Interview with Stephen King

[Guyute]

I know some of you are fans... and this is quite a good read.... especially if you're a Dark Tower fan.
For me, that is one of the best stories ever told... I've been reading it for damn near 20 years (time of first book's release was 82)... the interview kind of hit me hard... thinking of life without The Gunslinger.... but after all this time, (8 years between a couple of the books)... I'm very excited to see the last 3.

A King and His Tower (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-/455676/ref%3Dmk%5F0503%5Fking%5Finterveiw/002-2186751-3758466)

[guinevere]

Thanks Guy, interesting interview. I love Stephen King though my favorite book was The Stand - the unabridged version. So I have to cart it around in a wheel barrow - I still love it. I've always found it fascinating to find pieces of the Dark Tower series in other books. Its almost like coming upon someone you know while you're on vacation... a delightful surprise. :smoke:

[Guyute]

absolutely Guin.. I love picking up other books and hearing bits and pieces of other stories. probably one of my favorite things about that man. it's like he rewards us for reading All of his books. lol

The Stand was an amazing book, and definitely at the top of my list. but, for me, the Dark Tower is just epic. it could have something to do with the fact that I've been reading it for 2/3rds of my life. :laugh:

[Jeff O Rocks]

Stephen King has a very unique mind to write the stuff he does....the weirdest and scariest to me was Storm of the Century..is that the correct name?? That was creepy..... :crazy:

[guinevere]

The Scariest to me was "It". It still gives me the willies. There was a period of time - maybe when he was hooked on cocaine - that his books seemed very derivative and violent just for the sake of violence but I feel books like "The Green Mile" , The Dark Tower Series and even BlackHouse were some of his best work.

[Jeff O Rocks]

The Scariest to me was "It".

I change my answer Jen........I forgot about that........very creepy... :crazy:

I love the Green Mile..that is my favorite movie..too bad there aren't more John Coffey's in the world! ;)

[lvscolencanes]

I have really started enjoying reading lately, but I am really into like John Greshem (sp), books like that...Do you guys think I could get into Stephen King, I know he is an amazing writer, just never took time to read anything of his...

Any recomendations for a first book of his to read?

[Stormbringer]

Stephen King has a very unique mind to write the stuff he does....the weirdest and scariest to me was Storm of the Century..is that the correct name?? That was creepy..... :crazy:

Yup...I can't recall if that was a book, but a great TV special Storm was.

As for The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger...(imitates Maxwell Smart) would you believe that I have a copy of that here in my room that I've had for at least five-six years, but have yet to read it. I really should, since Guyute's got me having a hankering now. :)

Stephen King's versatility is amazing...he's written a fantasy story called The Eyes of the Dragon and a drama in The Green Mile, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

My favorite books by Mr. King are Carrie, Christine, Night Shift and Pet Sematary. Night Shift features three stories that movies were "based" on in "Children of the Corn", "The Lawnmower Man", and "Sometimes They Come Back"...

[moonstomper]

The dark tower series is my alltime favorite! Ive read them all 3 times and cannot wait for the next one!

Thanks for that link Guy

[Shell]

I was never into King before I was with guyute but he is definitely my favorite author now! We're on book 4 of dark tower, and I have a hard time not talking like Roland anymore haha...

Some of my favorites are Dark Tower, Dreamcatcher, Talisman/Blackhouse, and Insomnia..

I always had the wrong impression of his work before I guess..

Green Mile must be the best book to movie translation I have ever seen.. all the characters were exactly as I pictured.. great story!

lovesCole - I bet you may like them.. I have read all of Grisham's books as well and I definitely like both.

[guinevere]

I thought "The Stand" was done was well as it could be though Molly Ringwald drives me batty. The character who played Tom Cullin was dead on who I pictured. Gary Sinese was a great Stu Redmond.

The Green Mile was amazing though. Well done movie.

[Guyute]

I'm so jealous of people that can pick up the dark tower for the first time, and go through 5 books in a row (or all 7 maybe)... like shell is getting to do.
never having the pain of waiting EIGHT YEARS for the next book. lol. bastiches. that was ungodly. (though it's good I guess... I've read the first 4 books several times now)

King, because of his earlier works, is one of the most pigeonholed (that's how opinions go anyway) authors out there. almost ever time I start talking about him... someone says they'll never read one of his books... "he's just not my style". well... lemme just say he's got books for just about everyone. I've forced a lot of folks to take a book, and I always get "Man, that was GREAT!!!! Not at all what I expected from Stephen King." lol.
sure, the majority of his stuff is pretty dark.
(The Dark Half being one of my faves)... but yes, stuff like The Green Mile is just stellar writing.. and while there's always a bit of weirdness.. not all stories are gore.

recommendations for first book... hmmm. toughie. I don't know what you like. King has several collections, ranging from Very short stories... to novellas. Four Seasons was one, with 4 fairly long stories. good book. Skeleton Crew had a ton of real short stuff.

