2005
JK Rowling Official Site
9th of January
Happy Birthday Severus Snape!
JK Rowling Official Site
I've already answered this in FAQs, but as this rumour is still cropping
up in fan letters I thought I'd reiterate here that there will be NO
chapter called 'Lupin's Papers' in book 6, nor will there be chapters
entitled 'Pettigrew's Pamphlets,' 'Sirius's Circulars', or 'The Pocket
Crosswords of Severus Snape'.
JK Rowling Official Site
14th of May
"...Snape does not have a daughter."
Wizards skilled in Occlumency can use it against
the effects of Veritaserum. [In other words - Veritaserum does not work
on Snape.]
MuggleNet and The Leaky Cauldron interview
(Snape-Related Excerpts)
Note: To read the entire three-page interview,
tap
here.
MA: OK, big big big book six question. Is Snape evil?
JKR: [Almost laughing] Well, you've read the book, what do you think?
ES: She's trying to make you say it categorically.
MA: Well, there are conspiracy theorists, and there are people who will
claim -
JKR: Cling to some desperate hope [laughter] -
ES: Yes!
MA: Yes!
ES: Like certain shippers we know!
[All laugh]
JKR: Well, okay, I'm obviously – Harry-Snape is now as personal,
if not more so, than Harry-Voldemort. I can't answer that question because
it's a spoiler, isn't it, whatever I say, and obviously, it has such
a huge impact on what will happen when they meet again that I can't.
And let's face it, it's going to launch 10,000 theories and I'm going
to get a big kick out of reading them so [laughs] I'm evil but I just
like the theories, I love the theories.
Note: Although the following question is not about Snape, it does
explain why Snape is a 'superb Occlumens':
MA: I wanted to go back to Draco.
JKR: OK, yeah, let's talk about Draco.
MA: He was utterly fascinating in this book.
JKR: Well, I'm glad you think so, because I enjoyed this one. Draco
did a lot of growing up in this book as well. I had an interesting discussion,
I thought, with my editor Emma, about Draco. She said to me, "So,
Malfoy can do Occlumency," which obviously Harry never mastered
and has now pretty much given up on doing, or attempting. And she was
querying this and wondering whether he should be as good as it, but
I think Draco would be very gifted in Occlumency, unlike Harry. Harry’s
problem with it was always that his emotions were too near the surface
and that he is in some ways too damaged. But he's also very in touch
with his feelings about what's happened to him. He's not repressed,
he's quite honest about facing them, and he couldn't suppress them,
he couldn't suppress these memories. But I thought of Draco as someone
who is very capable of compartmentalizing his life and his emotions,
and always has done. So he's shut down his pity, enabling him to bully
effectively. He's shut down compassion — how else would you become
a Death Eater? So he suppresses virtually all of the good side of himself.
But then he's playing with the big boys, as the phrase has it, and suddenly,
having talked the talk he's asked to walk it for the first time and
it is absolutely terrifying. And I think that that is an accurate depiction
of how some people fall into that kind of way of life and they realize
what they're in for. I felt sorry for Draco. Well, I’ve always
known this was coming for Draco, obviously, however nasty he was.
Harry is correct in believing that Draco would not have killed Dumbledore,
which I think is clear when he starts to lower his wand, when the matter
is taken out of his hands.
ES: Was Dumbledore planning to die?
JKR: [Pause.] Do you think that's going to be the big theory?
MA & ES: Yes. It’ll be a big theory.
JKR: [Pause.] Well, I don't want to shoot that one down. [A little laughter.]
I have to give people hope.
MA: It goes back to the question of whether Snape is a double-double-double-triple-
JKR: [Laughs] Double-double-quadruple-to-the-power-of - yeah.
MA: …whether this had been planned, and since Dumbledore had this
knowledge of Draco the whole year, had they had a discussion that said,
"Should this happen, you have to act as if it is entirely your intention
to just walk forward and kill me, because if you don't, Draco will die,
the Unbreakable Vow, you'll die," and so on —
JKR: No, I see that, and yeah, I follow your line there. I can't —
I mean, obviously, there are lines of speculation I don't want to shut
down. Generally speaking, I shut down those lines of speculation that
are plain unprofitable. Even with the shippers. God bless them, but they
had a lot of fun with it. It's when people get really off the wall —
it's when people devote hours of their time to proving that Snape is a
vampire that I feel it's time to step in, because there's really nothing
in the canon that supports that.
