On Writing

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Stephen King

Length: 7 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

In June of 1999, Stephen King was hit by a van while walking along the shoulder of a country road in Maine. Six operations were required to save his life and mend his broken body. When he was finally able to sit up, he immediately started writing. This book is the extraordinary result.

©2000 Stephen King (P)2000 Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster Inc.

Critic reviews

"This is the written equivalent of Delia Smith's How To Cook. And, like British home cooking, the world of popular fiction will be better off for it." (The Times)

"Not since Dickens has a writer had so many readers by the throat.... King's imagination is vast. He knows how to engage the deepest sympathies of his readers.... It is part biography, part collection of tips for the aspiring writer. In the final chapters, King tells, in graphic details, the story of his recent accident...a bizarre and absorbing story, told brilliantly by one of the great storytellers of our time." (Guardian)

Not a fan of his genre but this is wonderful

Horror and suspense have never been my thing. I only know Stephen King's work through books that have been turned into movies.

After reading this, I'm thinking perhaps I'll try one of his stories.

I bought this book because it seems to be universally recommended by writers I respect.

Glad I did as I loved it from start to finish.

The first part, where he tells his early life story is hilarious, intimate and interesting. You get to understand why he writes what he writes. I was also left thinking I'd love to have this guy as a friend.

He narrates beautifully. As such, I'm glad I got the Audible version first rather than the hard copy or Kindle.

I found what he has to say about his craft humble, helpful and inspiring. He's at pains to dispel some of the common "thou shallts" of writing fiction, such as plotting out in advance and creating character dossiers in advance.

I won't spoil it for you by summarising the rest. All I want to say is, if you write, whatever you write, you will find this useful and uplifting. You'll also be entertained.

I'll most likely buy a hard copy or Kindle version too as there's lots of useful stuff I'd like to refer back to.

Well Worth A Listen

I've been a fan of Stephen King's novels since I was young. Many of his stories planted the seeds for my interest in the horror/supernatural genre. It was very interested in hearing such a successful and prolific writer give a run down of his writing process.
The first part of this book is autobiographical. I believe this to be important in giving the listener/reader an idea of how a person such a King comes to be a writer in the first place, and how events in his life have influenced him as a writer.

The second half deals with the actual writing process. This was very interesting to read.
It is sometimes easy to believe that writers such as King manifest award winning novels in their sleep with little to no effort, while the rest of us have to grind through hours of bad writing and false starts to achieve a result. King's honest run down of his process does well to dispel this belief, which I found very reassuring!

I'd recommend this book to prospective writers who are looking for pointers and inspiration, and also to fans of Stephen King's work who would be interested in learning about his life and the processes he used to create some of their favorite stories.

Part 'How to' part Autobiographical

Would you consider the audio edition of On Writing to be better than the print version?

Yes - easier to access for busy budding writers

What other book might you compare On Writing to and why?

None, Stephen King's advice and narration are so easy to listen to and his honesty is very inspiring.

Have you listened to any of Stephen King’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, Bag of Bones, love his voice, this was a different type of book and very easy to listen to.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I was very moved when he admitted and owned his alcoholism.

Any additional comments?

I love his message, writers need to understand that he wasn't born with a golden spoon. He worked very hard at some seriously menial jobs and perservered with his writing when most of us would be making excuses.

great value listen

said everything an aspiring writer needs to hear and covered most questions I had and wondered about

Good read.

Great for aspiring writers. The performance is just Stephen King talking and he occasionally tries a character voice but that's all it needs. I would recommend it.

Is this for you?

Is this book for you? It is about writing and we all write, don't we? Not really.

If you are a fiction writer in any form or format it is non brainer to choose this book. It will be worth two of your credits. If you are an aspiring fiction writer, it may work as a reality check on the profession you intend to pursue. It will definitely change the the way you look at authoring. So use your credit three times over without a second thought.

For non-fiction writers. I am not sure if this book would be of help other than gaining some insights and learning about "trials and tribulations" of writers in general and why not to use clichés like "trials and tribulations". You may also develop a strong dislike for adverbs after reading this book.

For someone who is not pursuing writing it may not be entertaining. It is is not one of Stephen Kings thrillers. It is also not a self development / improvement book. It definitely is not boring, but you will not be able to put most of the advice to use.

If you are into email marketing and creating web content, This book may just sadden you. It will make you look at each new request from your manager to create content with suspicion, contempt and dislike.

Pragmatic, practical, no fluff.

I love this book and have listened to it on three occasions over the years. It tells Steve's story in Steve's way with asides on technique, method and practice. His excoriating views on literary conceits and sloppy writing are a hoot. He despises 'ly' adverbs which is a really good thing actually. Inspiring. And his central advice 'just write' says it all. Really.

fantastic

still just as relevant today as it was when it was published, barring a few old references. and King is a gem to listen to. highly recommended

Inspirational!

"writing is about getting happy." - Steven King
those words truly states the reason why writers write and continue to do so.

Absolutely inspiring & informative!

I loved King's autobiographical way of sharing his experience. It was a huge encouragement for someone such as myself starting out as a writer. I'm definitely going to be listening to this a second time through. I wish you all the best of luck as you embark on the journey. Thanks Mr. King for being so personal!