cruel boy. Hes competitive, and hes a fighter. He doesnt just lie down and take abuse. But he does have native integrity, which makes him a hero to me. Hes a normal boy but with those qualities most of us really admire.

And another from QQQ:

School Library Journal

9/1/1999

How have kids responded to your books?

Talking to children about the books is actually just about the most enjoyable thing you could possibly do. They are great.

What are they most curious about?

They are very keen to know whom I'm going to kill. Very, very, very keen. That fascinates me. I think I understand why. They are all really worried about Ron. They've seen so many films where the main character's best friend died [that] I think they have become incredibly wise and know the storyteller's tricks, basically. They know that if Ron died, Harry would have such a grudge, that it would make it very personal.

Are you planning to kill off Ron?

I can't let on too much.

The first two Harry Potter books are very lighthearted. Will the series remain that way?

[The books] are getting darker, and that's inevitable. If you are writing about Good and Evil, there comes a point where you have to get serious. This is something I really have had to think about.

How so?

Early on, I had to consider how to depict an evil being, such as Lord Voldemort [in books one and two]. I could go one of two ways: I could either make him a pantomime villain... [meaning that there is] a lot of sound and thunder and nobody really gets hurt. Or [I could] attempt to do something a little bit more serious-which means you're going to have to show death. And worse than that, you'll have to show thedeath of characters whom the readers care about. I chose the second route.

Another from QQQ:

Barnes&Noble.com

September 8, 1999

How long did it take you to write the books?

THE SORCERER'S STONE took five years to finish, but during that time I was working full-time as a teacher, and I was also planning the whole series of Harry books. CHAMBER OF SECRETS took two years, and AZKABAN took one year. They're getting faster to write because of a kind of snowball effect. I know the characters very well by now. And the plots are fully worked out.

Hello! Will Sirius ever be proven innocent? Or have you not decided yet? Thank you very much!!

I have decided, but if I answer it gives away something quite important in the plot, so I'd rather not...however, Sirius will be back in future books.

Without giving away any plot details, can you tell us if we might expect to hear any more from Crookshanks in future Harry Potter books? He seems to be a very smart cat!

You're right. He is a very smart cat, and you will be hearing more from him.

What is your favorite Harry book so far?

The first book will always have a special place in my heart, because it was the first book I ever published. However, I prefer the plot of CHAMBER OF SECRETS. And just to confuse the issue, I was looking forward to writing the third book from the start of the first because that's when Professor Lupin appears, and he is one of my favorite characters in all seven books.

Dear Ms. Rowling, I'd like to ask if there would be a lot of romances between the characters in the upcoming books?

Good question. I'm having so much fun writing Book 4 because for the first time Harry, Ron, and Hermoine are starting to recognize boys and girls as boys and girls. Everyone is in love with the wrong people. Let no one say my books lack realism.

My children and I love your books, and we care about Harry Potter. We are wondering if Harry will continue to live with the Dursley's every summer.

Well, you have to decide whether you want to give up the fun of seeing Harry getting the better of the Dursley's or whether you'd rather see Harry happy. I've made my choice, but I can't tell you what it is because it will ruin future plots.

Will Aragog appear in any later books?

Yes. But I'm not telling you anymore than that!

Will we ever hear from Mr. Weasley's car again?

Yes, you will hear from Mr. Weasley's car again, but yet again, I'm not telling you how.

Is Hogwarts possibly located in Scotland? I am an American and have never been to the United Kingdom, but from reading the first book and going by the train station Harry leaves from and how long the trip takes, I am guessing it may be Scotland? Thank you.

You are absolutely right. If you travel north from King's Cross, you do indeed arrive in Scotland.

With the huge success of the first three books and your seemingly endless imagination, do you think that you might (please, oh please) consider continuing the story past the originally planned seven books? Maybe continuing with Harry as an adult or books about his children?

So you're convinced I'm not going to kill Harry??!! I try never to say never, because it seems that every time I do I end up by doing the thing I've forsworn. So, there is a remote possibility that there will another Harry book, but at the present time I am planning only seven.

An article from Time Magazine thanks to QQQ

Time Magazine

20 September 1999


She was writing a novel for adults when, during a 1990 train ride, "Harry Potter strolled into my head fully formed." For the next five years Rowling worked on Book One and plotted out the whole series, which will consist of seven novels, one for each year Harry spends at Hogwarts. "Those five years really went into creating a whole world. I know far more than the reader will ever need to know about ridiculous details."

Rowling has been dropping increasingly pointed promises that the four remaining Harry Potter books will turn darker than the first three. "There will be deaths," she says. "I am writing about someone, Voldemort, who is evil. And rather than make him a pantomime villain, the only way to show how evil it is to take a life is to kill someone the reader cares about." Can she possibly mean (oh!) Hermione, (no!) Ron or (gasp!) Harry himself? Rowling discloses nothing, but she does note that the children who contact her "are always most worried I'm going to kill Ron. It shows how sharp they are. They've watched so many movies where the hero's best friend gets killed."

