There are literally a million books on the craft of novel writing (tsk-tsk anyone who accuses me of exaggerating.) So what makes this one so special?

The first, and most obvious, reason is because Stephen King wrote it. Second, not only do you get a craft book, but you are also treated to an autobiography. He gives us a matter-of-fact description of his writing journey, family and money issues, and addiction. And third because despite the setbacks, he still had the inner strength to post rejection letters on the wall.

Mixed with his own story, King shares knowledge and writing tricks he learned on his path to publication. The book covers too many different areas to talk about in one post, but I will highlight a few that stayed with me.

The Toolbox

According to King, good writing consists of mastering what’s in your toolbox.

Top layer. Vocabulary and grammar. Nouns, verbs, subjects, modifying phrases, compound-complex sentences, and the rest of the middle school English fundamentals that gave me stomach aches back then (and still do now.) But I am a writer so took his advice, pulled out my big girl pen, and learned the rules. Including the one he is most known for: the belief that “the adverb is not your friend.”

Middle layer. Elements of style. These include rules on possessives, where to place an important part of a sentence, and the organization of paragraphs. This layer is not as painful and there are many books to assist such as Elements of Style by Strunk and White and The Chicago Manual of Style.

Bottom layer. Writing. What good is having a toolbox and not using it? Take the tools from the top layers of your toolbox and put them to use.

Ideas versus Plot

According to dictionary.com, plot, also called a storyline, is defined as the plan, scheme, or main story of a literary or dramatic work, as a play, novel, or short story.

Stephen King believes stories start plotless – like life – and are based on ideas and situations (as I do and have written about here.) For example, King’s book Misery started as two people in a house. And Salem’s Lot was based on a “what if” situation: what if vampires invade a New England village?

Once the idea or situation presents itself, the stories make themselves. Our job as writers is to let them unfold and let the characters do what they want as we stand by and write it all down in the form of narration, description, and dialogue.

Drafts

Everyone has their own writing method. You may be a plotter or a panster. You may edit as you write or focus on a specific word count per day. But most likely you have searched for ways to make the process easier (for the record, that’s not possible) and more successful.

King’s process starts with the first draft, which he believes you should write alone with the door closed. He writes this draft as fast as he can, as it comes to his mind, and tries to ignore the self-doubt that seeps through. Writing it alone also helps minimize distractions and the opinions of others.

When the first draft is finished, he lets it rest. How long? That depends on you, but King recommends six weeks. Of course you will think about it, but he stresses not to take it out. Do something else. Write something else. Get so involved in that something else you almost forget about the first draft.

Then take it out. Re-read the complete manuscript with a pen and paper nearby (or the electronic version). Make notes on everything. Misspellings, inconsistencies, and the bigger issues like holes, character developments, and motivations. Make notes of scenes to add and others to delete. Re-read it with your toolbox in mind.

Only then are you ready to start your second draft.

As I mentioned earlier, this book is filled with many topics such as pace, back story, research, ideal reader, seminars and courses, agents and publishing, an example of his first and second drafts, and finally three pages of books he enjoys.

If you don’t need another craft book, pick this one up anyway. Read it as an autobiography and be encouraged by the nail that couldn’t hold all of the rejection letters, or the joy he found in the first handwritten note on one of those letters: “Don’t staple manuscripts.”

My final words for this book are his great commandment, and no, it doesn’t have to do with adverbs.

READ A LOT, WRITE A LOT

A third degree black belt in taekwondo, HALLI GOMEZ teaches martial arts and writes for children and young adults because those voices flow through her brain. She enjoys family, outdoors, reading, and is addicted to superhero movies. You can find her on Twitter.