JK ROWLING has been slammed online after she replied to a tweet asking how she sleeps at night by saying she reads her royalty cheques.
The Harry Potter author has been at odds with countless social media users in recent months over the issue of women’s rights.
The 57-year-old has been accused by some of being transphobic, leading many fans of the books to now view the author in a different light.
One such person tweeted last night writing: “How do you sleep at night knowing you’ve lost a whole audience from buying your books?”
Rowling quickly retorted: “I read my most recent royalty cheques and find the pain goes away pretty quickly.”
The controversial author, who has also penned novels under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, is reported to be worth north of £500 million.
This is mostly thanks to the continued success of the Harry Potter novels, which were turned into a series of eight films starring Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson.
Social media users were quick to comment on the suggested distasteful nature of Rowling’s reply.
One said: “I love Harry Potter but I find this statement so awful, so disrespectful. You have made your points and stance clear.
“People have disagreed with you, felt insulted and hurt, and some have stopped supporting you. You dismiss them by flaunting your riches? Wow.”
Another added: “You hurt and alienated hundreds of thousands of former fans and money won’t remove that from your conscience.”
A third replied: “I’m truly sorry for you. Your idea of success is very sad.”
Another commented: “My late husband adored your writing. He would loathe what you’ve become. Cling to your royalties. ‘On those cold winter nights you can snuggle up to your cash register, it’s a little lumpy but it rings’. As Dolly Levi once said.”
Rowling has recently become embroiled in a feud with musician Billy Bragg over the issue of transgender rights.
The pair traded blows on Twitter on Thursday evening, with Bragg slating Rowling’s lack of “self-respect” whilst the author accused the rock musician of “misogny”.
This stemmed from Bragg’s public backing of TV host Graham Norton’s argument that free speech should not be “consequence-free”.
