Stephen King

I love Stephen King. Always have. I've never read one story by him that I've ended up putting down. Never. How rare is that? http://www.nationalbook.org/nbaacceptspeech_sking.html is the link for the 2003 Acceptance Speech by Stephen King for winning The National Book Award.

Stephen King is one of the most twisted writers I've ever read. This man's mind must be seriously disturbed. But he's pure genius. In his stories, he strives to tell the truth. The TRUTH. Dialogue is real. Emotions are real. His words create worlds we only chance to see through his eyes.
We didn't have much growing up, but I always received a Stephen King hardcover for Christmas. This was GOLD. There are years we didn't have trees, but I always had my book.
"IT" was my favorite book for a decade. It scared the blue hell out of me, but it touched me even more. The seven kids at the beginning, the "Loser's Club", were every kid. They were loyal to each other and stuck by each other through thick, thin, and psychotic killer clowns who floated. I don't know how many times I've read it, but it's never enough. Periodically, I'll pull it down and give it another go. I'm readily bored, so this is almost unheard of. I don't read a book more than twice unless it is EXCEPTIONAL and still keeps pace and quality.
"Insomnia" came out, and I was enthralled once again. This replaced "IT" as my favorite.
I've done speeches of my own in college about the genius of Mr. King. I will read his acknowledgements at the beginning of the book, and his notes at the end. I have a feeling I would pretty much give everything a go he writes.
My favorite short story, "The Jaunt", is written by Stephen King. My scariest moment in a book is in "The Shining" when the topiary is creeping up on the boy in the snow.
You know in "Friends" where Rachel is supposed to read "The Shining", and Joey is supposed to read "Little Women"? He actually keeps the book in the freezer so he's safe. I would keep my face down with another book on top of it. Such is the curse of a creative mind you can't shut down.
Stephen King gives me nightmares. But he also gives me hope. He never strayed from his craft. When it would have been easier to give up and say "screw it", he perservered and gave millions of people an author who is true. Freaky as all hell, but true.
His book "On Writing" is an excellent craft book for an author. His writing is matter-of-fact and pleasant. Humorous. Write what you love. Write what speaks to you. Be true to who you are. And write the truth.
What more instruction do we need?
Grins*