This paper consists of a full-sentence outline for a biographical paper on J. K. Rowling. The paper covers her life before Harry Potter, the pop culture impact that the Harry Potter series has had, the awards and accolades of the series and the charitable work that Rowling has done with her money.
J.K. Rowling was unemployed when she wrote the first Harry Potter book. Today, she is a billionaire. If that does not grab your attention, nothing will. She enjoys the material success most people crave, but also the artistic success, in that her stories are loved by billions. This is how it happened.
Rowling came from humble beginnings. She publishes her biography on her own website, jkrowling.com. There is no year of publication and no author attribution on this website, though since Rowling is a writer she may well have written it herself.
She was born in 1965 in England, and went to school in Wales
She studied French and Classics
After school, she worked for Amnesty International and other low-level jobs.
She moved to Portugal and taught English as a second language.
E. She began writing Harry Potter on a train from Manchester to London, and outlined the plots for all the books and started the first novel in the subsequent five years
F. She married, the marriage ended, and at that point she moved to Edinburgh where the first book, Harry Potter & the Sorcerer's Stone was completed.
G. The first book was published in 1997.
II. Success came quickly after publication for Rowling, and the Harry Potter books have had a profound impact on pop culture since their release.
A. According to Thomas (2013), writing in the State Press, Harry Potter is a literary and financial juggernaut
1. People were brought back to reading
2. Rowling became the first author to become a billionaire from writing
3. According to Scholastic, the publisher of Harry Potter, books sales have totaled $7.7 billion, as cited on StatisticBrain.com.
B. With so many people having read Harry Potter books, the characters and storylines are well-known in Western culture.
C. Harry Potter has influenced an entire generation of young people, the same way Star Wars did the generation before it.
D. Harry Potter has influence around the world as well, having been translated into dozens of languages.
III. This influence has resulted in Rowling having received many awards and enjoyed substantial material success.
A. The Harry Potter series has received numerous awards
1. Several book awards, including British Children's Book of the Year
2. Nomination for a Carnegie Medal
3. Hans Christian Andersen Literature Prize in 2010
B. Rowling became a billionaire
1. Gave away a lot of money to charity, no longer a billionaire
IV. This charity work has helped others and enriched lives. Her own website highlights her charitable works.
A. She contributes to Amnesty International
B. Gingerbread works with single parents and their children.
C. Co-founded Lumos, publishing a story to raise £1.95 million for children across Europe
D. The Multiple Sclerosis Society has been a significant beneficiary of Rowling's largesse.
E. Volant is a charitable trust through which she emphasizes donations for women's and children's issues.
V. From simple beginnings, Rowling was able to build not only a pop culture icon, but a charitable empire.
A.J.K. Rowling was a single parent when she wrote Harry Potter, without steady work.
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