Actually in my opinion, and I write this standing behind a shield, Stephen King pretty much hit the mark. I especially like the comment: "Meyer is a thesaurus-abusing hack". As for Patterson and Koontz? While entertaining, their writing has indeed become boilerplate. A form of assembly line, as it were, for the buck. Too bad.

I agree with you - Meyer can't be all bad if she's turned teens onto books.

Not only Meyer haters have to lighten up, but this also goes for the ones who now hate King. I don't even want to know what sort of letters he got in the last days.

Meyer fans seem to come in second as far as passion for their writing idol goes, being beaten only by the fans of JR Ward. And passion is probably an understatement here.

I actually disagree with one sentence in this post: "She has made millions of teens into readers". That's not entirely accurate (and I speak as one who is, how shall we put it, a member of this faction). Ms. Meyer has pulled in a number of young women (and basically only young women) to read a little more than they ever did beforehand, but to say she's turned them into "readers" is simply wrong. Most of "Twilight"'s fans were already readers. To suggest otherwise is just silly.

Still, you make good points otherwise. That argument is in fact far more vicious than many political ones. And all the arguers should lighten up, just a little. Perhaps they should pick up a book and read instead?

Since when does an author's writing have to be perfect to be acceptable? Why can't we just enjoy a book because it's a story we would like to read? Why is it a bad thing if we like the story?

King's comments sounded like a major case of envy more than anything else. Meyer's books are read worldwide by all ages (not just teens as you in the media love to say) and in a relatively very short period of time. He knew by saying something critical about Ms. Meyers and others it would get him some much needed publicity, good or bad. I would bet Ms. Meyer probably could care less what he thinks and neither do I.
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Dave, YOU need to lighten up. The last time I checked America was still a place to express our opinions - with or without typos. If you didn't like the responses then stop asking for comments at the end of your story! AND next time listen to Nancy!

Why would Stephen King be jealous of Stephenie Meyers. He has sold over 250 million books worldwide,(she's sold 30 million.), He has had a slew of his books been adapted into succesful films. He has won numerous awards.. and is considered The "King" of Horror. So, please explain to me why he'd be jealous of Stephene's Moderate success. He. voiced his opinon, and WAS RIGHT. Stephenie Meyer can tell a story, but is a TERRIBLE writer. J.K.Rowling is FAR SUPERIOR then Her. Stephenie only WISHES she had J.K.Rowling's talent. And for those who were wondering,J.K.Rowling has sold more books then STEPHEN KING!! Why didn't he bash her? SO, obviously he was voicing his opinon, and IS NOT jealous!

Shes not a good writer but a good daydreamer... i was reading for her characters not for her plot of her writing or anything else... just for edward!! :D

Truthfully I was dissapointed in Stephen King. Hea has always been one of my favored authors, However; to outright insult a fellow author like that was very distasteful.

There are many who do not understand King's demented story telling, does that make him a hack? absolutely not. True Meyer is a new author and has a much different style than King. I found myself shocked that I enjoyed the twilight series as much as I did.

What shocks me is the incredible ignorance from both fans and haters alike. Seriously?? I mean great you don't like the books, fine you are free to not read them. Why do we need to stoop to the name calling level?

I for one read non-fiction books for one reason, to enjoy an escape from reality and enter a world where anything is possible. So why is it that vampires can't "sparkle" Is there a documented case of a true vampire? They are fantasy based creatures, making it impossible for one to decide how they can and can not be percieved. Therefore if you wish to write a story about a neon pink vampire who lives in a cave in New York... I can not argue with that, I have no facts to back up my argument.

Basically I do not think King's statements came from jealousy nor malice. I believe he spoke his opinion on the book before really thinking. Please realize these authors are people as well, they make mistakes... they are not infalible. Take it for what it is worth but for goodness sakes, stop letting this get you all riled up! They are FICTIONAL books. If you like them, enjoy them. If you don't, put them down and move on to the next story.

stephanie meyers has re-introduced books to teenagers of the slacking generation. she should be thrilled with her revolutionary books.
they are such a creative and inspired book seriese that to some teens they are as important to them as the bible is to devout christians.

I have an idea....If you don't like it, don't read it. Period. To each his own opionion.

Getting several teenagers hooked on a series is not exactly getting them hooked on reading. How many of those teenagers went on to read a variety of other books, for example? Sure, you can't deny that Meyer did get tons of teens to read her book, but how many of them will stay hooked on to reading, and how many will sit and wait for her and only her to release another book? Will they go off to reader other books? Will they go off and read a book not written by Stephenie Meyer? Will they go on to read a book that wasn't assigned by their English Teacher?