ES: It's when you look for those things —
JKR: Yeah, it's after the 15th rereading when you have spots in front
of your eyes that you start seeing clues about Snape being the Lord
of Darkness. So, there are things I shut down just because I think,
well, don't waste your time, there's better stuff to be debating, and
even if it's wrong, it will probably lead you somewhere interesting.
That's my rough theory anyway.
Note: The following answer proves that 'Snape's Worst Memory' (OOTP)
is an accurate portrayal of events:
MA: One of our Leaky “Ask Jo” poll winners is theotherhermit,
she's 50 and lives in a small town in the eastern US. I think this was
addressed in the sixth book, but, “Do the memories stored in a Pensieve
reflect reality or the views of the person they belong to?”
JKR: It’s reality. It’s important that I have got that across,
because Slughorn gave Dumbledore this pathetic cut-and-paste memory.
He didn't want to give the real thing, and he very obviously patched
it up and cobbled it together. So, what you remember is accurate in
the Pensieve.
ES: Why is Slytherin house still –
JKR: Still allowed!
[All laugh]
ES: Yes! I mean, it's such a stigma.
JKR: But they're not all bad. They literally are not all bad. [Pause.]
Well, the deeper answer, the non-flippant answer, would be that you have
to embrace all of a person, you have to take them with their flaws, and
everyone's got them. It’s the same way with the student body. If
only they could achieve perfect unity, you would have an absolute unstoppable
force, and I suppose it's that craving for unity and wholeness that means
that they keep that quarter of the school that maybe does not encapsulate
the most generous and noble qualities, in the hope, in the very Dumbledore-esque
hope that they will achieve union, and they will achieve harmony. Harmony
is the word.
ES: Couldn’t —
JKR: Couldn't they just shoot them all? NO, Emerson, they really couldn’t!
[All laugh]
ES: Couldn't they just put them into the other three houses, and maybe
it wouldn’t be a perfect fit for all of them, but a close enough
fit that they would get by and wouldn't be in such a negative environment?
JKR: They could. But you must remember, I have thought about this —
ES: Even their common room is a gloomy dark room—
JKR: Well, I don't know, because I think the Slytherin common room has
a spooky beauty.
ES: It's gotta be a bad idea to stick all the Death Eaters' kids together
in one place.
[All crack up again ]
JKR: But they're not all — don't think I don't take your point,
but — we, the reader, and I as the writer, because I'm leading you
all there — you are seeing Slytherin house always from the perspective
of Death Eaters' children. They are a small fraction of the total Slytherin
population. I'm not saying all the other Slytherins are adorable, but
they're certainly not Draco, they're certainly not, you know, Crabbe and
Goyle. They're not all like that, that would be too brutal for words,
wouldn’t it?
ES: But there aren't a lot of Death Eater children in the other houses,
are there?
JKR: You will have people connected with Death Eaters in the other houses,
yeah, absolutely.
ES: Just in lesser numbers.
JKR: Probably. I hear you. It is the tradition to have four houses, but
in this case, I wanted them to correspond roughly to the four elements.
So Gryffindor is fire, Ravenclaw is air, Hufflepuff is earth, and Slytherin
is water, hence the fact that their common room is under the lake. So
again, it was this idea of harmony and balance, that you had four necessary
components and by integrating them you would make a very strong place.
But they remain fragmented, as we know.
ES: Was James the only one who had romantic feelings for Lily?
JKR: No. [Pause.] She was like Ginny, she was a popular girl.
MA: Snape?
JKR: That is a theory that's been put to me repeatedly.
MA: Oh, here’s one [from our forums] that I’ve really got
to ask you. Has Snape ever been loved by anyone?
JKR: Yes, he has, which in some ways makes him more culpable even than
Voldemort, who never has. Okay, one more each!
2006
Harry, Carrie & Garp
First Night
Question: Can Muggles brew potions if they follow the exact instructions
and have all the ingredients?
JKR: Well, I'd have to say no. Because there is always a magical component
in the potion. Not just the ingredients so at some point they will have
touse a wand. I've been asked what would happen if a Muggle picked up
a wand in my world and the answer would probably be something accidental
and probably quite violent because the wand in my world is mearly a
vehicle or vessel of sorts and there is a very close relationship as
you know between the wand that each wizard uses and themselves. and
you'll find out more abuot that in book 7. For a Muggle you need the
ability, in other words, to make these things work properly but you're
right and I think that's an interesting point. As Potions seems on the
face of it to be the most Muggle-friendly subject. But there's normally
a point ni which you need to use magic. Thank you, good question.
