Do I Look Stupid?" Snarled Uncle Vernon,

Crackers!” Said Dumbledore Enthusiastically, Offering The End Of A Large Silver Noisemaker To Snape, Who Took It Reluctantly.

You Have To Resign Yourself To The Fact That You Waste A Lot Of Trees Before You Write Anything You Really Like, And That's Just The Way It Is. It's Like Learning An Instrument, You've Got To Be Prepared For Hitting Wrong Notes Occasionally, Or Quite A Lot, Cause I Wrote An Awful Lot Before I Wrote Anything I Was Really Happy With. And Read A Lot. Reading Really Helps. Read Anything You Can Get Your Hands On.

I Had The Idea Of A Boy Who Was A Wizard And Didn't Yet Know What He Was. I Never Sat Down And Wondered, "what Shall I Write About Next?". It Just Came, Fully Formed.

Dumbledore Had Not Raised His Voice, He Did Not Even Sound Angry, But Harry Would Have Preferred Him To Yell; This Cold Disappointment Was Worse Than Anything.

Deliberately Causing Mayhem In Snape's Potions Class Was About As Safe As Poking A Sleeping Dragon In The Eye.