Who wrote the novel that inspired 'Howl's Moving Castle'?

Howl's Moving Castle was inspired by the novel of the same name by Diana Wynne Jones. The British author published the book in 1986, several years before Hayao Miyazaki adapted it into an animated film.

Jones's novel follows Sophie Hatter, a young woman who is cursed by the Witch of the Waste and encounters the wizard Howl in his unusual moving castle. Miyazaki retained the central characters and fantasy setting but created a substantially different story, placing greater emphasis on war, pacifism, and the consequences of magical conflict.

The Studio Ghibli film was released in 2004 and was written and directed by Miyazaki. A common mistake is crediting Miyazaki as the novelist; he adapted Jones's work for animation. C.S. Lewis and J.K. Rowling wrote other fantasy literature, while the film's original novel came from Jones.