Sadly, the story of Harry Potter has come to an end with the release of the final movie. But, there is hope that more amazing stories might come out of author J.K. Rowling. In the midst of the Harry Potter hoopla, there was at least one movie made about how J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter – Magic Beyond Words. This being a Lifetime movie I was a bit skeptical about how good it would be, but with nothing else to do one afternoon last week, I sat down to watch it.
Much to my surprise, I found the movie to be engaging. It started with her as a young girl and told how she had always wanted to be a writer. It took you through her troubled teen years and showed how her mom was her biggest supporter. Then she went off to college, graduated, and got a variety of jobs, all the while wishing she was writing. She eventually got married and had a baby. After leaving an abusive relationship she found herself jobless and homeless. This is when she finally began to write … and write … and write. She then was fortunate enough to find an agent who took a chance on her manuscript and submitted it to a new publishing company. And thus, Harry Potter was born.
For many watching this film, it is likely that they easily pulled the rags to riches story from the plot, but in reading between the lines, to me her story was more about picking yourself up by your bootstrings, taking chances, and learning to believe in yourself.
J.K. Rowling found that she had basically hit rock bottom and I believe that is when she truly dug deep to find herself. Everything she tried in the past – working for amnesty international, teaching, even getting married – had not made her happy. But J.K. Rowling knew that she was meant to be a writer, it was all she ever wanted to do. So she took a chance and started writing. And then she took another chance and let someone read her writing. And then she took another chance and submitted her writing to an agent. And then she took another chance when she had her manuscript submitted to the publisher. Each step of her journey she faced some sort of rejection and yet she persevered. And each step of her journey she gained a little more confidence in her abilities as a writer.
J.K. Rowling is an inspiration, not just because she wrote one of the most amazing series of all time, but because of the way she did it. And there you have it … another motivation Monday.
Finding motivation takes gumption! What motivates you?
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