Stephen King on TWILIGHT and HARRY POTTER
According to Stephen King, Twilight author Stephenie Meyer “can’t write worth a darn.” This news comes to us from the pages of USA Weekend. Here is some choice quotage:
Both Rowling and Meyer, they’re speaking directly to young people. ... The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer can’t write worth a darn. She’s not very good…
...in the case of Stephenie Meyer, it’s very clear that she’s writing to a whole generation of girls and opening up kind of a safe joining of love and sex in those books. It’s exciting and it’s thrilling and it’s not particularly threatening because they’re not overtly sexual. A lot of the physical side of it is conveyed in things like the vampire will touch her forearm or run a hand over skin, and she just flushes all hot and cold. And for girls, that’s a shorthand for all the feelings that they’re not ready to deal with yet.
Any young girls out there (or anyone at all, for that matter) want to tell Mr. King that he’s full of bologna?
Comments On This Article
Bethany says:
I do NOT want to tell Mr. King he’s full of bologna or any other lunch meat. I read all four Twilight books, but I felt like hell afterward - ashamed that I didn’t have the strength to stop reading. I think Meyer is a TERRIBLE writer. I hate that an entire generation (maybe more, considering all the Twilight Moms out there) will come to think of that as good writing. *shudder*
Shawn says:
Sorry, Chris, but I have to agree with King. Meyer doesn’t have the chops of Rowling.
E. Christopher Clark says:
Oh, no apologies necessary. I haven’t read the books, so I haven’t formed an opinion.
You know what I really should do, since there is going to be a lot of negativity toward the series on this site this week: I should find a teenaged girl that likes it to tell us why.
Bethany says:
I know a slew of adult women who love the books, and some of them don’t think they’re poorly written. Ack! But anyway, I do think that any teenage Twilight lover is going to say this is why they love the books: Edward. I would love if you could find one who could express what they find “good” about the books, as opposed to simply how much they heart Edward Cullen.
Purple Butterflies says:
Sounds like you guys are having the same reaction to this series that I had to the Golden Compass series. I haven’t read Twilight, but if they read anything like the Golden Compass I don’t think I really want to. I’m still not exactly sure what possessed the film makers to think that book would make a good movie????
DW Golden
Soar with Fairies in Purple Butterflies, a new young adult novel now available at Amazon.com
E. Christopher Clark says:
@Purple Butterflies: I haven’t read The Golden Compass or seen the film. Is one better than the other? I have to admit that I’m still morbidly curious.
@Bethany: But isn’t hearting Edward enough? I mean, he is so dreamy (for a vampire).
Bethany says:
Loving Edward might be enough for most girls, but not this one! I think it’s the ridiculous purple prose… I’d much rather read about Louis from Interview with a Vampire, frankly. (Speaking of which, how I LOVED Blood, Guts, & Ghouls - I was so excited to get into that. Dare I say: Best. Class. Ever?)
E. Christopher Clark says:
Oh. my. God. Yes. Blood, Guts, and Ghouls was one of the best classes ever. I could have gotten so much more out of it than I did, if only I’d actually exerted a little effort. Boy, did I miss out on a learning experience. That man was a genius, and I was too much of a slacker to get what I could out of him.
Was it Bob that always taught that?
Bethany says:
Yep, always Bob. And only every other year. I got in my senior year, and almost wept with happiness. I still have every book we read - Perfume, The Monk… What year did you take it?
E. Christopher Clark says:
I took it… hmm… I think it was my junior year. I still have all the books, too. And I still haven’t read most of them. :-(
Man, I was a terrible student…
Bethany says:
Hmm, I wonder if we were in the same class? What year did you graduate? I got out in 1996. I think I took the class in Fall 95, but I’m not sure. I can’t believe you didn’t read the books! Bob and his ponytail would be so ashamed.
I wonder, if he was teaching that course today, how we would incorporate Twilight.
E. Christopher Clark says:
I graduated in 99, so I think I must’ve taken the course in Fall 1997, or thereabouts. I didn’t get to take anything really cool until sophomore year at the earliest.
I think it’d be very interesting to hear Bob’s take on Twilight. Any idea where he’s teaching now, or even if he’s still teaching?
I read some of the books, and at least parts of most of them. But I was a terrible, terrible student. I didn’t know what I wanted to do. One week it was acting, the next it was writing, the week after that it was art. And I knew how to bullshit my way through things.
Purple Butterflies says:
Hi Chris,
Hope you guys figured out your classes. :)
In answer to your question about The Golden Compass the movie was mildly worse because they sliced out a lot, but both were just, bleah! The graphics were cool I suppose.
The book’s main character was not anyone anybody could identify with, not even from this dimension or world. She didn’t care about her own story and frankly she was even likeable. There was really no point to the telling of the story. She was just sort of dragged along from catastrophe to the next without caring too awful much.
I haven’t met too many people that liked them. Everyone’s appalled that they killed God at the end. Not really. He just sort of dissapaited into empty space. hmmmm.
DW Golden
E. Christopher Clark says:
Interesting… well, I’ll definitely take that film off my Must Watch list.
Ron says:
No, I don’t want to disagree. King is 100% correct. Meyer can’t write to save her life.
E. Christopher Clark says:
Hey, Ron. Thanks for stopping by and for offering your two cents. Definitely sounds like Meyer is someone whose writing I should avoid like the plague that it apparently is.
Kella says:
I refuse to read that rubbish, and Mr. King continues to be my hero!
E. Christopher Clark says:
Thanks for stopping by, Kella. And thanks for offering your two cents. What’s your favorite King novel?
Add Your Own Comment