"Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well."

Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Chapters 10-16 On Writing; On Living: A Postscript;

And Furthermore, Part I: Door Shut, Door Open;

And Furthermore, Part II: A Book List;

Further to Furthermore, Part III

I finished the book! And I must say, it is a must read. In my first post, I said I was a reluctant fan of Stephen King. I still am. Mostly because I'm not a fan of the genre he normally writes. But writing -- something I relate to -- connected me to King. There are so many great quotes, tips, and enriching pieces that I plan to share with many people. I plan to use his techniques as I venture into AP English writing classes in high school and especially in college (where writing is inevitable).

On Writing

King opens this portion of the novel with theme.

"When writing a book, you spend day after day scanning and identifying the trees. When you're done, you have to step back and look at the forest."

He goes on to discuss the "norm" of writing: sybolism, imagery, irony, musical language. But it's up to me to discover what I want to write about. I love that. He's always so straight forward. So blunt.

"The vision was also strangely optimistic," King says while discussing the dreaded writer's block.

I am one who can definitely relate to this. As a newspaper reporter, creative writer, applicant for scholarships, and high school student, I often get in a jam with writing. But he says "boredom can be a good thing for someone in a creative jam." I like this. He gives wonderful advice on getting away from the desk, paper, and pencil. Take a break from you thoughts.

Using over-logic, or thinking above the curve, can be an amazing thing. It's "that sudden flash of insight when you see how everything connects." King's got some great quotes. I'm a fan of good quotes (if you can't tell!). I plan to add several (like this one) to my "collection". He is so articulate and knows exactly what he's trying to convey. He uses whatever word comes to mind -- sometimes a good thing. Sometimes not so much.

Instead of digging for answers in writing, sometimes the book gives you answers. Now, I don't know if I'll ever write a book. Well, I want to, but I'm not sure it'll be worth reading! But this portion of the book struck me. Find your answers in the book. From you characters. From their decisions. Where they'll end up next.

Thematic thinking, he says, is another handy gadget for the toolbox. Like a magnifying glass, it gives you a closer look into the character, setting, and events of writing.

"Good fiction always begins with story and progresses to theme; it almost never begins with theme and progresses to story. Starting with questions and thematic concerns is considered bad fiction."

This part of King's writing discusses enriching the draft. In revising your work, your first draft should not include help or interference with anyone. I really like this. It almost makes me feel like computers should not be allowed, for the Internet could be quite an interference. I imagine myself in a room with a note pad and pencil in hand. And that's it.

"Be cautious and give yourself a chance to think while your story is still like a field of freshly fallen snow, absent of any tracks save your own." Wonderfully said in my opinion. Don't expose your writing to the critical world until you have the chance to mull over, think, and enrich your draft.

After taking a 6-week break, it's time to read your manuscript. What?! Six weeks?! Aren't people on deadlines? This shocked me. But, hey! Apparently it works. He says to mundane over the housekeeping jobs -- tidy up your work with misspellings, punctuation, grammar, etc. Don't be lazy and leave that for the editor. BINGO. Thank you, Mr. King. I wish some members of our newspaper staff would read their work before turning them in to me. 

"Screw ups happen to the best of us. Someone did design the Titanic and then label it unsinkable."

This was funny to me. Very insightful.

During this time of re-reading, you begin to re-discover your own book. This is what I love about the 6-week break. It gives you the chance to almost see your book through someone else's eyes. Sort of. During your own "editing" process, knockout story and toolbox concerns: pronouns with unclear antecedents, deleting adverbs, coherence of your story. Look for resonance -- not necessarily morals.

The Ideal Reader -- all novels are really letters aimed at one person. I've never thought of it this way. Maybe it's because I don't write many short stories. But I imagine most writers and big time authors gearing their ideas toward their IR's. "He or she is going to be in your writing room all the time: in the flesh once you open the door and let the world back in to shine on the bubble of your dream, in spirit during the sometimes troubling and often exhilarating days of the first draft, when the door is closed."

