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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. When King's principal hears about King's episode with the newspaper, what does he suggest?

2. How does King describe the image discussed in chapter two?

3. What is the third specific item King states his book on writing will NOT be?

4. What happens to Carrie several months later after its initial sale?

5. What is one reason for reading the book, On Writing?

Short Essay Questions

1. One of King's babysitters was particularly cruel. How might she have affected his later writings?

2. Based on the chapters, C.V., and What Writing Is, what ideas justify King's statement that writing is a serious job?

3. In what way is the chapter, What Writing Is, different from the usual book on writing?

4. Why does King write? Explain in your own words based on the chapters, C.V., and What Writing Is.

5. Why does King want his readers to put his book down if they are unable to accept that writing is magic?

6. King was a heavy drinker and addicted to cocaine. He believed that these two elements contributed to his creativity. In terms of the chapter, C.V., do you think his belief was justified? Why or why not?

7. What relationship is there between writing as a career and writing as a passion? Explain in your own words.

8. How did King learn to edit his work? Why was this important to the young writer?

9. What are some of the things King remembers from his childhood? How might they have affected his writing?

10. After Tabitha King's intervention in her husband's addictions, King insisted on moving his desk. How was this symbolically important to him?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

King is a prolific writer yet he mentions writer's block in several places in the book, On Writing. Do you think this has been a hindrance in King's writing? What judgment would you make about King's frustration with writer's block? Explain your answer.

Essay Topic 2

King believed that characters must be multi-dimensional rather than cardboard figures. Has King been successful in creating multi-dimensional characters? Citing examples from the book, On Writing, how would you evaluate the characters in King's different novels?

Essay Topic 3

Based on the book, On Writing, what is the most important item in the writer's toolbox? Why is this important? Support your argument with ideas from the text.

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