Another from QQQ

The Connection

12 October 1999

People maybe know enough about you and your history. I’m not sure we do know enough though about how you, how you actually composed this.
When I started writing it, I had never thought of writing for children. I had been writing almost all my life. I mean, the first story I ever finished I was 6 years old. All I’ve ever wanted to be was a writer and I have been writing ever since I was 6. I‘ve never thought of myself as a children‘s writer. But I’ve never been so excited about an idea for a book as I had about the Harry books, so I ended the novel I was working on, and started on Harry. But it is a lot of work to create an entire world and it was about 5 years to finish the first book, to plot the remaining 6 books, because they were already plotted before the first book was published and Book 2 was started before Book 1 was finished. Yeah, so I spent an awful lot of time thinking about the details of the world and working it out in depth.

Are you sticking with that outline of the 7?
Yeah, but each time I hit a new book, I will find that there’s other stuff I want to do, so you know, I have a basic structure for each book, but sometimes I’ll decide we’ll play around with that middle section because I don’t much like it as much as I did back in 1992 when I originally found it.

Why 7 and what is the contour that you want to complete?
Well 7 is for several reasons, but I suppose the main one, I was 7 years at my secondary school. That’s kind of standard in England. 7 is also a magical number. I wanted him to come of age at 17. It just seems a good number for a wizard to come of age. So that meant 7 books, that meant 7 years in his life. Also, it will take 7 books to get Harry to the point where he has to face, um I can’t say. But in Book 7, you know, there’s a big climax coming here and it will take that many books to get him there.

These names are important. You know, Henry James’s notebooks are full of names that he wanted to try out.
Right. I very much identify with that. Names are really crucial to me. Some of my characters have had 8 or 9 names before I hit the right one. And for some reason, I just can’t move on until I know I’ve called them the right thing. That’s very fundamental to me.

What about Snape?
Snape is a very sadistic teacher, loosely based on a teacher I myself had, I have to say. I think children are very aware and we are kidding ourselves if we don’t think that they are, that teachers do sometimes abuse their power and this particular teacher does abuse his power. He’s not a particularly pleasant person at all. However, everyone should keep their eye on Snape, I’ll just say that because there is more to him than meets the eye and you will find out part of what I am talking about if you read Book 4. No, I’m not trying to drum up more sales, go to the library and get it out. I’d rather people read it.

One of our internet correspondents wondered if Snape is going to fall in love.
(JKR laughs) Who on earth would want Snape in love with them? That’s a very horrible idea.

There’s an important kind of redemptive pattern to Snape
He, um, there’s so much I wish I could say to you, and I can’t because it would ruin. I promise you, whoever asked that question, can I just say to you that I’m slightly stunned that you’ve said that and you’ll find out why I’m so stunned if you read Book 7. That’s all I’m going to say.

Just in general, J. K. Rowling, what’s the --- what do you think of as the moral of these stories. I hear a lot of your own sort of reliving school life in the form of Harry who is really gifted beyond his awareness. He could be much more powerful that he actually is. There is something deeply ---- deeply exemplary, moral, good about this young man. What are the stories trying to tell us about goodness?
Again, this sounds like a huge copout, but it’s hard for me to give you the full picture without ruining future plots. Because, there are kids out there so attuned to these books that if I say ‘well, you might just find out X,Y‘, they’ll think ’Ah right, so and so is going to die, so and so‘s obviously going to learn to do this’, you know. They’ll just know, so I have to be careful about what I say. Harry is someone who is forced, for such a young person, to make his own choices. He has very limited access to truly caring adults and he is guided by his conscience. Now, Harry makes mistakes repeatedly. Harry did things like --- he did steal the flying car. That was a very stupid thing to do, but it seemed like a great idea at the time. We’ve all been there. But, ultimately Harry is guided by his conscience. He is flanked by 2 friends. They work far better as a team than apart though Harry tends to be the one who has to shoulder most of the burden. He is a true hero in that sense. Hermione, who’s really the brains of the outfit and Ron who is also a very brave character. I mean I deeply admire bravery in all forms. That’s why in Book 1, if people have read Book 1, they’ll remember that Neville Longbottom who is a comic, but he’s not a wholly comic figure to me. Neville is actually quite a tragic figure to me as well, because there’s a lot of Neville in me. This feeling of just never being quite good enough. I mean we’ve all felt that at some point. I felt that a lot when I was younger. I wanted to show Neville doing something brave. It’s not as spectacularly brave as Harry and Hermione do, but he finds true moral courage in standing up to his closest friends, the people who are on his side, but he still thinks they are doing wrong and he tells them so. So, that’s a very important moment for me too in the first book.

