Rating: 
Summary: Anyone can write, says Stephen!
Review: Well, not exactly anyone, but it sure seems that the prolific "everyman" writer Mr. King does empower us all to grab a pen or a keyboard and make a go of it. The portioin of the book devoted to King's upbringing and book ideas is fun, sometimes humorous, but relatively banal compared to the "guts" of On Writing. That latter 1/2 is a plain brown wrapper full of great ideas, motivating thoughts, and a touch of reassurance. Unlike most "How to Write a Besteseller" books, many of which make the bestseller sound like a recipe for Grandma's Hard Cider, Stephen's says to, essentially, go for it. The most startling revelation is his dislike of "plotting".... he suggests simple letting the story develop itself, based on your "FEEL" for how it would play out in real life. Interject some action, write it well (lest one forget the meticulous errors of good scribe that King nails down for us... thank you), and vavoom, even you can write a book.We doggie, I would jot more ditties about this trashy little pulp called "on Writing", but I am off to the keyboard. See you on the bestseller's list.
Rating: 
Summary: Strangely Encouraging
Review: ""On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft" is a ubiquitously important book for writers to read. "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft" by Stephen King is one of those odd books I never thought I'd like. I'm not into modern horror or pop fiction. king is both. That said, I found his little memoir to be illuminatingly encouraging. I'm not sure what nonwriters will think of it. But we who collect rejection notices from our favorite publishers as if it were a hobby will connect with King's look back at leaner years. Now, as he can sell a book merely be the merit of his name, he might've forgotten how hard it was in the beginning. King recounts anecdote after anecdote of his efforts to get various horror magazines to buy his stuff. And when they did, he was elated. Why shouldn't he? He got paid to create something from nothing. Getting paid for writing is like printing money and getting away with it. For the writer, who, like I, esteems to have a shelf filled with books with our name printed on the spine, read "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft." Through this book, King brings to life not some creature from the deep beyond, but the reminder that great writing, no matter the genre (and I must admit, King raises the bar of his genre), perseverence is the trick. A lot of sweat and twice the talent. Horatio Alger would dig King's memoir. I fully recommend "On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft" by Stephen King. So many good writers give up the dream despite great skill in their given genre. King pressed on. So should you. Anthony Trendl
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Summary: Very helpful to aspiring writers...
Review: Normally, I'm not a big Stephen King fan, but I found this book one day when browsing through the bookstore and picked it up. Part-autobiography and part-writing advice, this is very helpful to hopeful writers. Packed with good advice, as well as stories about his own writing experiences, it is sure to inspire anybody to get down to work. As an aspiring novelist myself, this book definitely inspired me and got me to look more critically at my own work. And I suggest college students majoring in creative writing to read this.
It's definitely worth it.
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Summary: Another Dose of King Magic
Review: I have always appreciated Stephen King's novels. Not only are his stories great, but he makes it seem so easy. It is as if anyone could write a good horror novel, but then when you set your mind to it you realize that King's formula 'one word at the time' isn't as effective and simple as King makes it sound.
In this book Stephen King makes a serious attempt of trying to explain his magic. There are many great tips on how to fulfil your dream of becoming a writer that are just as simple and effective as his original formula 'one word at the time'. I think that there is much more to it than just sittng down and beginning to write. And Stephen King tells us that to become a writer it is necessary to read a lot and to write a lot: I think that this is the real formula for becoming a writer, with a mixture of the right amount of talent and a wild imagination.
So in the sense of helping you to become a writer I do not think that this book has much to offer. But this does not make "On Writing" less great as a book. It is a Stephen King book, and a good one. It is autobiographical in the sense that King reflects on his own relations to writing. He begins by describing his earliest memories of his childhood to his first writing success "Carrie" up until the moment when he is in the hospital writing this book. The book is filled with King humor. The babysitter scene, in which she would sit on little Stevie's head and fart still makes me laugh out loud.
This is a book that is easily devoured, and it is very entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: An enjoyable read
Review: An excellent book. I was half expecting to find myself reading a mundane book about the nuts and bolts of writing. Instead, I found myself in an intriguing biography, then getting a from-the-heart message about writers being honest, with a few tips about style and delivery. This book teaches a great deal, in its own way.
