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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. What does one of King's babysitters do to him?

2. According to King, what are two reasons to write?

3. How many specific facts are provided by King about the entire image in the second chapter?

4. What animal appears in the image King describes in the second chapter?

5. How does King's mother die?

Short Essay Questions

1. What are some of the aspects of writing that King is not going to emphasize in the chapter, What Writing Is?

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

3. In a short paper, summarize the main points of King's life as an author.

4. How would you summarize the different jobs King had during his early career? How might these jobs have influenced his work?

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

6. How did King begin his career as a writer?

7. Can you explain how King created the character of Carrie and why he disliked her so?

8. When King asks the writer to accept 'the magic of writing, but to take it seriously', what is he saying?

9. What conclusions can you draw from King's comparison of writing as a career versus writing as a passion? Explain in your own words.

10. In what ways is the rabbit on the table of symbol of King's belief in magic and telepathy? Explain in your own words.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What changes was King forced to make in his writing life after his accident? Did this affect the amount or quality of his work? How did it affect his feelings about his work? Explain your answer based on the book, On Writing.

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

How is writing as a passion different from writing as a career? What ideas in this text justify King's statement?

(see the answer keys)

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