Carly: You said in a recent interview that Snape -
JKR: Snape!
Carly: Uh huh.
*much cheering*
Carly: Had a sort of redemptive quality about him, and I was wondering
if there was any chance that Draco Malfoy might redeem himself?
JKR: All you girls and Draco Malfoy. You've got to get past this.
Carly: And if any other characters might redeem themselves?
JKR: Well, I believe that almost anyone can redeem themselves. However,
in some cases, as we know from reality - if a psychologist were ever
able to get Voldemort in a room, tape him down, take his wand away,
I think he would be classified as a psychopath. So there are people
for whom redeption is not possible. So I'd say for my main characters,
yes, there's the possibility for redemption for all of them. Draco,
I think - Harry's view is that even given unlimited time, would not
have killed... let's just say that Draco would not have murdered the
person in question. What that means for Draco's future, you will have
to wait for.
Samantha: In the wizarding worl there are many wandmakers, Ollivander
being the one we're most familiar with. How come Ollivander chose the
three magical cores for the wands he makes to be phoenix feather, unicorn
hair, and dragon heartstring? And how come he decided that these are
the three most powerful cores as opposed to the others such as veela
hair?
JKR: Good question. Well, it is true that there are several wandmakers
and in my notes about Harry I have many different cores for wands. Essentially
I decided Ollivander was going to use my three favourites. So Ollivander
has decided that those are the three most powerful substances...
Harry, Carrie & Garp
Second Night (transcribed by Yours Truly)
JKR: '... my consolation is I have the most interesting shoes: snakes....
Thank you, for that. I noticed you like Snape. You just never give up
hope, you people, do you?
'Anyway... I'm going to do a short reading from Harry Potter &
the Half-Blood Prince. Um, short... short because, um, in my experience
my readers like me to answer questions, and like me to hasten on to
that part, so I'm going to take a few, em, questions after I've done
this reading. This concerns um, a part of the story where Harry goes
back in time, and watches as Albus Dumbledore, a younger Albus Dumbledore,
goes to inform another famous pupil of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft
and Wizardry that he has a place at the school...'
*some cheering*
JKR: 'And you really shouldn't be cheering that particular one. Snape,
I can kind of see, but... anyway...'
Audience member: '...since he [Dumbledore] is the most powerful wizard
of all time, and Harry Potter is so loyal to him, how could he really
be dead?'
JKR: '...I really can't answer that question because the answer is
in book seven, but... I, you shouldn't expect Dumbledore to do a Gandalf,
let me just put it that way, I'm sorry...'
SR: 'Hullo, we are Salman and Milan Rushdie, ah...'
JKR: 'I'm , I'm not that sure this is fair. I think you might be better
at guessing plots than most, but anyway, off you go.'
SR: 'Well anyway, we are nine and fifty-nine, and, and one of us is
good at guessing plots. Not me. And this is really Milan's question,
and it's kind of a follow-up to the previous one.'
JKR: 'Right, okay.'
SR: 'So until the events of volume six, it was always made plain that
Snape might be an unlikable fellow -'
JKR: 'Mmm hmmm.'
SR: 'But he was essentially one of the good guys.'
JKR: 'Mmm hmmm.'
Audience members: 'Yes!' 'Yeah!'
*cheering*
*JKR laughs*
JKR 'I can see this is the question you all really want answered.'
SR: 'Dumbledore himself, Dumbledore himself had always vouched for
him.'
JKR: 'Yes.'
SR: 'Now we are suddenly told that Snape is in fact a villain and Dumbledore's
killer. '
JKR: 'Mmm hmmm.'
SR: 'We cannot, or don't want to believe this.'
*JKR laughs with audience*
SR: 'Our theory, is that Snape is in fact still a good guy -'
JKR: 'Right...'
*cheering*
SR: 'From which it follows that Dumbledore can't really be dead. And
that the death is a ruse cooked up between Dumbledore and Snape to put
Voldemort off his guard. So that when Harry and Voldemort come face
to face, Harry may have more allies than either he or Voldmemort suspects.
So, is Snape good or bad?'
*JKR laughs evily and audience cheers*
SR: 'In, in our opinion everything follows from it.'
JKR: 'Well, Salman... your opinion I would say, is... right... But
I see that I need to be a little more explicit and say that Dumbleodre
is definitely dead...'
JK Rowling Official Site
29/09/06
Rumours Section
Snape was hiding under the Invisibility Cloak on the night
the Potters died
No, he wasn't.
