On Writing - Stephen King

I don't really like horror (films or books) and so consequently I haven't read any of King's books, although The Stand is on my shelf waiting, and I have of course seen Carrie, The Shining and Salem's Lot. And yes I realise that categorising Stephen King as horror may a rather simplistic thing to do.

Not being exposed to King's writing therefore meant that the autobiographical section was an unexpected wonder. It's told in a lovely way, like he's really talking to you, and covers sections of his life from a child, up to his success and including his battle with drugs. The tale of what happened when he sold the paperback rights to Carrie was particularly touching, and knowing the background, his "overnight success" feels very well earned. It's a shame that some people will be put off buying this book due to the writing element, and miss out on this wonderful, brief personal history.

The next section is about the writers' Toolbox, using a lovely story about his carpenter Uncle as an analogy. Starting from the basics such as grammar, through other writing tools that are available for your use. I found this section useful and thought provoking, going back to writing basics.

The On Writing section is King's take on how to be a better writer. He's quite opinionated and in some ways unrealistic for many people, but he's telling it how it works for him. I love the idea of having a special writing room and closing the door until I've written two thousand words each morning, but it's not really going to happen. However the opinionated stance does make the section entertaining, and plenty of it resonates with me: write the story first, then find the theme, for example.

Then, unexpectedly, in more ways than one, there is the section entitled On Living, which describes King's near fatal accident (he was hit by a van). The accident happened in the midst of writing this book and so is included to complete the tale of the book. Being squeamish I found the details of his injuries pretty yuck, it's amazing he's alive.

At the back of the book is also: an unedited section of the story 1408 followed by the same section with King's editing marks and notes, a list of books he liked in the last few years and the short story Jumper by Garett Addams which won the competition to appear in the book.

I'm sure I'll be dipping back into the Toolbox and On Writing sections again (and again), whilst I'll be offering the autobiography around to anyone who will read it.