On Writing

There is little, if anything, about how to write (on writing) in this book. King recommends reading Strunk and White's "On Style as "a classic," which is like me recommedning Shakespeare's "Hamlet" as a classic. (News?) What is interesting about his book is the way in which King unwittingly (I presume) admits that he is a second rate writer, that he is embarassed by his writing, and that he would really like to be appreciated as an "Author," rather than merely sold as a writer. He seems to intuit this distinction, and yearns for the higher title. (He spends a lot of time talking about how first rate novelists were often perceived as second rate "hacks" (King's category) during their lifetimes. And he cannot comprehend why Joyce wrote so few books! Dah.
For example, he writes that in high school and college, he took literature and poetry courses, but they weren't worth much--this attitude shows in his writing: sensibility counts. He writes, too, that his books are based on his early love of "B horror movies": this shows too: his novels are "B horror novels." "On Writing" should be retitled: "Confessions of Second Rate Writer," for the book does strongly suggest that this is how Mr. King evaluates his own work. The book tells us that he is embolden (even) to broach a serious topic (style in writing) because he is financially successful, but that there is no relationship between material success in writing and writing well (elegantly, seriously, and meaningfully). The book, then, is a good lesson in this difference, and how it can impact (even) a successful (financially) writer, a wanabe "author" of note. Financially successful writing is NOT writing well (any ad man can tell you this), and the financially successful writer is not an author and has little to say "on writing."

As you can see on my 1 star, I truly do not see the hype about this book.
I have read a lot of books on the craft of writing and often this work was mentioned, so I thought I gave it a try. I have to say the title is misleading, and the work is a failed attempt to be both a biography and a book on writing. Sorry to say, but I do not think his life is worth a biography, so I really wanted it for tips on the craft. As other reviews have pointed out, true, there are some interesting thoughts on writing in this book, which is reason enough to read it - even though you might already have many books on the craft. We can always learn more and there are some nuggets here
* King writes his first draft with the door closed to boost creativity (the second one with the door open to get suggestions) and
* King envisions an ideal reader (for the second and later drafts) when writing the story, thus bypassing the need to please all the readers.
That's all, folks. Sad but true. The rest of the tips on writing were all clichés, intertwined with his biography. I hoped for more advice on writing, and what I got was statements like: work hard, the magic will come later, or not. And more 'tips' that we have all read dozens of times elsewhere: show versus tell (which he gets even wrong, claiming it is always better to show - it is not if you want to speed up your story). Others are: 1) do not use expressions like "he said, enthusiastically", 2) you have to read a lot, 3) writing classes are ok but, et cetera. One thing irritated me especially though; King himself is unforgiving on these basic writing mistakes (he uses the f-word to stress this - telling the reader something he cannot express otherwise apparently), like putting background story to the foreground and what do we get? Page after page lamenting his near death story after he got hit by a hillbilly in 1999, which had nothing to do with the writing at all, and which I simply did not find interesting.

With a title On Writing, what I expected was a book that would show the craft and maybe my expectations were wrong.
If you want books on writing, read all the Readers Digest series on Writing that you can find. They are concise, they specialize on one topic per book (characters, setting, dialogue etc) and are full of examples on how to, and how not to. Indispensable, unlike King's book.
If you want a biography that is truly about a life of books and writing (and beautiful remarks about the craft), read the magnificent knockout "The Words" (Les Mots) from Jean Paul Sartre, which won him the Nobel Prize (which he refused of course). It was for a reason that Hemingway called him the general.

Amazing how money and success can blind so many people to the truth as shown in these sparkling reviews. In this book, King goes on about his childhood, early victories in writing and on and on. He then gives some advice on writing which I found to be completely false. He writes that unless you are a "born writer" you can become a good one with a lot of hard work, but forget about being a great one. Complete and utter garbage. Its falling for lies like this that many people think that great writing is something akin to witchcraft. It is not. Common sense tells you that if writers are working as hard as they claim, they should be getting better all the time. They are not because their claim to hard work is false. Then of course you have writers like King who imply that you have to be touched by the "muse" to be successful. This leaves the would be writer confused on what is going on. If he takes his eye off of the star of success and lays it on the truth, it will all become clear. I am not impressed by Kings fiction and even less by this book. He is not a master and far from a genius. He had the gall to imply that Brams Stoker's masterwork Dracula is the work of a hack! That should tell you something about his own works. If you want to learn to write learn from the true masters like Stoker, Wells, Faulkner and Jones. Read and study their books carefully and write a lot and one day you will be among the best. As for Kings books... forget it.

