Current Events > Is Stephen King a good writer?

(+) Yeah! (+)

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Sure
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Yeah
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He can be.

But if you look at the whole of his work at once he's more so just a good entertainer.
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The guy pumps out books. Some are stinkers, yeah. I like more then I disliked.

Off topic, can't wait for DT later this week :)
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yes
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He's a great writer and my favorite author.
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I love king. He's not really a great writer. He's a great story teller.
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How could anyone say he's not a good writer? Like how high are your standards if one of the most prolific and best selling authors of all time who has an entire wikipedia page dedicated just to all the awards he received for writing...how are going to say that guy doesn't at least qualify as "good"?
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pinky0926 posted...

How could anyone say he's not a good writer?

He's certainly successful. That makes him good regardless of his style.
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Yep. Not my favorite, but he is definitely a talented writter. I always thought he was great at atmosphere and articulation of the settings he wrote about.
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I liked what I read.

He isnt deep or anything, but he is entertaining and can make really memorable stories, which is what good writing is about.
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Stephen King is the big mac and fries of writing


not fine literature, but enjoyable and satisfying
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I love him. And he does good stuff. He can write great characters and very thrilling and scary things. But in his longer novels he struggles with ending things and a lot of times it just bad.
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He's a fantastic writer. Easily my favorite author. His story telling and atmosphere is matched by few.
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_____Cait posted...

I liked what I read.

He isnt deep or anything, but he is entertaining and can make really memorable stories, which is what good writing is about.

Some of his themes have been deep.
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FF_Redux posted...

I love him. And he does good stuff. He can write great characters and very thrilling and scary things. But in his longer novels he struggles with ending things and a lot of times it just bad.

What was your opinion on how he ended the DT series @FF_Redux?
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the worst part about the dark tower ending was not the ending itself, but the part before the ending where stephen king scolds the reader for expecting a good ending
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OrtegaTron posted...

FF_Redux posted...

I love him. And he does good stuff. He can write great characters and very thrilling and scary things. But in his longer novels he struggles with ending things and a lot of times it just bad.

What was your opinion on how he ended the DT series @FF_Redux?

I never finished the final book.
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mattnd2007 posted...

I love king. He's not really a great writer. He's a great story teller.

Well put
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i feel like settings are stephen kings strengths

he really creates cool characters and sets up the atmosphere really well


stuff like salems lot really captures the feel of small town maine life
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He has a couple of duds, like everyone, but overall yes
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Philoktetes posted...

he really creates cool characters and sets up the atmosphere really well

That's just it. He's amazing at setting up the atmosphere and slowly building to the creepy shit once he's established the world its set in.

Still not a great writer though.

I can name a half dozen mystery / thriller writers who are much more talented writers.
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The only real flaw is his endings. Beyond that, some books are bad, but most of what I've read of him is good to great.

CanuckCowboy posted...

I can name a half dozen mystery / thriller writers who are much more talented writers

And? How does "a dozen" people being better, not mean he's still great?
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he's also a racist

all his black characters are caricatures and he uses the n-word too often in his books
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Yes he's a good writer but when reading his stories it's important to remember that the journey is more important than the destination as he crafts good tales but sucks at endings.

pinky0926 posted...

How could anyone say he's not a good writer? Like how high are your standards if one of the most prolific and best selling authors of all time who has an entire wikipedia page dedicated just to all the awards he received for writing...how are going to say that guy doesn't at least qualify as "good"?

so why can't people have opinions? six trillion flies eat shit, so it must be good right?


not to say stephen king is shit, i enjoy some of his works, but to say that he's amazing solely because of popularity/awards doesn't mean much. personally i think he's quite alright, though some books dragged on a little bit
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Ulyanyx posted...

so why can't people have opinions? six trillion flies eat shit, so it must be good right?

not to say stephen king is shit, i enjoy some of his works, but to say that he's amazing solely because of popularity/awards doesn't mean much. personally i think he's quite alright, though some books dragged on a little bit

What means even less is trying to have a conversation about whether you think an artist is good and starting with the premise that "good" is essentially a meaningless and arbitrary concept. Why even bother talking about it if that's all you have to say on the matter? We can talk about more fact-based things, like the facts that he's successful, prolific, critically acclaimed, heaped in accolades, well loved by hundreds of millions. But just saying "I like him/I don't like him" isn't a discussion.

P.s. you are not a fly. If you were, you would probably agree that horseshit is fucking wonderful.
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Ulyanyx posted...

six trillion flies eat s***, so it must be good right?

top kek

The Mist was stupid as fuck.
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Yes, he is a talented and prolific writer who is particularly good at setting up atmosphere and writing believeable child characters.
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Anyway, the guy comes up with some amazing characters and settings and ideas but his actual writing is pretty dry, uninspiring and can be a right slog to get through.

Philoktetes posted...

the worst part about the dark tower ending was not the ending itself, but the part before the ending where stephen king scolds the reader for expecting a good ending

This did piss me off a bit. Especially considering that the ending he warned us away from was the most fitting ending (or punishment, if you will) for Roland's character.
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_Goggalor_ posted...

Yes, he is a talented and prolific writer who is particularly good at setting up atmosphere and writing believeable child characters.

I don't know. Some of the stuff he wrote in "IT" were borderline paedophilic.

Milo_Yiannopous posted...

_Goggalor_ posted...

Yes, he is a talented and prolific writer who is particularly good at setting up atmosphere and writing believeable child characters.

I don't know. Some of the stuff he wrote in "IT" were borderline paedophilic.

"IT" is probably the best example of childhood friendship in a modern novel besides that scene.
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_Goggalor_ posted...

Milo_Yiannopous posted...

_Goggalor_ posted...

Yes, he is a talented and prolific writer who is particularly good at setting up atmosphere and writing believeable child characters.

I don't know. Some of the stuff he wrote in "IT" were borderline paedophilic.

"IT" is probably the best example of childhood friendship in a modern novel besides that scene.

That scene is enough to make me think King must have been off his face when he wrote it protip: he was

Milo_Yiannopous posted...

_Goggalor_ posted...

Milo_Yiannopous posted...

_Goggalor_ posted...

Yes, he is a talented and prolific writer who is particularly good at setting up atmosphere and writing believeable child characters.

I don't know. Some of the stuff he wrote in "IT" were borderline paedophilic.

"IT" is probably the best example of childhood friendship in a modern novel besides that scene.

That scene is enough to make me think King must have been off his face when he wrote it protip: he was

Cocaine is a hell of a drug.
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Yes.
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