Summary
When it comes to writing exciting and highly compelling books, no one really does it better thanStephen KingandGeorge R.R. Martin. While both have very different writing styles, King being thehorrorguru and Martin the fantasy master, it’s clear that King has somewhat of a better grip on getting his work out there quicker while Martin has been struggling withThe Winds of Winterfor more than a decade.
However, Martin has been helping out with several live-action projects likeGame of ThronesandHouse of the Dragon,so he’s been a fairly busy guy and getting the time to sit down and start writing when he has so much on is certainly a challenge. King, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to have this issue, who haspublished over sixty novelsin total, with many being adapted into movies and TV series. In a bid to understand King’s incredible writing ability and hard as rock focus, Martin once asked King what his secret was.
Stephen King Has Advice for George R.R. Martin’s Writer’s Block
A few years ago, inadiscussion at the Kiva Auditorium, the two literary giants sat down together for an open and frank conversation about writing and everything else in between. King stated in their talk that due to being in so much pain with his legs at one point in his life and being unable to sleep, this was when he picked up a book by Martin, which he stated: “saved my life”. While discussing their different styles of writing,George R.R. Martinasked Stephen King the question many writers want to know and Martin was no exception: “How the f— do you write so many books so fast?”
Before King could answer,Martin compared his writing speedwith that of King’s and was baffled at how fast King could get through his books: “I think, ‘Oh, I’ve had a really good six months — I’ve written three chapters!'” Martin exclaimed, “And you’ve finished three books in that time.” Willing to give Martin some advice on how to combat his writer’s block, King answered: “Here’s the thing, There are books, and there are books. The way that I work, I attempt to get out there, and I try to get six pages a day.” King then went on to say that he works every day for three to four hours to get six pages done, so this process might come in handy for Martin, too.
Martin, who seemed visibly shocked by this, asked him in return if he had days where the process felt like “constipation”, making him wonder if he “ever had any talent after all, and maybe you should’ve been a plumber.” King replied with a simple “No” but also acknowledged that he doesn’t have such an intense fan base as Martin does who continuously pester him for new material. Martin certainly does have his hands full with multiple adaptations in progress, includingA Knight of the Seven Kingdoms: The Hedge Knightand several animated shows.
As for King, he also has plenty of adaptations being made from his books, which include Mike Flanagan’sThe Life of Chuck, Carrie, Welcome To Derry, The Dark Tower,and others. For those wonderingwhat scary movie keeps the King of Horror up at night, one specific 1968 classic fills King with ‘helpless terror'.
