J.K. Rowling's Success

I'm sure this comes as no surprise, but J.K. Rowling's net worth is $1 billion. Has anyone ever thought about that in depth and not just passively? It's mindblowing. Do you guys think her quality as a writer warrants her wealth? Do you think Harry Potter was a fluke?

Her subsequent novels have been well recieved, so I don't think it's a fluke. She crafted a cohesive, desciptive, exciting world, that appealed to kids and adults alike. 

Considering how much good to novel business she has done I would say she more than earned it.

Her subsequent novels have been well recieved, so I don't think it's a fluke. She crafted a cohesive, desciptive, exciting world, that appealed to kids and adults alike. 

jimkabrhel

I haven't looked into her new work. What genres does it encompass?

Harry Potter was a well crafted story to all ages. I hated books and with Harry Potter I started reading them and let me tell you that I know love books.

[QUOTE="jimkabrhel"]

Her subsequent novels have been well recieved, so I don't think it's a fluke. She crafted a cohesive, desciptive, exciting world, that appealed to kids and adults alike. 

BluRayHiDef

I haven't looked into her new work. What genres does it encompass?

Considering how much good to novel business she has done I would say she more than earned it.

AdrianWerner

[QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

[QUOTE="jimkabrhel"]

Her subsequent novels have been well recieved, so I don't think it's a fluke. She crafted a cohesive, desciptive, exciting world, that appealed to kids and adults alike. 

AvatarMan96

I haven't looked into her new work. What genres does it encompass?

Wow she is worth that much? I think the british government should sell her to pay off our national debt. Her hp books weren't all that well written but nonetheless she did a very good job of telling a story and keeping us wanting more. I've not read any of her other books. That book she recently wrote under a fake name though was well-received so I doubt it's just her name at this stage that sells booksEJ902

Yep, she's worth a whopping $1 billion. The Google search result blew my mind. I wonder what she'll do with that money.

[QUOTE="AdrianWerner"]

Considering how much good to novel business she has done I would say she more than earned it.

BluRayHiDef

Also...King didn't create IP for children..so no royalities from toys, games etc

I don't think she has quality as a writer.....I think hype goes a long long way.LJS9502_basic

[QUOTE="AvatarMan96"][QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

I haven't looked into her new work. What genres does it encompass?

BluRayHiDef

[QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

[QUOTE="AvatarMan96"] If I remember correctly, I saw a J.K. Rowling book in the mystery section one day, so I suppose she's done some of that.Stinger78

As Stephen King said "The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer cant write worth a darn." So yeah.. I'm sure Rowling could handle SF novel.

[QUOTE="Stinger78"][QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"] I wonder if she could pull off a science fiction novel.

AdrianWerner

As Stephen King said "The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer cant write worth a darn." So yeah.. I'm sure Rowling could handle SF novel.

I'm wondering what science fiction elements she'd incorporate (e.g. time travel, artificial intelligence, cloning, etc), and whether her take on them would be plausible and cool.

HP wasn't the best written series even by children's literature standards. Rowling did, however, excel at creating an epic, fascinating world. Star Wars did the same thing and therefore had the same success. Add in a few great characters and things like dialogue and development of such characters don't matter so much.

Her strength is in her storytelling moreso than her writing. From a technical perspective, her writing is very mediocre.Makhaidos

Uhh..not really. She has pretty damn good writing style. It was simple in Harry Potter, because that's what's necessary for children/YA novel. But even there it was descriptive, fluid and very concrete. The simplicity and directness was obviously an concious choice, because her adult books have very different and much richer style.

"Very mediocre writing" would cause children to stop reading after chapter or two. A book like that wouldn't be able to pull kids through hundreds of pages, no matter how good the actual story would be. Writing for children is the hardest form of writing from technical perspective.

[QUOTE="Makhaidos"]Her strength is in her storytelling moreso than her writing. From a technical perspective, her writing is very mediocre.AdrianWerner

Uhh..not really. She has pretty damn good writing style. It was simple in Harry Potter, because that's what's necessary for children/YA novel. But even there it was descriptive, fluid and very concrete. The simplicity and directness was obviously an concious choice, because her adult books have very different and much richer style.

"Very mediocre writing" would cause children to stop reading after chapter or two. A book like that wouldn't be able to pull kids through hundreds of pages, no matter how good the actual story would be. Writing for children is the hardest form of writing from technical perspective.

Children don't care about the writing--they don't know the difference. They care about the story, which, as I said, is Rowling's greatest strength--hence her popularity. Are children looking at this big magical world where kids can go to learn how to cast spells in a fun and sometimes terrifying manner, or are they looking at the frequent and unnecessary use of adverbs and gerunds?

And writing does not need to be overly simplified or technically mediocre for children to enjoy--as shown by books like the Chronicles of Narnia and the works of John Green.

Based on the following sample, how do you guys think my writing compares to J.K. Rowling's?

I'm sure this comes as no surprise, but J.K. Rowling's net worth is $1 billion. Has anyone ever thought about that in depth and not just passively? It's mindblowing. Do you guys think her quality as a writer warrants her wealth? Do you think Harry Potter was a fluke?

BluRayHiDef

It has been a while, but I remember reading an article where she was really smart about what % she got about revenue from stuff outside of the books, so she got a substantial chunk of the movie revenue, in addition to all the book sales.