I have a 9 year old who is utterly dedicated to Harry and I have a 7 year old coming on. Harry at 14 or 15 will not relate to my 9 year old, I think in the same way. Is he going to slow down his aging process or is he ---
No, no I’m not. I’ve given some thought to this and I’ve chosen the way I’m going to do it. If people are unhappy with it, then I’m going to be sorry about that, but, you know, I have to go the way that I think is best to go. And the way I think is best ---- I always wanted Harry to grow up plausibly. You know, we are going to see him --- the plot demands that he ages about a year a book. The plot demands that he comes of age in the final book. Now I have a real moral objection to books that freeze children in prepubescence even though they are actually, in earth years, 16 years old, but they are still behaving as 8 or 9 year olds. Now, if I get the tone right, I do believe that your 9 year old will still be interested in a 14 year old Harry. Obviously, it is inappropriate in books like these, it would be totally alien to the tone of these books if I got into too brutally realistic of an area ---- you know, we’re not going to be looking at teenage pregnancy here, we’re not going to be looking at drug taking here, you know. This would be totally alien to the spirit of these books. However, I do want Harry to grow up in a realistic way.

Does this mean we are going to see the hormones kicking in?
Yes, the hormones do kick in in Book 4. You know, the bottom line is I can’t be led by what people want me to write, I have to write what I want to write --- that’s just the way it’s got to be. I’ve got to write what I want to write. If by Book 6, I’m only writing to 6 people and I’ve lost everyone else, yeah, I’m going to be sorry about that, but I will feel that I have to stand by what I want to do. I sometimes get letters from parents saying ‘well, we love your books, but they’re a little bit too scary, so could you stop doing that’. Well, I’m afraid no, I can’t, I have to write what I want to write. I’m not writing to order here, so I’m going to be sorry if children don’t want to keep up with Harry. I personally believe they will. I do not believe I’m going to be doing anything that will alienate a 9 year old.

I think your readers want you to stay right on it as the writer. (gives phone number) Pete is on the line.
Hi, I have a question about Hagrid.
Oh, Cool. I like Hagrid. Ask away.
Is he going to be in the rest of the books?
Yes.
He’s my favorite character.
Oh, is he your favorite character? I like you because he’s one of my favorite characters. Yeah, if you take away Harry and Hermione and Ron, then I love Hagrid the best definitely. He is going to be around. You are going to keep seeing him. I suspect that the reason you are asking this is because there is a rumor going around that people are going to die in the upcoming books. People are going to die and I’m not going to tell you who is and who isn’t because--- that’s for very obvious reasons.
Pete, did you have more? Did you want to follow up?
Yeah, my other question was the guy who’s the bully, what was his name again?
Dudley, no, Draco Malfoy, which one?
Malfoy, yeah, him. I read the first book at camp and how did Malfoy feel so strongly against him in the first book?
Why does Malfoy dislike Harry so much in the first book?
Yes
Well, if you notice the very first time that Malfoy meets Harry and knows that it’s Harry, he makes an effort to be his friend. He does actually want to be associated with Harry because he knows that it would be cool to turn up at the school being Harry Potter’s friend because Harry’s so famous. Well Harry rebuffs him because Malfoy is being so rude about Hagrid and about Ron who Harry likes so much and it’s at that point that Malfoy turns against him. Because Malfoy is, ------- yet again this is so frustrating, I can’t tell you everything I could tell you because it would ruin future books for you. But Malfoy comes from a family who has strong associations with dark magic as you know and you are going to find out more about that in Book 4. So Malfoy is kind of --- he wanted to be Harry’s friend, Harry didn’t want him as a friend and that made him bitter. That‘s the starting point.

(From a caller named Damon)
I have another question on that. How many more books are there? I had this discussion with my step daughter yesterday. Will there be 7 books for the 7 years of school?
Exactly, there will be 7 books.
Oh, there is 7. All right!!
Yeah, one for each of his years at Hogwarts, yeah
And nothing about him after school.
Probably not. I can’t say more than that, but no, I planned 7 and I’m going to stick with 7, I think.

(From a caller named Kathleen)
Hi, how are you? Thank you so much for taking our call. I’m actually calling from my classroom right now ---- it’s a sixth grade class. This is a special treat.
Hi everyone
Anyway, it’s very exciting. We just love Harry Potter. We’re curious ---- well first of all we can’t wait for Books 4, 5, 6 and 7. But after that, we’re curious as to whether Harry is going to have a life after Hogwarts, or if maybe, Harry might be a Hogwarts teacher.
Well, because all your kids said ‘hello’ so nicely in the background there, I am going to give you information I haven’t given anyone else and I will tell you that one of the characters, one of Harry’s classmates, though it’s not Harry himself, does end up a teacher at Hogwarts. But, it is not, maybe the one you think, hint, hint, hint. Yeah, one of them does end up staying at Hogwarts, but ----
Do the kids want to guess at it, Kathleen?
Do you guys have a guess as to who it is?
(Kids shouting in background) Ron
They say Ron.
No, it’s not Ron. I can’t see Ron as a teacher. No way.


