on Writing - Stephen King

Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.

Being a writer is *not* easy. You sit in front of the computer and your mind's frozen. You know you've the story inside you, it just refuses to come out. No amount of coffee (read coaxing) seems to work and thus, most of us postpone it to yet another day. This is a well known phenomenon and has been called variously as *writer's block*, *procastination* etc.

Stephen King is one of those few authors who can actually get shit done. He's managed to write almost every day of his life, published 55 novels and several more short stories. His books The Shining and Misery are classics of the horror/thriller genre and most (if not all) fiction fans have heard about his books.

This is why I had high expectations when I picked up this book. And thankfully, I wasn't disappointed.
On Writing is a memoir on the art of writing and the factors which Stephen believes made him so successful at it. It's a short and powerful read which gives you some good insights and a lot of  background information about the author.

The first chapter is sort of autobiographical (aptly titled 'C.V.' ) and talks about the events which influenced King's own life and his development as an author. It's a fun read and tells us a lot about the author. He also talks about his early writing, sending articles to magazine authors, contributing to his brother's newspaper etc. The next three chapters detail Stephen's advice to other writers on the craft of Writing which is followed with a final chapter discussing his own accident and subsequent recovery.

The memoir is fast paced and you won't be bored reading it. It contains some useful information and introduces you to the life and thoughts of one of the most successful writer's of our times. The writing advice is common knowledge now (avoid adverbs, describe only what's needed and let readers imagine the rest etc) but I suspect this book played a role in popularizing it.

Reasons to Read

• Getting to know one of the most successful author's of our generation
• Understanding that the art of writing can only be perfected by practice
• If you're an aspiring writer

Memorable Quotes:

The scariest moment is always just before you start.

Description begins in the writer’s imagination, but should finish in the reader’s

Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.

The road to hell is paved with adverbs.