Here’s a confession:
Of all the big-shot celebrities who live in Sarasota or memorably visit our city, author Stephen King is the only one I would really like to meet.
Hmm.
Let me revise that slightly.
I would also like very much to meet Sarasota resident Urban Meyer, the renowned college football head coach and current Fox Sports analyst.
First, I would congratulate Meyer on his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame for racking up national championships at schools like Ohio State and Florida.
But second, I would ask Meyer – politely, of course – if he could refund me for the considerable time and money I invested following the Jacksonville Jaguars during the disastrous 11 months he spent coaching my favorite NFL team in 2021.
No, it’s not that I’m bitter, Coach Meyer.
No, no, no, not at all.
But, hey, that pricey NFL Sunday Ticket package I ordered in 2021 to watch the Jaguars play lousy football week after week didn’t just pay for itself, you know!
Um . . . well . . . anyway . . . back to Stephen King.
Dumb words at a bad time
I would love to meet King because I’ve always admired the majesty, power and beauty of the millions of words he’s crafted during a truly legendary literary career.
I mean, come on now:
Anyone who’s able to write a novel – “Cujo” – that becomes a movie so intense it makes you spend several days casting wary side-eyes at your cuddly Shih-Poo is a one bad, bad (expletive).
And, yes, I mean that in a good way.
But recently King wrote some words that weren’t majestic, powerful or beautiful – or even good.
In fact, they were just plain dumb.
Shortly after the assassination of controversial conservative activist Charlie Kirk, King went on X and posted a false claim suggesting Kirk, a former Longboat Key resident, had advocated the stoning of gay people.
Soon after the predictable and justifiable furor to his post, King responded by promptly deleting it – and repeatedly apologizing for it.
“Won’t happen again,” King posted in one of his apologies.
Now should we give King credit for doing that?
Certainly.
But shouldn’t we also take a few smart lessons from his pretty stupid words?
I mean, here are three I’m taking from all of this:
Enough with ‘but’ and ‘on the other hand’
Kirk’s killing was a horrible tragedy.
Period.
And, really, there’s no reason to add words like “but” and “on the other hand” when it comes to reacting to horrific incidents like his death.
So shouldn’t we at least try not to do it?
You have the power to shut up. Use it.
Think about it:
Would anyone have thought any less of King if he had simply made no comment at all on Kirk’s death?
Really?
It should be clear by now that being a prominent person doesn’t mean you have an obligation to say something about everything.
In fact, I’d argue that very prominent people like King possess the unique power to make forceful, eloquent statements simply by saying or writing nothing at all.
It wouldn’t hurt to wield that power more frequently.
Let the music play
In a recent interview with the Guardian newspaper, King noted how he loves to listen to music when he works – but never when he’s actually coming up with words to write.
“I don’t listen to music if I’m composing directly from my head to the page,” King told the Guardian.
But based on the uproar created by his foolish words regarding Charlie Kirk, maybe it’s time for King to try out the “Let me play some music while I’m composing” idea for a bit.
And I can recommend the perfect Celine Dion tune for King to immediately add to his playlist.
The song title is “Think Twice.”
Opinion Editor Roger Brown can be reached at roger.brown@heraldtribune.com. Follow him on X: @RBrown_HTOpin.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota author Stephen King wrote some dumb words that taught a smart lesson | Opinion
Reporting by Roger Brown, Sarasota Herald-Tribune / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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