Here's a funny line that I strongly agree with: "The truth is that most writers are needy. Especially between the first draft and the second, when the study door swings open and the light of the world shines in." This, I'm assuming, is why King believes authors rely so heavily on their IR's approval.

King goes on to discuss pace-- and how to keep your reader's attention. I can name quite a few authors who can lose an audience fast. But, he says, you can overdo the speed thing. Don't wear out your reader. But do keep him/her interested.

The formula: 2nd Draft = 1st Draft - 10%. Otherwise, cut out the boring parts, the lull in the text. He says the formula taught him that all stories and novels are collapsible to some degree. -- "The effect of judicious cutting is immediate and often amazing -- literary Viagra. You'll feel it, and your IR will, too." An odd way to put it but so true.

He uses great dialogue to teach backstory and its purpose. Clarify unclear things in your second draft. Use information to your advantage -- don't write an instruction manual. Great way to put it. Sometimes ideas can be cut from 2 pages to 2 paragraphs.This is a useful thought when it comes to backstory.

Although this may not exactly apply to me, King says -- "Remember you're writing a novel, not a research paper. The story always comes first." While I'll most likely be writing more research papers than novels, I do see where he's coming from.

Getting your first draft down, he brings up the fossil metaphor again. To write while it's bright and clear in your mind. I like how descriptive King is. He's engaging.

When submitting a story, King even describes how this should be done: attach a coversheet on top of your script, include where you've been published, briefly what your story is about, and an approximate word count. I'm glad he included this section. I don't think I would've thought of doing this.

He ends by saying that writing fulfills him. And he's convinced me that it does.

On Living: A Postscript

I never knew about King's awful accident in '99. But I felt like I was there after his graphic decription. He's pretty good at that, huh?! I do like though, that the glasses that flew into the van's front seat are the lenses he still wears today. The man is loaded -- he can obviously afford any pair he desires. But he kept these. It's a bit symbolic to me. After discussing every broken bone, surgery, and physical therapy session, he begins writing again. Picking up where he left off in this book. That's pretty cool to me. After five weeks, he was writing! He said that writing helped him forget himself, at least for awhile. I kind of wish I relied on writing that much in my life. It's a wonderful gift to have. And one that should be used if you possess the talent. He said "it's the work that bails him out." Sure, I like to write. But, I'm a bit jealous of King. Not because of his money, fame, or success. I'm jealous that he has writing, something he loves, to fall into and rely on when he's at his darkest or desperate hour.

He says the scariest part is always before you start. I think that's what stops me every time. I think I would enjoy writing those "2,000 words" he dedicates to every day. But beginning would get to me.

He sums up his book in this way:

"Some of this book -- perhaps too much -- has been about how I learned to do it. Much of it has been about how you can do it better. The rest of it -- and perhaps the best of it -- is a permission slip: you can, you should, and if you're brave enough to start, you will. Writing is magic, as much the water of life as any other creative art. The water is free. So drink. Drink and be filled up."

Why does he have such a way with words?! That sums his book up perfectly. It makes me want to become a writer. Just to try all of his advice and calls to action. I need to stay focused. I'm going to pharmacy school. Although journalism and literature is calling my name!

And Furthermore Parts I, II, and III

In Part I, King shows just how he edits and cuts his draft. It's pretty cool, I must admit. "It's the story putting on its clothes, combing its hair, maybe adding just a small dash of cologne." He says most changes are cuts intended to speed up the story. Like Strunk said, "Omit needless words."

"It's about engine maintenance, not joyriding." I really love his metaphorical styles.

In Part II, he gives a booklist of what's worked for him. I'm ashamed to say, of the entire list, I've only read Lord of the Flies. Embarrassing, huh?! In Part III, he updates his list -- almost ten years later. Of both lists, I hope to read: Oliver Twist, To Kill a Mockingbird, Water for Elephants, Life of Pi, No Country for Old Men, Atonement, War and Peace, and Revolutionary Road. Although odd, I kind of like how he ended the book abruptly with a reading list. It's almost mysterious, almost.