(Image from reading comes from writing)
Should you buy On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft at a discount? No.
Should you read On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft for free? If you’re very bored.
“On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” by Stephen King is part biography, part writing guide. It’s split into three parts – the first is about his childhood, the second is the actual guide to writing, and the third is about his accident.
I’ve seen this on several “must read” lists before, and it piqued my curiosity enough to pick it up. I must quash that curiosity once in a while, because this time it treated me like a cat. It’s not that the book has been an utter waste of my time, but it definitely wasn’t what I was expecting – in a bad way.
Does it have any merits? Yes. Precious few, but let me go through them first.
Stephen King’s had an interesting childhood
It wasn’t a gripping thriller, but he retells his childhood and how he got into writing. If you’ve had similar experiences, then perhaps you’re cut out for writing too – you just need to pay your dues.
Stephen King is a regular bloke like you or me
Except he’s a bit handicapped now. But before his accident, he really wasn’t any different from the average Joe, which is something you can empathise with. It really makes you think that “hey, writers aren’t all that mystically gifted after all, and I can be one,” which is true. In a way, it dissolves that barrier to entry, which is to say, that writing is a sacred, mysterious art. It’s not.
(Image from Ramblings of a vagrant mind)
But I said it was not worth my time, right?
“You may wonder where plot is [in the important parts of stories of novels]. The answer… is nowhere.”
Stephen King tells you not to bother too much about plotting, and to just write. What hogwash is this? I don’t know which writer doesn’t plot out his story. Do you think that the writer of “The Wolverine” decided to just go with the flow and make it up and see where Wolverine decides to take him? Do you think that it doesn’t take incredible effort to tie your teaser into your climax? Do you think that payoffs occur naturally without setups?!
Oh, the anger. If you don’t believe that writers since time immemorial have been plotting their stories before writing them, check out this link that my writer friend shared with me. It shows handwritten outlines by famous authors. You think they plotted it after shambling through a story for fun? I’ll let their angry spirits (or live bodies, for some) answer.
The incredibly pretentious analogy that “writing is unearthing a fossil”
All the good that the first part of the book did, which was to show that writing isn’t all that inaccessible, is utterly destroyed by this second part. It’s like… I don’t even see how unearthing a fossil is a relatable simile in any size, shape, or form. He makes writing sound like an archaeological expedition. How many archaeologists do you know? Does that analogy even help you understand what writing is about? Do you know much about archaeology beyond Indiana Jones? If you’re an archaeologist, I apologise. If not, well. My point exactly.
The guide to writing is way too short
And it’s terribly disorganised. There are some tips, but not enough to justify this book as an instructional book on writing.
His autobiography feels gratuitous
Call me biased, but two thirds of the book devoted to your life? Why not just write a straight autobiography then? Because it wouldn’t sell? So hide the autobiography in the guise of a part guide part biographical book?
The least he could have done is to use the instructional portion of the book to point out good examples in the biographical portions, and show how to apply the tips that he lists out for you. He doesn’t. And it just serves to highlight how disjointed this book is.
(Image from Amazon)
You would do better actually writing, than to read this book. So go, go write, and don’t pick this book up. I’ve suffered enough, may I spare you the pain as well.
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