寫作這回事——創作生涯回憶錄

“Long live the King！”在《寫作這回事》面世時，《娛樂周刊》如此大聲歡呼道。

美國小說家斯蒂芬·金以恐怖小說著稱，幾十年來出版的眾多暢銷書簡直可以概括這個小說類型的整個發展歷程；有七十幾部影視作品或取材或改編自他的小說，難怪《紐約時報》將他譽為“現代驚悚小說大師”。當人們習慣于將他的名字與“恐怖”畫上等號時，這本與其過往風格大異其趣的回憶錄在2000年出版了：一半是他的生活以及創作回憶錄，一半是針對讀者常見寫作問題的幽默解答與耐心指導，讀起來睿智平實、趣味盎然，不管你原本是不是驚悚小說粉，這本充滿實用性的回憶錄都會讓你愛上斯蒂芬·金這個人。

本書在斯蒂芬的人生中其實還具有非常重要的意義：1999年6月19日，斯蒂芬在外出散步時遭遇車禍，生命一度垂?！@本當時還沒完成的寫作指南書差點成了他的遺作。斯蒂芬在養傷期間忍著劇痛繼續創作《寫作這回事》，他說：“寫作對于我來說好比是一種堅持信念的行動，是面對絕望的挑釁反抗。此書的第二部分就是在這樣的精神中寫成的。正如我們小時候常說的那樣，是我拼著老命寫出來的。寫作不是人生，但我認為有的時候它是一條重回人生的路徑。”

C.V.簡歷

I was stunned by 1）Mary Karr’s memoir， The Liars’ Club. Not just by its 2）ferocity， its beauty， and by her delightful grasp of the 3）vernacular， but by its totality—she is a woman who remembers everything about her early years.

I’m not that way. I lived an odd， 4）herkyjerky childhood， raised by a single parent who moved around a lot in my earliest years and who—I am not completely sure of this—may have farmed my brother and me out to one of her sisters for awhile because she was economically or emotionally unable to cope with us for a time. Perhaps she was only chasing our father， who piled up all sorts of bills and then did a runout when I was two and my brother David was four. If so， she never succeeded in finding him. My mom， Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King， was one of America’s early liberated women， but not by choice.

Mary Karr presents her childhood in an almost unbroken 5）panorama. Mine is a fogged-out landscape from which occasional memories appear like isolated trees…the kind that look as if they might like to grab and eat you.

What follows are some of those memories， plus 6）assorted 7）snapshots from the somewhat more coherent days of my adolescence and young manhood. This is not an autobiography. It is， rather， a kind of curriculum vitae—my attempt to show how one writer was formed. Not how one writer was made； I don’t believe writers can be made， either by circumstances or by self-will （although I did believe those things once）. The equipment comes with the original package. Yet it is by no means unusual equipment； I believe large numbers of people have at least some talent as writers and storytellers， and that those talents can be strengthened and sharpened. If I didn’t believe that， writing a book like this would be a waste of time.

This is how it was for me， that’s all—a 8）disjointed growth process in which ambition， desire， luck， and a little talent all played a part. Don’t bother trying to read between the lines， and don’t look for a 9）through-line. There are no lines—only snapshots， most out of focus.

My earliest memory is of imagining I was someone else—imagining that I was， in fact， the Ringling Brothers Circus Strongboy. This was at my Aunt Ethelyn and Uncle Oren’s house in Durham， Maine. My aunt remembers this quite clearly， and says I was two and a half or maybe three years old.

I had found a cement 10）cinderblock in a corner of the garage and had managed to pick it up. I carried it slowly across the garage’s smooth cement floor， except in my mind I was dressed in an animal skin 11）singlet （probably a leopard skin） and carrying the cinderblock across the center ring. The vast crowd was silent. A brilliant blue-white spotlight marked my remarkable progress. Their wondering faces told the story： never had they seen such an incredibly strong kid. “And he’s only two！”someone muttered in disbelief.

Unknown to me， wasps had constructed a small nest in the lower half of the cinderblock. One of them， perhaps pissed off at being relocated， flew out and stung me on the ear. The pain was brilliant， like a poisonous inspiration. It was the worst pain I had ever suffered in my short life， but it only held the top spot for a few seconds. When I dropped the cinderblock on one bare foot， mashing all five toes， I forgot all about the wasp. I can’t remember if I was taken to the doctor， and neither can my Aunt Ethelyn （Uncle Oren， to whom the Evil Cinderblock surely belonged， is almost twenty years dead）， but she remembers the sting， the mashed toes， and my reaction. “How you howled， Stephen！” she said.“You were certainly in fine voice that day.”

看了瑪麗·卡爾的自傳《撒謊者俱樂部》，我很受震動，不僅因為它寫得強悍，寫得漂亮，語言清新自然，更是因為它很全面——這個女人記得自己早年的一切。

我卻不是這樣。我的童年過得古怪又跌宕，由單親媽媽撫養成人?！?br>