I’m one of those people who doesn’t pick
favorites.
Anytime someone wants me to put together a list of
favorites, I cringe. Favorite song? Favorite TV show? Favorite food? I don’t
know. I like tons!
Asked to pick a favorite quote from
Stephen King’s book “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft:” I’m sorry, I simply can’t.
It’s not that I don’t like what King wrote. On
the contrary, I love it. I learned many lessons while reading “On Writing,” as
well as remembering one long-forgotten -- that of literally
not judging a book by its cover.
When I became aware that “On Writing” was a
required piece of material for the curriculum of JN 217 Feature Writing, my
eyes widened at the sight of the author's name. I was hit with the irony. If there is
a genre of which I have never been a fan, it is horror. Knowing King devoted much of his life to the darker side within literature, my heart
sank.
I opened the book to the acknowledgements listed
on the first few pages. My disappointment lessened while my interest grew:
“ ... Recommended for anyone who wants to write and everyone who loves to read.” -- Library Journal
“ ... King could write a phone book and make it not only a bestseller but also gripping reading.” -- Booklist
“ ... With great generosity, Stephen King opens doors rather than slams them shut. It is possible, he tells us all, you can do this thing. ‘On Writing’ is one of the most inspirational and useful books about writing I’ve ever read.” -- Abigail Thomas, author of “Safekeeping: Some True Stories from a Life” and teacher of creative writing in the MFA program at the New School, New York
Drawing on my ability to find a redeeming
quality to certain items when not of my own
choosing, I continued to read as I set aside my premeditated aversion. King, an
intuitive artist, helps to subdue the trepidation of his more timid readers
when he penned not just one or two, but three insightful and
humor-filled forewords.
I soon found myself laughing out loud and felt a
sense of kinship as King recalls his younger years. He is real. He tells
it like he sees it and is a fan of common language. The imagery he presents
throughout his narration and dialogue is effectful in providing a
pleasure-filled reading experience; the pages flew.
As mentioned in one of my previous blog posts, I
picked up on how to make my own writing stronger by using many guidelines
suggested by King. Grammar, sentence structure, applying present tense,
removing adverbs, feeling the beat of the language, eliminating what isn’t
necessary -- all in all, using anything that “improves the quality of your
writing and doesn’t get in the way of the story,” says King.
I notice I’m editing my writing to include
present tense almost as much as I’m striking unnecessary adverbs. I’m also
becoming more at ease with cutting out sentences -- and entire paragraphs, for
that matter -- when they're not needed. I’m amazed at how freeing it is to let them
go.
King gives us permission to be ourselves.
Reassurance from one who’s seen so much success while staying true to himself is
worthwhile to regard. Yes, it’s okay trying different techniques, concepts, and
classifications exhibited by others, but in the end, we are who we are and
moving into feeling comfortable with how this plays out in our own writing is
part of the process. Stephen King is Stephen King. You are you. And I am me.
Two quotes exist on a lone page prior to the
first foreword:
“Honesty’s the best policy.” -- Miguel de Cervantes
“Liars prosper.” -- Anonymous
I find it intriguing King lists these contradictions at the start of his book. Later it becomes apparent why he does
so. Sure, writing a story is fabricating a tale. However, he supports being genuine with one’s life purpose when using talent, and
applying truth in one’s approach with writing:
“I predict you will succeed swimmingly ... if, that is, you are honest about how your characters speak and behave. Honesty in storytelling makes up for a great many stylistic faults... but lying is the great unrepairable fault. Liars prosper, no question about it, but only in the grand sweep of things, never down in the jungles of actual composition, where you must take your objective one bloody word at a time. If you begin to lie about what you know and feel while you’re down there, everything falls down.”
In other words, be authentic. It is then when we
will connect with others and will have finished what we set out to do.
I'm grateful for the curriculum of JN 217 Feature Writing and am feeling quite full after eating my slice of humble pie.
Thank you for being you, Mr. Stephen King.
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