In other words, she is a really smart businesswoman, not just a successful author.

[QUOTE="AdrianWerner"]

Considering how much good to novel business she has done I would say she more than earned it.

BluRayHiDef

Stephen King is a huge fan of hers as well, or has at least come to her defense in his column on at least one occasion lol

[QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

I'm sure this comes as no surprise, but J.K. Rowling's net worth is $1 billion. Has anyone ever thought about that in depth and not just passively? It's mindblowing. Do you guys think her quality as a writer warrants her wealth? Do you think Harry Potter was a fluke?

mrbojangles25

It has been a while, but I remember reading an article where she was really smart about what % she got about revenue from stuff outside of the books, so she got a substantial chunk of the movie revenue, in addition to all the book sales.

In other words, she is a really smart businesswoman, not just a successful author.

Needs edited....LJS9502_basic

[QUOTE="LJS9502_basic"]Needs edited....heeweesRus

What do you guys have in mind? Also, neither of you answered my question. How do I compare to her?

Wow she is worth that much? I think the british government should sell her to pay off our national debt. Her hp books weren't all that well written but nonetheless she did a very good job of telling a story and keeping us wanting more. I've not read any of her other books. That book she recently wrote under a fake name though was well-received so I doubt it's just her name at this stage that sells booksEJ902

So many literature PhDs on this forum that go on about how poorly a billionaire novelist writes her novels.

[QUOTE="EJ902"]Wow she is worth that much? I think the british government should sell her to pay off our national debt. Her hp books weren't all that well written but nonetheless she did a very good job of telling a story and keeping us wanting more. I've not read any of her other books. That book she recently wrote under a fake name though was well-received so I doubt it's just her name at this stage that sells booksSqueets

So many literature PhDs on this forum that go on about how poorly a billionaire novelist writes her novels.

I'd love to hear your opinions on E.L. James.

[QUOTE="heeweesRus"][QUOTE="LJS9502_basic"]Needs edited....BluRayHiDef

What do you guys have in mind? Also, neither of you answered my question. How do I compare to her?

[QUOTE="Squeets"]

[QUOTE="EJ902"]Wow she is worth that much? I think the british government should sell her to pay off our national debt. Her hp books weren't all that well written but nonetheless she did a very good job of telling a story and keeping us wanting more. I've not read any of her other books. That book she recently wrote under a fake name though was well-received so I doubt it's just her name at this stage that sells booksMakhaidos

So many literature PhDs on this forum that go on about how poorly a billionaire novelist writes her novels.

I'd love to hear your opinions on E.L. James.

I haven't read either of their works, so I can't comment... But to claim someone "doesn't write well" while making millions, if not billions of dollars on their work is highly arrogant.

Just because some teenage boy on the internet doesn't like their work doesn't mean it isn't well written.  Their novels are aimed at a particular audience and if that audience buys their work, clearly it is well written for them or they wouldn't bother paying for it.

[QUOTE="Makhaidos"]

[QUOTE="Squeets"]

So many literature PhDs on this forum that go on about how poorly a billionaire novelist writes her novels.

Squeets

I'd love to hear your opinions on E.L. James.

I haven't read either of their works, so I can't comment... But to claim someone "doesn't write well" while making millions, if not billions of dollars on their work is highly arrogant.

Just because some teenage boy on the internet doesn't like their work doesn't mean it isn't well written.  Their novels are aimed at a particular audience and if that audience buys their work, clearly it is well written for them or they wouldn't bother paying for it.

Writing quality and the amount of money you make selling your writing are not correlated. Or are you suggesting that Stephanie Meyer, one of the bestselling novelists of the generation, writes splendidly?

 

I'd love to hear your opinions on E.L. James.

Makhaidos

[QUOTE="Makhaidos"]

Writing quality and the amount of money you make selling your writing are not correlated. Or are you suggesting that Stephanie Meyer, one of the bestselling novelists of the generation, writes splendidly?

 

I'd love to hear your opinions on E.L. James.

XilePrincess

I hated books and with Harry Potter I started reading them and let me tell you that I now love books.

Ricardomz

Considering how much good to novel business she has done I would say she more than earned it.

AdrianWerner

This isn't relevant, but she's got a very nice pair.

I'm sure this comes as no surprise, but J.K. Rowling's net worth is $1 billion. Has anyone ever thought about that in depth and not just passively? It's mindblowing. Do you guys think her quality as a writer warrants her wealth? Do you think Harry Potter was a fluke?

BluRayHiDef

It's better than Kim Kardashian being worth $1 billion.

Harry Potter was a well crafted story to all ages. I hated books and with Harry Potter I started reading them and let me tell you that Inow love books.

Ricardomz

This alone is exceedingly valuable to society.

[QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

[QUOTE="AvatarMan96"] If I remember correctly, I saw a J.K. Rowling book in the mystery section one day, so I suppose she's done some of that.Stinger78

Stephanie Meyer is the worst published author on the earth.

Based on the following sample, how do you guys think my writing compares to J.K. Rowling's?

BluRayHiDef

[QUOTE="BluRayHiDef"]

Based on the following sample, how do you guys think my writing compares to J.K. Rowling's?

W

Ninja-Hippo