(From a caller named Peter)
Hi, I really like the books and we already learned a lot about Harry’s father and I was wondering ‘Are we going to learn a lot about his mother?’
Yeah, you will. It’s ---- yet again ---- you won’t find out ---- OK, in Book 3 you’re absolutely right. You find out a lot about Harry’s father. Now the important thing about Harry’s mother, the really, really significant thing, you’re going to find out in 2 parts. You’ll find out a lot more about her in Book 5, or you’ll find out something very significant about her in Book 5, then you’ll find out something incredibly important about her in Book 7. But I can’t tell you what those things are so I’m sorry, but yes, you will find out more about her because both of them are very important in what Harry ends up having to do.
Peter, what’s your guess about Lily? What’s the real story of Harry’s mother?
I don’t really know, but I’m guessing that, maybe she is going to come back to life, maybe, in the 7th book or something like that.
Well, it would be nice, but I’ll tell you something. You’ve raised a really interesting point there, Peter, because when I started writing the books, the first thing I had to decide was not what magic can do, but what it can’t do. I had to set limits on it immediately and decide what the perimeters are. One of the most important things I decided was that magic cannot bring dead people back to life. That’s one of the most profound things. The natural laws of death applies to wizards as it applies to Muggles and there is no returning once you’re properly dead. You know, they might be able to save very close to death people better than we can, by magic. They have certain knowledge we don’t, but once you’re dead, you’re dead. So, yeah, I’m afraid there will be no coming back for Harry’s parents.

(From a caller named Noreen)
I’ve read your books. They are so creative and they’re such a wonderful escape. I’ve read all 3 of them. All of us there always look forward to the reader’s copies that we get. We pass them around. And then we sell your books to adults and kids, of course. I’ve heard that you have all of the books basically written and that you have ----
Oh, I wish, no, not written, no, planned.
You have plans. I’ve heard that you have pieces of the books on scraps of paper and they’re in a box.
Oh, that’s true, yeah
I’m wondering. It sounds like maybe putting the books together is like fitting a puzzle, the pieces of a puzzle together.
No, there’s still a lot of writing to do. I mean it’s ---- no, it’s not true that I‘ve ---- that was true about the 1st book. I had this mountain of notes and it was almost like carving a book out of this mass of stuff with Book 1 which required a lot of work. Of course there was a lot of writing involved, rewriting. But as I go on ---- no, I have the bare outline of the books, there are pieces of all of them, sort of snippets of all of them written, ideas I’ve had that I’ve jotted down at some point, entire pages sometimes that I‘ve thought, oh yeah, that‘s how we‘re going to do that bit of Book 4, whatever it might be. But no, I’m not that far on. I do have to sit down and actually write them. But, as I think I said earlier, I never finish a book and then think ’OK, what’s Harry going to do next?’ I always know exactly what Harry is going to be doing next.
The framework
Yeah, exactly, but still with enough freedom to invent stuff as I go along. Otherwise, it wouldn‘t be nearly as much fun. I mean, I haven’t got every single detail down before I start writing because that would, you know, that would just stop it being, you know ---- I don’t know, just I wouldn’t have the freedom to do what I do.

Thanks you guys!

A little snippet courtesy of Quick Quotes Quill.

The Star-Ledger, Newark, NJ

16 October 1999


Q. Tom Houseman asked, "Do you think that anyone in real life is truly wholly evil like Draco Malfoy and Voldemort?"

A. Rowling said, "My instinct is to say that probably not, but I can t answer that question without ruining the series for you." Rowling said that in future books she will attempt to show "why Voldemort is who he is."

Some more from QQQ

The Boston Globe

18 October 1999


Where did you get the idea of the Sorting Hat?

"That was a bit of hard work. First, I considered the many different ways we sort things. Pulling names out of a hat was the one that kept coming back to me. So I twisted the idea around and came up with a talking hat that could make decisions. There is more to the Sorting Hat than what you have read about in the first three books. Readers will find out what the Sorting Hat becomes as they get into future books."

Do you know what Harry's parents look like?

"Yes. I've even drawn a picture of how they look. Harry has his father and mother's good looks. But he has his mother's eyes and that's very important in a future book."

Another courtesy of QQQ

Press Club

20 October 1999

SB: Can you imagine Harry ever growing up?


