King likes to show his images so that the reader can get more out of the reading, given the reader can interpret the image. Analyzing images made from words can be difficult at time and might require a good imagination, but with King that task is as hard as it seems. Reading King’s works, he fills them with enough description to create a solid image in the reader’s head. It’s up to the reader to take this image and learn from it, which does take practice. Once accomplished, though, a reader can get so much more from King’s work and even get more of an eerie feeling.
It is easy to see that King almost thinks like a director when he writes. He uses images that can be interpreted to tell an even deeper story. King’s stories are really words that create images that the reader sees. In knowing King’s use of imagery, when reading any of King’s stories it is good to stop and actually take in the image that King is describing to us. The image that he gives us isn’t just for graphic purposes but actually to enlighten the story. A lot of symbolism can be found in the images King chooses, as explained above. King has a director’s mindset and uses images that a good director would use. It’s up to the reader to take these images and learn and analyze them to fill gaps in the story. A story can become much more complete when looking at a picture rather than reading in between the lines.
Bare Bones: Conversations on Terror with Stephen King, ed. Tim Underwood and Chuck Miller (New York, NY: Carroll & Graff Publishers, 1992) 282.
Bergmooser, Mark. “The Outsider’s guide to selling to Hollywood.” Writer’s Digest Vol. 78 (1998): 34.
Field, Syd. Selling a Screenplay: The Screenwriter’s Guide to Hollywood. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc., 1989.
King, Stephen. “The Body.” Different Seasons. New York: Penguin Books USA, 1982. 293-436.
Mayer, Geoff. “Stand By Me,” Metro (9/1/1992): 56-59.
Wukovits, John F. Stephen King. San Diego, CA: Lucent Books, Inc., 1999.