In the past few months I've read book after book that tells you that you must do this, you must do that. You must write out a 300 page synopsis before you can even begin writing. You must have 90 notecards on every minor character to know where you're going. You must write a notebook full of your character's history before really knowing them inside and out. It's enough to make the budding novelist go absolutely insane!
I picked up Stephen King's 'On Writing' on a whim. I'm not a King fan -- my tastes are Sci/Fi & Fantasy & Romance. But I wanted to read what a bestselling author had to say about his craft, as most of the 'How To' books out there are by nobody you've ever heard of. He had me immediately hooked.
As a writer, this book is a must-buy. Not only do you hear about everything Stephen King struggled through to get his book published, but he also gives you tips and tricks that he's learned along the way. Don't want to write an outline? Don't. Don't want to write about your character's grandfather's past? Don't bother. It's OKAY!
Instead of bogging down the wannabe writer with 'surefire' methods, he discusses things most get hung up on, like dialogue, description, grammar, building characters, linking ideas, etc. He doesn't tell you that you MUST do it this particular way. Rather, he discusses what has worked for him, what he's learned through the business, and gives a few tidbits of advice along the way. It's entertaining, and it's flat out wonderful. It made me very relieved, as a stressed out writer. I went out and immediately threw away my notecards and my outlines. To heck with 'em!
The first half of the book deals with King's early life and his struggles to get published, and then when he has a good basis set up, he swoops into the writing do's and don'ts.
If you're a struggling writer that's struggling to find a decent book on the craft, please pick this one up. I cannot recommend it enough. I've read it twice already and I'm thinking about reading it again. It really is that helpful, I promise you. Not because it tells you exactly what to do, but because a bestselling author is telling you that you're NOT doing it wrong like all those other books say!

It's Mr. King's turn to give everyone instructions on how to write. Seems that he has become the 'real' expert now, considering he's made about 30 or so cheap pulp novels that are degrading to basic intelligence and writer's craftsmanship and yet best sellers. This boringly conversational book about literary craftsmanship should produce sleep in all those who find something oxymoronic in its conception. He may not be the most noble of stylists, and neither does he know how to make a story fly.

In the arena of storytelling he argues for interesting situations rather than grouped plotting. ''Plot is, I think, the good writer's last resort and the dullard's first choice.'' Is he for real? He doesn't even attempt to be understood.

'On Writing'' began as a compendium of tips and whines in a tone suitable for a lecture circuit or Internet discussion, nothing more. It also included a sharp, pungent account of Mr. King's growing up (being fat and getting beat up), finding a soul mate named Tabitha (whom he secretly thinks a witch), going through a rocky phase that involved taking drugs and drinking mouthwash (suicide attempts), and eventually discovering his professional destiny (to produce minor works). This makes for the most bizarre read ever, its so surreal that you won't believe you are reading a King biography. Then, through an outrageous twist of fate, it became something more, an attempt to be a best seller. Of course people will pick this up expecting a candid tale of his life, what they will get is a Monstrous accident described here in the most ironclad plotting.

Thumbs-In-Vest Earned In Every Effort.

Leave it to Stephen King to write one of the few books I could recommend on writing, without fearing that, in doing so, I would be damning a potentially creative individual. As a bonus, King recommends my standby reference on writing, "Elements of Style," by William Strunk Jr. & E.B. White.

Leave it to King, The Master, to write this semi-autobiographical expose on authorship craft in a more intriguingly unique organizational setup than anyone else could conjure or dare. Leave it to Him to force (or else) a (sort of) "how to" book into mesmerizing entertainment; to step into the job with a horrific grab about a kid suffering ear drum puncture; and to coerce an anomaly of styles and content to coalesce into a gestalt of genius which WORKS, period.

How can a book on writing be riveting?? Read it and see.

King includes only those riveting parts of his personal history which have contributed to his writing career. He includes only the necessary elements to "teach" how to spark and stir creative fires. He includes only the necessary keys to his success (amazingly, he does know what those keys are).

I was impressed with King's exposure of his method of writing from a SITUATION rather than from a precise PLOT outline; I still find myself chewing on that daring technique (though I do still appreciate a strongly plotted story).

I was interested in his examples of bad and good prose, and agree with his praise of other works, though I reserve judgment on a few of his criticisms, and have developed techniques to take breaks whenever I need them without permanently losing a creative flow, which I can renew at almost any point if I can set up the right conditions. (When I break through with as many Number One Best Sellers as Mr. King has, maybe my opinion on writing will be as viable as his.)

King has many times earned the right to have an opinion on writing and to offer it for sale. Yet, he has approached this project with genuine humility, which is, to me, endearing (sorry about the sentimental slip, Oh Master of Horror).

What do I admire most about this author, which is evident in this book? I absolutely enjoy his regenerating honesty, his uncanny originality, and his demand of himself to toss reader boredom into a black hole and perform, within his printed words, 24/7 without fail. Also love the way he sincerely and humbly exposes his respect for his wife.
Given what this man has endured and accomplished in his life, he's earned the best type of REST available to a human being, and I don't mean the big "D." He deserves to be quite proud of himself. He deserves to have his thumbs permanently posed in the sides of a vest, to sit back and smile at his trail of effort and result.

