A few weeks ago someone popped up in my Twitter timeline asking whether or not they should buy a book about how to write called \u201cOn Writing\u201d by Stephen King. As you could imagine the question was met by tons of affirmative responses. It\u2019s like the preeminent book that people point you to in writing circles. After all, Stephen King\u2019s not only prolific, he\u2019s also a highly acclaimed writer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019ve never read anything by Stephen King, personally. I\u2019ve seen several movies based off of his work, but that\u2019s about it. I have no doubt he\u2019s probably a decent writer who knows a thing or two on the subject matter at hand. Yet I have no\u2026okay little desire to read On Writing<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why, you may ask.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s not that I think that I\u2019m better than him, or that I know more about writing than him. It\u2019s the same reason why I haven\u2019t taken any creative writing classes, and have no aspirations of participating in any formal training when it comes to creative writing. And that\u2019s simply, when it comes to being creative, I don\u2019t like to follow rules.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I mean, what exactly are you creating if you\u2019re going by rules someone else made up? Are you really creating, or simply mastering someone else\u2019s formula?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hmmmm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And yeah, I know there\u2019s nothing new under the sun, but I want it to be new to me, through my own discovery, not dictated by someone who\u2019s supposed to be an authority on the matter. Because, the fact is, when it comes to one\u2019s own creativity, you\u2019re the only true authority on the matter. Everyone else? Mere observers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That\u2019s not to say that I\u2019m not influenced by other writers. I\u2019m influenced by other writers, for sure. But I don\u2019t study their work in the sense that I dissect every little thing they do. I simply admire it, if that makes sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In the coming weeks, I\u2019ll be sharing with you other people\u2019s work that has influenced me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course there\u2019s nothing wrong with studying creative writing in a formal setting, you know, if that\u2019s what you want to do. But as for me, I just want to be guided, as much as possible solely by my imagination, my ability to create things, and the Force that has called me forth to write, that has infused me with creativity, and allow It to take me\u2026there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A few weeks ago someone popped up in my Twitter timeline asking whether or not they should buy a book about how to write called \u201cOn Writing\u201d by Stephen King. As you could imagine the question was met by tons…<\/p>\n