Her manuscript was rejected by 12 different publishing houses before she finally found a publisher. But even with the incredibly successful "Harry Potter" franchise under her belt, one of Rowling's newer manuscripts was also recently denied.
On Friday, the author took to Twitter to talk about rejection and share some photos of rejection letters she received for her 2013 novel "The Cuckoo's Calling," which she wrote under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith. She offered the rejection notices for "inspiration, not revenge" and masked the signatures.
By popular request, 2 of @RGalbrath's rejection letters! (For inspiration, not revenge, so I've removed signatures.) pic.twitter.com/vVoc0x6r8W
In a letter from Constable & Robinson, a representative wrote that the company couldn't publish the novel "with commercial success" and offered tips for publishing and said that "vital information" could be found in "The Writer's Handbook."
The novel was eventually published and has since spawned a series of its own.
Rowling revealed that she pinned her first rejection letter to her kitchen wall, but she didn't share any "Harry Potter" rejections because they are in a box in her attic.
I pinned my 1st rejection letter to my kitchen wall because it gave me something in common with all my fave writers! https://t.co/ZmGNWDdF7x
- J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) March 25, 2016
Yes, the publisher who first turned down Harry also sent @RGalbraith his rudest rejection (by email)! https://t.co/22Jwf2u8hy
- J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) March 25, 2016
I wasn't going to give up until every single publisher turned me down, but I often feared that would happen. https://t.co/bMKu4zJ3nm
- J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) March 25, 2016
I had nothing to lose and sometimes that makes you brave enough to try. https://t.co/ETEk8lcih1
- J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) March 25, 2016