On Writing

I've been following this agent's blog (who I don't plan to query, but find interesting). She had a contest about a month ago and gave away three of her favorite books about writing-Bird by Bird, The Forest for the Trees, and Stephen King's On Writing. I read the first, the second isn't at the library, so I picked up the last one. I can now say that I have read a Stephen King book, even if it's not one of his novels, which is what he is famous for. The problem is I hate being scared. I saw Carrie when I was around 11 or 12 and even though I couldn't say what scared me about it, I was freaked out and jumpy for an entire month. I've heard not all of the many novels he's written are scary, so I'll have to see what's out there because I'd like to check one out after reading this book.

On Writing is part memoir, part writing instruction. King explains how he began writing and how he's worked it into his life, as well as sharing the inspiration behind many of his successful books. It was interesting and also had wonderful advice. Here's one tidbit he offered that kind of sums it all up: "If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There's no way around these two things that I'm aware of, no shortcut." I found it a helpful read.