The Stephen King Thread - Part 1

[Teelie]

Two more down last night.

Popsy was very easy to figure out about midway through the story although I knew from the first few paragraphs it wasn't going to be as simple or obvious as who Popsy was. And apparently in the notes this is hinted at as a nod to The Night Flier.

It Grows On You was more bizarre though and I'm still not entirely sure what is going on there. I figured out the house itself was/is somehow apart of the tragedies that go on inside the town although it's apparently hinted at that the wife of the original owner is somehow responsible.

 

[Teelie]

Chattery Teeth

Got an early read tonight. This one shows Stephen King can make anything dangerous although chattering teeth probably aren't that big a stretch. t:

It was an interesting story in how the events went down. Also firmly in the "don't trust hitchikers" frame of thinking. It's also one of those happy ending kind of stories. Something he does more than I would have guessed given how many stories in horror typically end.

 

[DeGenerate10]

I'm about done with The Gunslinger. Not sure how I feel about it so far.

 

[Bruce Banner]

It was in pre-production, but, all of the relevent parties have gone silent.

In a way, I am happy: while I wanted to see a darker version of - even thought I love the tv miniseries-I was concerned about their intention. Condendsing a 1,ooo page book into a 2.5 hour film requires a lot of discipline, otherwise, the gem (the story) shatters. I learned this from experience: I made a bet with a friend that I could condense 'Salem's Lot to a 140min film. I won, but, dear heavens, it took a lot of time, energy & consideration (what to show, what to hint at, what to have happen offscreen, etc.) But, 'Salem's Lot is 600-something pages, not 1093...........my hair would turn grey if I had to adapt IT.

As a major fan of this book. I'm begging to know more.

 

[cabel]

Coincidently, I just finished the audiobook of It and have been thinking about having a go at a screenplay version.

 

[:eek:]

About endings... This is what King recently said in an interview:

Q: And sometimes you don’t know where that story’s going to go until you get into it?
A: You never know where they’re going to go completely. Sometimes I’ll have an idea, but with a novel, in particular, it’s a little bit like launching an intercontinental missile from the United States and hoping to hit one house in the Soviet Union. You can’t guide it that exactly, but I do the best that I can. And, you know, in the end, the story tells you where to go. It’s not like having a GPS. It’s more like exploring a neighborhood where you sort of know where some of the houses are but not everything, and to me that’s the fun of it

The entire interview can be found here:
http://www.stripes.com/news/europe/stephen-king-q-a-1.254123

 

[DeGenerate10]

I finished The Gunslinger last night. I like it overall but I feel like youre thrust into a world and don't know what the hell is going on. I'm sure the rest of The Dark Tower series helps explain the world Roland is in and gives more clarity.

 

[:eek:]

I finished The Gunslinger last night. I like it overall but I feel like youre thrust into a world and don't know what the hell is going on. I'm sure the rest of The Dark Tower series helps explain the world Roland is in and gives more clarity.

Don't worry. If you look at all seven books as one story, then the first book is just the short prologue of it.

 

[childeroland]

I love that about The Gunslinger, that King shoves you in there without much exposition. Makes it very dreamlike. But yeah, he does really map out this world (or worlds) more and more as you progress through the series.

 

[:eek:]

2 new books confirmed for 2014!

Posted: November 26, 2013, 10:11:31
Section: Book » Mr. Mercedes

On the official Stephen King message board the moderator has confirmed that two new books will be released next year.

There will be two fiction books out next year but Hall Monitor has it right, we're not quite there yet in releasing official info on those other than the titles, which Stephen has mentioned when he was on his book tour for Doctor Sleep. The titles are Mr. Mercedes and Revival.


The moderator also confirmed that King will NOT do any book tours during 2014.


He's taking 2014 off--no book tours. There will be two books out next year--he's already written them--but he won't be doing book tours for them.

 

[Sawyer]

Revival, huh? Hmmm...

 

[Marvolo]

Revival, huh? Hmmm...

Crazy religious cult maybe?

 

[Victarion]

Revival, huh? Hmmm...

Could be another Dark Tower novel. The first seven have subtitles beginning with "R."

 

[jonathancrane]

Nope; Revival is about---

The main character is a kid who learns how to play guitar, and I can relate to this guy because he's not terribly good. He's just good enough to catch on with a number of bands and play for a lot of years. The song that he learns to play first is the song that I learned to play first, which was 'Cherry, Cherry' by Neil Diamond. One of the great rock progressions: E-A-D-A.

http://www.liljas-library.com/article.php?id=3739

 

[:eek:]

Could be another Dark Tower novel. The first seven have subtitles beginning with "R."

What are you talking about?

The Gunslinger
The Drawing of the Three
The Waste Lands
Wizard & Glass
Wolves of the Calla
Song of Susannah
The Dark Tower

I don't see any subtitles beginning with R

 

[Lantern Venom]

I finished The Gunslinger last night. I like it overall but I feel like youre thrust into a world and don't know what the hell is going on. I'm sure the rest of The Dark Tower series helps explain the world Roland is in and gives more clarity.

Don't worry, books 2 and 3 give you a much clearer picture. The Gunslinger was, in many ways, King figuring out the story for himself. The Drawing of the Three (my fav of the series) and The Wastelands have clear visions of overall story. Once you read DT2, you'll be hooked for life.

Don't worry. If you look at all seven books as one story, then the first book is just the short prologue of it.

Yes, The Gunslinger asked many more questions than it answered, but even seemingly insignificant parts of that story became very important later on, ala the speaking ring.

 

[The End]

Hooked is how I felt. Once I had gotten into the 2nd book, I couldn't stop reading.

It's not that the first book didn't do anything for me, it absolutely did, I loved the first book, but I kept putting it down and getting distracted by other things.

But yeah once I got into it I couldn't stop and read all 7 books over the period of a few months. It took me only a couple of days to read The Drawing of the Three. Simply could not put it down.

A heck of a series, the Dark Tower. It will go down as a classic much like Lord of the Rings.

 

[Teelie]

Trying to get back on track with Nightmares & Dreamscapes I read Dedication last night. It's a mostly normal story with bizarre supernatural elements.

A black woman and her friend are celebrating her son's first book being published and she recounts how she knew the book would be published and that it will be a success. It's disturbing in a way but it isn't horror, just odd.

 

[DeGenerate10]

Crazy religious cult maybe?

I would like this idea better lol

 

[Victarion]

What are you talking about?

The Gunslinger
The Drawing of the Three
The Waste Lands
Wizard & Glass
Wolves of the Calla
Song of Susannah
The Dark Tower

I don't see any subtitles beginning with R

They're on that page after the title page. The Gunslinger was "Resumption", Wolves of the Calla was "Resistance", Song of Susannah was "Reproduction." I don't recall the others, but it's a moot point now.

I love how The Dark Tower series is a weird blend of genres you don't normally see mixed together.

 

[Teelie]

The Moving Finger

Creepy story. It's about a finger that comes out of a man's bathroom sink drain. And it only gets creepier from there.

 

[Teelie]

Sneakers

A story that was more mystery than horror but it still had a decent ending.

 

[DeGenerate10]

I'm a little over 200 pages into the uncut version of The Stand. I really hope it starts to pick up the pace soon.

 

[The Navigator]

You might be in for a wait. The Stand places a lot of emphasis on character stuff...kicking in the plot does not take priority.

 

[jonathancrane]

It depends on which edition of The Stand you have. My first copy was the 800 page edit and it went by like a breeze. The longer one had some nice moments, but was self indulgent in a lot of places (

Spoiler

like the Kid raping the Trashman.)