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10.
AOTW: Have any of you ever considered writing a book like On
Writing?
Laurie
Halse Anderson: Hell, no. Every time I start a new book, I have
to learn how to write all over again. I could never write a book
about writing.
Jeffery
Deaver: I never have. Someday, maybe. Right now, not enough
hours in the day…
Brad
Meltzer: On writing? I'm clueless. I'm still figuring it out
myself. But actually, there's some information on my website in
the Q&A section that gives some helpful advice.
Lisa
Scottline: Sometimes I wish I could write a book on writing,
if just to expand the answer above. But it would be ironic, if in
fact my point is that the journey to writing is essentially, and
of necessity, one of self-discovery (lofty-sounding, that). Nobody
can tell anybody else how to do it in the way that's right for them,
though they can tell them, as King does, to avoid adverbs and the
like. The best thing such a book could do would be to give people
the confidence to try, and my best hope is that people who want
to write will find within themselves the will to do it. And finish.
Jonathan
Kellerman: No way. (A) For me writing's like making love. I'd
rather do it than talk about it. And (B) Though I admire Stephen
King tremendously --- as a writer and as a human being --- I believe
the chief virtue of On Writing is the autobiographical aspect ---
learning more about Steve as a person, rather than as a primer.
I don't believe you can teach someone to become a novelist any more
than you can teach them to be a major league pitcher or an opera
singer. You have to born with certain quirks, talents, whatever,
and then you have to practice like crazy to hone your skills. I
also don't believe in writing groups or classes. If the teachers
were so great, they'd be publishing not pontificating. And graduates
of writing seminars usually end up sounding like their professors.
You need to feed your individual voice, not inhibit it by conforming
to someone else's rules. The whole key is to be an individual. I
enjoyed On Writing because, like most of what Stephen writes, it's
engaging and is rich with humanism. But you can read that sucker
1000 times and you're not going to turn out to be the next Stephen
King.
Noreen
Ayres: Nope. Too many folks have said it all before, much better
than I could.
Daniel
Handler: Rather than answer this question directly I'd like
to tell a brief story. Not too long ago I was at the Miami Book
Festival, hanging out with a handful of other new writers who would
probably prefer to remain anonymous. That night there was a concert
scheduled by the Rock-Bottom Remainders, the rock band Mr. King
is in, and inspired by the story that the Sex Pistols stole amps
and instruments from David Bowie to play their first live gig, the
other writers and I hatched an idea: we would leap onto the stage
before the concert began, and spontaneously form a punk band called
the Mid-List, which is the industry term for critically-acclaimed
authors whose works are often crowded off bookstore shelves. Using
the Remainders' instruments, we'd play off-the-cuff versions of
the few songs to which we knew the chords, until somebody threw
us out. The concert was canceled due to Mr. King's accident, so
I'll never know if we would have gone through with it. The point
of the story is: I'm a kid. If the literary world is a stage all
set for a rock star, I'm the one stealing the instruments and forming
a punk band. When I'm actually invited up on that stage sometime,
maybe I'll write something about writing. In the meantime I think
I'll just, um, write.
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