Those who thought JK Rowling had downed her pen for a break after finishing the seventh Harry Potter book were mistaken. 'I wasn't taking a break at all,' admits the successful author. In fact she was completing a set of handwritten fairytales The Tales Of Beedle The Bard, which were mentioned in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows.
"I was literally writing out – as these are handwritten books – these new stories, which has been a wonderful way to say goodbye. It's like coming up from a deep dive," she says.
Sadly for Potter fans, however, the fairytales won't be published. There are just seven volumes in existence, one of which will be auctioned to raise money for JK's charity The Children's Voice. It has a starting price of £30,000, but is expected to fetch far more at the Sotheby's auction on December 13. The remaining six copies will be given away.
Although the boy wizard's adventures are over, there may be one more Harry Potter publication in the pipeline, however. JK has promised to produce a definitive Harry Potter encyclopedia, including all the material that never made it into the novels. All the royalties from the publication will go to charity.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
