J. K. Rowling's writing style in Harry Potter

A persistent mannerism

10 May 2019 (Updated 28 July 2020)

J. K. Rowling's "writing style" is nothing if not controversial. Commentary on the Internet is torn between adulation from fans and putdowns from the creative writing establishment.

Regrettably, discussions of her "writing style" seem to regard it as an all-round term for plot, characterisation, narration, and description. Top Google search results turn up impressionistic descriptions like "JK Rowling’s writing is whimsical and rhythmic, with lots of irony and good flow", "her humor is dry and witty", "her writing is very subjective and personal", and "most of the sentence structure feels quite casual".

Only seldom do people look at the nitty-gritty of style: how she puts her sentences together, word choices, and the like. One article points out that she uses too many adverbs. A student paper attempts a grammatical analysis in terms of "deep structure writing style" but fails to deliver.

But some way down in the Google results, you will find someone who has actually delved into Rowling's writing — J. H. Trumble's article titled An exhaustive analysis of J.K.Rowling's writing style, based on a random two-page-spread sample from The Deathly Hallows. While mainly concentrating on punctuation, Trumble points out three specific characteristics of Rowling's style and word usage: sentence length, verb choices (simple), and her love of 'Participial Phrases'.

It's significant that Trumble singles out participial phrases for special mention. This is possibly Rowling's single most glaring grammatical mannerism, one which might explain why some find her writing unimpressive and pedestrian. Once you notice it, it's hard to read a page of Harry Potter quite the same way again.

A brief analysis of Chapter 7 in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 'Mudbloods and Murmurs', confirms Rowling's addiction to present participial phrases (or clauses) to describe a concurrent action.

For instance:

• Colin ignored him, his face shining with excitement.

This combines two sentences: "Colin ignored him. His face was shining (or shone) with excitement."

Another example:

• Wood shot towards the ground, landing rather harder than he meant to in his anger, staggering slightly as he dismounted.

(Wood shot towards the ground. Wood landed rather harder than he meant to in his anger. Wood staggered slightly as he dismounted.)

Sometimes the clause comes before the sentence:

• Stiff-legged and still yawning, his team followed.

Rowling particularly loves to use them with reported speech. For example:

• ‘Aren’t you Lucius Malfoy’s son?’ said Fred, looking at Malfoy with dislike.

• ‘Better out than in,’ he said cheerfully, plonking a large copper basin in front of him.

Rowling uses this construction on page after page, at chapter after chapter, with the cumulative effect of depriving her writing of stylistic variety. The chief appeal of her books perhaps lies less in her style than in her imagination, her magical world, her playful made-up words, and her sharp observations on life and society.

Others would disagree. As John Lawler has pointed out, Rowling has "some terrific examples of how to use participles and gerunds or serial motion verbs... it's one of the things that contributes to the perception of the characters in the story as being alive and in motion".

Love it or hate it, the heavy use of the present participle is certainly one of the hallmarks of Rowling's style.

To emphasise how much Rowling likes this construction, I reproduce all the examples that I found in the 19 pages of "Mudbloods and Murmurs" (British edition). These sentences also exemplify to some extent another feature of her writing that has been criticised: her heavy use of adverbs (bolded in grey). Whether this amounts to 'overuse' depends on your point of view, but it's safe to say that graduates of creative writing workshops are likely to find it excessive.

• Ron’s wand was still malfunctioning, surpassing itself on Friday morning by shooting out of Ron’s hand in Charms and hitting tiny old Professor Flitwick squarely between the eyes, creating a large, throbbing green boil where it had struck.
• Yawning and shivering slightly, Harry climbed out of bed and tried to find his Quidditch robes.
• Colin Creevey came dashing down the spiral staircase, his camera swinging madly around his neck
• Lockhart gave up and slumped, panting, against the white edge of the picture.
• Colin ignored him, his face shining with excitement.
• Stiff-legged and still yawning, his team followed.
• He mounted his broomstick and kicked at the ground, soaring up into the air.
• The cool morning air whipped his face, waking him far more effectively than Wood’s long talk.
• He soared right around the stadium at full speed, racing Fred and George.
• Colin was sitting in one of the highest seats, his camera raised, taking picture after picture
• He could be a Slytherin spy, trying to find out about our new training programme.’
• Wood shot towards the ground, landing rather harder than he meant to in his anger, staggering slightly as he dismounted.
• And from behind the six large figures before them came a seventh, smaller boy, smirking all over his pale, pointed face.
• He was looking at Malfoy, taking in his Slytherin Quidditch robes.
• Ron plunged his hand into his robes, pulled out his wand, yelling, ‘You’ll pay for that one, Malfoy!’ and pointed it furiously under Flint’s arm at Malfoy’s face.
• A loud bang echoed around the stadium and a jet of green light shot out of the wrong end of Ron’s wand, hitting him in the stomach and sending him reeling backwards onto the grass.
• Flint was doubled up, hanging on to his new broomstick for support.
• Malfoy was on all fours, banging the ground with his fist.
• ‘Oooh,’ said Colin, fascinated and raising his camera.
• Gilderoy Lockhart, wearing robes of palest mauve today, came striding out.
• Hagrid appeared at once, looking very grumpy,
• Hagrid was bustling around, making them tea.
• ‘Met her jus’ yesterday.’ Hagrid looked sideways at Harry, his beard twitching.
• They said goodbye to Hagrid and walked back up to the castle, Ron hiccoughing occasionally, but only bringing up two, very small slugs.
• Professor McGonagall was walking towards them, looking stern.
• Harry and Ron slouched into the Great Hall in states of deepest gloom, Hermione behind them, wearing a well-you-did-break-school-rules sort of expression.
• The minutes snailed by. Harry let Lockhart’s voice wash over him, occasionally saying, ‘Mmm’ and ‘Right’ and ‘Yeah’.
• Harry moved his aching hand over what felt like the thousandth envelope, writing out Veronica Smethley’s address.
• Feeling dazed, Harry left.
• Half an hour later, Ron arrived, nursing his right arm and bringing a strong smell of polish into the darkened room.
• Keeping his voice low so as not to wake Neville, Dean and Seamus, Harry told Ron exactly what he had heard.

