Stephen King Fan-atic
In looking over the last two columns, I noticed consecutive references to Stephen King.
I guess that’s to be expected occasionally, because King is my literary idol, my Buddha, my Vishnu, my Bo Bice and Kerry Underwood all rolled into one.
I want to be Stephen King when I grow up.
While other more sophisticated writers might cite Thoreau or Emerson or even Steinbeck as their most significant influences, my benchmark begins and ends with the Dark One.
It’s funny, because I’m not even a particular fan of the horror genre.
When evaluating novels and other written material, I basically cull them into three categories: 1 – “I can write better than that;” 2 – “That’s like something I would write;” 3 – “I wish I had written that.”
(That’s not arrogance…the amount of stuff out there which exists in category three is sufficient explanation for why I write for a twice-a-week newspaper in the middle of the desert.)
Stephen King lives in category three.
Always.
I believe that his signature on a dinner check is more “category-three” than anything Tolstoy or Faulkner ever penned.
While most people think of him as the Master of Horror, I see him as the Master of Character Development.
Any writer can tell a story.
Truly great writers can breathe life into their protagonists, and make you actually care about them when they get eaten by the giant bat monster.
(Let’s see Tolstoy come up with a story about a werewolf-fighting kid in a wheelchair. Classic!)
There has never been a major character that I didn’t wonder about after finishing a King tome, craving more.
Hopefully, this sheds some light on why his name may occasionally pop up in a posting.
I’m a supporter. I’m a wannabe. I’m a fan.
posted by Workman Chronicles at 11:30 PM
5 Comments:
Any chance of seeing Richard Bachman's name pop up too?
8:41 AM
Agreed, when it comes to depth of literary character, King is... well.. The King. Especially when you consider that most horror writers seem to think character developement doesn't matter. They forget that, we only mourn the deaths of big boobed blonde bimbos who we actually know. No character developement, and we might even {{gasp}} cheer on the demise of the ditz. ;~D
That being said though, The Dreamcatcher failed miserably, in horror, in suspense and especially in character development.
I guess even Steinbeck couldn't avoid writing a bore though, "Old Man and the Sea" anyone? ;~D
12:37 PM
To quote that great philopher Randy Jackson, "I'm feelin' ya dawg!"
Dreamcatcher wasn't my favorite, but it was one of the first after his accident, a tenuous time when he was uncertain whether he could ever write again.
As far as Richard Bachman...I thought he died! ;)
*Morris
5:08 PM
King gets props because he offers up a pop culture version of all the elements that make literature endure. Theme, motif, symbolism and his ability to constantly recast the the battle between Good versus Evil in his early works. Then there is the Dark Tower series to bind it all together and really secure his place as a writer of merit.
Will he ake it into the Canon? That remains to be seen. Judging from the looks I get from the Academic types around here when I mention King, I'd say he has a long road. But history has been kind to Poe and Dickens (popular writers). Maybe SK is next.
1:31 PM
You're right about Faulkner, Gabriel. Fortunately, his place in the history books as one of the greats in American literature is pretty secure.
"The Stand" is also my favorite SK book (although, first time I read it, I thought, "Gosh, this is really three different stories. Couldn't he have broken it up into more palatable bites?" then slapped my forehead like I realized I could have had a V-8, and began counting my lucky stars that I got some much amazing story for such a low price...unlike "The Green Mile," which required about $30 for a $9 paperback story.)
The other incredible SK book would be "It." If you weren't afraid of clowns before the book, you certainly will be when you're done!
It also included some of the most quotable pop literature in decades. "We all float down here!" "Beep beep, Ritchie!"
But my favorite part was the way he wrote about the interaction between the childhood friends. It was uncanny how he captured the essence of that time without being patronizing or cheesy.
He matched the feat in "Stand by Me," which was really part of his compilation, "Different Seasons."
Scott, you're scaring me. Your interpretation is dead on. You aren't contemplating a change to teaching, are you? Certainly sounded like something a talented college professor would say.
I agree with you that the halls of academia will not allow him entry into literary legitimacy in his lifetime, mostly because they will never admit they were wrong about him 20 years ago.
Like you, I'm counting on the kindness of time, which smoothed a similarly difficult path for Dickens and Poe.
How cool would it be, 40 years from now, to be sitting in an American Lit 101 class at a major university, listening to a prof quote such lines as "We deal in lead." (Dark Tower, various books and chapters).
It's even more disturbing to consider that, 40 years from now, the phrasings and conversational lilt will be as foreign as Shakespeare's soliloquies are today, because Americanized English will be rife with the prefix "Like" before every sentence ("Like, the prez dude said 'Patriot missiles rule' before he, like, pushed the button that, like, obliterated the country of Mathnanistan") or the addition of 'Dawg to the list of pronouns ("Look, 'Dawg, I'm tellin' ya, it's like totally cool being the new Secretary of State.")
Wow, I sure got off on a rant on THIS one!
*Morris Workman
11:06 AM
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