Stephen King Fans discussion

Anyone reading this?

I will be! I have it on my shelf as we speak. I really look forward to it. :D

I may not read it word for word, but I've read it a few times already, and I am certainly up for a skim. The best parts are the personal glimpses and when the tone changes after his accident. I felt as if I knew him (a little) after this book.

i've read this twice so i won't be reading it but i can discuss it.

I started it this week. It's my "take to work" book since I've read it once before.

I'll be reading it too :)

I finished this on my trip to Texas and really enjoyed it...I'll be around for the discussion as more people finish :)

I just finished this a little while ago. I read it in one sitting and I loved it.

King just really seems to make everything interesting, even grammar lessons. :P

I thought the book was pretty inspiring, and I really enjoyed how personal it felt to read it, like it was just Steve and I having a chat over coffee.

Becky wrote: "I just finished this a little while ago. I read it in one sitting and I loved it...."

Good girl...

Chris wrote: "Becky wrote: "I just finished this a little while ago. I read it in one sitting and I loved it...."

Good girl..."

Hehe... :)

I'm almost finished. I took it to a morning of soccer that mostly consisted of sitting around waiting. I was pretending to be upset about something so I could sit alone and read, but my daughter, who knows me VERY well, whispered in my ear "Are you really mad, or do you just want to be alone with Uncle Stevie?". How did she know I think of him that way? Stinker;)

LOL

Yeah, it was really cool of Uncle Stevie to tell about his childhood experience, not exactly hardscrabble like Charles Dickens's characters but I am sure he had some hidden rage inside him from all the time his babysitter sat on his head and farted on him. I mean look at all the fart jokes he managed to slip into his earlier novels.

Patrick wrote: "I mean look at all the fart jokes he managed to slip into his earlier novels. ..."

Not to mention the excesses in [insert brain fart:] help me out here. Tommyknockers was is? no, I think Dreamcatcher

Do you mean the Poo Weasels? :P Hehe, that would be Dreamcatcher.

indeed it was. ty

I didn't bring them up this time.

No, no. It's OK if you say "Poo" Weasel. Totally different. Like a cute little chipmunk. :D

Really? Then we could have them as pets?

Well yes, except the government has them in Roswell to dissect and study them keep them safe. Sorry.

I beg to differ. Poo causes the exact same clenching reaction. Maybe it's just me and MY butt.

*shrugs*

What about "Pooh"? ;)

Oh. You mean the sweet, golden, fuzzy bear? I love HIM. How could he make anyone clench?

Pooh Weasel?

No!

Anyway, I spent the better part of my waiting day reading this book. I must have read it more times than I thought, because every single line feels familiar. I mean that in the best possible way. I don't know about anyone else, but I've heard King read and speak enough, that I am able to hear this book in his voice. I'm sure I couldn't when I very first read it, so I see that as a bonus to re-reading now, years later. I love it. Like Becky said, it feels more like a conversation than a book. He feels so real, approachable and like me. I don't mean exactly like me, but just a regular guy. Yeah, he's richer than Croesus, but he never comes across that way. He's so likable and only in a book like this can we really know that. I haven't read Danse Macabre in years, but I don't remember it being in his "real" voice. I may need to re-read that one soon just to compare.

Yes. I definitely heard this one in his voice. The parts where he was telling us to ditch the adverbs (Please Oh Please!) just made me laugh, because I could see him in my mind wringing his hands and really putting on the act of begging us to listen. Or to disregard at our peril. LOL

Just curious if any of you are going to try to do the assignment that he gave in the book. I don't mean officially, I don't think he's accepting submissions anymore, but just for yourself. To see what you come up with?

I'm thinking about it, just to see.

One thing is certain though: I will never read books the same way again. Now, I will read them with more of an eye to their component parts, not just the story itself.

He's a pretty animated guy when he speaks, so yeah, I could see wringing of hands as well! And his voice is just goofy enough to charm the hell out of me, so I love hearing it in my head.

I only have a little to go, but am making myself wait to finish in bed tonight. I want it to be quiet so I can really "listen". I'll be sad to get to the last page.

Becky wrote: "One thing is certain though: I will never read books the same way again. Now, I will read them with more of an eye to their component parts, not just the story itself."

I do that. Ever since I read this the first time, I've been critical of seeing adverbs excessively.

LOL

I did the assignment but then the short story took over so it did not become a wife beating her husband kind of a story, more of a large scale story about violence and control and there was no domestic violence involved, just a couple squabbling. The weird thing was I could not end the story and then after 9/11 happened I used that as an ending after being depressed about the whole thing witnessing fellow Americans being killed.

