--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Stephen King has the exact ability that…" description: "\"Stephen King has the exact ability that Charles Dickens had. To get to his readers in spite of or despite anything the reviews say.\" — Frederick Busch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08f/frederick-busch-12684_ability_stephen-king-has-the-exact-ability-that_2993892.png" --- # Stephen King has the exact ability that Charles Dickens… ![“Stephen King has the exact ability that Charles Dickens had. To get to his readers in spite of or despite anything the reviews say.” quote by Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08f/frederick-busch-12684_ability_stephen-king-has-the-exact-ability-that_2993892.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08f/frederick-busch-12684_ability_stephen-king-has-the-exact-ability-that_2993892.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/08f/frederick-busch-12684_ability_stephen-king-has-the-exact-ability-that_2993892.png) > “Stephen King has the exact ability that Charles Dickens had. To get to his readers in spite of or despite anything the reviews say.” [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Stephen King shares Dickens’ ability to connect with readers despite criticism. **In simple terms:** Both connect with readers despite reviews. Key Takeaway Persist despite criticism to reach audiences. Themes literature resilience reader connection criticism Mood encouraging analytical Type literary professional When to use this quote - book marketing - author interviews - writing workshops Key Concepts comparative literature authorial voice publishing industry Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay true to your voice? - What helps you ignore negative feedback? A Different Perspective Critics can still affect perception. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kings/) [Spite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spite/) ## Related quotes > [We are herding the young in that direction so that they are not sitting still and contemplating, Goddamn it, a page of exquisite prose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/we-are-herding-the-young-in-that-direction-so-that-they-are-not/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I think poets are supposed to be writing for television and film. I grew up in the day of early TV that was so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eileen-myles/i-think-poets-are-supposed-to-be-writing-for-television-and-film-i/) [Eileen Myles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eileen-myles/) > [“Fans of the Peanuts comic strip may also remember Snoopy beginning his novel again and again, always starting with the line 'It was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-beha/fans-of-the-peanuts-comic-strip-may-also-remember-snoopy-beginning/) [Christopher Beha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-beha/) > [ I studied English literature at university, but for some reason we only spent one week on \[Charles\] Dickens, so I remember just trying to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-studied-english-literature-at-university-but-for-some-reason-we/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [Familial love can find an echo in our own hearts just as it did in that of Charles Dickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-ackroyd/familial-love-can-find-an-echo-in-our-own-hearts-just-as-it-did-in/) [Peter Ackroyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-ackroyd/) > [“G. K. Chesterton wrote in Charles Dickens, that The Pickwick Papers was neither a good novel nor a bad novel but in fact ‘not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/g-k-chesterton-wrote-in-charles-dickens-that-the-pickwick-papers-was/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [Stop, look, listen. I spit on your grave, then I grab my Charles Dickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-notorious-b-i-g/stop-look-listen-i-spit-on-your-grave-then-i-grab-my-charles-dickens/) [The Notorious B.I.G](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-notorious-b-i-g/) > [I think Austin is read more now than Charles Dickens, and Dickens was much more popular in his day. She endures because of her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whit-stillman/i-think-austin-is-read-more-now-than-charles-dickens-and-dickens-was/) [Whit Stillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whit-stillman/) > [“I’m not sure I’d have put Charles Dickens next to Isaac Newton except at a dinner party, and then only if Nellie Melba hadn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-e-kinsey/i-m-not-sure-i-d-have-put-charles-dickens-next-to-isaac-newton-except/) [T E Kinsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-e-kinsey/) > [My father read Charles Dickens to us as children, and at the end of virtually every novel he would choke up and start to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/my-father-read-charles-dickens-to-us-as-children-and-at-the-end-of/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [If you look at Charles Dickens's time, there were so many different levels of society and everybody understood their place in it, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-horowitz/if-you-look-at-charles-dickens-s-time-there-were-so-many-different/) [Anthony Horowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-horowitz/) > [“Mr. Charles Dickens was serializing his novel Oliver Twist; Mr. Draper had just taken the first photograph of the moon, freezing her pale face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/mr-charles-dickens-was-serializing-his-novel-oliver-twist-mr-draper/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [On the day long after childhood when I suddenly heard of his death, the sky grew dark above my head. I was walking on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-elizabeth-sangster/on-the-day-long-after-childhood-when-i-suddenly-heard-of-his-death/) [Margaret Elizabeth Sangster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-elizabeth-sangster/) > [“Dickens's humanity and compassion made an extraordinary impact on Victorian England through his writings, which remain immensely popular. This bicentenary should help renew our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dickens-s-humanity-and-compassion-made-an-extraordinary-impact-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“(On Charles Dickens) It has been the peculiarity and the marvel of this man’s power, that he has invested his puppets with a charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-trollope/on-charles-dickens-it-has-been-the-peculiarity-and-the-marvel-of-this/) [Anthony Trollope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-trollope/) ## More by Frederick Busch > [Good art is a form of prayer. It's a way to say what is not sayable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/good-art-is-a-form-of-prayer-it-s-a-way-to-say-what-is-not-sayable/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [What