I’ve been spending some quality time with this book lately:
Oddly enough, this is the first Stephen King book I have read – though it is not my first encounter with “the King”. That occurred accidentally in the summer of 1995. Ten-year-old Ruth was watching TV by herself; her parents were away, and her three older siblings were going about their business. Flipping through channels, she found a movie about a writer who, breaking his leg in a car accident, finds himself recovering in the home of a devoted fan. I want to be a writer, thought little Ruth. This looks good.
That, my friends, is how a girl who couldn’t even make it through the animated Legend of Sleepy Hollow without nightmares came to watch Misery.
I’ve seen a few other film adaptations of Stephen King tales – The Langoliers, Apt Pupil, and Secret Window, to be specific – but the only written word I’d encountered before now was an article King wrote in anticipation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. He wrote like a true fan and seemed to understand the poignancy of reaching such a beloved series’s end. That endeared him to me more than his bestselling reputation ever could, and I resolved to give him a try.
Next on the list:
*Note: Ten-year-old Ruth actually liked Misery. I watched it again a few years ago and liked it even more. I have liked all my “King” films, in fact, and I look forward to journeying with him as a reader.
I have enjoyed On Writing, and have gleaned much from it thus far. Here are a few gems:
“One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary . . . Remember that the basic rule of vocabulary is use the first word that comes to your mind, if it is appropriate and colorful.”
On the overabundant use of adverbs (and passive voice):
“When I do it, it’s usually for the same reason any writer does it: because I am afraid the reader won’t understand me if I don’t. I’m convinced that fear is at the root of most bad writing. . . . You probably do know what you’re talking about, and can safely energize your prose with active verbs. . . . Good writing is often about letting go of fear and affectation.” (emphasis mine)
“The object of fiction isn’t grammatical correctness but to make the reader welcome and then tell a story . . . to make him/her forget, whenever possible, that he/she is reading a story at all.”
And, the biggie:
“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot.” (again, emphasis mine)
Amen, Mr. King. ALL of the yes.
The bits about style were a bracing reminder as I head into writing this new book. My style tends to be wordy; I love words, and I love learning new words, and I love using a plenitude of beautiful words to create rich verbal pictures. For The Ancient, I was trying to capture an archaic atmosphere, so the language was even more floral and elevated.
I have been reminding myself – repeatedly – that all of this is OK.
But this new book is different. It’s modern and funny and pure fantasy. There are still plenty of deep truths and themes resonating throughout, but if The Ancient was port, this is . . . champagne.
Ergo, Mr. King’s exhortations to write in a straightforward manner came in a timely fashion.
Now, I have had to take some bits of On Writing with a grain of salt. Everyone has their own methods, and just because it works for a top-rated author doesn’t mean it’s going to work for me. For example, King describes his distaste for “plotting” and “character notes”; he likes to get it in and get his hands dirty with the text, setting down everything as it comes. He believes every story is a fossil to be excavated: you don’t make it up – you find it.
While I agree with him – I attested in this post on The Ancient that I felt like I was discovering the story, rather than inventing it – I do love me some character notes. I make playlists for characters and stories, and listening to them has led to many “discoveries” that all get jotted down in some semblance of nearly indiscernible order. Furthermore, I like to dig up the main bones of the plot first, before I get buried too deep amidst the gritty sand. That way, when I do find a tiny, fragile piece, I have a better idea where it fits in the whole.
From what I can tell, I think Mr. King would approve.
So, I’m off to listen to some more music and make some more notes. I’m really chuffed with my recent progress; perhaps I shall even start drafting in earnest NEXT WEEK!
Keep reading and keep writing. I just read the introduction to “Bathing in Prayer”, Jan Karon’s latest. She describes how she began the series by seeing a man walking along a sidewalk of a small mountain village. She said she did not know he was a priest until he “turned around and I saw he had a cleric collar”. She was 50 when she began writing, fulfilling a dream she had when she was 10. I think you would enjoy at least the introduction to this book.
Glad the signing went well!! Eager for new bits of learning and sharing!!!!!!!
I’m glad you’re gleaning much from Mr. King. Never a bad thing to have some of your notions challenged by an informed voice, or simply to rethink why you do things a certain way. I appreciate your ability to accept those challenges, while also taking advice with a grain of salt (not everything is universally applicable). Thanks for the thoughts!