rox-kuryliw said on July 28, 2005 20:41:

i love stephen kings BUT im sorry i hated the the dark tower”-saga just wasnt getting it or gripped by it . Now dean koontz is my fave now, try his moonlight bay books (fear nothing / seize the night)

tevensso (moderator) said on July 29, 2005 07:11:

I’ve read more than 90% of his stuff, and usually love it!

ally77 said on July 29, 2005 11:25:

I love his stuff, not read many books but I am currently reading The Stand after picking it up on eBay for 99p! :) great book....

Santi said on July 29, 2005 15:44:

I guess that for the same reason that people watches fiction movies rather than documentaries...
Would you prefer watching “Star Wars” or “Wie man die Leute von ihrem Geld trennt”/”The Fine Art of Separating People From Their Money”? I assure you the second is much better and lots more interesting, but I bet not more than 5 people here have seen it, even if that documentary is presented by a great actor such as Dennis Hopper.

As they say, people like stories, not films... and people like stories, not books...

NeverendingRoxette said on July 29, 2005 19:27:

thanks for your replies. great to see, that there are some fans around . . .

I have to say that his books are really not that shocking as everybody says, but the horror, which is slowly growing, fascinates me every time again.

Anyone who read “On Writing” (Das Leben und das Schreiben)?

Oldag75 said on July 29, 2005 21:57:

Stephen King is not really a writer. Rather, he is a story-teller. He is blessed with the gift of narrative, his genre being “horror.” Many of his books reflect good writing, and many do not. Sometimes, he goes overboard with description, and you occasionally get sick of smarmy things his kid-characters say and do.

At the same time, King’s best writing is reflected when he deals with things he obviously loves. I think his vivid descriptions of bad boy Billy Nolan’s car in “Carrie” – observations that shone with literal love for old cars – came to full fruition in “Christine,” about an old car with a mind of its own. The guy has a THING for old cars, autos with cloudy-edged windshields and occasional gasoline fume leaks and roaring engines.

My favorite writer, a real writer AND story-teller, is Mark Helprin. His “Winter’s Tale” and “Memoir From Antproof Case” hypnotically sparkle with their lyrical wording, simultaneously conveying stories that draw you in completely.

To any critics of storyteller Stephen King, I humbly ask: How do YOUR book sales stack up against HIS?

Jud (moderator) said on July 30, 2005 14:01:

I think his books are too scary and horrible for me (that’s my opinion and taste)

I like detective/private investigator books, a bit of suspense.. bit of high adrenaline.. surprise.. but not stuff that makes me scared of everything at night or while I’m reading/watching it, as this also applies to films. I like to have a nice time reading, not pee in my pants :P

NeverendingRoxette said on July 30, 2005 15:59:

@Oldag75: “Stephen King is not really a writer” –> that’s the most stupid argument I’ve ever heard!!

everyone who writes stories IS A WRITER (SCHRIFTSTELLER)!!!

Oldag75 said on July 30, 2005 22:21:

Okay, I stand corrected. Stephen King is a writer, he’s just not a consistently good writer. (FORE IGNPHRA SEGIBBE RISH !)

NeverendingRoxette said on July 31, 2005 19:20:

alright, oldag75! ;-)
don’t think I don’t like people who don’t like the writers I like (much of like, hehe)!

NeverendingRoxette said on August 2, 2005 19:25:

yippa! have you read “on writing” too? I love his jokes in this book!

ally77 said on October 9, 2006 17:38:

Anyone looking forward to Stephen Kings new book...

Lisey’s Story.... it’s out 24th October!

http://www.play.com/Books/Books/4-/1018233/Lisey_Story/Product.html

I have pre-ordered it as I read some snippets and it looks really good!

ally77 said on October 9, 2006 20:11:

Yes I am like that Debora can’t really put them down!

angelofmusic said on October 9, 2006 21:24:

Stephen King is my favorite writer too. Recently I read “On Writing” and I began to like him even more! It’s a brilliant book, he gives so much good advice to a beginning writers (like me:-P).
From his fiction I like most Cujo, Misery and Secret Window. But he has loads of other good stories too, like Carrie and Christine etc etc...

Marlene said on October 10, 2006 07:32:

I read ’On writing’, too. I felt sorry for it because it was at library and no one seemed to care for it for a very long time. So one day I took it because I felt sorry for it and because it had a silvery - almost like a mirror - cover. What a great book. :-)

Besides I like Pet Semetary, It (at least most parts of it) and Needful things most.

@angelofmusic. Whilst reading ’On writing’, I decided to become a writer myself but I soon had to realise it’s much more difficult than I thought it to be. How about you? Any good results?

angelofmusic said on October 17, 2006 12:38:

Marlene, I think the book helped me a lot. There are so many great tips I didn’t know about. Like that you should write every day a certain amount of work. Before reading it my writing was chaotic. Sometimes I wrote several pages in one day and then didn’t do anything for a week. Now I have set a schedule: I write one page in every morning and another in evening. When it is a really busy day, then I skip the morning part. Anyway, my work is going much smoother and faster now:-) I wrote one book (a novella actually) for young adults in only 1,5 months. It’s being published now in November.