I try to do is read stuff that won't deal with the dangerous dark things I hope I am writing about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/what-i-try-to-do-is-read-stuff-that-won-t-deal-with-the-dangerous/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I love baseball. What I love about baseball is that you are always waiting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-love-baseball-what-i-love-about-baseball-is-that-you-are-always/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [There is a lack of context in contemporary education. And contemporary consideration - because we live in those interiorities so much. Especially young kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/there-is-a-lack-of-context-in-contemporary-education-and-contemporary/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [“No matter his joking, I thought, this was a man as given to the miseries as I was. You could look into my dead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/no-matter-his-joking-i-thought-this-was-a-man-as-given-to-the/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [When you are writing a character, what the character says is obviously crucial. But what the character doesn't say is absolutely as important as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/when-you-are-writing-a-character-what-the-character-says-is-obviously/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I know important literary writers who can't get published.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-know-important-literary-writers-who-can-t-get-published/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I always had good students.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-always-had-good-students/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [It's hard to read real fiction. It takes time. It takes a sustained attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/it-s-hard-to-read-real-fiction-it-takes-time-it-takes-a-sustained/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [History is beautiful stories or scary stories, yeah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/history-is-beautiful-stories-or-scary-stories-yeah/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [If a writer is honest, if what is at stake for him can seem to matter to his readers, then his work may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/if-a-writer-is-honest-if-what-is-at-stake-for-him-can-seem-to-matter/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I read a lot of poetry. I read some history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-read-a-lot-of-poetry-i-read-some-history/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [I have found myself writing poetry shortly after I retired. Which I hadn't done in forty years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/i-have-found-myself-writing-poetry-shortly-after-i-retired-which-i/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [Hollywood is the model for publishing, more and more. Not just blockbusters either.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/hollywood-is-the-model-for-publishing-more-and-more-not-just/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) > [Baseball is a game where you are always waiting, and then when something happens it's like turning a kaleidoscope when you were a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-busch/baseball-is-a-game-where-you-are-always-waiting-and-then-when/) [Frederick Busch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) [Explore all 53 Frederick Busch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-busch/) ## More Ability quotes > [I don't think there's a direct correlation between my sexuality and my skiing ability. But I think because I was so concerned about it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-kenworthy/i-don-t-think-there-s-a-direct-correlation-between-my-sexuality-and/) [Gus Kenworthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-kenworthy/) > [“the importance of ability. The things that make a great job great, I discovered, are rare and valuable. If you want them in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/the-importance-of-ability-the-things-that-make-a-great-job-great-i/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [Maybe law enforcement would like the ability to turn on the camera on your Mac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-cook/maybe-law-enforcement-would-like-the-ability-to-turn-on-the-camera-on/) [Tim Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-cook/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [The youth of India has the strength to move the entire World with a click of a mouse, we have generated that ability!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/the-youth-of-india-has-the-strength-to-move-the-entire-world-with-a/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [An absolutely necessary part of a writer's equipment, almost as necessary as talent, is the ability to stand up under punishment, both the punishment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-shaw/an-absolutely-necessary-part-of-a-writer-s-equipment-almost-as/) [Irwin Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-shaw/) > [I'd be more frightened by not using whatever abilities I'd been given. I'd be more frightened by procrastination and laziness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denzel-washington/i-d-be-more-frightened-by-not-using-whatever-abilities-i-d-been-given/) [Denzel Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denzel-washington/) > [Bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Take what I cannot give: my heart, body, thoughts, time, abilities, money, health, strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-prentiss/bring-into-captivity-every-thought-to-the-obedience-of-christ-take/) [Elizabeth Prentiss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-prentiss/) > [You can only do the work to the very best of your ability.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-baranski/you-can-only-do-the-work-to-the-very-best-of-your-ability/) [Christine Baranski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-baranski/) > [Judge a person not by his ability to make money but by his ability to retain it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/judge-a-person-not-by-his-ability-to-make-money-but-by-his-ability-to/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Bobby had faith in my ability as a singer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-london/bobby-had-faith-in-my-ability-as-a-singer/) [Julie London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-london/) [Browse all 9,990 Ability quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ability/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Stephen King has the exact ability that Charles Dickens had. 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