On Writing by Stephen King
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Book Reviews of On Writing
Book Review: How to Write and Why
Summary: 5 Stars
"This is not a textbook," writes Stephen King of On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, and indeed, King's observation, like nearly all of those in the book, is astute. On Writing is no step-by-step guide, no collection of exercises to make the reader a best-selling novelist. King's goals, first of all, are not so lofty. "[I]t is impossible to make a competent writer out of a bad writer" (136), he says, and equally "impossible to make a great writer out of a good one" (136). But King does think that many people do have the talent to write and tell entertaining stories, and these talents, he believes, can at least "be strengthened and sharpened" (4).
To this end, King spends roughly half of the book offering a surfeit of practical advice on how to tell compelling and honest stories. Writers, he suggests, should be concise and should write directly, avoiding use of the passive voice. For grammar and style, writers would be smart to listen to Strunk and White. Writers, too, should trust their vocabularies, choosing the first word that comes to mind, so long as it is "appropriate and colorful" (110). No matter what their vocabulary tells them, writers should shun adverbs. And mapping out a plot, to King's mind, is unnecessary. If a writer puts characters in interesting situations, they will find their own ways out.
But for King, the writer's most powerful tool, it seems, is telepathy. According to King, reading is an act of shared consciousness, and it is through this communion that the learning writer comes to understand "about style, graceful narration, plot development, the creation of believable characters, and truth-telling" (141). Exposing writers to great writing--his own--is the most memorable feature and King's most useful strategy of On Writing. In the book's opening third, King relates tales, frustrating, humorous, sad, and inspiring, from his childhood and his early efforts to be a writer. And at the end of On Writing, in a section unplanned when he began the book, he narrates the tale of the terrible accident in which he was struck by a van and of the arduous struggle back to health afterward. King's own story and his narration of it here are as compelling as any of his novels.
On Writing truly has earned its reputation as an outstanding book on the subject of writing. It is admirable, first, for King's humble and practical approach to the craft. King's advice on writing is simple and sound, and he illustrates each of his counsels concretely and convincingly for the reader. Additionally, it is easy to imagine writers of diverse ages and abilities, and even writers working in different genres, understanding King's precepts and improving their writing as a result.
But most importantly, On Writing is successful because through it King makes such an articulate case for the value of writing. Reading King's stories and anecdotes in On Writing are both entertaining and insightful, great writing of the sort that may serve for as "a spur, goading the writer to work harder and aim higher" (141). And the story of King's recovery, which was facilitated in part by the way writing made his life "a brighter and more pleasant place" (275), demonstrates the enriching power of the art. Readers of On Writing will have acquired some tools to help them to write better stories, but more significantly, they may want to try.
Book Review: Is This For Real?
Summary: 5 Stars
You can say what you want about Stephen King... But the man knows how to tell stories that people like to read. He certainly didn't have to write this book, but he did. I personally think novice writers could learn a thing or two from Mr. King...ON WRITING is part autobiography, part writing guide. In the autobiography section (which is mostly about writing), I really enjoyed learning how King started writing as the result of several childhood illnesses. Early on, he wrote for his friends, his school paper, and his mom. After his mom read one of his early stories, King says "She said it was good enough to be in a book. Nothing anyone has said to me since has made me feel any happier." In and out of the principal's office for his writing in The Village Vomit, working and writing in a laundromat, the sale of his first story...it's all here and it's all entertaining. (It's worth the price of the book just to read King's reaction to the sale of his first novel 'Carrie.')
"Toolbox" is a short section consisting of several of King's thoughts on grammar, punctuation, vocabulary, and the author's burning hatred of adverbs.
"On Writing," the third and final part of the book is devoted to the craft of writing. Rather than summarize what's there, I thought I'd try to give you a taste of the book by including several of King's quotes on various writing issues:
The book-reading public: "Book buyers aren't attracted, by and large, by the literary merits of a novel; (they) want a good story to take with them on the airplane."
Plotting: "I believe plotting and the spontaneity of real creation aren't compatible...There is a huge difference between story and plot. Story is honorable and trustworthy; plot is shifty, and best kept under house arrest."
