Harry Potter (character)
Harry first appears in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (published in the United States as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone) as the book's protagonist, or main character. When Harry was a little over one year old, his parents were killed by the powerful Dark Wizard, Lord Voldemort. Harry survived Voldemort's Killing Curse after his mother died to protect him. The Curse was turned back at Voldemort and ripped his soul from his body. Because of this, Harry has a lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead. Rowling has said that creating the story about Harry Potter's past was a matter of reverse planning: "The basic idea [is that] Harry … didn't know he was a wizard … and so then I kind of worked backwards from that position to find out how that could be, that he wouldn't know what he was… When he was one-year-old, the most evil wizard in hundreds of years attempted to kill him. He killed Harry's parents, and then he tried to kill Harry - he tried to curse him… Harry has to find out, before we find out. And - so - but for some mysterious reason, the curse didn't work on Harry. So he's left with this lightning-bolt shaped scar on his forehead, and the curse rebounded upon the evil wizard who has been in hiding ever since".