On Writing

King doesn’t know where good ideas come from, just that they appear. He doesn’t encourage writers to sit and produce good ideas, but prepare to capture them when they appear.

He also believes the muse appears when you’re working. You can’t be a lazy writer.

My favorite mindset of writing is King’s idea that writing is telepathy. You’re transferring thoughts from your mind to another person’s. In this way, it’s magic.

This echoes Alan Moore’s sentiment on writing as magic.

King believes in a pyramid of gradation in writers. From the bad writers at the bottom (the largest group), to the competent writers, to the good writers (a select, small group), and then the great writers.

King doesn’t believe that you can go from a bad writer to competent, but you can move from competent to good. The only way to be “great” at writing is through luck, genetics, and an impossible work ethic. You can’t move from good to “great.” You don’t get to pick.

You should take writing seriously, but don’t let it consume you. Your art should support your life, not the other way around.

King sees “talent” as enjoying hard work. This echoes many others’ thoughts that choosing something that’s easy for you, but work for others. It iss the best way to get ahead. If you can do it for joy, you can do it forever.

Find something you love, then give it your all.

Write something you know about and like. Don’t worry about the masses. Don’t emulate bestsellers. Just write for yourself and people like you. If you have one ideal reader with similar tastes, write for that person. Then have that person review your work.