On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

This book was on a list I saw on tumblr of books on writing that every writer should read. When I saw it on sale for five bucks at a secondhand book shop at the airport, I figured, “why not?” I can only recall having read one Stephen King book (The Green Mile), and I thought it was alright. But even if you're not a rabid King fan, the guy knows what he's doing. After finishing this book, I have to agree with that blogger that every writer should read it at some point in their career.

The book is half memoir and half how-to guide, and both facets are equally engaging. For some reason I've always had an impression of King, despite knowing little of him, as some aloof, stern and sort of creepy dude who pumps out novels from a dark room in a hermit's mansion. But this book reads like a conversation, and after the conversation I've found that I like Mr. King a lot more than I thought I would.

Mr. King writes casually. He's funny but honest, in accordance with one of several writer's dogmas he introduces: “Tell the truth in your stories.” He offers a lot of solid advice: kill your darlings, cut the adverbs, trust the story and your gut. King dissects what a novel is, figuratively and mechanically. Some of his opinions I liked; for example, the thought that a novel's first draft should be done with “the door closed,” for the writer alone, before opening the piece to critique. Others I did not, such as the assertion that plotting creates “wooden” stories. But the nice thing with King is that he makes sure you know that these opinions are his, they are what works for him, and you are totally free to discard them.

Mr. King's most important piece of advice from this book is simple but often overlooked: read a lot and write a lot. That's all that you need to be a better writer. I've found myself agreeing with him, and I'm hoping I'll be able to stick to the resolutions this book has inspired me to make.