JKR: Um… *exasperated sound* Always, you see I have this… for five years, I was writing about Harry, and I never spoke about it to anyone except my sister, I told her the story of the first book, but she’d never read it, so all this stuff’s going on in my head, so it’s such an incredible thing for me now to be somewhere like this, for people to be interested in talking about it, cause I didn’t have that opportunity at all for five or six years. But the frustrating thing is I can’t tell you stuff, because it will ruin the rest of the books. So… I’m going to have to pass on that question, cause I do know exactly what’s going to happen to Harry in book 7, and I’m not going to tell you.

SB: Several people have asked, are you stopping at seven?



JKR: Um, at the moment, I definitely think I’m going to stop at seven, and I have to say, that will be really heartbreaking. Um, the only reason you’ll ever see an eight Harry Potter book is if I really, in ten years time, burn to do another one. But at the moment, I think that’s unlikely. But I try never to say never about anything, cause the moment I say “I will never,” I do it next month. So, I just – but I think not. I think I’ll stop at seven.

JKR: Did Voldemort go to school with Lily and James? Lily and James being Harry’s parents. Uh, no. Voldemort is quite a bit older than them. He was at school with Hagrid. Hagrid is – Hagrid doesn’t seem that old, but he’d in fact in his sixties. But he’s just – he’s a strong man, so he doesn’t seem that old. So Voldemort is around that kind of age.

SB: We’re going to take a few more questions, and um, the next one is will Harry ever turn into a shape-changer like his father?

JKR: Animagus. No, Harry’s not in training to be an animagus, and if you’ve read book three, you won’t know – um, that’s a wizard that’s very, very difficult to do. They learn to turn themselves into animals. No, Harry is not, Harry is going to be concentrated elsewhere, he’s not going to have time to do that. He’s got quite a full agenda coming up, poor boy.

SB: Very good. One more question. Are we going to learn more about Harry’s mom in the next book?

JKR: Um, this is one of those questions you – some of the best questions I get are about – people have clearly read the books so well, and they’re sensing there’s more to be told about certain people. But I can’t ever answer them very fully, because I will end up giving things away. There is something very important about Harry’s mother that he hasn’t yet discovered, that he’s not going to find out in the next book. It’s too important for book 4, he finds it out later in the series. That was interesting.

SB: I’m going to ask one more. There were a lot of groans when I said we were going to wrap it up, so one more. What happened to Harry’s grandparents?

JKR: Um, various interesting things, but again, I’m not going to share. [laughter] Sorry! But that’s okay, cause we have time for another question, cause I didn’t answer that one!

SB: Okay, good. It’s a good excuse to write more books!

JKR: True.

SB: Yes. Um, is there anything that you’d want to add?

JKR: No, I’ll see one more question, cause we really didn’t get an answer for that.

SB: Very good.

JKR: *looking through questions* No, don’t like that one. Oh, I like this one… do Harry and Hermione have a date? [laughter] No. They are – they’re very platonic friends. But I won’t answer for anyone else, nudge, nudge, wink, wink.

Another little snippet thanks to QQQ

Post-Gazette National Bureau

21 October 1999

Rowling says she has the series all plotted out and intends to stop in 2003 with book seven, when Harry will be 18 and ready to graduate from Hogwarts. During the press club's question-and-answer session, Rowling received numerous queries about Harry's future, but she declined to answer. "I do know exactly what will happen, and I can't tell you about it," she told her eager audience. "At the moment, I definitely think I'll stop at No. 7.... It's going to feel like a bereavement. I think I'll be really heartbroken.

"The only reason I would write a book No. 8 is if I have a burning desire to do it, 10 years after the last book is published," Rowling added. "But I never say ` never,' because the moment I say I'll never do something, I do it the next month."



Personal sidenote: 2003? It's too bad she was pushed so hard a few years back. Then she wouldn't have needed a 3 year rest and we'd be a lot closer to book 7 right now. Or maybe even have it.

Thanks again to Quick Quotes Quill

The Columbus Dispatch

28 October 1999

Q: Children know that a death or two will occur in the next books, and they're worried about some characters -- particularly Ron and Hagrid the groundskeeper. Do you pay attention to such concerns?

A: For five years, this was my internal world. It's still the most amazing thing to meet one person, let alone hordes of people, who knows these characters.

It's heartwarming that people care enough about them to want them not to get hurt, but at the same time I have the absolute right to do what I like to my story and characters. I'm not going to write to order. I've planned the whole story, and I've always known who was going to die and who was going to come through unscathed, and I'm not going to deviate from that.

WWW you have been working very hard. Thank you so much.

And I like this comment... 'One of our internet correspondents wondered if Snape is going to fall in love.
(JKR laughs) Who on earth would want Snape in love with them? That’s a very horrible idea.'

Welcome!

An interesting tidbit, thanks QQQ!

The San Francisco Chronicle

30 October 1999

Q: What are the 12 uses for dragon's blood?

A: I have a very good reason for not telling you -- the movie script writer wants me to give him that information for the film. But I can say that the 12th use is oven cleaner.

