# Kindle Exclusive - Stephen King's UR: Your thoughts?



## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

From the Amazon Press Conference:



Stephen King said:


> *10:35AM* "I got a call from my agent, he asked me if I would be interested in writing a story for the new Kindle... and I said, gee, I don't think so. I don't write stories on demand."
> 
> *10:36AM* "I've been a Kindle user, I don't read everything on it, but I read a lot on it. I subscribe to Slate, I can change the font size -- when I said no, I thought 'You're a real ass -- you could have gotten a new Kindle!'"
> 
> ...


I have mixed feelings about this:

*PROS*

- Price: $2.99. Can't beat that.
- Kindle Exclusive: How cool is that? It shows that the K has truly arrived!

*CONS*

- Seems like the ultimate cash-out whore job: King openly admitted he wrote this just to get a Kindle 2. I don't blame him - I'd have done the same - but still.
- Sounds terrible (IMO): Yeah, it's about the K, which is cool. Otherwise, ehhhh.

Your thoughts?

*ADDED 2/10:* Oh, what the heck... You guys have convinced me. For $3, I'll give UR a shot. It sounds so completely, utterly absurd that I know I'll at least be amused while reading it.


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## Elijsha (Dec 10, 2008)

reading his story today was kinda cool, an that smile holding that pink kindle is priceless!

its prolly a short story I'll read because of the funny story leading to it. that make sense?


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## Lizzy (Nov 26, 2008)

I'll let you know what my thoughts are as soon as i get done reading it.   

I saw the pre-order and its a huge file so he must have spent alot of time writing it. Im sure its gonna be as good as anything else he puts out and im glad he got the kindle. I also doubt he did it just for a kindle cause he could probly by out the whole plant if he wanted to. I think he just likes the one he got so much that he wanted to do a story on it. I think those quotes are more of a teaser than anything. JMO


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## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

Yeah, it's so cheap that even though I'm not won over by the premise, I'm tempted because the K exclusivity and subject matter is kinda cool.


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

I'm curious abou the story too.


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## LDB (Oct 28, 2008)

Never read anything of his so I don't think I'll start now. I also don't like the whole doing it just to get a Kindle idea either.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

I'd write a story if I could get a pink kindle. 

I'll probably read it.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

I pre-ordered a copy.... I generally like his short stories....

However, I thought *The Cell* was an abysmal book.


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## ScottBooks (Oct 28, 2008)

I'm pretty sure the novella is pronounced "You are". Maybe the pink Kindle prophesies? 

Why shouldn't he write for a Kindle? He can't stop writing constantly as it is.


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## Guest (Feb 10, 2009)

pidgeon92 said:


> However, I thought *The Cell* was an abysmal book.


That makes two of us.


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

it could be pronounced 'Your' I don't know...maybe


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## Guest (Feb 10, 2009)

I assume, given what we know of the scene that was the kernel of the story, that "UR" is either "you are" or "your" in that Godawful text/IM lingo that kids and morons use.

"Ur" (pron. "ur") is where Gilgamesh came from.  Or maybe it was Beowulf.


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## ScottBooks (Oct 28, 2008)

From SK's website:

UR, Exclusively on Amazon's Kindle

Since his first novel was published in 1974, Stephen King has stretched the boundaries of the storyteller as a writer who constantly redefines his readers' experience by working in various genres and formats.

Whether in an epic horror novel, like THE STAND, a serial-novel like THE GREEN MILE, or a novella like SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION, King is able to deliver a reading experience like no one else can. As quickly as a spider spins its web, King reminds us why he's the master of the novella - a format which, up until now that is, one might have thought is fast disappearing.

In his new novella, UR, King is at his unsettling best as he examines the future of the written word - for better or worse. Following a nasty break-up, lovelorn college English instructor Wesley Smith can't seem to get his ex-girlfriend's parting shot out of his head: "Why can't you just read off the computer like the rest of us?" Egged on by her question and piqued by a student's suggestion, Wesley places an order for Amazon.com's Kindle eReader. The [pink?] device that arrives in a box stamped with the smile logo - via one-day delivery that he hadn't requested - unlocks a literary world that even the most avid of book lovers could never imagine. But once the door is open, there are those things that one hopes we'll never read or live through. Firm, gripping, and deftly written by a craftsman at the top of his game, this is King at his crisp, clear, page-turning best.

