Review of On Writing by Stephen King
I read On Writing about a year and a half ago as I hoped to understand the craft better. I had been writing for a year and a half at that point, but I wanted to transition from hobby writing to moving toward publishing. I greatly admire Stephen King and when I found out about this book, and especially that it's considered one of the best books on the craft, I immediately bought it.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part is a memoir and describes his journey to becoming a writer, where he got ideas for some of his most famous books, and his journey through publishing to where he was in his career when the book was published in the 1990s. The second part of the book consists of how-to lessons and advice on what to do and what not to do. He goes over everything from the use of adverbs and dialog tags to the process of editing.
The final portion of the book, listed as part of the afterward, was a list of books he found to be great examples of writing.
Interesting fact: Stephen King likes Harry Potter.
The memoir was fascinating to me as a Stephen King fan. I'd read all the books he referenced in where he got his ideas. As a writer, knowing where such an eminent author gets his inspiration was more than fascinating. Reading about his journey from poverty to having the wild success he's had was inspirational to me, as I have lived in poverty for most of my adult life.
However, the best part of the book was the advice he gave. I disagree with his advised use of dialog tags, but he says in his book that it's a personal preference. The three best pieces of writing advice I've ever gotten were from Mr. King's book. One was about the way to go about writing the first draft, and the others was about the process of editing, one of them being the need to have other people read it. That's been invaluable.
I would consider this book indispensable to aspiring authors. Those who aren't Stephen King fans could skip the memoir portion and go straight to the writing advice. He won't disappoint.
The book is divided into two parts. The first part is a memoir and describes his journey to becoming a writer, where he got ideas for some of his most famous books, and his journey through publishing to where he was in his career when the book was published in the 1990s. The second part of the book consists of how-to lessons and advice on what to do and what not to do. He goes over everything from the use of adverbs and dialog tags to the process of editing.
The final portion of the book, listed as part of the afterward, was a list of books he found to be great examples of writing.
Interesting fact: Stephen King likes Harry Potter.
The memoir was fascinating to me as a Stephen King fan. I'd read all the books he referenced in where he got his ideas. As a writer, knowing where such an eminent author gets his inspiration was more than fascinating. Reading about his journey from poverty to having the wild success he's had was inspirational to me, as I have lived in poverty for most of my adult life.
However, the best part of the book was the advice he gave. I disagree with his advised use of dialog tags, but he says in his book that it's a personal preference. The three best pieces of writing advice I've ever gotten were from Mr. King's book. One was about the way to go about writing the first draft, and the others was about the process of editing, one of them being the need to have other people read it. That's been invaluable.
I would consider this book indispensable to aspiring authors. Those who aren't Stephen King fans could skip the memoir portion and go straight to the writing advice. He won't disappoint.
Photo Credit: Katherine Elizabeth
Comments
Post a Comment