Thanks again WWW for all your hard work. I find it really intriguing that we will find out something incredibly important about Lily Potter in books 5 and 7.....very important to what Harry ends up having to do.
How the mind boggles!!!!
Bunny

Thanks again everyone!

-WWW (Potterhead geek extraordinaire)

Another couple snippets from Quick Quotes Quill

Sunday Gazette-Mail

14 November 1999

(JK) - On the Harry Potter series: "I will write seven books. When I'm done I expect a real sense of bereavement. That will be 13 years of work."

- On Harry's fate: "I know what will happen to Harry in book seven, but I'm not going to tell you - he's got quite a full agenda coming up, poor boy."

- On whether Harry and his friend Hermione will have a date when they get older: "No, but I won't answer for anyone else - nudge, nudge, wink, wink."

Another little snippet (I love that word, lol)

People Magazine

31 December 1999

In plotting Harry's journey she has already completed a draft of the final chapter of the last book. "I constantly rewrite," she says. "At the moment, the last word is 'scar.'" When the time comes, no one will be sadder to close the book on her hero than Rowling herself. Writing about Harry Potter, she says, "is the most fun you can have without anyone else present."

Another interview thanks to QQQ

South West News Service

July 2000

Q: Since Hagrid's name was cleared in Book 2, will he ever be allowed to do magic openly again ?
A: He is allowed. He has been allowed to do magic openly ever since he became a teacher but because he was never fully trained his magic is never going to be what it should be. He is always going to be a bit inept.

Q: It seems that the wizards and witches at Hogwarts are able to conjure up many things, such as food for the feasts, chairs and sleeping bags. . .if this is so, why does the wizarding world need money ? What are the limitations on the material objects you can conjure up ? It seems unnecessary that the Weasleys would be in such need of money. . .
A: Very good question. There is legislation about what you can conjure and what you can't. Something that you conjure out of thin air will not last. This is a rule I set down for myself early on. I love these logical questions!

Q: You mentioned something in a recent interview about a flaw in Book 4. . .
A: Did I? Oh yes. . .I repaired it! This is why Book 4 nearly caused me a nervous breakdown - because for the first time ever I lost my careful plot - which I've had since 1994, I think. I really should have gone through it with a fine toothcomb before I started writing and I didn't. I had a false sense of security because all my other plans had held up so well. So I sailed straight into the writing of Four, having just finished Azkaban. I had written what I thought at the time was half the book - it turns out now to have been about a third of the book - and I realised there was this big hole in the middle of the plot and I had to go back and unpick and redo. That's part of the reason it's longer than I thought it was going to be.

Q: Can you say what the flaw was, or would that spoil things ?
A: No, because that would ruin it.

Q: If Harry had a magic duel with Hermione, who would win ?
A: Very good question! Because until about halfway through Azkaban, Hermione would have won. But Harry - without anyone really noticing it - is becoming exceptionally good at Defence Against the Dark Arts. So that's the one area in which, almost instinctively, he is particularly talented. Apart from Quidditch.

Q: Do you assist with the vernacular, idiomatic expression and other vocabulary changes between the UK and the US versions of the HP series ?
A: Do I assist ? I do it all! A lot has been made of this but I have to say too much has been made of it. The word changes were miniscule. I don't think it would be as much as one per cent. And they were literally words that meant something utterly different - like 'jumper', which means 'pinafore dress' in America. I didn't want people to think Harry was walking around in a pinafore dress. They have enough problems without going into drag as well.

Q: Where do the Hogwarts teachers live during the school holidays ? Do they stay at Hogwarts ?
A: No, they don't. Filch, the caretaker, stays

Q: Will HP and his friends discover the other house common rooms in future books ?
A: (Teasingly) Maybe. . .

Another little bit, thanks to QQQ. This interview is talking about GOF.

Newsweek

1 July, 2000

This is the keystone book, in terms of the plot?

Yes, it's totally pivotal in terms of the plot.

Will it be the biggest?

No, I think book seven will be. Seven's going to be like the Encyclopaedia Britannica, because I'm going to want to say goodbye. I always knew four would be a long one, but I didn't know it would be this long. But it had to be. I've got no regrets. That's how many words it took to tell the story I needed to tell. I like it. I'm very pleased with it. It's definitely the book that gave me the most trouble. But then "Chamber of Secrets" gave me a fair amount of trouble. Bizarrely, it seems that the two that were the most heck to write were the two I like the best.

JK teasing us.... thanks Quick Quotes Quill

The Scotsman

21 July 2000

JK ROWLING, creator of the phenomenally successful Harry Potter series, has hinted that the teenage wizard is heading for an untimely death.

The author, whose fourth episode, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, was released this month to near hysteria, said the popular character could meet the grim fate in his seventh and final adventure.

Harry Potter's legions of young fans will have been heartbroken to hear the fate that awaits their hero at the end of the seventh book.