Excerpt from the Amazon press release:

Author Stephen King announced today that he is releasing a novella, "Ur," which will only be available on Kindle. At the center of Ur is lovelorn college English instructor Wesley Smith, who can't seem to get his ex-girlfriend's parting shot out of his head: "Why can't you just read off the computer like the rest of us?" Egged on by her question and piqued by a student's suggestion, Wesley places an order for a Kindle. Smith's Kindle arrives in a box stamped with the smile logo and unlocks a literary world that even the most avid of book lovers could never imagine. But once the door is open, there are those things that one hopes we'll never read or live through. Ur is available for pre-order beginning today and will be released later this month. For Kindle customers who pre-order, King's new novella will download automatically when it becomes available.


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## Guest (Feb 10, 2009)

Like I said...


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## Gertie Kindle (Nov 6, 2008)

Bacardi Jim said:


> I assume, given what we know of the scene that was the kernel of the story, that "UR" is either you are" or "your" in that Godawful text/IM lingo that kids and morons use.
> 
> "Ur" (pron. "ur" is where Gilgamesh came from. Or maybe it was Beowulf.


Or the family of Ur followed in Michener's _The Source_


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

Bacardi Jim said:


> I assume, given what we know of the scene that was the kernel of the story, that "UR" is either you are" or "your" in that Godawful text/IM lingo that kids and morons use.


I used to student aide in high school....kids are starting to use this type of speak in school assignments. Awful, right?


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## Guest (Feb 10, 2009)

Vegas_Asian said:


> I used to student aide in high school....kids are starting to use this type of speak in school assignments. Awful, right?


Don't get me started.

Wait... I'm getting this from my producer... apparently, I have already started.


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

lol.


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## J Dean (Feb 9, 2009)

Man... I can't remember the last time I sat down with a Stephen King piece and read it.  Shame, too... he's the guy I read that really inspired me to start doing my own writing.


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## paisley (Nov 24, 2008)

While I'm not the biggest fan of King's recent works (but greatly admire his earlier ones), I'm really looking forward to reading UR.

Maybe it's the image of Stephen with a pink Kindle. Maybe it's the concept of a story featuring the Kindle.

Either way, it's a hoot.


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## Mikuto (Oct 30, 2008)

I've always thought that Stephen King really shined in short stories and novellas. He said himself that he doesn't generally do work on demand type writing, but got the idea when it was pitched to him. I don't think it's cash whoring (otherwise it would be more than 3 dollars, The Mist is 5.59 and it's a Novella) and I'll be buying it. I'm sure us Kindle users will get some giggles while reading it.


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## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

Oh, what the heck... You guys have convinced me. For $3, I'll give UR a shot. It sounds so completely, utterly absurd that I know I'll at least be amused while reading it.


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

LDB said:


> Never read anything of his so I don't think I'll start now. I also don't like the whole doing it just to get a Kindle idea either.


Does anyone really think he wrote this just to get a Kindle? Really? I would think, for King, buying a Kindle or two, or a hundred, would be like me buying a few pieces of Bazooka bubble gum. I think he wrote it because he thought it would be a hoot...and from the hefty royalty he'll get from every sale from diehard fans like me who have already snatched it up.


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## CS (Nov 3, 2008)

horrorauthor said:


> Does anyone really think he wrote this just to get a Kindle? Really? I would think, for King, buying a Kindle or two, or a hundred, would be like me buying a few pieces of Bazooka bubble gum. I think he wrote it because he thought it would be a hoot...and from the hefty royalty he'll get from every sale from diehard fans like me who have already snatched it up.


Yes.

He may have the money to buy Kindles for every single one of his readers, but getting an advanced one - as he did - would take more work.

So, he wrote a book and got a Kindle 2 ahead of everyone else.

No problem, I'd do the same. Let's just call a spade a spade though.


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## standaman (Feb 11, 2009)

For $3 it's a bargain. I'm picking it up.


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## FSkornia (Feb 22, 2009)

I am a huge Stephen King fan - probably one of the few authors I will continue to get DT versions of all his releases, so I snapped up this when I had the opportunity. It is very much classic King from his 90s to early 00s era, especially during the completion of his Dark Tower series. An interesting note, this was the first piece of his that has referenced his Dark Tower mythos since he finished it (I'm working off of memory here, so if I'm wrong someone correct me). There are little clues dropped King-like for those that have read a lot of his stuff.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

I think it took less time for King to write it than it took me to read it.


