King’s most famous dictum, repeated throughout *On Writing*, is to write 1,000 words a day (taking only one day off from writing a week). You should have one set place where you write, somewhere you can shut the door, and furthermore: “There should be no telephone in your writing room, certainly no TV or video games for you to fool around with. If there’s a window, draw the curtains.”

On this latter point, at least, King is unapologetic. “Your job is to make sure the muse knows where you’re going to be every day from nine ’til noon or seven ’til three. If he does know, I assure you that sooner or later he’ll start showing up.” And judging by his own prolific output, I’m inclined to believe him.

Elsewhere, the advice becomes more granular. Adverbs are a complete no-no in King’s world — “The road to hell is paved with adverbs” — and if you’re describing what a character says, just write “he said” — not “he pleaded” or “he gasped”. A few of the tips are more suited to King’s particular writing style than for all newbie novelists: he may well prefer to go light on description, but plenty of wonderful authors do not. There is even advice on how to bag yourself an agent

25 years on, Stephen King’s memoir is still the best guide for writers