I'm re-reading On Writing right now. Catching so much stuff I didn't notice the first time. I'm very particular about how I write. I'm adamant that you start with the situation, then the characters that will be in that situation, and then you let them run wild in your head. I know I'm onto something when my own characters surprise me. That is the magic of writing and I can't function without it. Still, people like Chris Nolan do exactly the opposite. They start from the plot and work back. And it drives me up the fucking wall. Stephen King does it my way and he lays it out in a couple paragraphs.You don’t want to leave them in despair, which is why it’s such a horrible idea to try teaching Moby-Dick or Dubliners to high school juniors. Even the bright ones lose heart. But it’s good to make them reach a little. They’ve got to see there are brighter literary worlds than Twilight.