Reading for fun is one of those guilty pleasures I do not allow myself time for very often. It seems that my mind has this crazy belief that if there is time to sit around and read, then the reading should be for learning or increasing knowledge about a subject of great interest, not just some waste of time reading fiction. My interests are (in no particular order) politics, news, religion, photography, writing, the outdoors, traveling, family history/life stories, watercolor painting, just to name a few.

Recently, in one of the writing groups I joined on Facebook, someone asked a question about what books are out there that would help increase her knowledge about writing. She is a beginner and would like any information people in the group would be willing to share. One of the suggestions, by several people in the group, was a book called “On Writing” by Stephen King.

Stephen King’s books or movies would not be my first choice, or last, or anything in between. Horror stories are not my thing. Although, I did watch the movie, “The Shining” with a group of friends when I was seventeen. Peer pressure was alive and well that night. Anyway, this is a book about writing, so I was intrigued. I found the audiobook version read by Mr. King in my Libby App and decided I would give it a listen. The description of the book said it is “Part memoir, part master class….” Wow! So true. It is clear why he is a successful writer. One of the very best.

Did you know Stephen King was a teacher? And, that he is from Maine? Did you know he had a brother? What do you know about his wife and children? He is a brilliant storyteller, author and teacher. He talks like a filthy sailor, but if you can get past that, it is worth the time to read or listen to the audio version. I did not expect to enjoy the audio version as much as I did. It was fun, as well as educational. Even his voice is interesting. Two thumbs up for sure! (Three, if you have an extra thumb!)

(Please excuse any annoyingly irritating adverbs or any possibly passive verbs I may have inadvertently used in the writing of this blog post!) Read the book or listen to the audio version. Inspirational stories and great writing advice!