Description: "Description begins with visualization of what it is you want the reader to experience. It ends with your translating what you see in your mind into words on the page."
Dialogue: "Dialogue is a skill best learned by people who enjoy talking and listening to others - particularly listening, picking up the accents, rhythms, dialect, and slang of various groups."
Research: "I simply made up all the stuff I didn't know." (!)
Classes/workshops: "You learn best by reading a lot and writing a lot, and the most valuable lessons are the ones you teach yourself."
Getting published: "The most important thing you can do for yourself is read the market."
"If I have to tell you, I lose. If...I can show you...I win."
I read this book three years ago for pleasure when I was not writing. I enjoyed it, but it didn't really mean much to me at the time. Since becoming a writer, the book is one I knew I had to own. I admit it, I read a lot of King when I was younger and I still pick up one of his books or stories from time to time. Do I think he's a great writer? I don't think that's the question. I think the question is, "What can Stephen King teach me about how to become a better writer?" The answer, at least for me, is practical, no-nonsense information from a regular guy (a very rich regular guy, mind you) to another regular guy. I'll take that any day.
297 pages
Book Review: Mr. King, Writer
Summary: 5 Stars
What does Stephen King know about writing? The man has written, what, 3... 4 books in his life maybe? Big deal. He's hardly an authority on the subject.
Surely, I jest.
Stephen King is probably the most prolific author of his generation. He is a true example of a man who was born to write. In his "Memoir of the Craft", King takes us inside his childhood and shows us how his style was formed. There are a few stories from when he was young that have nothing to do with writing at all. They seem to be there as an entertaining setup of his personality and for that, they function well. (Readers susceptible to queasiness might hiccup a breakfast bubble at the long-needle/inner ear story.)
Most precious of memories is when his mother praised him for his first short story and encouraged him along. I'm sure many writers will relate to the heartfelt scene.
As he gets older and finds that he truly loves to write, King begins to submit his stories to magazines and takes great pleasure in the personalized rejection letters he receives. There are many great descriptions of his successes and failures as he works his way up to his premiere novel, Carrie.
The second part of the book is the actual meat where King brings what he really came here to discuss: how to write. He uses a toolbox metaphor to help explain what every writer needs. He is very direct about his personal writing peeves and shows a genuine interest in helping new and seasoned writers alike.
In the third and final part of On Writing, King revisits his own horror of being hit by a runaway van in 1999--an event that interrupted his work on this very book! He describes the time of his suffering in a way that puts the reader there at the scene of the accident as well as putting the reader beside him during his physical recovery.
King repeatedly hammers the point home that a real writer must constantly be reading and (duh) writing. We hear this all the time from writers and teachers alike, and King makes no bones about it here.
As a writer myself, and as a rabid Stephen King fan, I thoroughly enjoyed his many anectdotes and advices. All my life, I've been riding shotgun in Mr. King's wild ride. I've always considered him as a kind of mysterious and phantom-like entity behind the words. Here, he shows his humanity in his love for his wife Tabitha (his Ideal Reader) and his kids. He speaks of writing as something that he cannot fully explain, though he explains it rather well. He offers the viewpoint that all great and humble writers share: that he is used as a vessel for some unknown and beautiful force of the universe.
My favorite part of the book is when King describes the intense connection between writer and reader. The way in which he describes how writing transcends time and place in order to reach any and all readers is piercing in its raw truthfulness. His honest and un-flinching approach to the teaching of the craft is as wonderful and meaningful as his stories.
Long live the master.
Book Review: Inspiring and Practical Advice
Summary: 5 Stars
Who better to learn the craft from than Stephen King, one of the masters of popular fiction? This is what I thought when finally picking this book up a few days ago. As it turns out, I was quite right. Having read this book, I have been re-inspired to try my hand at fiction, a life-long goal.
The book is part memoir and part practical guide to breaking into the business. The memoir part focuses on select portions of King's life that were key to his success on his road to publication. Any fan of his books would find these portions amusing and enlightening. The prolific author is as much a part of the cultural landscape as his stories are, and it was great to get an inside look into some of his life story.
