Ellen LaConte has an article titled, "Why Stephen King Can Help Save Us From Climate Change."
Oh really! He can? I didn't know that super-power was in his bag of tricks. But, ya never know what the King of Horror has to offer us. Personally, I thought saving the earth was for Captain Kirk.
LaConte writes the article as a letter to Stephen King. This makes me think she's actually serious! Anyway, just the opener is a dozy: "Dear Stephen King, Most of your books are too scary for me." She admits she doesn't read much Stephen King, but her son does. Just like study, if you lay on the book, it sinks in -- and if you live in the house with someone who's read Stephen King, then it's just like you've read 'em!
So what can Stephen King do to save the planet? Well, LaConte has a great idea: he should write a politically driven novel. RIGHT! That's new stuff, isn't it? And this novel should be about the environment.
Wait a minute, every Stephen king fan in the world will say, King has already written that book! It was called: Under The Dome! Someone proof reading the article must have figured this out, because she then gives this quick aside -- to King, of course -- "Now I know, Mr. King, that you're familiar with the predicament we're in, which is scarier even than the hot-housed version of some of our present quandaries you offered up in Under the Dome, which is saying a lot." Did she read the novel to the end? There was NO AIR! She wants King to get "scarier" than that? I guess he could have let the characters suffocate, but it really couldn't get much worse than UTD.
But have no fear. You see, King doesn't need to come up with a storyline -- LaConte has written up a storyline for Stephen King. Because, you know, he apparently calls her when he's out of ideas. Her outline. . . has to do with HIV, the global economy and the breakdown of society. Yes! The breakdown of society. Because, again, this is unexplored territory.
Can I just ask. . .
1. Why is anyone publishing this stuff?
2. If she wants to write a letter to King, why doesn't she just mail it to him? If she can't afford the stamp, she could email it.
3. Does she really think King needs her help getting story ideas?
4. Is she truly unaware that her storyline is not really all that unique?
Of course, this is all necessary, because Hollywood hasn't done any global disaster films related to the climate, right? oh, wait. . . does anyone remember Day After Tomorrow? No? You didn't miss much. Basically -- movie in short -- global warming really means global cooling; and Mexico might be America's last best hope. Yep, that was the plot as I remember it.
What is interesting is that LaConte thinks King needs to add his voice to the problem. That's what will help. But it's not like King has been silent on this, or an array of issues! In fact, many of his novels have been issues driven. He described Needful Things as a commentary on the 80's spending. The Dead Zone speaks about Nukes. Pet Sematary is about animal rights. . . wait, I might be wrong on that one. Cujo is! No, that's not it!
http://www.alternet.org/environment/151226/why_stephen_king_can_help_save_us_from_climate_change?page=1
Allow me to answer one of these questions:
ReplyDeleteShe did it because she knew including the words "Stephen King" would guarantee her at least some attention.
And it appears to have worked.
I've got some ideological sympathy with some of what she says ... but she sounds like a bit of a loon, too. Anyone who thinks King needs story ideas -- or would accept them even if he did -- has GOT to be a loon.
You're right on, Bryant! Agree on all fronts.
ReplyDeleteShe knew that using King's name would get her attention. But yes, it does come off loony.
Right on about protecting the enviroment. But I don't think that there is really an awareness problem. Maybe it's just that one of my children goes to public school in California -- and enviroment is like a religion.
Makes you wonder why she settled on Stephen King. Who else did she consider and possibly reject before settling on King?
ReplyDeleteLady Gaga? David Fincher? Robert Downey Jr.? Kanye West? Johnny Depp? Roger Moore? That really tall dude who's in Arcade Fire? Bob Dylan? Dean Koontz?
It's just so weird.