That's my only concern. I don't care whether or not Meyer is a good writer or not, my only thing is that just because people flock to one book doesn't mean they're apt to pick up another after another after another. In short, are they going to become the type of readers who start picking up new books every week or so? Probably not. I know people who once they finished with the Twilight series... never picked up another book. Well, I can't say that... they did pick up The Host.

And what of those teenagers... who were already devouring books? What if Meyer really didn't get as many teens hooked on to reading as you think? While I know several who picked up Twilight and never another book, I know even more who were already devoted readers before Twilight. Along those lines... you have people who were introduced to the book who were already fixated on reading. In short, we don't really know if Meyer got teens hooked on reading or not. We just know the book series is immensely popular.

As far as King goes... those who say he's jealous are either not doing their homework or are more likely just outraged by his comment. You're still free to read Meyer and still free to read King and you're still able to read *gasp* BOTH OF THEM! We can all be sure that King isn't jealous, though. If he is... what exactly would he have to be jealous of? That Meyer got several people turned on to reading? King did that. That she's sold so many books? King did that. He's sold five times as many books as Meyer. That she makes more money? No, King gets paid at least $40 million a year. So... what does he have to be jealous of? Meyer's fanbase? King's fanbase crumbles hers, especially if you put into account those who enjoy both of them. So the question is... what does King have to be jealous of? How immature can people be on the internet? Well, I guess watching Twilight Fans attack Stephen King and watching King fans defend him with all the war of words (terrible things said) was enough to convince me that I should assume everyone online is no older than 14 years old.

At least Meyer knows how to bring a story to reasonable, satisfying close. Every time I read or watch something of King's, I say I can't believe I'm doing this because I know I'll have to come up with my own ending to his work, because he just can't seem to manage that part of it. But, he's so good I've kind of learned to put up with that glaring weakness. I won't put up with it from any other writer. And let's be honest, Rowling was not much better than Meyer, as a writer. She was amazing at understanding her audience and developing her brand.

I think what amazes me more than the verbal sparring is the fact that so many people can't seem to get their point across without being rude and hateful. There are tactful ways to debate either side of an argument without name calling or bashing.

Personally I have enjoyed books from all of the authors that King praised and panned, as well as being a fan of King and Meyer. The common denominator is that they are all storytellers. Apparently they weave colorful enough stories to garner themselves legions of (very passionate fans). I don't see why they all can' t coexist peacefully.

Just because a person doesn't like a book doesn't make it "bad", it just makes it a book you don't want to read. Meyer wrote the story she had in her head, simple as that. Maybe she isn't as gracious with words as some authors, but at least she got her story out there.

I am so over the whole "at least teens are reading!" argument. If that's the best defense you can give, that is pretty sad commentary on this woman and her work. And having read the whole series, I'm disappointed in my generation for eating this crap up.

I can honestly say I think its disgusting the way King spoke about Meyer, and as for the whole "I am so over the whole "at least teens are reading!" argument, I could couldn't disagree more, i may only be 17 but i spend most mornings at school helping the younger students learn how to read and the twilight series has been a god send!! these are kids who are fed up of being forced to read patronizing books aimed at children much younger than them because they can't read to the level of many of the more interesting adult novels. Stephenie Meyer's books has put enthusiasm back into these children and I am grateful that this woman has reached out to an audience that has long been ignored, unlike King who quite frankly I know very few people that can actually be bothered to read his work as personally I find it quite an exhausting and unenjoyable style to read! where as I have met hundreds of people myself that love the twilight series and as everyone knows there are millions of people all over the world that have embraced the saga, so give the woman a break and if you dont like the books constructive critism is great but this level of vulgarity should not be accepted especially by a man who claims to be so much better than other people, he doesnt have intelligance just pure arrogance!!!

Stephanie Meyers, upon waking from a dream, lucid and effervescent, immediately pours the filaments, the textures, the core truth into a book. In no ambiguous terms, this is resemblant of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s mythic creation of Kubla Khan... a vision gifted within a dream. Suffice to say, Taylor may have already been a poet before he received his vision, yet as history reveals time and time again, visions come at unexpected times to unexpected people – and we, with a meagre faculty of rationalism, are least equipped to criticise that the idea came to the wrong person.
Indeed, the dream that came to Stephanie Meyers is beyond doubt texturally rich, and has the layers of perhaps one of the greatest romances ever told, and Stephanie Meyers certainly has the sensitivity to translate it for today’s young audience. She is fully captured the depth of the love story – and, beyond anything, only a storyteller can do that (debatable as it is if a storyteller and a writer are one and the same thing).
Which brings me to Stephen King, who, firstly, is a pop culture writer. The majority of his writings are hardly literature, and bearing this in mind, if he is judging Stephanie Meyers, then he is only so capable as to judge her ability to captivate an audience – but hang on a second, the one consistency in popular culture is that a person’s ability to captivate an audience speaks for itself by merely – book sales. Infact, if you wanted to speak about good writers, one of the few that integrate popular culture and simultaneously write satire is Terry Pratchett. I find Michael Crichton to be a far better writer than Stephen King, and while we’re on the topic, J K Rowling is atrocious as a writer, but wonderful as a storyteller. But all this is using the term “writer”, very loosely. Literature, as one would have it, is upon the makings of authors such as Salman Rushdie. Within popular culture, however, it is about engrossing audiences – not about writing in and of itself – the intentions are entirely different, it is about themes rather than the mastery of words.
Suffice to say, Stephanie Meyers has dreamt a breathtaking vision, it is exhilarating and has earnt my respect because I have personally seen teenagers sit there in silence, lost in the world she created, their eyes LITERALLY GLEAMING with some insightful understanding of the magical. I say this with no exaggeration – it is almost as if a “seed” of something profound was given to Stephanie, and is passed on to those who read it. Some concept both utopian and utterly, utterly, romantic.