JK Rowling Official Site
Diary Section
19th DECEMBER 2006
I made another daytrip to Leavesden a few weeks ago, where I saw twenty
minutes of Order of the Phoenix, which looks fantastic. Also got a chance,
before they all took off in their different directions (it was the last
week of live actor filming) to talk to Dan, Rupert, Emma and Evanna,
which is always wonderful. Dan has changed his theory on Snape;
he says he doesn't want to be like one of those people who are photographed,
beaming, next to mad dictators.
2007
JK Rowling on The Today Show
26th of July 2007
Was Snape always intended to be a hero?
JKR: *gasp* Is he a hero? You see, I don't see him really as a hero. [They are called anti-heroes, Jo. Sincerely, Snapesforte.]
Really?
JKR: Yeah, he's spiteful, he's a bully. All these tihngs are still true of Snape, even at the end of this book. Ah, um, but was he brave? Yes, immensely.
If Snape didn't love Lily, would he still have tried to protect Harry?
JKR: No, he definitely wouldn't have done it. He wouldn't have been remotely interested in what happened to this boy.
JKR on Dateline
July 29, 2007
Meanwhile, the seemingly villainous Severus Snape -- the wizard who killed Dumbledore before Harry's eyes -- shows a somewhat more heroic side in the final book.
J.K. Rowling: "Do I think he's a hero? To a point I do, but he's not an unequivocally good character. [Note: this beginning was cut from the official transcript. Portkey: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20001720/] Snape is a complicated man. He's bitter. He's … spiteful. He's a bully. All these things are still true of Snape, even at the end of this book. But was he brave? Yes, immensely.
Was he capable of love? Very definitely. So he's-- he's a very-- he was a flawed human being, like all of us.
Harry forgives him--- as we know, from the epilogue, Harry-- Harry really sees the good in Snape ultimately. I wanted there to be redemption and I wanted there to be forgiveness. And Harry forgives, even knowing that until the end Snape loathed him unjustifiably. it's totally, totally unfair that he loathes him so much but anyway.
Note: The second transcript, which appeared online at the same site [Portkey: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20035573/] on the 31st of July 2007, has had the missing first sentence added, as well as some extra information:
Is Snape good or evil?
After seven years at Hogwarts, we finally learn that Severus Snape, albeit somewhat grudgingly, has always been working to protect Harry. But is he really a good person?
“I don’t really see him as a hero,” Rowling said. “He’s not an unequivocally good character … He’s a complicated man.”
Rowling said Snape is bitter, spiteful and a bully, but he is also immensely brave and capable of love.
“As we know from the epilogue, Harry really sees the good in Snape ultimately … there’s redemption,” Rowling said. “I wanted there to be redemption and I wanted there to be forgiveness. And Harry forgives, even knowing that till the end Snape loathes him unjustifiably.”
Rowling Bloomsbury Interview/Web Chat
30th of July 2007
Laura Trego: Was the absence of Snape's portrait in the headmasters office in the last scene innocent or deliberate?
J.K. Rowling: It was deliberate. Snape had effectively abandoned his post before dying, so he had not merited inclusion in these august circles. However, I like to think that Harry would be instrumental in ensuring that Snape's portrait would appear there in due course.
*
J.K. Rowling: The Hufflepuff common room is accessed through a portrait near the kitchens, as I am sure you have deduced.Sorry - I should say 'painting' rather than portrait, because it is a still-life. It is a very cosy and welcoming place, as dissimilar as possible from Snape's dungeon. Lots of yellow hangings, and fat armchairs, and little underground tunnels leading to the dormitories, all of which have perfectly round doors, like barrel tops.
*
Lechicaneuronline: Do you think Snape is a hero?
J.K. Rowling: Yes, I do; though a very flawed hero. An anti-hero, perhaps. He is not a particularly likeable man in many ways. He remains rather cruel, a bully, riddled with bitterness and insecurity - and yet he loved, and showed loyalty to that love and, ultimately, laid down his life because of it. That's pretty heroic!
*
Jaclyn: Did Lily ever have feelings back for Snape?
J.K. Rowling: Yes. She might even have grown to love him romantically (she certainly loved him as a friend) if he had not loved Dark Magic so much, and been drawn to such loathesome people and acts.
*
Annie: Does the wizarding world now know that Snape was Dumbledore's man, or do they still think he did a bunk?
J.K. Rowling: Harry would ensure that Snape's heroism was known. Of course, that would not stop Rita Skeeter writing 'Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?'
