It's going to be a magical Christmas, after all.

 

J.K. Rowling will release 12 Harry¹ Potter short stories this month in celebration of the 12 days of Christmas, The Telegraph reports. At least one of the stories will reportedly focus on Harry's nemesis² Draco Malfoy.

 

The author made the announcement in a newsletter to Harry Potter publishing website Pottermore members on Friday. The installments³ will be posted online daily beginning on Friday, December 12 at 5 a.m. PT until Christmas Eve.

 

Pottermore teased "wonderful writing by J.K. Rowling in Moments from 'Half-Blood Prince,' shiny gold Galleons⁴ and even a new potion or two."

 

Rowling wrote 5,000 words for Pottermore on Halloween about another character, Dolores Umbridge -- a teacher at Hogwarts.

 

Rowling revealed that the much-hated character of Umbridge is based on a teacher to whom she took an instant dislike, but whose name she has not disclosed.

 

Umbridge, played by actress Imelda Staunton in the film adaptations of the hugely popular fantasy series, is the seemingly sweet but innately⁵ vicious teacher at Hogwarts who bans young Harry from playing Quidditch and forces him to write the words "I must not tell lies" on the back of his hand.

 

In the essay, Rowling says that the character of Umbridge was based on a person "whom I disliked intensely on sight."

 

"The woman in question returned my antipathy⁶ with interest. Why we took against each other so instantly, heartily⁷ and (on my side, at least) irrationally⁸, I honestly cannot say," she wrote.

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