On Writing

On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft Stephen King ISBN-13: 978-0743455961 Publisher: Pocket (July 1, 2002)

I was a big fan: Salem’s Lot, Cujo, The Dead Zone, Firestarter, Tommy Knockers, Pet Sematary, The Shining. Then I stopped reading Stephen King. Somehow, Dreamcatcher was not scary or suspenseful. From a Buick 8 was my last Stephen King. I owned two Buicks and the title hooked me. When I put it down, I sighed. Either he has become too wealthy or I am now old and calloused. I have definitively grew out of Stephen King. In fact, I have read less and less fictions over the year. So it is probably me.

Claire reminded me about this book. It has been on my list for the longest. I picked it up years ago, read the preface, and did not bite. I wanted to write, but life placed it at a lower priority. I read Strunk and White all the time, but a book on fiction writing can wait. Then Claire started her book, quoting Stephen King all the time.

Stephen King was practical. If you want to write professionally, you need to work hard for it. For beginners, that this book aimed for, it means reading as much as writing. I am glad that he revered Strunk and White.

I remembered my youth days when I wrote short stories and submitted them to newspapers and magazines. My collection of rejection slips are long buried. Stephen King gave me back that aspiration. Well, it never hurts to get a bit more alive. Right?