Highest-Paid.net

If you’re not familiar with the rags to riches story of J. K. Rowling, then you’ll at least know of her bestselling Harry Potter books. The immensely popular series has been translated into sixty-five languages, made into five of the twenty highest-grossing movies of all time and is even being adapted for Broadway. All of these facts have led to J. K. Rowling becoming the world’s highest paid author.

Before being published by Bloomsbury, J. K. Rowling was Joanne Rowling (no middle name—the ‘K’ is only present in her pseudonym). She was a single mother living off of welfare in Edinburgh, Scotland. She had been writing Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone when her mother died and was later diagnosed with clinical depression. These experiences informed elements of her books, such Harry’s own loss.

Now, Rowling is worth over £560 million (or US $972 million). In 2007, she made roughly £3 million a week. She is known for philanthropy and political contributions, including the establishment of the Volant Charitable Trust and a £1 million donation to the Labour Party. She is also the president of One Parent Families.