*
Natalie: Are house divisions as prevalaent in Harry’s children’s Hogwarts as in the previous generations?
J.K. Rowling: Slytherin has become diluted. It is no longer the pureblood bastion it once was. Nevertheless, its dark reputation lingers, hence Albus Potter's fears.
*
Nithya: Lily detested Mulciber, and Avery. If Snape really loved her, why didn't he sacrifice their company for her sake?
J.K. Rowling: Well, that is Snape's tragedy. Given his time over again he would not have become a Death Eater, but like many insecure, vulnerable people (like Wormtail) he craved membership of something big and powerful, something impressive. He wanted Lily and he wanted Mulciber too. He never really understood Lily's aversion; he was so blinded by his attraction to the dark side he thought she would find him impressive if he became a real Death Eater.
*
Barbara: I was very disappointed to see Harry use Crucio and seem to enjoy it. His failure to perform that kind of curse in the past has been a credit to his character why the change? And did Harry later regret having enjoyed deliberately causing pain?
J.K. Rowling: Harry is not, and never has been, a saint. Like Snape, he is flawed and mortal. Harry's faults are primarily anger and occasional arrogance.On this occasion, he is very angry and acts accordingly. He is also in an extreme situation, and attempting to defend somebody very good against a violent and murderous opponent.
*
Rachel Nell: Jkr, thank you for such amazing books! I would like to know how come no one seemed to know that Lily and Snape were friends in school they were obviously meeting for chats, etc didnt James know their past?
J.K. Rowling: Thank you for your thank you! Yes, it was known that they were friendly and then stopped being friends. Nothing more than that would be widely known. James always suspected Snape harboured deeper feelings for Lily, which was a factor in James' behaviour to Snape.
*
Hannah: Why was Snape so badly groomed?
J.K. Rowling: Hmm. Good question. Poor eyesight? Did he look in the mirror and believe he was gorgeous as he was? I think it more likely that he valued other qualities in himself!
*
Chely: James's Patronus is a stag and Lily's is a doe. Is that a coincidence?
J.K. Rowling: No, the Patronus often mutates to take the image of the love of one's life (because they so often become the 'happy thought' that generates a Patronus). [I may vomit.]
*
Samantha: Was Snape the only Death Eater who could produce a full Patronus?
J.K. Rowling: Yes, because a Patronus is used against things that the Death Eaters generally generate, or fight alongside. They would not need Patronuses.
*
Finchburg: Does the Dark Mark remain on those that Voldemort has branded after his death or does the tattoo dissapear now he is gone? Thanks for considering my question!
J.K. Rowling: My pleasure, Finchburg! The Dark Mark would fade to a scar, not dissimilar to the lightning scar on Harry's forehead. Like Harry's, these scars would no longer burn or hurt.
*
jenny: How did Snape keep his Patronus secret from the rest of the Order?
J.K. Rowling: He was careful not to use the talking Patronus means of communication with them. This was not difficult, as his particular job within the Order, ie, as spy, meant that sending a Patronus to any of them might have given away his true allegiance.
*
Lou: How did Snape get into Grimmauld Place to get the second half of the letter, if there were protection spells on the house stopping Snape getting in?
J.K. Rowling: Snape entered the house immediately after Dumbledore's death, before Moody put up the spells against him.
MTV
15 Oct 2007 8:11 PM EDT
'Harry Potter' Author J.K. Rowling Meets With L.A. Students, Plots Her Next Move
But like in the novels themselves, it was the great question of Severus Snape that brought down the house. A wide grin across her face, Rowling said she delighted in the fact that, even after "Deathly Hallows," there was still some speculation as to the true leanings of the erstwhile Potions Master.
"Snape is vindictive, he's cruel. He's not a big man," she insisted. "But he loves. I like him, but I'd also like to slap him hard."
Earlier, Rowling said she was particularly pleased with how Snape's story played out throughout the course of the series, contrasting his character arc with that of Dumbledore.
"Although [Dumbledore] seems to be so benign for six books, he's quite a Machiavellian figure, really. He's been pulling a lot of strings. Harry has been his puppet," she explained. "When Snape says to Dumbledore [toward the end of 'Hallows'], 'We've been protecting [Harry] so he could die at the right moment' — I don't think in book one you would have ever envisioned a moment where your sympathy would be with Snape rather than Dumbledore."
New Orleans students give Rowling a rousing welcome
18 October, 2007 3:43PM
Dwayne Lockett, of Alice Harte Elementary, asked what advice Rowling could give students who wanted to write, especially if their grades weren't the best.
