D.B. Tarpley's Amazing Ass Blog - Part 7
Greetings people and peoplettes.
Let’s talk about hero worship...celebrity infatuation...star fucking.
Poking the famous pooper.
It is human nature I suppose to want to identify with or accept advice and or words of wisdom from people we admire. It feels good to say, hey, that person is famous and I agree with what they have to say so in some small way I must be famous too.
When I was younger I loved Stephen King...I thought the man could do no wrong. So when I learned he disapproved of Kubrick’s version of The Shining I said to myself, “Yeah, maybe he has a point.”
In my mind’s eye, King was infallible.
But as I grew up I watched Kubrick’s version again and again, and I had to admit to myself that King was wrong. The film is a masterpiece that truly transcends the source material, a novel which is in its own right downright incredible.
Recently I read this quote from the man:
“If you don't have time to read, you don't have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
Stephen King
Well, I had to take this personally. I am an extremely slow reader (I do not have a learning disability that I know of, I just have trouble focusing on the words; and the mechanics of holding a book have always been tiresome to me,) so I rarely if ever read.
But I am one hell of an excellent writer!
And here was King, my hero, my desired peer, my imagined drinking buddy basically telling me there was no way, no day I could ever be any damn good.
Fuck you Stev-O!
I discussed this topic on several writer pages and mostly got the same response.
“How dare you go against the King?”
Oh I dare motherfuckers.
Don’t get me wrong, I would tell any aspiring writer to read as much as you can, because that is one good way to find out what appeals to you. It is often how you find your voice.
But I would never tell a writer what they can’t do. Everyone writes differently. I happen to be very cinematic. (A fact which will become painfully clear if you read Lick the Razor and you find yourself unable to close your mind’s eye and unsee all the nasty gooey stuff I show you along the way.)
If King thinks I can’t write he has another goddamned thing coming. I dare him to read my book and say it is shit. I infinity dog dare him, the self righteous prick!
I plan to be every bit as prolific as he pretends to be.
Here’s a quote for you old boy:
“Like all sweet dreams, it will be brief, but brevity makes sweetness, doesn't it?”
You know who said that...Boom! You did!
Your last five books have averaged over a thousand pages each. Learn to listen to your own fucking advice and stop telling writers what they can and can’t do.
Not that I’m one to give advice. To quote Ice Cube:
“Don’t quote me boy, I ain’t said shit.”
When you write you are God and the world is yours to make or break.
Until next time, keep reading and have an amazing ass day!
D.J. Tarpley's Lick the Razor is available on this website as a downloadable eBook or from other sites such as Amazon, iTunes, etc.
Comments
On Tuesday, October Oct 2013 Jim Wilson said...
“D.B. is my man.”
On Tuesday, October Oct 2013 D.B.Tarpley said...
“Indeed Jim, but only in certain states of the Union is it officially recognized.”
On Tuesday, October Oct 2013 judy said...
“I have never read Stephen King nor have I seen any of his movies. I live with my sick mom, who does think he's great so we just had an argument over this. She said to go buy your book and find out for myself. I'm going to.”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 D.B.Tarpley said...
“I would just like to clarify that Stephen King is an excellent writer. But like any writer of great success and duration he has acquired quite a following and many of these people will just nod their heads and agree with whatever comes out of his mouth. After years of people doing that it is only natural you start to believe your own bullshit. This blog is more about celebrity worship than a personal attack on thae King. Ever man is just that, a man - and completely fallible. If you are looking for good King might I suggest, Skeleton Crew, Gerald's Game, Rose Madder, or Night Shift.”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 Scott said...
“What complete and utter bullshit. Being a slow reader, or more likely a lazy fucker, is just an excuse. I'd listen to King, he's had success. Who the fuck are you? ”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 D.B.Tarpley said...
“Well Scott, I am the person whose blog you just read. All blogs are opinions and you are always perfectly capable of disagreeing. But let me try to understand your point of view. You are saying you would listen to King because he has had success? And I would go on to say that by that logic people with success can say whatever they want and never be questioned? So if King told you that cock tasted delicious would you would run right out and gobble as many as you could find? I don't think so. Just because a person is famous does not make every word which comes out of their mouth golden. That is exactly what this blog is about. You call me lazy but I have been writing for over 25 years. Have you read my book, 'Lick the Razor'? If you had then perhaps you could cast judgement on the topic at hand. King is great, but I stand by what I have said. Thank you for reading and have an amazing ass day.”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 Eryk Pruitt said...
“^^^Favorite reply to a commenter EVER ^^^^”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 rudeawakening said...
“At this rate you'll be more famous than King!”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 Feind Gottes said...
“Excellent article Mr Tarpley! Like you I once worshipped at the altar of all things King but not so much for quite some time. Every writer has their own methods and no matter how much advice we seek no one can give us our own "voice". I refuse to read while I'm writing so that the voice coming through is my own not a aping someone else's. Creating is liberating and I would encourage everyone to find their own way to be creative whether writing, drawing or even cooking. If you enjoy what you do it will come through to your audience. ”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 D.B.Tarpley said...
“Who wants fame? Once you become famous you might as well retire. Thank you all for the kind words. The more exposure you get the more open you are to negativity. All you can do is mean what you say and say what you mean. I am glad some of you agree with me but ultimately when I commit something to paper I have to own it, and I always will. Thank you all again for reading and have an amazing ass day.”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 steve said...
“I do have a disability dyslexic so I don't read well. I do audiobooks and have over 60a0 books So i'm well read, but I couldn't write a story at all/ I have noticed the writers that read their own genre tend to steal parts from other books. I think not reading your peers is a good thing for the reader.”
On Wednesday, October Oct 2013 D.B.Tarpley said...
“Well I used to read a lot as a kid and now I simply don't have time. The way I see it is if I have time to read then I have time to write. I would love to listen to more audiobooks. But what irritated me about Mr. King's quote was that he presumed due to my current situation/ environment/ whatever... I was unable to write well. I have nothing but the utmost faith in my writing so I took the statement a bit personally. After a while, writing... learning to turn the perfect phrase, becomes less about what you read and more about how you feel. The words you put on the page communicate something. THAT and the story... everything else is just bullshit. I own my voice and for that I am eternally grateful. The days of finding myself are over and love me or hate me, here I am. ”
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