I love reading the Author's Notes in all of his books so "On Writing" is a real treat... a book-length Author's Note :) I really enjoy the little autobiographical bits... the things that show not just what he thinks but how he learned to think. Of course, I am a great big nerd...

I laughed out loud during many portions of this book, which I wasn't really expecting in a "how to write" guide, so props to Uncle Stevie on that. I think it goes along with hearing his voice while you're reading it.

I loved the little insights he gave into his life, particularly into his marriage. It's the little things, I think, that make a relationship, and you really feel that while reading this book about his relationships with his wife and his writing.

This is one of the reasons I've been so insistent on nominating "Danse Macabre" -- These two books, "On Writing" and "Danse" are like bookends of King's life. In the first (Danse) he talks all about his influences, books, films, etc. - There's a WONDERFUL essay about "The Creature From the Black Lagoon" and the fact that kids "don't see the zipper" on the costume - perfect example of willing suspension of disbelief - which one HAS to have to enjoy these sorts of books. And yes, "Danse" is VERY much in his own voice - wonderfully so - Just as it is "On Writing" - but it was written before he received so much critical acclaim from the "establishment" and was only considered a genre writer -"On Writing" is the grown -up Stevie - able to look back down the long tunnel of all his writings.

I'll have to pick up Dase Macabre soon and take a stab at it--its been sitting on my shelf for far too long. I really enjoyed on writing especially a look in to his personal life and how he used to that to inspire his characters and stories--some of the situations I knew about and learned about others. I loved the examples he used to make his point in the different versions of his drafts-it showed how he learned to write.

I have thought about doing the assignment in his book, maybe one of these days when I get some more time...

Im about halfway through this already (from just 2 sessions) I have to admit, im surprised how much I like it. Been putting off reading it since it was not a book of fiction, but I should have known I'd love it if it was by Uncle Stevie. His praise of Tabbies work is a bit surprising, since I picked up one of her books once, while waiting for him to write a new one, and I couldnt get into it at all. I was also tickled by his description of her as "dancing whenever the whim took her, which was quite often", dont know why but I just never pictured her as such a free spirit LOL!

I have read it and am reading it again. I am new at this and just plunging in.
I am an avid reader. I began reading King about 8 years ago with CELL and fell in love. I loved THE STAND. The more I read, the more little connections and points of interest I find. I enjoy his discussions of literature, the craft and other writers. Not so drawn in be The Tower and hope I can get there.
I look forward to sharing this with others here.

I believe this is my 1st biography of a Household Name I Really Like or Love.
However, all I can say is that I'm So Enjoying It! :) I started it last night around 10 & only on pg. 100 & putting it down to go to sleep was difficult.

I don't think it really qualifies as a biography. He doesn't tell much of his life, just a few stories, and most of them related to writing or reading in some way, and it's only about half of the book. The other half is techniques and tips for writing well.

You're quite right, Becky -- the book is "On Writing," after all -- It seems to me that all of the information we Constant Readers have on King come from books like this and his many Afterwords and Forwards.

True, thank goodness for those. But still King seems accessible. Not like one of those reclusive "GET OFF MY LAWN!" anti-social types. LOL

I think that's the reason that the Post Office in Bangor actually had to hire extra temporary people after King's accident - the sheer volume of "Get Well" cards and letters literally flooded in. He TALKS to is readers, makes us his friend - makes us a part of the joke, not the butt of the joke.

I'm about halfway through this book and absolutely can't put it down. I love the little snippets of scenes from his life, giving us just a little taste of the man he is to become. Would love more, but thats not what this is about, is it?

Maybe one day he'll write that story for us Kathy. I'll be first in line at check-out! LOL

I'll be right there with you, Becky! Now I'm anxious to know what's in the toolbox, but had to go to sleep last night, so I'll find that out soon! :)

Very good stuff in there. Common sense stuff, but delivered in a "well that makes perfect sense. How come my english/creative writing teacher never put it THAT way" way. LOL

Becky wrote: "Very good stuff in there. Common sense stuff, but delivered in a "well that makes perfect sense. How come my english/creative writing teacher never put it THAT way" way. LOL"

I've had too many Creative Writing teachers that were snobs and would never admit that it was so simple.

Yeah. It's a pity. Because it's CREATIVE writing. Not Writing By The Numbers. You're supposed to make it work for you. Not bend it to your will.

King understands that. And he's prospered. I've yet to see a single book with my old CW teacher's name on it. =\

Exactly! All these snooty people have nothing to show for their theory that things have to be done a specific sort of way.......Writing by the Numbers, exactly!

And for all those people that told him that he was wasting his time! Bah!!! :P