Creative Cues From Stephen King
It's peculiar that a
painter of pastorals and livestock would be inspired by the Master of the Horror
Story genre, however, when you explore the daily practices and attitude of any productive
person, you're apt to find principles to apply to your own creative
growth. This article could be
about any prolific creator of words, music, or art, but King inspires me.
Creative Cues From Stephen King
1.) Immerse yourself in your craft, even
when you're working a "conventional" job. As a student, King wrote-for his school's papers. As a teacher, he crafted short stories
and novels during the evenings and on weekends from their mobile home's laundry
closet-turned-writing nook. Writing is a priority in King's life, not
something he planned to do "someday" when he had "more time"
to pursue it. Likewise, create
for the love of it, not for the purpose of making money. I daresay that Stephen King would still
be writing even if he'd never made a dime on his work.
2.) Do what you know. Many of his novels take place in
Maine, or are about a writer because that’s Stephen King's experience. The
Shining was written while they lived in Boulder, CO, after a scary night at
the now famous Stanley Hotel. King is blessed with a vivid imagination,
which he explores in a variety of plots, but he always has a personal knowledge
of and a connection to his subjects and their surroundings. Although I paint animals, my paintings
of African animals would be a lie, as I've only experienced them in a zoo-It
would be like King trying his hand at a Sherman Alexie novel.
3.) Don't give up. King received dozens of rejections for
his debut novel, Carrie. Part of not giving up is not giving in
to the forces in your head that tell
you "you can't." Anyone
who creates something from their gut hears this voice, and occasionally sidles
the precipitous path over a gorge of self-doubt. A look through history reveals
the tragic ends of writers, musicians, actors and artists who tried to quiet
that voice with alcohol, drugs or suicide. King himself is a recovering alcoholic. But rather than our pondering today
what he could have created beyond his short life (like Poe, Cobain, Belushi,
Van Gogh…), King rose above his personal
demons and explores them in a treasury of work that spans decades.
4.) Surround yourself w/ people who believe in
you. His wife Tabitha, who
pulled the first few pages of Carrie out of the trash, has been King's rock of
creative support & encouragement for more than forty years. Like-minded,
supportive people can boost your morale and inspire you to keep going, and you
can do the same for them. Take
an art, music or culinary class, join a band or writer's group, or take part in
a jam session.
5.) Never stop learning. Like
every good writer, King is a constant reader. Likewise, successful musicians listen to a variety of music,
and artists study other artists' work.
We are lucky to have the web today, where information is readily
available to us. Again, taking
classes or getting together with people who share your interests enhances your
knowledge and provides new inspiration.
6.) Share your work in different formats and
media. Stephen King likes to mix it up. Ur
was written for and about a Kindle, and was published exclusively in eReader
format. Joyland, conversely, was first published only on paper -in 2013! The
Green Mile was released as a serial novel in several editions. He's published under pseudonyms. King was in a rock band made up of
writers like Amy Tan, Dave Berry, and Mitch Albom, etc. He has a radio station. He sells T-shirts. Brainstorm what you could do with your
creativity; you could produce book marks, greeting cards, T-shirts…you could
design fabric or wallpaper…make a cookbook, write a blog or a play, create a video
of you doing your craft, singing a song, making candy, the possibilities here
are endless.
7.) Share what you've learned with others. King shares his insight on the craft of
writing in his memoir, On Writing. He gives back through charities, and he
and his wife provide scholarships to local youth. You can volunteer to share your work at a soup kitchen,
church, school, hospital, senior center or art center, sketch outdoors, play
music on the street, write a book or blog, or become a mentor… Whether you make
a living at it or not, creativity should be shared to truly be enjoyed.
I've shared how a Maine horror
fiction author can inspire a Wyoming painter of cows. Most people hastily judge
Stephen King by subpar horror movies based on his stories. They have no idea
that great non-horror-genre movies, like: "The Shawshank Redeption" (Rita Hayworth & the Shawshank
Redemption); "Stand By Me" (The
Body); "The Green Mile", and "Delores Claiborne" (whose
movies share their book titles) were based on King's novels and novellas. If you've never read Stephen King, I
suggest that you pick up Different
Seasons- an early collection of four memorable novellas, three of which
became powerful movies. Spoiler alert: the fourth story involves a decapitated
mother, which would be difficult to base a film on, and perhaps isn't something
you'd want to read if you don't like gore.
Look at the lives of those who inspire you and find ways of
putting their practices to use in your own creative endeavors.
Sonja Caywood ©2014