My reviews have been hit and miss this month, what with the release of The Girl with the Empty Suitcase, and all. But today, that all changes. This week, the book review is back!
Today's book review looks at something nonfiction. Part memoir, part instructional, all awesome.
Stephen King's definitive writing manual, On Writing.
I'm not sure that I've ever loved a nonfiction book as much as I loved this book.
Forget that. Love this book. Present tense.
"Books are a uniquely portable magic."
The advice itself is sound, but more than that, it's honest. For example, King has a lot to say about adverbs: Avoid the adverb. Except when you need an adverb. Then use the adverb.
He spends much of the story talking about his own life, the way he looked at stories, struggled to tell stories, started selling stories. He addresses his time under the influence of drugs and alcohol, and describes at length his struggles with rejection and the importance his wife plays in his life and his work.
“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. It's about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay? Getting happy.”
Time and time again this book makes the lists for "Books for Writers" and "Books Every Writer Must Read" and the like. Yeah, there's a reason for that. It's by turns inspirational and informative. It pulls back the curtain on the creation and background of some pretty famous stories (the inspiration for Carrie, for example, is especially interesting). But it also dishes out delicious words for the aspiring writer to gobble up. Like this bit:
“Words create sentences; sentences create paragraphs; sometimes paragraphs quicken and begin to breathe.”
Say what you want about Stephen King. Some people sniff at him, their noses in the air, as though he doesn't deserve to be discussed as much more than "pulp" or "junk". (He does touch on that, by the way.) Personally, I don't get it. I actually now can say that I love Stephen King. The man can write. Not only is he incredibly prolific, but he's popular. He knows a bit about the business and logistics of writing. But he also can turn a sentence into something awesome. The imagery he uses, the mood he creates, the characters, the worlds, his voice... Yeah, the man can write. So say what you will, but regardless, if he's talking about writing, I'm listening.
And not just as a writer or a reader of his works. This book is just plain interesting, too.
“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There's no way around these two things that I'm aware of, no shortcut.”
The book itself is broken into several sections. There's the background, the snapshots of his childhood, youth, and early adult life. Then there's the "toolbox" section that delves into grammar and stylistic choices. Next there's the section on his process and his writing style. Then a description of the serious, life-changing injuries he faced when he was out walking and was hit by a driver, and the interplay between that major event and his writing. Finally, he offers annotated examples of first and second drafts of a short story, and then a list of (mostly fiction) books he loves.
I knew I would be able to take advice from this book. I didn't know I would be moved. I didn't know I would laugh, and shake my head, and sniffle, and gasp as I read a manual on writing. That's because this isn't just a manual on writing. It's so much more.
I'm so inspired to start work on my next book, now. Or maybe read more books by King.
Or maybe both.
“You can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.”
What's your favourite Stephen King book? Any must-reads I should add to my list?
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