J.K. Rowling may be one of the best and wealthiest writers alive, but even the Harry Potter author has faced rejection. Now, one publisher has revealed why.

Last week, we shared the story of how J.K. Rowling’s first book under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, The Cuckoo’s Calling was rejected by several publishers.

Choosing to submit the manuscript anonymously, Rowling was treated like any other author — and, like any other author, had to fail before she could succeed.

One rejection letter read, “Thank you very much for giving us the opportunity to consider your novel, which we have looked at with interest. However, I regret that we have reluctantly come to the conclusion that we could not publish it with commercial success.”

Another simply stated that, “We are unable to accept new submissions at the moment. I’m sorry to disappoint you. Thank you again for thinking of us.”

Although Rowling did not reveal the names of the publishers, the sender of the latter letter has come forward with a statement about why they rejected Cuckoo’s Calling.

Servern House chairman Edwin Buckhalter tells The Bookseller, “We have conducted investigations over the Easter weekend and the letter is correct – the submission was sent at the time that Creme de la Crime was being sold to Severn House and until Friday we had no idea of this. We are very much a specialist publisher and we prefer names with a track record in hardback, or if in paperback, from an established publisher.”

Buckhalter goes on to state that he recognizes that Rowling was not out to shame publishers, but rather aimed to send a positive message to aspiring authors.

“From what JK Rowling said, she is not trying to get at publishers, she is trying to encourage writers not to give up,” he says. “Publishing history is littered with these sorts of stories and I think Harry Potter was rejected several times before being published.”

Finally, Buckhalter shares a gem of a tip for aspiring authors struggling to get their stories published: “I would suggest writers try to find a good agent. Publishers tend to look through submissions from agents first.”