The Talisman is one of my favorite books ever. Not a lot of violence... just a story of ole Travelin' Jack. I've read that a few times... first time being like at the age of 12. a parallel universe/fantasy story. good stuff.

[lvscolencanes]

I guess Guy, I just love Law stuff, so I have always loved Grisham's(thx Shell ;) ), but I also love suspenseful books that always have you wondering whats going to happen next and the exact opposite of what ya thought...Ya know? If that makes sense. I have read almost all of Grisham's books, and absolutely love him. So, in that genre, if King has some stuff similar, or really doesnt have to be similar. I am sure all are good, just knew you knew him well, and thought you might have a good suggestion for one to start with? I appriciate it!

[SouthernHockeyChick]

I remember reading "The Dark Half." I think it was only the 2nd or 3rd King book I'd read. I loved it but man, I couldn't even sleep with that book in the same room with me. I'd sit in bed and read and then have to get up and carry the book out into the living room before I could go to sleep. :crazy:

[moonstomper]

I remember reading the Dark half.....it was about 10 years ago...craziest thing happened to me while reading it:

Remember in the book how before the man knew of his "twin" he kept getting those awful headaches? I was curled up on the recliner in my living room reading when all of the sudden, I had the worst pain in my forehead, it was like thousands of needles poking in and out..I was literally screaming, and then it just went away, never had another headache that bad again :crazy:

[talkingcanes]

"IT" is the creepiest movie ever (except for Halloween). The fact that clowns give me the willies did not help!

"The Stand" is my favorite King book and I thought the movie was well done. I agree with Guin that having someone besides Molly Ringwald would have made it better! I love Gary Sinese :spin:

[guinevere]

I have heard that Stephen King has the heart of a small boy....keeps it in a jar in his desk. :D Still vote for "It" as the scariest book ever though Desperation was pretty wicked too.

[Jeff O Rocks]

"IT" is the creepiest movie ever

I absolutely hated his teeth (looked like razors) and his voice when he said.."they float...they all float"......... :eek2:

[Guyute]

Desperation was pretty good.

IT is definitely the stuff nightmares are made of.

King has a summer home on a pristine lake we used to vacation at when I was younger (Lake Kezar, ME)... always hoped I'd see him out fishing with his kids or something.. never did.

lvscolencanes-- I don't know that I could really point you towards something in the law or "who dunit" type genre. although almost all of his books have you guessing.. ;)

[lvscolencanes]

Thanks Guy, I need a something new in my life....I think I will start with the first of that series you said you were jealous of people that have never read it and get to read all five in a row. Must be good... Is it just called The Dark Tower 1 or do they all have different names. I love books that have sequels anyway....

I know my spelling sucks, please overlook if at all possible ;)

[moonstomper]

Luvscole...the first book of the series is called "The Gunslinger" book one of the Dark Tower series

[Guyute]

bah... I have a Masters in typo-reading. hardly even notice it anymore. ;)
it's the grammatical errors that I catch. hehe

They all have different names. Book 1 is: The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger

most king books pull you in right away... I will say Book 1 of that is a little on the slower side... a lot of walking in the desert... but, if you stick with it, I can almost guarantee you'll fall in love with that series.

www.stephenking.com is a great source for the list of all his works, and lots of other stuff.

[moonstomper]

Hey Guy...any news on when the "new" version of the gunslinger is coming out?

[Guyute]

Yes, Wolves of the Calla, Book 5... will be released on November 4th (according to amazon. king's site just says november).

:)

oh... you mean the re-made version of the 1st book? that was supposedly released in June...

[moonstomper]

hmm...I wonder if its worth checking out? you can definitly tell a difference between it and the others in the series, I thought maybe you had already checked it out

[Guyute]

I'd probably have to re-read my original to see. I've reread the first few books a few times... but, as I said, the first one came out in '82. it's probably been 7-8 years since my last re-reading of it... and I don't recall it being too different. my opinion might change if I read each book back to back.