(With reported speech)

• ‘No,’ said Harry flatly, glancing around to check that the room was really deserted.
• ‘You were the youngest house player in a hundred years, weren’t you, Harry? Weren’t you?’ said Colin, trotting alongside him.
• ‘And what are the other balls for?’ Colin asked, tripping down a couple of steps
• ‘So,’ said Wood, at long last, jerking Harry from a wistful fantasy ..., ‘is that clear? Any questions?’
• ‘Now, listen here, you lot,’ he said, glowering at them all
• ‘So, this year, we train harder than ever before ... OK, let’s go and put our new theories into practice!’ Wood shouted, seizing his broomstick and leading the way out of the changing rooms.
• ‘Haven’t even started,’ said Harry, looking jealously at the toast and marmalade Ron and Hermione had brought out of the Great Hall.
• ‘No idea, Harry lied, putting on a spurt of speed that took him as far away as possible from Colin.
• ‘What’s going on?’ said Wood, frowning, as he skimmed through the air towards them.
• ‘Because they’re here in person,’ said George, pointing.
• ‘But I booked the pitch!’ said Wood, positively spitting with rage.
• ‘Aren’t you Lucius Malfoy’s son?’ said Fred, looking at Malfoy with dislike.
• ‘Very latest model. Only came out last month,’ said Flint carelessly, flicking a speck of dust from the end of his own.
• ‘Quick, behind here, Harry hissed, dragging Ron behind a nearby bush.
• ‘Better out than in,’ he said cheerfully, plonking a large copper basin in front of him.
• ‘I don’t think there’s anything to do except wait for it to stop, said Hermione anxiously, watching Ron bend over the basin.
• ‘What did Lockhart want with you, Hagrid?’ Harry asked, scratching Fang’s ears.
• ‘Givin’ me advice on gettin’ kelpies out of a well,’ growled Hagrid, moving a half-plucked rooster off his scrubbed table and setting down the teapot.
• ‘He was the on’y man for the job, said Hagrid, offering them a plate of treacle fudge, while Ron coughed squelchily into his basin.
• So tell me,’ said Hagrid, jerking his head at Ron, ‘who was he tryin’ ter curse?’
• ‘It was bad, said Ron hoarsely, emerging over the table top, looking pale and sweaty.
• ‘It’s about the most insulting thing he could think of, gasped Ron, coming back up.
• ‘It’s a disgusting thing to call someone,’ said Ron, wiping his sweaty brow with a shaking hand.
• ‘I’m on’y jokin’, he said, patting Harry genially on the back and sending him, face first, into the table.
• ‘Bet he didn’t like that,’ said Harry, sitting up and rubbing his chin.
• ‘Don’ think he did, said Hagrid, his eyes twinkling.
• ‘That’s what yer little sister said,’ said Hagrid, nodding at Ron.
• ‘Watch it!’ Hagrid roared, pulling Ron away from his precious pumpkins.
• ‘What are we doing, Professor?’ said Ron, nervously suppressing a burp.
• ‘Certainly not,’ said Professor McGonagall, raising her eyebrows.
• ‘Sorry?’ said Lockhart, looking puzzled. ‘What voice?’
• ‘My muscles have all seized up,’ he groaned, sinking on his bed.
• ‘I know,’ said Harry, lying back in his four-poster and staring at the canopy above him.

(Clause explaining the previous sentence)

• He had been unconscious in the hospital wing for the final match of the previous year, meaning that Gryffindor had been a player short and had suffered their worst defeat in three hundred years.
• ‘An’ they haven’t invented a spell our Hermione can’t do,’ said Hagrid proudly, making Hermione go a brilliant shade of magenta.
• The candles burned lower and lower, making the light dance over the many moving faces of Lockhart watching him.

(Mudbloods and Murmurs", chapter title in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Mongolian)