[Book Review] On Writing by Stephen King
This review is a part of the November 2018 issue of Transcendence Magazine. Click here to download the full magazine for free!
Being the only nonfiction book written by King, makes this book unique right away. The book is “part biography, part tips for the aspiring writer”, but the tips section is nothing too far from the obvious, but that’s what King wants us to understand. There isn’t any shortcuts or magical processes that great writers use. But still, there are some great tips like writing your first draft with the door closed (i.e. with just your ideas) and then opening it up to other people. And the advise to not create a story out of a predefined plot, instead, he advises to put your characters into a situation and see what they will do as if in real life. He says that we should let the characters take the story forward instead of driving them around in a predefined plot.
“The road to hell is paved with adverbs”
– Stephen King, On Writing
But when you look at the book as a whole, the best part tends to be the “memoir” part. The author has illustrated his life and his journey as a writer in the most interesting way possible and I am sure that some of the situations in King’s early life will resonate with yours.
“Books are a uniquely portable magic”
– Stephen King, On Writing
The interesting part comes at the last. In fact, it was an addition to the original manuscript of this book: “On Living: A Postscript”. This part is where King talks about the accident he had in 1999, just before this book was published. He was hit by a Dodge van and ended up with his hip turned the wrong way, lung collapsed and the bone of his lower leg broken in nine places (like “so many marbles in a sock” as his doctor said). His recovery and how his wife, Tabitha King, helped him to get back to writing again despite this worse condition, evokes a great sense of admiration for the King family and Stephen King’s love and determination for the art of writing.
I highly recommend this book to every aspiring writer, especially fiction writers. It doesn’t matter if you don’t like King’s work, this book will provide you with great insights and inspiration in the process of becoming a successful writer.
This review first appeared in the Transcendence Magazine:
