The Gospel According to King

I have great esteem for Stephen King, so reading his take on what I am trying to do (write) is important.  About a month ago I reserved On Writing at the little library in town.  I was at the bottom of a long waiting list.  So, I waited.  Amazingly, it came in this afternoon. 

This evening, as I waited for my daughters to get out of religion class, I leaned against the brick wall outside the entrance to the church and read by the dim glow of the security light.  King’s words were like the gospel to me.  (semi-sacrilegious allegory be damned…I have to go to confession on Saturday anyway). 

I was captivated by the first sentence on the dust jacket.  “If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time or the tools to write.”

Page after page, I consumed every word.  Sometimes I am guilty of skimming, but not this time.  I wanted to savor each syllable.     

The Way:

“Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.”

“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all others: read a lot and write a lot. There's no way around these two things that I'm aware of, no shortcut.”

The Truth:

“Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well.”

The Light:

“Writing is not life, but I think that sometimes it can be a way back to life.”

Wow.  Heavy stuff.  Now that I have On Writing in my hands, I plan to be doing a lot of reading.  I’ll get back with you cats in a few days…