REVIEW: Stephen King "On Writing"

ROOTS: REVIEW: Stephen King on Writing.

Horror is too horrible in real life so I’ve avoided reading Stephen King novels except for “The Girl who Loved Tom Gordon.” (It’s summer 199?, Tom Gordon is a closer for the Boston Red Sox, our protagonist is a girl who knows Baseball, lost in the woods for weeks in with only a transistor radio.) He DOES write a good story, so when a friend who is published recommended his “On Writing” I picked it up. His conversational style gave me a sense that I was being mentored by an older brother:

1. “What you know makes you unique. Be Brave.”
2. Take time in the world to listen and observe.
3. BUT write alone, everyday.
4. Write for an ideal reader, but don’t let him/her see the first draft.
5. Don’t let ANYONE see your first draft.
6. Put your first draft away - “Look back when you’re immersed in something else - like your life.”
7. Second Draft: Delete anything that doesn’t contribute to your meaning… and delete your favorite description of something irrelevant.
8. Share your work with people you trust. Trust their responses.

ROUTES:
Stephen King doesn’t write for the money. “Not now, never did.” He writes because “In the end, (writing is) about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life as well.” That’s why I write too – and I know that others lives will be enriched if I publish. However, Mr. King’s last bit of advice has left me confused. He said, “ “Read a lot, write a lot, read what you write.” What I read is tomes of every genre. I write short poems and essays. Do I read a novel or head to the bookstore to stock-up on poetry and magazines? Maybe I’ll just head to my “writing place” and do a few hundred words on my dilemma.

Why We May Be Skipping Thanksgiving

The appearance of Christmas decorations everywhere on Nov. 1 caused me to think that the nation may be skipping Thanksgiving this year. Here are my top 10 reasons why this might be true:

10. No one has manufactured a lawn pilgrim so people put up their inflated snow globes to hide the dead grass created by their air pumpkins.

9. Drought in much of the country prevented leaves from turning color, thus creating a shortage of fall wreaths.

8. With the plethora of jack-o'-lantern carving contests throughout October, there are too few pumpkins left for Thanksgiving pies.

7. Most deer and turkeys are protected in wildlife sanctuaries, so there is little meat to roast.

6. Now that adults also celebrate Halloween, there are no extra calories left in people's November food allowance.

5. There is no music to download for Thanksgiving. Snow figures prominently in its one song, "Over the river and through the woods . . . ," but thanks to global warming, the song is no longer applicable.

4. Halloween's roots are pre-Christian, and Christmas began some 2,000 years ago. Thanksgiving is just too new a holiday to generate much excitement.

3. The early start of the 2008 presidential race has distorted time. Christmas must begin now if it is to be celebrated in full before the New Hampshire primary.

2. Giving thanks has gone the way of giving one's bus seat to the elderly and infirm. (Most people don't ride buses, you say? Exactly.)

1. President Bush warned on Oct. 17 that "the possibility that Iran has nuclear weapons puts us on the brink of World War III. I believe people started to pray like crazy for "Peace on Earth" then and retailers have just picked up on the vibes.