What a gift that he would attempt in earnest to share his secrets of writing success. And his uncanny self-awareness allowed him to share clearly what those secrets are, in this valuable gift for the youngest as well as the most seasoned of writers. This I say as a 2 decades professional writer and previous English and creative writing teacher who has published various articles and finished and polished 8 fiction manuscripts and has another 8 + book-length works in progress. I'm not EVEN near King's level in the marketplace (yet), but I am a highly productive creative spirit who knows how to maintain, ride, and design the flow.

There's always more than one way to approach any creative endeavor, and my approach to writing is similar to King's in some ways, somewhat different in other ways (I can only compare, of course, to the content offered in this book). This insight to King's techniques exposes what works for him and what could work for other, though of course not all creative spirits. Young writers should allow themselves leeway in deciding how to tap and work with their talents. Creativity should be allowed to flourish, even when establishing a personal method on how to use that force, and sometimes it's necessary to forge a unique path diverging from even the greatest masters. When I was teaching creative writing in the public school systems, I asked my students to at least try some of the established methods of writing prior to setting any of them aside to break away from them.

Another great book which exposes a writer's path and techniques (through a novel rather than through a unique how to book) is THE NOVEL by James A. Michener. See my review.

What I believe On Writing has exposed better than many writing "how to" books is tapping into the Right Brain. As I've observed the styles of many authors of novels, they each seem to be almost "designed" by DNA to work in different precise balances of Right/Left Brain. The Left Brain wants steps, plots, outlines, plans and structure to be elaborately perfect prior to that leap into the ozone. The pure Right Brain wants only the chaos of riding a storm of the absolute unknown, describing it as it explodes into the presence of present time, constantly changing, churning.

Bottom line, though, telling a fledgling writer how to do it is, for me, a frightening extension of my uniqueness, because I would not ever want to hamper the growth of a maverick creative source needing by its design to walk a path not taught by any master before him. Possibly every "how to" book should carry a warning.

This one enters the effort in fairness, with humility and honesty, and does not say or imply, "This is THE only way to write."

Thank you, Stephen, for sharing your personal and professional views on writing, which expose your adept use of both sides of the brain, highlighting your ability to slip into the quirks of the Right side in intriguingly clear ways. Not all writers can explain how that slip into the ozone happens. Great books have been produced with various balances of Left & Right. I love riding the Right, but every time I get totally off the Left it scares the shzzt out of me.

With Sincere Respect,
Linda G. Shelnutt

I'm not a big Stephen King fan - haven't read any of his books since middle school - but I found this really refreshing. His bio (the first half) dragged on a bit, but would probably be really interesting for fans. The second half - when he talks about the writing process - had some good tips, different from those I've read in other how-to writing books. Tips about where to write and how to approach the craft of storytelling that I actually have found useful. He uses frank language and a conversational style and it is a relatively quick read. Mostly relevant for fiction writers, but others might find it useful, too.

I bought this book, because I decided that a writer who has made millions from the art must know something about it.
What advice do I get? 'Buy Strunk & White's Elements of style' (I have had a copy for years, for all the good it does me.)

King tells us: Never write with our thoughts on the money we could make; he never writes a word with that in mind. Really? Oh come on! You are a professional writer for God's sake! Why else would anyone sit for hours at a keyboard (or at a writing-slope, if you are so disposed) just to write fiction to read for a hobby? (Remember Dr. Samuel Johnson? He said, "No man but a blockhead ever wrote, except for money."
Despite his claims that he never wrote for money, I think the money won out with Stephen King,
Of course he wrote for money. Writing was his talent, his way out of poverty. Likewise, J K Rowling freely admits why she wrote the Potter books. Lee Child too is honest about it. He was out of work, so he had to write.

I was never a die-hard fan of King's, but I have read a good many of his books, right from when he started. From the word go, I was struck by the similarity of his work to that of other, much better writers. You older readers know the authors I refer to. We are also told that we stand little chance of becoming great writers unless we are geniuses. I can't agree with that. If you are interested in writing, you must have an innate talent for it. If you are serious about writing you write, and you get better at it.

So if you want to read books that might improve your writing, see what Jack Bickham had to say on the subject. At least he is honest and admits that you want to sell your work. He also said the same as King. If you want to become good; good enough to sell, you have to sit down and write. There's no substitute. But at least he inspires you to do it, rather than hoping you keep out of his field!

This was definitely the least informative book on writing I have ever read. I picked up a grand total of one tip, and that was so ordinary that I didn't bother writing it down when I gave the book away to a charity shop.

Mr. King, one of the most popular writers ever, threw this together as he was convalescing from his auto accident. He warns us up front, this is not a "how to write a best seller" manual, in fact, it is not a "how to write" manual. It is mostly his reminiscing, but that's okay, just not on my time. For better help with writing fiction, try Monica Woods at http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0898799082/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1, and Lisa Cron at http://www.amazon.com/Wired-Story-Writers-Science-Sentence/dp/1607742454/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1365692115&sr=1-1&keywords=lisa+cron.