All but a handful of the 10,000 copies of What's Your Story? sold within hours of going on sale on Thursday, with customers at Waterstone's booksellers limited to two copies each.
The world's richest author tantalised fans by describing her 800-word submission was not a self-contained story but a section of narrative "from a prequel I am not working on". The story, set in the 1970s, features Harry Potter's father and friend Sirius Black travelling on a magic motorbike.
The collection, which also includes work from Margaret Attwood, Irvine Welsh, Sir Tom Stoppard and Nobel laureate Doris Lessing, sold for £5 a copy in aid of Dyslexia Action to mark the National Year of Reading.
Waterstone's said the book would not be reprinted, turning copies into a collector's item - although none have yet appeared on internet auction site Ebay.
The quick sale is unusual for the short story genre, which traditionally sell fewer copies than writers' full-length novels.
Four postcard-sized stories by winners of a similar competition for booksellers complete the collection.
JK Rowling's story is set three years before Harry is born and features the characters Sirius Black and James Potter, Harry's father. The story opens with a youthful Sirius and James cornered by two irate policemen at the end of a high-speed motorcycle chase. After a cheeky exchange with the policemen, the two teenage characters make their escape - using broomsticks, "drumsticks" and just a little bit of magic.
A handwritten and signed copy of Ms Rowling's entry sold for £25,000 at a charity auction at Waterstone's last month. The card finishes with the handwritten words – "From the prequel I am not working on – but that was fun!" and JK Rowling's signature, dated May 2008.
The world's richest author tantalised fans by describing her 800-word submission was not a self-contained story but a section of narrative "from a prequel I am not working on". The story, set in the 1970s, features Harry Potter's father and friend Sirius Black travelling on a magic motorbike.
The collection, which also includes work from Margaret Attwood, Irvine Welsh, Sir Tom Stoppard and Nobel laureate Doris Lessing, sold for £5 a copy in aid of Dyslexia Action to mark the National Year of Reading.
Waterstone's said the book would not be reprinted, turning copies into a collector's item - although none have yet appeared on internet auction site Ebay.
The quick sale is unusual for the short story genre, which traditionally sell fewer copies than writers' full-length novels.
Four postcard-sized stories by winners of a similar competition for booksellers complete the collection.
JK Rowling's story is set three years before Harry is born and features the characters Sirius Black and James Potter, Harry's father. The story opens with a youthful Sirius and James cornered by two irate policemen at the end of a high-speed motorcycle chase. After a cheeky exchange with the policemen, the two teenage characters make their escape - using broomsticks, "drumsticks" and just a little bit of magic.
A handwritten and signed copy of Ms Rowling's entry sold for £25,000 at a charity auction at Waterstone's last month. The card finishes with the handwritten words – "From the prequel I am not working on – but that was fun!" and JK Rowling's signature, dated May 2008.
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