To the critics here who say this book doesn't tell you how to write - well, the title is "On writing", and the book is "On writing", so you haven't been cheated. The book wasn't called "How to write".
One mark of a good book is that it interests and entertains the reader. This one certainly does. The author has made the effort to interest and entertain first of all, which is one reason why he has made it to becoming a successful writer.
Rating: 
Summary: A Waste of Paper
Review: This was definitely the least informative book on writing I have ever read. I picked up a grand total of one tip, and that was so ordinary that I didn't bother writing it down when I gave the book away to a charity shop.
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Summary: King inspires prospective authors to write the Truth
Review: I've never been fond of Stephen King's works.
That's not to say I don't have tremendous respect for the man. Heck, I'm green with envy over his success. I'm not quite as envious over his scriptwriting career, but that's still more produced scripts than I have (0). There are exactly two stories I've read that I actually enjoyed: the short story "The Cat from Hell" and the novel "The Eyes of the Dragon." A lot of people have read "The Eyes of the Dragon," so I won't dwell on it other than to say that it's a fantasy novel and not a bad one at that.
Virtually no one has heard of "The Cat from Hell," which I stumbled across as a child looking for short stories about fantastic characters. Boy did I get one, a terrifying tale of an assassin hired to execute a cute little kitty that turns out to be far more dangerous than anyone could ever imagine. I don't think Mr. King doesn't like cats.
Anyway, what I've since read from King since often seemed like it meandered. Where "The Cat from Hell" was a tight, gripping story, there has since been a lot of farting, nose picking, and other silliness interspersed through King's novels that turn me off. It's like a kid making farting sounds with his armpit during a scary movie...hard to be scared when someone's giggling behind you.
On Writing explains King's approach and more. It also sums up a lot of King's life, a life that would make exceptionally fertile material for his later horror movies. Most significantly, the book is refreshingly honest. King doesn't think his works are masterpieces, but he does believe he is an artist and a successful one. He talks about it like it is, explaining what it takes to be a writer and more significantly, what will make you a GOOD writer. King has little respect for writing classes. In fact, one could argue On Writing is the first and last book anyone needs about writing.
For King, the most important aspect of writing is telling the truth: about oneself, about what you know, about whom you know, and how you know it. His clear-minded approach cuts through the usual claptrap about high art, English teacher sophisms, and notions about what it means to be a "success." King really gives it his all, baring his heart and soul and admitting to some very nasty things in his life that nearly ended his career.
Then King was hit by a van.
That last chapter is riveting, not the least of which is because it is as if the book's wisdom is put to the test. King, in detail that only he can describe, explains just what happened. And it all seems a lot like his novels, a real life horror story.
The highest compliment I can give this book is that it sent me straight back to my writing, the "closed door" kind, the kind written for the Ideal Reader, the kind that is what I know not what I think I should know.
King inspires prospective authors to write the Truth. And that's more valuable than all his other books put together.
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Summary: You have to read it
Review: The first half is autobiographical, and I'm willing to bet you'll never see Stephen King in the same light after reading it. Many people view rich, successful authors as some kind of pampered royalty, but this book shows just how much hard work it takes to get to the very top.
The second half is stunning, but in a different way. Preconceptions about writing are nailed to the wall and shot full of holes, and you come away with a realistic grounding in the writing game. Scented writing paper and lavender coloured ink are nowhere to be seen.
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Summary: A superbly entertaining novel by Steven King
Review: I usually don't read books often, and when I do I normally am not very into it. I bought a copy of "on writing", and as I flipped through the pages this novel seemed to captivate me. In a very unique manner steven King employs both a lesson to the aspirin writer and a autobiography which presets a little information about his life as well. The advice given in this book should not be missed by anybody. Reading this book gave me more confidence in my capabilities as a writer-reading a book like this could do the same for you. Steven Kings on writing is a great novel, and it finds ways to amaze even the most hateful readers(literally). Use me as an example.
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Summary: Charmingand Insightful
Review: I have no desire to become a writer and I've never read a single novel by Stephen King (not really into horror). I read this book because I wanted to learn more about King and it's always good to hear a master talk about his craft. This book succeeds on both accounts. The autobiographical parts of the book are charming and insightful and the instructive sections contain bits of knowledge that anyone can use. Now I will definitely read some of his novels.
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