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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 the second chapter open with King presenting to the reader?

2. To which substance is King first addicted as a young man?

3. Who is the character Carrie based on?

4. What kind of a book is On Writing?

5. The change that King made in his writing life after his wife's intervention is seen by King as a symbol. What does this symbol represent?

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

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

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

5. What facts or ideas show the beginnings of King's career as a master of horror?

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

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

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

9. King believed that writing is telepathy. What is telepathy in the context of this statement?

10. In what way is the book, On Writing, to be different from King's usual work?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

King believes that certain preparations are unnecessary and even harmful to aspiring writers. He mentions creative writing courses and writers' retreats. What does he have to say about these two options for writers? Explain using your own words.

Essay Topic 2

Do you think a writer can learn to 'see' and write about what he sees from images such as the one King presented of a rabbit in a cage on a table? How can writing exercises like this one lead to better writing? Explain your answer.

Essay Topic 3

What factors in King's childhood and young adulthood influenced his writing? Was King's brother Dave an important influence in King's writing career? Which factors determined the type of writing he does? Give specific examples from the book to support your claims.

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