Amy Giuffrida

That'a always the question, right? Well, all I'll say is that it's another NA horror. Think obsession and romance.

Although I have a few favorite authors, none have moved me more than Stephen King. Yes, he is a horror writer. Yes, sometimes I think he might be quite crazy. But the man is BRILLIANT!

I have not always been an avid reader. In high school, I was the kid who went to the bookstore just to pick up a copy of the Cliff Notes version of the classic novel we were assigned to read. I wasn’t going to read Lord of the Flies or Macbeth. No way! I needed to pass the class, so I took the easy way out--earning nothing above a "C" mind you.

As a teen, and even as an adult, those classics bore me to tears. Never was there anything contemporary being discussed in my English classes. Not once did a teacher ever encourage me to read by sharing books or titles with me. I found these on my own. I found…Stephen King.

Stephen King wrote about things I could never imagine happening. His words drew me in like a siren’s song. The world he created in each of his stories was one I could never conceive of. I mean, who would have thought that a car could truly live? That your loving dog could become a killer? That a clown could or would drag young kids into the shadows via a sewer drain? Okay, I knew about the clown, but really? Not only was there strangeness and an element or horror to King’s stories, but there were relationships built. Stephen King taught me that when things go wrong, you cling to those you love and hold them close to you. He also writes about forgiveness. Yes, even in a horror novel there can be forgiveness, fragility and tenderness.

As an adult, Stephen King taught me the greatest lesson of all. He has taught me to put myself out there and write the stories I have inside of me. I know now that the voices that I hear shouting in my head are not to be feared, but to be allowed to frolic in the open air and flourish. Those voices, they are my friends. They will take me places that I need to go. I should not write timidly. Although writing is a risk, without putting myself out there, I haven’t done myself, or my characters justice.

Besides the confidence Stephen King has inspired in me, I have also learned a lot about the craft of writing from his memoir, On Writing. This book is a must read for every writer out there, published or not. Beside the traditional grammar tips, Stephen King wrote many anecdotes about the roads he traveled while writing a few of his most famous works; telling stories about his characters along the way.

Without Stephen King, the past 20 years or so of my life may have turned out very differently. I may never have become the reader I am today. I may never have had the courage to enter those worlds I have created in my head; giving my characters their voice. I may never have begun to feel confident in myself as a writer. Without books, my life would be…well I can’t even think about that.