What helped him was having a support system in his mother and then his wife to tide over rejections and lean on as sounding boards for ideas, plots and drafts. The key is, he was still writing 4-6 hours a day in the laundry room of the trailer, the only place in his home where he could find some privacy. And he did not make serious money from it until it went for a paperback reprint a year later. He never let the weight of rejection or not finding an audience bother him, but he took any feedback from these rejection slips to improve his writing.īy the time his first book was finally published, King was married with three kids, held a job teaching at school and living out of a trailer. So, he replaced it with a spike and kept on writing. By the time he was 14, the nails could no longer support the weight. King used to write horror stories and send them out to magazines – and keep the rejection slips on a nail pegged to his desk. But that’s not to say he found success early. King started writing at an early age – his mom was his first paying audience.
The only way for a writer to grow is to persevere, even in the face of rejection or anonymity. If you are unwilling to spend four to six hours a day, every day, reading and writing without distraction, you are unlikely to develop the skills and temperament required to be a writer, and most of what follows would be as helpful to you as arm floaters for a lifeguard who cannot swim. A good story can come from anywhere – you only need to be open to inspiration.īy reading and writing regularly, you create opportunities for this serendipity to occur.Ī passion for reading and writing is at the core of one’s journey to becoming a good writer. There is no central idea dump, no Ikea for Authors, where writers get their ideas. Becoming a (good) writerįirst, let’s get this out of the way: There is no shortcut to becoming a good writer. While most of his concepts relate to fiction, there is a lot here for any budding writer. Thankfully, in this book SK covers what he has learned over the years – a masterclass before the concept became popular. It requires a dedication to the craft and a sharpening of the tools. This is a creative well that does not run dry, and I was sure that such regularity could not be a function of just talent. More than 60 movies have been commissioned based on his works – including some iconic ones like The Shining, Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption.
His books have sold over 350 million copies, and most have never been out of print. For almost half a century, he has written books with amazing regularity.
You could say SK (or “The King of Horror”, as fans and the media refer to him) knows a thing or two about writing. In his part memoir, part workshop “ On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft”, King believes that while it is impossible to make someone a writing genius, with enough dedication and help, a competent writer can become a good one.
Most people believe that teaching someone how to write is like teaching fish how to swim. The only thing that can do that is a good story.” “The best arguments in the world won’t change a single person’s mind. A common thread successful people share across fields is the ability to tell compelling stories that grab people’s attention. The ability to write well is an advantage in any walk of life – there is magic in being able to weave a story that has the reader fascinated.Īt its best, writing can both move people and transport them. Like a magnifying glass collecting light only to hone it to a sharp point, the act of writing allows you to hone your thoughts and stories to a keen edge.