According to author J. K. Rowling, the idea for both the "Harry Potter" books and the character came while waiting for a delayed train from Manchester to London in 1990. J.K. Rowling said that in the hours she waited, her idea for "this scrawny, black-haired, bespectacled boy who didn't know he was a wizard became more and more real to me." Rowling also decided to make Harry an orphan at a boarding school called Hogwarts. She explained, "Harry HAD to be an orphan - so that he's a free agent, with no fear of letting down his parents, disappointing them … Hogwarts HAS to be a boarding school - half the important stuff happens at night! Then there's the security. Having a child of my own reinforces my belief that children above all want security, and that's what Hogwarts offers Harry."