mmensely helpful and illuminating to any aspiring writer, this special edition of Stephen King’s critically lauded, million-copy bestseller shares the experiences, habits, and convictions that have shaped him and his work.
“Long live the King” hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in 1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred his recovery. Brilliantly structured, friendly and inspiring, On Writing will empower and entertain everyone who reads it—fans, writers, and anyone who loves a great story well told.
source: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/On-Writing/Stephen-King/9780743211536
I'm not really sure what possessed past-me to unhaul this book, but she's ridiculous. Ten years after my first read-through of ON WRITING and I still think this is a fantastic book of tips and tricks and advice. When I read this in 2011, I hadn't read many memoirs and thought it a little pretentious. Nonetheless, I took a lot of his advice - adverbs, dialogue tags, gratuitous descriptions - to heart. Re-reading it now, I understand his voice a bit better, and with the exception of some of the publishing advice (due to the passage of time and the change of the world) this is all still really relevant.
Still, ON WRITING is a bit of an odd duck in that it's not *quite* a memoir and it's not *quite* a book about the craft. If anything, I'd say ON WRITING is a love letter to the act of writing novels, splattered with details and advice. King's passion for his work bleeds through the page, and is twice as evident in the audiobook version, which he reads himself (a treat). Regardless of the slightly stale publishing advice, the writing advice is still sound and it's always fascinating to get a glimpse into a writer's origin story. This is a must-have for writers - established or aspiring.
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