Well, I read all of the Twilight Series, watched the movie, and decided that Stephenie Meyer is a good writer. I also have read all of Stephen King's books, watched the movies and TV miniseries. King is a good writer. I love them both and I am a grandmother of 7 and have been reading for over 50 years. It all comes down to what you like and what you don't like when reading. King has his right to his opinion and so does Meyer. If everyone liked everything someone does the world would not be the great place it is today. Differences make this old world go round. Express them and get over it.

I have to say, I wasn't offended by what Stephen King stated. I look at it like this, people read books for various reasons. Some want to read a book that is intellectually stimulating while others simply want a good story. Personally, I want to read a good story and one that is written in a form comparable to the type of conversations I would have, meaning, written comprehensively. I could really care less about the written structure or any of the rest of that mess, as long as the story is written well enough to stimulate my imagination.
Stephanie Meyer successfully did that and did it in such a way that I could focus on the story rather than sit there and have to decipher what the paragraph really meant. So what if he feels that she is not a good writer and only a good story teller. Good for her.....a good story is what I happen to be in the market for!!
I have often enjoyed watching Stephen King's movies since I was a child, but personally, I have never read not one of his books. Want to know why, because with his type of stories, I would much rather see them than read them. I am sure he may be a good writer but he isn't really selling what I personally want.
Lastly, maybe Stephen King should have thought a moment before he made the statement he did because I have to say, there are a lot of "story tellers" out there and with his statement, he may have just given tons of hope to future writers. I mean, if all Stephanie Meyer is is simply a good story teller, she is making a lot of dough and that is enough motivation for many potential writers.

I wish *everyone* would just calm down. While I do think King was just jealous, he is, in fact, entitled to his own opinion. If fans don't want to be criticized for liking a certain author or novel, then they shouldn't freak out everytime someone *doesn't* like said fandom. If people don't like something, they don't like it. It is extremely pointless and time-wasting if they go on long rants everytime an opinion-based thing is mentioned. So, everyone, let's just spend time on things we *do* enjoy. If we don't like something, that's OK, but let's not let it ruin our lives, alright?

I'm bothered by only one thing in this article. Teens are not the only ones obsessed with the series.

I'm here to say that I was one of those teens who picked up the twilight series and never put it down. I was tempted to read the "The Host", but not yet. I acually have went on to reading other books, although there not as intriguiging as her books, I read alot more, and i just had a english projest where i had to read a book and did that too. So all you haters talking about thr twilight series does'nt get teen into reading well your wrong. And you know what else I am waiting on the nexted book.

I think Stephenie Meyer is amazing she seen something that people of all age may want to read. She was aiming for the teens but there is a range of ages that read the books and love them.

I am a avid reader of Steven King's work However where is it written that you can only love one style. The Twilight Saga has given me my youthful reading back. I won't give up on King. However, S. Meyer is my #1 reading right now. I'm loving it. There are so many different styles of the written word that to just stick to one is just rediculas. King's vampire's were meant to scare us, and he's done that. Meyer has given us a beautiful fantasy love story. Who would not want to believe that someone would love them that way? Only a cynic! Don't hate her because she gave us so much to dream. I am 68 yrs old and I was a young woman again and remember what it was like to dream as I read.

