Stephen King to edit The Dark Tower series? (Spoiler)

[Ryan]

If he does rewrite them he should just continue the story where it ended. See how Roland's fate changes, and how this time it will be different. This time he will find redemption. That way King could remove himself from the book without going back to the first version. Just an idea. That being said I loved the series. I could not put it down and there were only a few times when things did not sit well with me (i.e. Song of Susanah).

[Jennifer]

Ryan wrote: "If he does rewrite them he should just continue the story where it ended. See how Roland's fate changes, and how this time it will be different. This time he will find redemption. That way King cou..."

Ryan, that would be a good solution--King would not have to rewrite anything. Since reading the last volume I felt that Roland's story does continue. King doesn't need to add (and shouldn't add) the character Steven King to the next world of Roland's adventures, but I would like to see Jake, Eddie, Susannah, and Oy
in future books, perhaps as they were reincarnated at the end of the last volume. Also want more of Roland's gunslinger world and speech. And maybe some characters from Meijis reappear (like an older SUSAN DELGADO!!) only they don't quite remember Roland, he is only somehow "deja vu" to them. Anyway, I think we all want more,more. We readers are like small children--we don't want to hear "NO" or "NO MORE."

[Daniel]

King told you how those books would end all through the series. How many times does he mention that ka is a wheel? If you didn't get it before the seventh book, maybe you were just dense.

[Liz]

Ka is a wheel. The ending was perfect, however heartbreakingly so. Roland is both doomed and blessed with his cyclical destiny... reliving the strife, trials and loss of his companions eternally but also experiencing the triumph, love and ultimate success of his quest again and again. Sure, some of the literary techniques and plot twists that SK employed as "means to the end" were perhaps a little corny and not wholly believable but it's fantasy, right?

[Tracy]

Erik wrote: "The series was a major disappointment overall, and there's no amount of re-writing that could fix it. Writing himself into the story was perhaps the most egotistical thing I've ever seen in a novel..."

retroj wrote: "spoilers ahead. oy, this topic should really be filed under book 7 instead of book 1.

Charles wrote: "I think it showed that the quest for the tower and the repetition (and even the journey for o..."

retroj wrote: "spoilers ahead. oy, this topic should really be filed under book 7 instead of book 1.

Charles wrote: "I think it showed that the quest for the tower and the repetition (and even the journey for o..."

i don't feel that roland's ka-tet is just living for roland's moral edification at all (as suggested by retroj)...they are ka-tet, BECAUSE their journey's intermingled, and they each are traveling through their own transcendence, perhaps, of their own tower. Maybe instead, each is edifying their morals along the way too...aren't we all? King's existence in his own novel serves this very same purpose. If you bring King's writing into perspective and see it as part of his own journey, even discussing his own short comings along this, his particular trip around that upward climb to transcendence on his own tower. They are brought together along the path as they each have a lesson to learn from one another. Jake says there are other worlds than these, desperately hoping that Roland will chose his love for Jake over his personal obsession eventually. To me this represents that the journey one takes to happiness or unconditional love is NOT a destination, but an immediate state of existence, and one should always, always follow their heart, and put love above all else. I personally feel the tower represents an individual's personal journey towards transcendence, and each path has a valuable set of enlightenment that must be achieved to transcend to a higher self, or symbolically a higher level up that tower. one post stated that the series was a major disappointment to him (erik, may 08,2012) ...I really think he needs to reread the entire series...he is completely wrong...the ending was brilliant. He did not leave us disappointed at all...anyone feeling that way, rather missed the entire journey...we all lose everyone in our personal ka-tet in the end. In the end of this world, we leave everyone else behind and must journey to the next level of transcendence alone. I think instead of editing this magnum opus, King should definitely begin a new "story" of Roland's next trip around that staircase upward. He can leave out what he feels would be unnecessary this trip around for Roland's journey and add in, or change, what he felt Roland needed changed to make it to obtain his closure. King's ending is perfect...if one remembers that happiness, and fulfillment is NOT a destination, at the top of a tall tower, but rather a JOURNEY to a state of mind one needs to obtain. Please SK, weave us another tale along Roland's path to transcendence.

[Eric]

Rewriting the series would be a bit like throwing out the baby with the bathwater (forgive the cliche) but I still think it needs to be done. Drawing of the Three is one of the most perfect books King has ever written. Taken by itself, it is one of my all time favorite books.

Adding himself as a character and intertwining characters from other works (Father C) was ambitious but it didn't work. Those final 3 books should have stayed a thought experiment and not actually have been published.

I would like to see him revisit and rewrite this story. It deserves more love than what it got. But Drawing of the Three is a masterpiece. Keep that one.

[Scottchu]

♥♥Deborah♥♥ Is A Brian Kinney Groupie wrote: "Let's not forget The Regulators."

Yeah! Regulator is another outstanding short novel of SK's, IMHO. I'd like to see it goes to a movie since there're already mature comptuer technology applied in movie industry.

[Mark]

Laws, yes! Writing yourself into the series was just plain silly.

[Elaine]

Coming rather late to this conversation...but just how much revising did sai King do? I've seen that he wrote a new intro to The Gunslinger, but did he edit all the books?