Stephen King is a cool dude.

Why is Stephen King cool? Because he's a zillionaire and he's written, like, 35 books, and still he took the time to write a book that he hopes will serve as a guide and helping hand to aspiring writers. I haven't finished On Writing, A Memoir Of The Craft yet, but I couldn't wait until the end to tell you about it. (I'm a slow reader.)

I've always harbored a notion that one day I would write a novel - this, in spite of the fact that I can barely muster the energy to write in my website a couple of times a week. But a girl can dream, right? So I picked up Stephen King's book on writing and even if I never do write, I know I'm better off for reading it. And if you love to read, I think you would be, too.

King really believes that if someone is a competent writer, with a lot of hard work and some guidance, they can actually become good writers. Not great - apparently great is what you get while in the womb, but good, and good is pretty good, actually.  There are a lot of good writers who have books in the bookstores. In addition to being super encouraging, King is really specific about the elements of writing, which I love. He talks about dialogue and adverbs and a lot of stuff I should have learned in high school English (which he taught) but apparently didn't. By the way, if you happen to be a fan of Stephen King novels, you'll really dig learning about his writing process and what happened in his life as he was writing various novels. It's really good stuff. And when you're done, I think you'll agree with me - Stephen King is a really cool dude. 

 

In the last few years, Stephen King has been writing columns for Entertainment Weekly. He writes about all kinds of things - music, books, sports. I feel like I've gotten to know the man behind the horror a little bit, and I like him, so I decided to read On Writing, and now I love him. 

The fact that such a prolific writer would want to help other aspiring writers kind of amazes me. He genuinely wants to encourage people to write, and truly believes that "good writing consists of mastering the fundamentals (vocabulary, grammar, the elements of style) and "while it is impossible to make a competent writer out of a bad writer, and while it is equally impossible to make a great writer out of a good one, it is possible, with lots of hard work, dedication, and timely help, to make a good writer out of a competent one." So, if you don't suck, with a lot of hard work, you can actually become good. I think that's pretty encouraging. King is very specific about all the elements that go into writing, as well as what kind of schedule works for him and what might work for you. As a bonus, it's also an autobiography, though an incomplete one, and quite interesting. 

Maybe I'll never be a writer, but I do love to read, and On Writing is giving me a greater understanding and appreciation of what it takes to create a wonderful story.