Comments on "On Writing" by Stephen King

Some time ago I read "On Writing" by Steven King. Great book. I have a lot more respect for him than I did before starting this book. He begins with a well written and entertaining biography then begins discussing the art of fiction writing. I feel unqualified to comment much on his advice since I’m not much of a writer but it seems like excellent practical and down to earth advice. As a bonus, this advice is presented in a readable and humorous tone (difficult to do when discussing the intricacies of grammar). One of my favorite parts involves King’s hatred of the “wimpy” passive voice:

“It’s weak, it’s circuitous, and it’s frequently tortuous, as well. How about this: My first kiss will always be recalled by me as how my romance with Shayna was begun. Oh man – who farted, right?”

Awesome! I’m still laughing right now as I type it.

I think science writing could benefit from King’s advice. What? Science writing is NOT fiction! True, but science writing is often confusing and full of crappy grammar. It is as if scientists do this on purpose to make themselves seem more intelligent. It would be much better if we could briefly and clearly write what needs to be said without all the multisyllabic fluff. It is ironic that this problem is much more prevalent in science writing than in fiction. I guess the fiction readers simply won’t tolerate such crap while scientists encourage it in the review process. Throw in a bunch of big words to show how smart you are or at the very least confuse the reviewers enough so they accept the article fearing to admit that they are too small brained to grasp your ingenious work. I will not do this. If I do and you catch me kick me in the butt. Hard.

King also suggests that one of the most important things a writer can do is read. He claims that he is a slow reader and gets through about 70 to 80 books a year. Damn … the one year I got through 50, I thought it was a major achievement. King advocates always having a book at the ready to take advantage of opportune moments. He also promotes audio books as a great way to “read” in the car. King refers to the TV as the “glass teat” and suggests this as a prime reason for “lack of reading time”. I agree with this and would call the internet the electronic pacifier. True, you are reading a bit when you surf but it is not the type of reading that will exercise your brain. I waste far too much time mindlessly riding the electron waves.

I guess one of the reasons I really like this book is that a lot of the stuff that King is saying I have thought – consciously or subconsciously- for a long time. It’s nice to have someone agree with you … especially a famous person!

Anyway, I bought the book for Sarah for Christmas. Sarah wants to be a writer. I hope this helps her … and she acknowledges her gratitude to me in her first novel … as long as it doesn’t suck.