While I think Steven King is a brilliant author, his comments about Stephenie Meyer was rude, resentful and childish. It is unfair to compare her to J.K Rowling, who has been writing for years long before Stephenie even considered being an author. I am a huge fan of both of these women and while their writing and story telling styles are very different, they both have that rare gift to turn millions and millions of people into avid readers who are passionately devoted to their stories and are more than willing to escape into the magical worlds that these brilliant authors have created. Stephenie Meyer may not be the most experienced writer in the business but theres no denying that she is a phenomenal story teller. She has inspired and captivated the heart of millions around the world and is well on her way to doing great things.

i love your books. i am reading breaking dawn right now and it is so good. i cant put the book down. u r such a good author, stephenie meyer.

guys, who cares so king said his mind get over it but that doesn't mean people need to get offended but doesn't mean people should give king a pat on the back for what he said

Angel... Your comment made my day!

i agree with you people that Meyer didn't make "millions of teens" start reading. It's foolish to say so. yes iv read the twilight saga. yes i like them. but that doesn't mean I'd never read anything beforehand. i was overly obsessed with another series before twilight came along. and ill agree with King on some points. he is a fabulous writer, and has been writing books long before Meyer even thought of Twilight. i do think King is more experienced in writing even though Meyer did write a good saga.

I have read books from both authors and I prefer Stephenie Meyers over Stephen Kings warped sense of writing. I was terrified after reading some of his books....Pet Cemetary, IT, etc. He makes it believable but so does Mrs Meyers. I prefer Edward sparkling and almost human over babies that come back and kill their mother. I am an avid reader. Theres not much I dont read. Nicholas Sparks, Nora Roberts, etc. You can go anywhere in your mind I just dont want to go where Stephen King takes my mind.

I adore both authors.

Stephen King's head produces sick worlds, but believable sick worlds. With a lot of style and mastery of language and plot. I read pretty much everything he wrote and liked some pieces more than others, loved some.

Stephenie Meyer's fiction often drives me to ranting - I end up cursing the poorly developed story or the obvious fallacies in character development - but I can't stop reading the books because they are so fresh, so wonderfully new.

That said, everyone is entitled to opinions. Public figures express their opinion publicly. So, yeah, do lighten up. You even expect them to express their opinions, so stop going full emotional when they manage to express their negative opinion concerning someone you like :)

I wonder if Stephen King even read the books or just spit a bunch words to some random reporter when he noticed that his spotlight was a little dimmer while Stephenie Meyer's was starting to shine bright.

He's entitled to his opinion.
IMO- i agree! stephenie's writing is average at best and i think that there are so many better writers out there.

Bella is a Mary-Sue whiny crybaby who needs to grow a backbone and stop waiting for everyone to save her. Edward. Mutant barbie doll, demon seed disco-ball who is not 'romantic' as brain-dead fangirls claim, but is a wanker who stalks and abuses cry-baby. It appeals to those who are into the mushy stuff, while the rest of the world that possess brains know what real vampire legends and folklore truly are. Stepehen King is so right. [Meyer has polluted] millions of girls's minds that do not know any better, haven't read any book EXCEPT Twilight, and act like it's the BIBLE.

I am glad to see that some people still know what true literature is.

If stephen is the king, then must we not consider that stephanie is the queen? Ounce upon a time there was an evil ogre-king who wrote scary bestsellers and ocasionaly forgot to take his meds. One day he said rather hurtfull and dreadfull things about the fairyqueen in a fit of hulicenated depravity. But the adorable fairyqueen looked into the demented ogrekings eyes and said " let me sign my book... ' to stephen king thanks for helping me sell more books, movies, dvds than I would have'... ". And with that she sprinkled magic fairy dust on the dispicable stephen king-ogre, and he transformed before everybodies eyes into a beautifull prince. He immeadiately went to a piano, played a perfect rendition of handles messiah, and sang it as well as he played. Afterwich the fabuosly handsome prince invited the fairyqueen to dance the waltz. Then they danced the tango, and last but not least they salsa danced... like "dancing with the stars" professionals. Donning a suit and tie he looked the perfect renasance young gentleman. Said king "I feel an odd desire to knock doors with a similiarly dressed young sparkly looking fellow, while people inevitable slam shut there doors after saying: no thankyou, if you ever come again we will call the police and sick our dogs on you, you cult promoting wierdo". With a smile as wide as a mile stephen king was off to some place on planet earth with a book that was neither his nor hers. "Oops" said the fairy stephanie " I'm awfully arfraid my Mormon fairy dust was much to potent , but it's o.k. , after stephan comes back in two or more years from the jungles of Brazil, I will give him an antidote of anti-mormon fairy dust... then he will return to what he was... assuming he survives, ofcourse",she giggled to herself ever so innocently. So kids what is the moral to the story? Be carefull when you critisize an author with supernatural talent, who is ever cheerfull though a bit clumsy at times, because you never know where she might accidently magicly send you, unless ofcourse you positively see yourself knocking doors in a rainforest in Brazil, where the streets are mud, the misquitos are thick, and rain falls forever. "I think I will sale a few million more books, movies, and dvds" said the delightfull fairy stephanie, as she sprinkled all her merchandise with magic mormon fairy dust (that she got as a present from orsen scott card as a christmas gift in 2002).