On Writing - Round Two

I suppose I can say that On Writing is my favorite book by Stephen King. But that would be deceitful, as I have never read anything else by him except for a few of his (quite humorous) editorials in Entertainment Weekly and the short story "1408."

When On Writing first came out, I was in 8th grade. My father, an avid reader of King, told me about the book when he saw it in stores, and later bought me a copy. Oddly enough, I had never read any of King's fiction, but based on my father's interest, I was eager to see what knowledge the author had to impart to the amateurs. I have wanted to be a writer since I learned to read, and at the age of 14 I was no less enthusiastic about this calling then I am now. However, at the time of my first reading of King's book, I was still writing hokey, nonsensical tales of giant robots and teenage bankrobbers inspired by my minor infatuation with animes like the original Gundam and Akira. I breezed through On Writing, and as I can remember, the main points that stuck were King's distaste for adverbs, his advice to let finished manuscripts "mellow," and his nasty habit of drinking mouthwash. I did my best to follow these lessons, though at some point in my senior year of highschool I slipped and let my stories drown in adverbs and needless description. At least I didn't drink mouthwash (I did hazard everclear a few times, though...) Somewhere around two years ago I suddenly recalled King's advice, and began reining myself in a little bit.

Now, eight years from my first visit, I have returned to King's book, and have found it even more useful. This is likely because I am more familiar with writing and publishing and because I am hopefully a little more mature. I haven't watched an anime since high school and giant robots, as cool as they may be, have ceased to appear in my writing. Particularly insightful for me were King's words regarding dialogue, and his sense that a writer must simply have faith in him/her self. Also, it had never occurred to me to read while waiting in line at the supermarket! In any case, I took a lot from this book, and I was relieved to see that another writer (a very popular one at that) did not rely so much on plotting. And somehow I had forgotten that King and I both share the fear of letting a story get stale if it is left for even a day without being worked on. To see that someone else felt that way was a relief, as well.

I try to avoid "how to write" books for the most part, but King has shown that a text on the subject can be written, and admirably free of bullshit too. The only other book I know of that has accomplished a similar feat is the Writer's Workshop in a Book - which features transcriptions of lectures given by the likes of Michael Chabon, Richard Ford, and Amy Tan. I turn to this book when I am blocked or when I feel unsure of a piece of my writing, and it has usually helped. It is more of a self-help manual than a "how-to", useful for the practiced writer rather than the just beginning one.