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## Mollyb52 (Jan 4, 2009)

I read UR.  I think of it as a special treat Stephen King wrote just for us Kindlers.  Certainly not his best work but kind of like one of those inside jokes only members of a special club get.


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## Lizzy (Nov 26, 2008)

So if you haven't read the Dark Tower series, would the story still make sense?


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## Sweety18 (Feb 14, 2009)

Stephen King's stories scare me too much and they are a little weird.  Might give this one a shot, at only $3, its cheaper than a starbucks coffee


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## marianneg (Nov 4, 2008)

Lizzy said:


> So if you haven't read the Dark Tower series, would the story still make sense?


The story definitely stands alone. I haven't read Dark Tower, but I'm guessing the "inside joke" has something to do with the


Spoiler



UR police at the end


?



Sweety18 said:


> Stephen King's stories scare me too much and they are a little weird. Might give this one a shot, at only $3, its cheaper than a starbucks coffee


This story isn't really scary, although it is definitely weird.


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## Vegas_Asian (Nov 2, 2008)

I read it and didn't care for it....hey now I can say I read King, finally. jk. Gotta catch up with his eariler books.


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## MichelleR (Feb 21, 2009)

I enjoyed it. 

It harkened back to when King could be succinct. In recent years, even is short stories and novellas could use a bit of an edit. This one just did what it had to do.

King used staple of sci-fi literature -- alternative universes, a hero hoping to change fate, and the possible repercussions of acting blindly. No matter how many times it's used, the idea that huge results and history changing events start with a chain of small events remains fascinating to contemplate. As does King's belief that a person's bedrock personality and "fate" might be hard to alter -- no matter how many worlds in which they exist.

And the timeliness of the references were pretty fun. One of the perks of the fast turnaround between writing a story and delivering it. Oddly enough, I'm not sure I ever noticed the Amazon logo has a smile in it.  

Certainly worth the price.


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## horrorauthor (Dec 22, 2008)

Here's what I had to say in my Amazon review:

In spite of an uneven beginning, this novella is a solid entry in the King oeuvre. Fans of King will recognize his sly and scary incorporation of parts of his own mythos (the Dark Tower, the men in yellow coats) and even the uninitiated will appreciate UR for its gripping story, sympathetic characters, and apocalyptic countdown to the darkest destiny.

I don't believe this is a hack job or a sellout. King needs to do neither. He probably wrote this because he thought it would be fun...and it is, in only a way a master of the macabre can make it.


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## Newbie Girl (Oct 27, 2008)

I hadn't read any Stephen King books in years- he just got too weird for me but I decided for $3 I would get UR.  It was weird, dragged somewhat, and was pretty predictable.  I would be more interested in getting a pink kindle.....


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## Thumper (Feb 26, 2009)

Honestly...I love Stephen King but I thought this was the worst thing he's written so far. It screamed _Kindle Advertisement_ and not in an especially amusing way.

Still, for $3, it was a decent enough way to test out my K2. If I can get the Spouse Thingy to read it, I'm pretty sure the phrase "Paradox Police" will become a running joke here.


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## frodolass (Feb 27, 2009)

FSkornia said:


> An interesting note, this was the first piece of his that has referenced his Dark Tower mythos since he finished it (I'm working off of memory here, so if I'm wrong someone correct me). There are little clues dropped King-like for those that have read a lot of his stuff.


I'm not sure if it is the first reference to DT since he finished the series, but I sure was happy to read it. I miss Roland and the gang


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## The Kindle Kid (Feb 23, 2009)

I found the story entertaining enough to warrant $3, but that is about it. At times it did feel like an infomercial for the Kindle though and that was a little annoying as those points in the story felt very forced.


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## Gregor (Feb 28, 2009)

This is the first SK that I've read in it's entirety.  (I've been trying to get started on a DTB version on The Stand.)

I liked it.  Interesting premise, and it was a couple three nights read for me.


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## kyliedork (Mar 20, 2009)

i bought & read the book in a few hrs last nite, well worth the $3


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

Why  not, $3.00!! Woot Woot


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