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tgthreadgill's review against another edition
second time reading, love it just as much.
anarchy777's review against another edition
5.0
While I'm not a huge Stephen King fan, I have occasionally enjoyed some of his work to know he does actually believe everything he wrote. If it works for you is something else entirely, but still a must read for any form of writer.
kimresh's review against another edition
5.0
Part memoir and part how-to on writing. I appreciate King’s writing but sometimes feel the endings of his stories fall flat. It was interesting to learn he just lets the story develop and how he views it as unearthing a relic or fossil. The story existed before he came along and helped it take shape. With that in mind he doesn’t plot out his stories so they end how he intuitively feels they should. It gave me new appreciation for his work. Oftentimes in life, our own little vignettes end and their endings can be irritatingly lacking closure. I’m planning on reading some of his work again with this in mind.
kellylhaslam's review against another edition
5.0
I have not read any Stephen King books, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I feel like I should read some of his other books now, but I think he would be too good at scaring me! LOL! Anyway, this is a great book for any writer. King obviously focuses on fiction writing, but many of his points I think are suitable for non-fiction writing as well.
King begins with highlights of his life up until his first bestselling book. It was interesting to hear the events that served as markers in his life and how tough his early years were before we all knew him as Stephen King. The book ends with the horrific and life-threatening accident he went through while in the midst of writing this very book! It's quite unbelievable. And it's moving how he was still able to finish this book and how writing helped him with his recovery. It's evident this was not easy for him, but I am (and surely many others are) glad he finished this book.
There are many golden nuggets to learn from this book, but a few I felt he emphasized were: read and write a lot; excavate your fossil (your story pre-exists and it's your job to uncover it); write your first draft as fast as you can and with the door closed (no input); let your work "rest" after the completion of your first draft; don't be shy about cutting about 10% from your first draft; write with your Ideal Reader in mind; and the book the Elements of Style should be your constant companion.
Not only is the content superb, but King has a way of cutting to the chase in a clear and fun way. He's quite conversational in his style. Several times I found myself laughing out loud! He also is very encouraging and often uses his own works as examples. In addition, he's willing to share some of his own doubts and insecurities; thereby affirming if he has felt that way as a bestselling author it's understandable and okay that you might feel that way too. He even reveals his own daily writing program/routine!
I found this to be an excellent book from one of our most prolific writers and as he often said "you could do worse" than read this book.
King begins with highlights of his life up until his first bestselling book. It was interesting to hear the events that served as markers in his life and how tough his early years were before we all knew him as Stephen King. The book ends with the horrific and life-threatening accident he went through while in the midst of writing this very book! It's quite unbelievable. And it's moving how he was still able to finish this book and how writing helped him with his recovery. It's evident this was not easy for him, but I am (and surely many others are) glad he finished this book.
There are many golden nuggets to learn from this book, but a few I felt he emphasized were: read and write a lot; excavate your fossil (your story pre-exists and it's your job to uncover it); write your first draft as fast as you can and with the door closed (no input); let your work "rest" after the completion of your first draft; don't be shy about cutting about 10% from your first draft; write with your Ideal Reader in mind; and the book the Elements of Style should be your constant companion.
Not only is the content superb, but King has a way of cutting to the chase in a clear and fun way. He's quite conversational in his style. Several times I found myself laughing out loud! He also is very encouraging and often uses his own works as examples. In addition, he's willing to share some of his own doubts and insecurities; thereby affirming if he has felt that way as a bestselling author it's understandable and okay that you might feel that way too. He even reveals his own daily writing program/routine!
I found this to be an excellent book from one of our most prolific writers and as he often said "you could do worse" than read this book.
lalistwa's review against another edition
4.0
This was on my TBR list forever and I finally snagged a chance to read it. Part writing craft advice, part memoir, I found this both informative and entertaining. I laughed out loud more times than I can recall - had no idea Stephen King was this funny. Definitely worth a read for King fans as well as anyone who writes.
librariangie's review against another edition
4.0
Stephen King has a new fan. I kinda liked him already from reading his short story "The Mist" back in undergrad. I liked him a little more as a contributor to Entertainment Weekly. With this book, I am a bona fide fan. Listening to the audio book, which he narrates, was a treat. If you are a would-be writer, he is inspirational and motivational. He really is a good writer. I won't be reading Carrie or Cujo anytime soon - I don't have a true horror-reader's temperament, but I might try the Stand and the Dead Zone - both of which he discusses in this book and which sound interesting.
For the would-be writer, he has great, practical advice. And he was also able to share some things about writing that would have seemed too nebulous to even be able to share in writing - but he finds those words and he makes sense to me. If you already love his work, you would enjoy reading about his writing process, especially as he delves into details of the formation of the plots of Carrie and Misery.
For the would-be writer, he has great, practical advice. And he was also able to share some things about writing that would have seemed too nebulous to even be able to share in writing - but he finds those words and he makes sense to me. If you already love his work, you would enjoy reading about his writing process, especially as he delves into details of the formation of the plots of Carrie and Misery.
leventmolla's review against another edition
3.0
This book by Stephen King is more like a memoir, recounting his childhood and early writing days and less about actual writing techniques or hints, as the title may suggest.
It is mildly interesting, given that Stephen King has a good style, even in this non-fiction book, but the book is not really a structured book about the writing craft.
It is mildly interesting, given that Stephen King has a good style, even in this non-fiction book, but the book is not really a structured book about the writing craft.
cj_writes's review against another edition
5.0
I loved the way this book left a lasting impression on me. It was what everyone else says...a great way to see how one extremely famous writer does what he does (it's in no way a very typical way of writing, from what I've seen in other author's accounts, but it's still cool to see). It's also a cool memoir of sorts.
dorin_love's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
5.0