Welcome back to the unofficial Curious Writer bookclub, the schedule of which is completely random and determined by when I happen to read a new book! The newest reading recommendation I have for you – On Writing by Stephen King.
Yes, that Stephen King. Who else?
About the book
On Writing by Stephen King
On Writing just passed its 20th anniversary in 2020, written by King in 2000. So it isn’t a new book. It is new to me though. It also isn’t strictly about the craft of writing, although there’s plenty of that. It’s equal parts a look into the famous horror author’s life and how he became the writer we know today, and advice for aspiring writers on the ins and outs of writing.
Stephen King… the high school teacher.
For those that don’t know, Stephen King used to be a high school English teacher, and I have no doubt that experience is one reason the writing advice in this book is so practical and easy to understand.
I found the parts about King’s life prior to his writing career just as interesting as his actual advice about writing. Maybe even a little more interesting. I really didn’t know anything about his life outside of being Stephen King the famous author, even though I’ve been a reader of his stories since I was a kid (and honestly probably too young to be reading his stories, but I still love horror stories to this day.)
You’ll always catch a few Stephen King movies on my favorite horror movie lists.
I really enjoyed getting a look into how he came up with some of his early work, including some very specific memories on how he dreamt up his first big hit, Carrie, with the ever-essential support and input from his wife, Tabitha. Turns out if it wasn’t for Tabitha, King would have trashed his original draft of Carrie. Literally.
If you don’t like Stephen King’s books, will you like On Writing?
I won’t actually say that King is one of my favorite authors.
I appreciate his writing and style and how clearly I can envision his worlds by the time I finish one of his books, but I enjoy stories that are more fast-paced than most of his are. He does an amazing job of creating tangible characters and scenes, but it can get a little too drawn-out for me. I was happy to hear King say, in On Writing, that adding too much actually is one of his own perceived flaws with his writing.
Why bother saying that I generally find his writing a little too drawn-out? I’m not just not looking for my chance to critique a famous author.
My point is just to say that, even though normally I might think his books get a bit long-winded, I did not find that to be the case at all with On Writing. Every piece of the book, from the memories of his first attempts at publishing stories in magazines for a couple bucks, to his more detailed explanation of what makes writing good or bad, had my attention. I never found myself wondering when we’d move on to the next part of the story. I even re-read several parts to better solidify the details.
Should you read it?
All and all I highly recommend anyone that is either an aspiring writer or just a fan of Stephen King read this book. You’re sure to learn something new about the writing process and the humble beginnings of one of the most famous authors in the world. If you grab the audiobook, you can also enjoy hearing Stephen King himself tell you the whole story.