The best portion of the book, however, is the meat of it--the portion in which he lays down his "rules" for success. He describes several important tools that any aspiring writer needs, including a copy of Strunk and White's Elements of Style, which I have made a mental note to get a copy of. My favorite part of the whole book, however, in practical terms, was King's portrayal of a writer named "Frank", who is really a composite of three young, moderately successful authors who have some general things in common. As I read this portion, I made a mental note of the steps I have already completed along the way, should I follow this pathway. "Frank's" path to success includes a degree in English (check!), an eventual fallback career teaching secondary English (check!), submission to many little literary magazines (check!), persistence (check!), his eventual publication in these periodicals, garnering of a relatively prestigious award for one short story, his beginning crack at a novel, and his acquisition of a literary agent to help publish aforemntioned novel (um...not check). The way King lays this path out in the book reads like, well, a how-to text, which is how it's intended. He states that an aspiring writer could do worse that following Frank's example. It's inspiring to read about "Frank," because I would never dream of having the success King has enjoyed during his long career. It is practical and realistic to compare my potential with that of some other up-and-coming authors, rather than the multi-billion copy-selling author who penned this book. While it is only one path one might take, "Frank's" method for success(not very different from King's, really) is one that makes sense to me, and it validated the decisions I had recently made to go the route of literary magazines.
The funny thing about this book --besides King's often humorous take on the topics of life and writing--is that when it comes right down to it, his advice is very similar to every other honest author's opinion when asked what should aspiring authors do: write a lot, read a lot, and be persistent. Nevertheless, it's a helluva lot of fun reading America's avuncular pop laureate pontificate on a subject he has proven himself to be expert at. You'll find yourself inspired and enlightened when you close the book.
Book Review: King Keeps It Raw and Real
Summary: 5 Stars
This is one of the best, most straightforward books on writing fiction.
The first hundred pages are a memoir of King's youth and early years of writing. It's well done, from his banned high school writings to his love of the pulps and on through the story of Carrie. It also includes a very candid look at his bout with drug and alcohol abuse. If you're not interested, though, you can do as I did when I first got the book and skip those hundred pages, going straight to the section on writing.
Here he introduces you to his "Toolbox," which includes vocabulary, grammar, verbs, adverbs, and then into paragraphs and fragments, with plenty of examples. King demands you be serious about your craft, but he's never boring or pedantic or stuck in rules if they don't aid his aim. He also makes good reference to everyone from Henry James and TS Eliot to John D. MacDonald and George V. Higgins, with plenty of respect paid to Strunk and White as well.
The next section, "On Writing," covers style, truth-telling, the importance of reading, writing schedules, writing rooms, plot, characters, what-if, description, setting, dialogue, theme, revising, pace, research, classes, and agents. He also tosses in an overview of one writer's attempts to break in, and includes that author's query letters to agents.
Finally comes a sixteen-page postscript on his accident and recovery, as well as thirteen pages on editing the first six pages of his story "1408," complete with editing marks filling most of the pages.
It's all very sharp and candid, telling you what you need to know. Also, as someone whose work has been disdained, King has a healthy perspective on writing what you enjoy and to tell the truth or don't bother.
Still, as good as it is (in my top three), I have two criticisms.
The first is that I wish he'd made it into two books - one a memoir and the other on craft, to have given him more room to explore each. For example, in one section he mentions "bells and whistles" like "onomatopoeia, incremental repetition, stream of consciousness, and interior dialogue" and says most books cover them, so he skips them. I've never read anything on incremental repetition, and I'd enjoy King's views on the rest as well.
The other aspect that could've been much improved is how after you've read it, and you want to read that section on plotting again, you can't find it. The whole 108 pages on writing are one big chapter with numbered sections. Why didn't they use "Plot" instead of just "5," and "Description" instead of "6"? There's no Index, either, so you have to underline topics as you go to be able to find them again.
Still, the fact it's a book you go back to says more than any frustration with the layout. King delivers on what you want to know, and he gives it straight from the hip, with a sincere, well-rounded overview of the craft.