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4.34 AVERAGE
4.34 AVERAGE
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
You might enjoy this if: you're an aspiring writer who is looking for practical advice on honing their craft. If you want a single book on writing advice, this is it.
What I liked:
- The book had a lot of practical advice that wasn't sugarcoated or overly prescriptive.
- The memoir provided concrete evidence about Stephen King's writing abilities. I haven't read a ton of his books, but this section definitely piqued my interest in exploring some of his other works.
What I disliked:
- I don't agree with the implication that creative abilities are something you're either born with or not.
Your Milage my Vary:
- Stephen King is a strong brew which might not be everyone's cup of tea.
- Not all of the advice is going to be applicable to everyone, but the general vibe I got from this book was that each person should take what's valuable to them and disregard the rest.
This book is amazing and so inspiring-- I highly recommend to any and all writers! Every time I opened this book and read one of the short chapters, I came to my writing sessions inspired and on fire. Not to mention I went out and bought the hardcover version of the book afterwards. Ten out of ten.
This is a very practical book about writing. Well, actually, it's three different books all relating to writing, with someone else's short story tacked onto the end. First there is a memoir which is well told and interesting, presented in bite-sized memory pieces. Next is a section of no-nonsense easy-to-follow advice about writing fiction. It's brilliant nuts-and-bolts stuff like that a second draft should be 10% shorter than a first draft and why adverbs are a bad idea and don't present the reader with paragraphs full of facts you researched. Then there's a final piece of memoir, this chapter told as a single, flowing narrative, describing the accident which almost killed him and how writing helped him recover from it. I don't remember ever reading such a frank, honest, detailed book by any novelist describing how and why they write before.
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
funny
informative
reflective
fast-paced
One of the best books on writing, period. This is the book that gave me the confidence to write my first novel (thanks, Steve!). Even if you're not a fan of King's fiction, but you think you want to write a novel, you should read this now. Seriously.
informative
slow-paced
I found the book slow, and a little pretentious at times. Stephan King might be a good writer and uses a specific technique, but there are lots of other good writers who do the opposite of him.
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced