Welcome to Litsy!

This is an exchange book I just got from the closest Little Free Library to my house. In brand new condition, too! I have two other LFLs in easy walking distance from my house. The other two, though, tend to have less interesting books.

From the time I was a young kid, I found myself drawn to Stephen King's uncanny ability to blend the ordinary with the extraordinarily eerie. Whether it was a possessed pet cemetery or a malevolent presence lurking in a hotel, King's novels has a masterful grasp of mingling the believable with the supernatural that made me devour King's memoir.

https://www.bookishelf.com/on-writing-a-memoir-of-the-craft-by-stephen-king/

I‘m not a big nonfiction reader, but here goes:
1. I‘m a big SK fan, so his life story woven around tips from his writing experience is a win for me.
2. Hyperbole and a Half is one of the funniest memoirs ever!
3. The Glass Castle left me flabbergasted—I couldn‘t believe those events actually happened.
#TLT #ThreeListThursday

Advice needed: Is leaving honest reviews (2-5 stars) of novels written by other writers who are non competitors “unsupportive?”
I consider myself a reader first. Reviewing for other readers. Some think it‘s not appropriate to leave reviews of fewer than 5 stars for ANY book if one is a professional writer. Could use input on this! Thoughts, avid readers?

#52bookclub24 #includespersonalphobia (needles and blood) @BarbaraBB @Kristy_K @LaraReads @KarenUK @Hooked_on_books @BarkingMadRead @brittanyreads @Magpiegem @BookBelle84 @Larkken @julesG @Deblovestoread @MidnightBookGirl @Librarybelle @triplem80 @Tove_Reads @Read4life @Bluebird @eeclayton @hissingpotatoes @Book_Lover95 @TheAromaofBooks @kwmg40 @Crazeedi

I‘m probably never writing that Great American Novel I talked about in my 20s. But King wonders aloud that perhaps I could. This book reads as if he‘s conversing with me directly, sharing his secrets. Getting that glimpse of the “behind the scenes” was a treat. May I never write passively - even on Litsy.

#BookBinge

A favorite #BookishQuote from a master of the craft.

I‘ve owned a copy of “On Writing” for a while but never had time to read it, or so I tell myself as I read other books. I saw the audiobook available through the NYPL and grabbed it. I enjoyed it so much that I snagged this $4 copy so I could make notes.

My lovely wife said to get out of the house and do something for myself tonight—so I went to the used bookstore and picked up a few things.

I wasn‘t really expecting the “memoir” part of the title to be an actual memoir, but I learned some interesting details of King‘s life. I have since moved on the portion of the book that greatly interests me in my quest to overcome my case of Imposter Syndrome.

As a writer myself, every once in a while I think about hanging it up and doing something else. Then I run across a book or essay that inspires beyond belief. "On Writing" by Stephen King did exactly that and more. 4/5 Stars

I‘ve read this a dozen times or more. I return to it often. The quintessential book on writing.

I really enjoyed this book. It‘s part memoir and part tips for writers written in an exceptionally engaging way.
I mean, it‘s Stephen King. Of course it was going to be great.

Regarding its usefulness as a primer on the art of writing, I don't know as I'm particularly qualified to weigh in. Taken solely on the consideration of being an entertaining read, On Writing absolutely delivers. This is a much more enjoyable read than Danse Macabre, filled with entertaining anecdotes, admonitions, advice, and aphorisms. 5/5

…every story and novel is collapsible to some degree. If you can‘t get out ten per cent of it while retaining the basic story and flavour, you‘re not trying very hard. (267)

Boredom can be a very good thing for someone in a creative jam. (241)

If you can do it (writing) for joy; you can do it forever. #reread #booklove #king #writing #bookworm

Third book finished for #NovelNovember. @Andrew65

I loved this memoir by Stephen King. The tips on writing are useful, but I liked even more his comments on his most well known books and his honest thoughts about his fight with alcoholism and his recovery from a near-fatal accident.

#NonfictionNovember
#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks
#192025 #2000 @Librarybelle

.5/5⭐ For a book that claims to avoid bullshit, it sure seems full of it. What a bloated and roundabout way to pretend to talk about writing. What tiny sections about writing actually exist are full of contradictions and, in my opinion, just plain bad or useless assertions. #roll100

One of the new books got delivered today:)!

Happy Birthday to Sai King, without whom I cannot imagine my reading journey! ❤️🎈🧛🏻👻

Thanks to Stephen King‘s humor and self-deprecation, this writing “how-to manual” is much more engaging than one might expect. While I appreciated King‘s guidance and advice, I thoroughly enjoyed his reflections about his own journey to his successful career and the lessons he learned along the way. And how much credit (read: all of it) that he gives to his wife, the novelist Tabitha King.