Despite making his author one of the richest women in Britain, the young magician will be bumped off to round off the phenomenally successful series.

However fans of Rowling's imaginative works can be sure the manner in which he meets his death will not be straighforward.

Interviewed on Radio 1's "God For a Day" slot on Simon Mayo's show, she spilled the beans about her character's impending death before trying to cover up the revelation.

She said: "I always planned seven [Potter books], I never said I would do another one, but at the moment there will be just the seven. I've got it planned, and Harry dies obviously."

Perhaps to the relief of Potter followers, she quickly added: "But that's just a joke - or is it?"

More thanks to QQQ for this interview

Entertainment Weekly

August 4, 2000

Was this the hardest book you've had to write so far?

Easily.

Why?

The first three books, my plan never failed me. But I should have put that plot under a microscope. I wrote what I thought was half the book, and "Ack!" Huge gaping hole in the middle of the plot. I missed my deadline by two months. And the whole profile of the books got so much higher since the third book; there was an edge of external pressure.

And what exactly was that gaping hole all about?

I had to pull a character. There you go: "the phantom character of Harry Potter." She was a Weasley cousin [related to Ron Weasley, Harry's best friend]. She served the same function that Rita Skeeter [a sleazy investigative journalist] now serves. Rita was always going to be in the book, but I built her up, because I needed a kind of conduit for information outside the school. Originally, this girl fulfilled this purpose.

You referred to the darkness in your books, and there's been a lot of talk and even concern over that.

You have a choice when you're going to introduce a very evil character. You can dress a guy up with loads of ammunition, put a black Stetson on him, and say, "Bad guy. Shoot him." I'm writing about shades of evil. You have Voldemort, a raging psychopath, devoid of the normal human responses to other people's suffering, and there are people like that in the world. But then you have Wormtail, who out of cowardice will stand in the shadow of the strongest person. What's very important for me is when Dumbledore says that you have to choose between what is right and what is easy. This is the setup for the next three books. All of them are going to have to choose, because what is easy is often not right.

There's some other horrific violence, too, like when Wormtail cuts up Harry's arm to get the blood to bring Voldemort back to life. Very disturbing.

Yeah, that wasn't good, I agree with you.

Have you ever thought "Maybe I should tone it down"?

No. I know that sounds kind of brutal but no, I haven't. The bottom line is, I have to write the story I want to write. I never wrote them with a focus group of 8-year-olds in mind. I have to continue telling the story the way I want to tell it. I don't at all relish the idea of children in tears, and I absolutely don't deny it's frightening. But it's supposed to be frightening! And if you don't show how scary that is, you cannot show how incredibly brave Harry is. He's really brave, and he does, I think, one of his bravest things in this book: He can't save Cedric, but he wants to save Cedric's parents additional pain. He wants to bring back the body and treat it with respect.

Saving Cedric's body reminded me of the Hector-Patroclus-Achilles triangle in the Iliad.

That's where it came from. That really, really, really moved me when I read that when I was 19. The idea of the desecration of a body, a very ancient idea...I was thinking of that when Harry saved Cedric's body.

And then you go and emotionally decimate your readers with that scene where Harry's murdered parents are drawn out of Voldemort's wand. I was in tears.

Me too. It was the first time I cried writing a Harry Potter book. I got pretty upset.

Another from QQQ

Katie Couric: Here's Sarah, she's nine. (Reading next email) "I'm nine years old. I live in Rhode Island. My question for Ms. Rowling is: Will you keep writing Harry Potter books that will take him through his adult life? He could be a teacher at Hogwarts!"
J.K. Rowling: I'm intrigued because everyone seems very confident I'm not going to kill him.

Katie Couric: Well good! I hope you're not! (Both laugh.)
J.K. Rowling: I'm not saying either way.

Katie Couric: That would make big news here this morning.
J.K. Rowling: Everyone assumes that there will be an adult life and maybe they're right. But no, I think I'm going to stop at seven. I'm not going to say "never another one." If I had a burning desire to do another one, I'd do it. But at the moment, I'm planning to stop at seven.

Katie Couric: Kathy from Georgia says: "In all four books, Hermione constantly refers to the book 'Hogwarts, a History'. Are you considering compiling and publishing such a book?"
J.K. Rowling: Not "Hogwarts, a History" but I have written two of the books that appear as titles only within the novels and that's "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" and "Quidditch Through the
Ages".

Today Show's Matt Lauer: K, what's your name?
Red-headed, freckled kid: Alfred Dale.
Matt Lauer: What's your question?
Red-headed, freckled kid: What is your favorite Harry Potter book?
J.K. Rowling: My favorite book...it's normally the one you've just finished. So at the moment, my favorite book is number four. Even though it half killed me...it was the most difficult to write so far...but it's my favorite.
Katie Couric: We should probably mention that Alfred is Jim Dale's grandson.