"If you'd seen my grades in chemistry.¤.¤." Rowling said. "That's why Snape teaches Potions."
Then, after the audience groaned, she said, "Don't say awwww! He deserved it! We can all think of teachers we'd like revenge on."
JK Rowling at Carnegie Hall
19 October, 2007, 09:17 PM
She also revealed that Harry himself made sure that the portrait of Snape made it into the Headmasters Office, but doubts that he ever went to speak to it.
PotterCast 131 JK Rowling Interview Transcript
SU: Wow, that’s so awesome. You know, you mention the movies. Somebody who’s most amazing in the movies is Alan Rickman as Snape.
JKR: Yeah, definitely.
SU: How- he’s so good. How soon did you tell him about his character? I mean, how much did he know? Did he know?
JKR: He knew very early on that he’d been in love with Lily, because I told him so. (su sighs) We needed to have a conversation early on. He needed to understand, I think, and does completely understand and did completely understand where this bitterness towards this boy who’s the living example of her preference for another man came from. (JN: Yeah.) (MA: Hmm…) Yeah, I told him that. He was the only person who knew that for a long, long time.
SU: That’s amazing.
JKR: Yep.
SU: He’s so good. You know, Snape is so amazing, was he truly meant to be in Slytherin, Snape?
JKR: Yes, God, yes, definitely, at the time that he was sorted. I believe what Dumbledore believes when he says to Snape in the very last book, “Sometimes I think we sort too soon.” To judge someone at the age of eleven, to judge them, to set their future course so young seems to me to be a very harsh thing to do. And it doesn’t take into account the fact that we do change and evolve. A lot of people are at forty what they were at eleven, having said that, so I think the Sorting Hat is shrewd, but Snape does redeem himself and (SU: Yeah.) it fails to take that into account. But then again, you could turn that on its head and say, “But maybe, with these people being sorted into Slytherin, someone who has the capacity to change themselves might also have the capacity to change Slytherin.”
SU: Yeah. Wow.
MA: Hmm….
JN: And how much is it that being sorted into Slytherin is, you know, sorted into good guys and bad guys here?
JKR: Well, they’re not all bad, that would- I know I’ve said this before, (JN: Yeah, I remember.) and I think I said it to Emerson, they are not all bad, and, well, far from it. As we know, at the end, they may have (laughs) a slightly more highly developed sense of self-preservation than other people because…
SU: Yeah, right.
JN: Yeah.
JKR: A part of the final battle that made me smile was Slughorn galloping back with Slytherins, (SU: Yes!) (JN laughs) but they’d gone off to get reinforcements first, you know what I’m saying? But yes, they came back, they came back to fight, so I mean- but I’m sure that many people would say “Well, that’s common sense, isn’t it? Isn’t that smart, to get out, get more people and come back with them?”
JN: Yeah.
JKR: It’s the old saying, (SU: Just…) “There is no truth, (JN: I believe it.) there are only points of view.”
SU: Yeah.
2008
JK Rowling
Text transcribed: April
JKR: Snape, on the other hand, I had to drop clues all the way through because as you know in the seventh book when you have the revelation scene where everything shifts and you realize why Snape was… what Snape’s motivation was. I had to plot that through the books because at the point where you see what was really going on, it would have been an absolute cheat on the reader at that point just to show a bunch of stuff you’ve never seen before, you know… "Oh by the way, in the background this was happening." So I did know. It was a complicated plotting process but by the time Philosopher’s Stone was finished, I definitely knew all the big things about Snape and Dumbledore because in many ways they’re the two most important characters in the seventh book… Well, other than the trio, Harry, Ron and Hermione.
JKR: But other than that, no, I don’t see Alan Rickman when I write Snape. You don’t like that answer! It’s not that I don’t love Alan. But no, I very much see the characters that I’ve imagined, you know. It’s been seventeen years for me, so the actors for me are a very recent incarnation. I’ve lived with my imagination for so long.
JKR: Well I haven’t always had all of them planned. You know, some of the less crucial ones did evolve. But the big ones, the Dumbledore storyline, the Snape storyline were always there because you — the series is built around those … Things I didn’t have room fo r... it’s more characters actually.
JKR: But then you have people, I had people as early as Prisoner of Azkaban,
the third book. I remember a woman saying to me : "I think Snape loves Lily". I was "Oh my God what the hell did I give away ?". But so people, people got stuff very unnervingly right. Often. Yeah.
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