A practical guide for writers, as well as a beautiful memoir about the role of writing in King‘s life and how it helped him to heal after a terrible accident. #alphabetgame #letterO @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

We are writers, and we never ask one another where we get our ideas; we know we don‘t know.

1: if I think about it, the terms are really synonymous even though I think about them differently in my mind.
2: I have published some academic articles. So I guess that makes me an author even though I don‘t really think of myself as one.
#Two4Tuesday

1. Interesting question. 🤔 Google suggests that an author is someone whose writing has been published, while a writer is anyone who engages in the writing process regardless of recognition or compensation.
2. When I was a kid I wanted to be a writer, but these days I mostly stick to journal entries and the occasional newsy email. #two4tuesday

#BookCoverChallenge
Day 237.
Here I will note 365 books (or as many as I will have before I get tired) that have shaped my taste in literature. No explanations, no reviews. Just the cover of the book.
I do not challenge anyone. You are all welcome to take part.

How can you go wrong with a book about writing from one of the most prolific, best-selling authors in America? OK, I suspect there are all kinds of ways, but never mind that. This is a great read for readers, writers, & wannabe writers.

Books about writing, King says, “are filled with bu(($&^it”. So, he takes the approach of telling us how 𝘩𝘦 became a writer, & about how 𝘩𝘦 writes. Excellent book.

Full review: https://tinyurl.com/29z7am4j

#firstlinefridays

@ShyBookOwl

Just started reading this yesterday. Really good so far.

Motivating & insightful. King is humble, funny, human & engaging. It‘s all about the story baby. This is no writers retreat or 10 step program, it‘s not a social media gimmick, just advice and truths from one of the masters. Highly recommend if you have any creative pursuit, while I don‘t write a lot I found it very applicable to my music work.

Filing next to ‘Deep Work‘ and ‘The War of Art‘. What it all comes down to is doing the work.

I enjoyed this, but I am not an aspiring author, so I didn't love all of it because I wasn't always the right audience for it. I enjoyed his life parts and the insights on his novels. It did serve to remind me I really need to read more King novels! I am glad I read it.

Latest #bookhaul - the top five are used books, but the bottom two are new, and acquired thanks to social media posts and reviews from other readers. I have a lot on my TBR for the new year!

“The #trick is to teach yourself to read in small sips as well as long swallows.” #QuotsyOct21

Happy Birthday to the King! 🥳🎉 #boleybooks #happybirthday #stephenking

#LosersClub Discussion starts NOW! It‘s my final post as #ghosthost, so it has to be two days late, right? ??‍♀️

Open discussion is in the FOLLOWING POST marked as a SPOILER. Find the post for #OnWriting & tap "show me" on the spoiler tag to join in the discussion. Join in whenever you can! Today. Tomorrow. Next month! The post will always be up so just tag any of us & we‘ll jump in to discuss with you. See you there!

“And, instead of pelting these babbling idiots with their own freshly toasted marshmallows, everyone else sitting around the fire is often nodding and smiling and looking solemny thoughtful.” #marshmallow #QuotsyAug21

Finished my #bookspin my #doublebookspin and now my #losersclub selection #losersclub2021 @TheAromaofBooks

Hey #LosersClub. A quick reminder that this month‘s book is On Writing. Official discussion will be on or around the 18th of September. After that date, I will no longer be facilitating the Stephen King buddy reads.

If anyone would like to take over, let me know. I can email image templates and the member list. Thanks for understanding. 🖤

Starting this today for #losersclub #stephenking #losersclub2021

Just a reminder that August‘s#LosersClub read is #OnWriting! Put your library holds in now, search your shelves, or buy a new copy, and check back on or about August 19th when we begin reading this one. DISCUSSION WILL BE IN SEPTEMBER 2021. #StephenKing #StephenKingInOrder #KingFromTheBeginning #ConstantReader #ReadAlong #BuddyRead #BookDiscussion #ghosthostpost

At 70%, I‘m calling it quits with this one. I just can‘t get into the style of writing where there is almost an endless amount of paragraphs but not a lot of dialogue. I respect that one of the most famous authors in the world is writing a book on how to write, but if you‘re not planning on being an author, then this will kind of be a waste of time.

Finished reading on 11 June 2021.

My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/mPkviA-ZaDs

Enjoy!

Saturday

As a new author, I really appreciated all of Stephen King‘s insight into the writing process and found some of his suggestions extremely helpful.

Even if you‘re not the biggest Stephen King fan, could you ever deny his success?

I‘ll end with one specific quote that stood out to me: “I think you will find that, if you continue to write fiction, every character you create is partly you.”

It is neat to think of pieces of myself left in every book