Another from Quick Quotes Quill

Transcript of Yahooligans! Chat with J.K. Rowling

October 20, 2000

Yahooligan_Heather asks: What are you plans after you have finished the Harry Potter series? Are you considering writing a sequel series with Harry's own children, or other characters we have met?
jkrowling_bn: Harry's own children? Are you sure he's going to survive to have children?!

jandlcomm asks: Does Hagrid get a wife? (Chad, age 13)
jkrowling_bn: does Hagrid get a wife? You think anyone would want to live with a man who breeds Blast-Ended Skrewts?

Yahooligan_Amanda asks: You've hinted a little that you might KILL Harry! Please say something to put my mind at ease.
jkrowling_bn: hmmmm.........
jkrowling_bn: well, I think I'll leave you in suspense... sorry!

Yahooligan_Erin asks: Is it true that Mrs. Rowling has already finished the end chapter for all her future books?
jkrowling_bn: I've written the final chapter of book seven
jkrowling_bn: which was really an act of faith -
jkrowling_bn: I was saying to myself, 'you will get here!'
jkrowling_bn: it will probably need re-writing when I reach it, though

Yahooligan_Stephanie asks: Is Hogwarts ever going to get a defence against the dark arts teacher who lasts for more than one book?
jkrowling_bn: erm...... maybe
jkrowling_bn: don't want to give too much away there!
jkrowling_bn: Thank you very much!

hermione_rose_2000 asks: Hello Ms. Rowling, I am a big fan of the Harry Potter books. My name is (Edited out by WWW). Is it true that Harry and Draco will have to get together and fight evil?
jkrowling_bn: Don't believe everything you read on the net!
jkrowling_bn: I saw that rumour too... but it is just a rumour

spccbflo asks: Everything that happens has a meaning, sometimes in a later book. Do you have everything planned out in your head, or do you tie things in as you go?
jkrowling_bn: Yes, it's all planned out, but I still give myself room to have some fun if a good idea
jkrowling_bn: arrives while I'm writing

blaise_42 asks: In Chamber of Secrets, Hagrid is supposed to have raised werewolf cubs under his bed. Are these the same kind of werewolves as Professor Lupin?
jkrowling_bn: no... Riddle was telling lies about Hagrid, just slandering him

sammyohyeah asks: Is it just me, or was something going on between Ron and Hermione during the last half of GOF? I love your books, btw, and two of them I've read stright through cover to cover in under 24 hours.
jkrowling_bn: well done on the reading speed!
jkrowling_bn: yes, something's 'going on'...
jkrowling_bn: but Ron doesn't realise it yet...
jkrowling_bn: typical boy

persik42 asks: Are you considering starting a series about any of the other characters at Hogwarts?
jkrowling_bn: No, I think when I've finished the seven Harry Potter books I will be finished with the world
jkrowling_bn: it will make me very sad to say goodbye, but it must be done!

lhhicks99 asks: Why does Professor Dumbledore allow Professor Snape to be so nasty to the students (especially to Harry, Hermione, and Neville)?
jkrowling_bn: Dumbledore believes there are all sorts of lessons in life...
jkrowling_bn: horrible teachers like Snape are one of them!

Yahooligan_seachellie4 asks: What house was Hagrid in?
jkrowling_bn: Hagrid was in Gryffindor, naturally!

toncaw asks: Is Sirius Balck ever going to be cleared?
jkrowling_bn: can't tell you, that's too important a bit of information!

onegreatguy99 asks: Do you like to type your books or write freehand and have someone transcribe later?
jkrowling_bn: I write the books longhand and then I type them onto my laptop myself
jkrowling_bn: that's how I do my first edit
jkrowling_bn: nobody else is allowed to type my books
jkrowling_bn: because I'm a very secretive writer!

Yahooligan_Brian asks: Will Ron ever get a girlfriend?
jkrowling_bn: I'm laughing again... why wouldn't he?!
jkrowling_bn: though he's not doing too well at the moment, is he?
jkrowling_bn: but then, Fleur Delacour was really aiming a bit high

Yahooligan_Dhanya asks: Do you plan to give Voldemort his victory or somehow break his immortality to kill him?
jkrowling_bn: Dhanya, do you really really think I'll answer that?!
jkrowling_bn: I don't blame you for asking though...

Yahooligan_Jennifer asks: Did Harry ever use magic on Dudley in the real world?
jkrowling_bn: Not so far (hint)

michaelbeeee asks: Ms. Rowling, Are you aware that more adults read the books than children? If so, might there not be a place for a series on an adult H.P following the 7th book?
jkrowling_bn: I'm not sure whether it's true that more adults read the books than children
jkrowling_bn: but in any case, I think I should stop before we get to 'Harry Potter and the Mid-Life Crisis'!