--- title: J K Rowling Shares Career Advice for Struggling Writers description: The 'Harry Potter' author responded to a fellow writer on Twitter who was struggling to finish writing her book. canonical: https://time.com/5021405/jk-rowling-writing-advice/ author: Raisa Bruner article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-11-13T15:50:38.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-12T08:28:17.552Z og:title: J.K. Rowling Has Some Inspirational Advice for Writers og:description: The author is paying it forward og:url: https://time.com/5021405/jk-rowling-writing-advice/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5155aff2739d85e3/6988ae29fb4eac127d88fda8/gettyimages-622252832.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3648 og:image:height: 2052 og:image:alt: "Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them" World Premiere og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: J.K. Rowling Has Some Inspirational Advice for Writers twitter:description: The author is paying it forward twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5155aff2739d85e3/6988ae29fb4eac127d88fda8/gettyimages-622252832.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # J.K. Rowling Has the Perfect Writing Advice For Anyone Struggling to Finish a Project > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=00a8d487-a024-4c1b-a8d9-336920e5ce4c&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: J.K. Rowling Explains the Time She Wrote a Secret Fairy Tale on Her Party Dress [Watch (HLS stream): J.K. Rowling Explains the Time She Wrote a Secret Fairy Tale on Her Party Dress](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/zfbQywqd.m3u8) (0:37)  _Published 2017-07-10. In an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Harry Potter author J.K.Rowling revealed that she wrote a manuscript for a new fairy tale and while she decides whether or not to publish it, she’ll keep it hanging in her closet_  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Nov 13, 2017 3:50 PM UTC  by [Raisa Bruner](https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Nov 13, 2017 3:50 PM UTC Add “motivational Tweeter” to the list of job descriptions[ for J.K. Rowling.](http://time.com/5003709/rowling-trump-coin/) Over the weekend, the famous _Harry Potter_ author — who’s the [highest-paid author in the game](http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-jk-rowling-95-million-20170807-story.html), joined by masters of drama and thriller like James Patterson and [Stephen King](http://time.com/4816499/stephen-king-trump-block-rowling/) — made use of her social media platform to help build up a fellow writer who was struggling to complete a book. “I want to write like @jk\_rowling or @StephenKing but it’s too hard for me,” the French writer — who goes by the _Lord of the Rings_\-inspired name [Roi-Sorcier d’Angma](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roi-Sorcier%5Fd%27Angmar)r on her Twitter account — initially tweeted. “I’m demotivated. I’ll never finish my book.” You’d think that, with over 13 million followers, Rowling would be far too inundated with Twitter mentions to see this plea for help. But somehow she noticed it, and sent back the perfect response. “Don’t write \[like\] me. Write like you. Nobody else can do that. Finish that book,” Rowling said. Now, the French writer has a veritable army of supporters in her corner urging her to finish the book — and, thanks to Rowling’s backing, she might even find some new readers for her first work as well. > [](https://twitter.com/jk%5Frowling/status/929719851182108672) > [](https://twitter.com/themayukhsutra/status/929733731446689794) > [](https://twitter.com/PrncessGarcia%5F/status/929720788902600709) Thanks to all that support, she’s made an online promise to finish the book after all. Looks like all she needed was a few magic words from the Wizarding World authority herself. > [](https://twitter.com/%5FUruk%5FHai%5F/status/929730627519303682) ## Transcript I don't know whether I'll ever publish that but I I will tell you this. The theme of my 50th birthday which I held at Halloween even though that's not really my birthday was [ UNKNOWN ] private nightmare. And I went as a lost manuscript. [ LAUGH ] And I wrote Over drafts, most of that book I wrote it. So, that book I don't know whether it will ever be published, but it's actually hanging in the wardrobe, currently . >> Oh, my this is a J. K. Rowling scoop, I'm sorry. There's a hidden book somewhere! ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5021405/jk-rowling-writing-advice/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5021405/jk-rowling-writing-advice/"},"headline":"J.K. Rowling Has the Perfect Writing Advice For Anyone Struggling to Finish a Project","datePublished":"2017-11-13T15:50:38.000Z","dateModified":"2026-10-12T08:28:17.552Z","description":"\"Write like you. 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