[Shell]

LvesColeNCanes - While I love the Gunslinger series, and am thoroughly enthralled, I wouldn't pick it as my first one.. that was my first one when I decided Stephen King wasn't for me.. granted i was much younger but I couldn't have been more bored walking through the desert.

The first one I read that got me hooked was Insomnia, but I'm flaky and things such as auras have always intrigued me.

[Guyute]

Insomnia is like a 600 page (maybe more, just a guess. it's fairly large) book of ethereal situations that leave you feeling you've been on lsd the majority of the time you've read it. quite a story, and feeling. hehe

been a few years since I've read that, I'm almost due again.
shell has a good point... the gunslinger might not be the best First king to get into.. like I said, it is kind of slow.

The Stand is stellar, as is The Talisman, and Insomnia. all 3 are very large books though... be warned. :)

[lvscolencanes]

Thanks yall, I am defentally interested now. I think i will start with Insomnia since I have it anyway...LOL...and go from there.... ;)

[moonstomper]

was walking through Target when I saw the new Dark Tower book!

thats definitly on my Christmas list, if I can wait lol!

[Shell]

It is excellent Stompy!!! We don't have much reading time so we haven't finished it yet.. I'd guess we're about 600 pages in though, and I can't wait to see what happens next!!

[moonstomper]

well, so much for waiting! *scuttles off to book store* :spin:

[Kapanen024]

My favorite would have to be Christine. I have a thing for cars. I am such a tomboy, lol. Did it rock anyone elses world to think of having a Fury that fixed itself? *sigh* And, the car in the movie based on the novel reminded me of my 57 Chevy so :D. Presto! My favorite :)!

*Kali*
:angel:

[Shell]

I hope you like Rio, because you have a new best friend lol

[Kapanen024]

If that was to me, why's that? LoL... some secret I should know about? ;) :p

[Guyute]

Rio is part car. :D

[Stormbringer]

My favorite would have to be Christine.

Christine is one of the rare times where both a book AND movie are good. Probably is my second most favorite King book behind Pet Sematary and second most favorite King movie behind The Shining.

Speaking of King books vs. movies...any of you ever seen Sometimes They Come Back? It was actually not that bad a film, not the greatest, but not bad. IMO, They... was much better than the story it was based on in Night Shift. Speaking of Night Shift, I'm still undecided on if "Children of the Corn" was better as a story or movie...

[Guyute]

King is a MASTER at finding the right screenplay person for the translation. almost all of his movies are way better adaptations from the book than any other author.

The closet book->movie adaptation EVER done:
The Green Mile. absolutely unbelievable.

Needful Things was also very well done. The Stand was impossible undertaking, yet phenominally done for a TV series.
The Shawshank Redemtion was very good.
and probably one of the toughest to do, imo, was Dreamcatcher.
Yet also Very well done. And don't forget The Shining, Misery or Pet Semetary.

there's not many disappointments, for me (a King reader from a Very young age). Maximum Overdrive was pretty lame. The Dark Half was kind of disappointing, only because it was such a solid book.. but the movie lacked a little.

[Stormbringer]

The Green Mile. absolutely unbelievable.

The Shawshank Redemption was very good.

My folks saw The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption, and said they were two of the most powerful movies they have ever seen. Green Mile is definitely a film AND book I want to see and read when I can...both sound and look too awesome to pass up.

A couple I can't believe I forgot...Carrie, a book I absolutely loved (And come to think of it, is tied with Christine for my second most favorite King book) but have yet to see the movie. Is it any good? Also, what about Hearts In Atlantis?

[RIO]

Christine... you have to love a Fury that goes around offing people. lol :evil:

[Kapanen024]

Speaking of King books vs. movies...any of you ever seen Sometimes They Come Back? It was actually not that bad a film, not the greatest, but not bad.

I luv'd that movie. Again... the car... *sigh*. Oh, and Robert Rusler as Richard Lawson *faint*! LoL. I can't say I was a fan of the two sequels tho... Sometimes They Come Back... Again or Sometimes They Come Back For More

Christine... you have to love a Fury that goes around offing people. lol :evil:

Woohoo!!! :angel:

[Kapanen024]

On a side note, I just posted that and then decided to watch TV... turned on Sci Fi and the sequel to Pet Semetary is on. (Not quite as good as the original, but still an ironic coincidence.) Hehe.

*Kali*
:angel: