On Writing (Hemingway)
On Writing is a story fragment written by Ernest Hemingway and omitted from the end of "Big Two-Hearted River."
Plot summary
“On Writing” is a deleted ending to "Big Two-Hearted River," an account of Nick Adams' fishing trip in northern Michigan after World War I. When "On Writing" begins, Nick has caught one trout already and observes the river, considering where more fish might lie. Nick credits his knowledge to his friend Bill Smith. This reminds him of another friend, Bill Bird, and their adventures in Europe. His thoughts continue to his old group of friends, his wife Helen, and marriage both to a woman and to fishing, before moving on to memories of bullfighting. Nick then reflects on writing and how it can take reality as inspiration and motivation, but that the stories themselves must be invented. The real reason for writing, Nick realizes, is for the fun of it. He aspires to greatness—wanting to write like Cézanne painted—and believes he knows how Cézanne would paint the river. Inspired, Nick releases his trout and heads back to camp. He stops to remove ticks from a rabbit along the way, but at the end of the story is walking again, "holding something in his head."
On Writing
On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft is a memoir by Stephen King, published in 2000, which documents his experiences as a writer and also serves as a guide book for those who choose to enter the craft.
Background
Stephen King began composing On Writing in either November or December 1997. After completing the memoir and English mechanics portions of the book, King set aside the manuscript in February or March 1998, explaining in the final section of On Writing that he was uncertain on how or whether he should proceed with the book. In June 1999, King reread the uncompleted draft and became determined to finish it. However, on June 19, King was hit by a van while walking along Maine State Route 5. Following the incident, King struggled to return to writing, uncertain whether he would be able to publish another novel. In an interview with NBC, King stated, "After the accident, I was totally incapable of writing. At first it was as if I'd never done this in my life. ... It was like starting over again from square one." In January 2000, King wrote on his website that he had finished On Writing and was more optimistic about his career: "My endurance is much less than it was and my output has been cut in half, but I am working." The final section of the book is titled "On Living: A Postscript", and it reflects on the accident and details his return to writing, stating "things have continued to get better."On Writing was the first book King published following his accident.
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