The reason I post is that there is a stark contrast to her approach to writing as compared to the frequently cited approach of Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft.

Example 1: The purpose of plot
King: "Plot is, I think, the good writer's last resort and the dullard's first choice. The story which results from it is apt to feel artificial and labored."

Rand: Describing "Naturalistic" and "Romantic" schools of thought: a naturalist believes in the premise of determinism (man is helpless) and "its literary flaw is plotlessness. A plot, being a purposeful progression of events, necessarily presupposes men's freedom to choose and their ability to achieve a purpose."

Example 2: On vulgarity
King: "It is important to tell the truth, so much depends on it... If you substitute "Oh sugar!" for "Oh s---" because you are thinking about the
legion of Decency, you are breaking the unspoken contract that exists between writer and reader."

Rand: "Do not use obscenities -- and never mind all the arguments about 'realism'... Obscene language is not an objective language which you can use to express your own value judgments. It is a language of prefabricated value judgments consisting of the denunciation of sex and this earth and conveying that these are low or damnable."

Each author goes into fairly good detail about this topic.

Summary (Spoiler alert on Stephen King's, The Stand)
There are so many example of completely different opinions on writing from two notable authors. Ayn Rand goes into great detail between the differences between the Naturalist (i.e. Thomas Wolfe) and the Romantic (Melville, Hugo, Rand) author.

On a side note: interestingly enough, King discusses the deus ex machina of John Grisham's novels; yet his very own Magnum Opus, The Stand resolves the climax with the hand of God reaching out of the sky to rescue the protagonists from destruction. Perhaps that is the danger in writing a plotless story.

For those many inquiries I've seen on "How to Write" books, I suppose it depends on what type of writer you would like to be...

[This message has been edited by psnede (edited November 28, 2008).]
 

Rand never had to work in today's market, and her sensibilities, while probably accurate, are dated.
 

King uses "vulgarity" as part of the characterization--not as an excuse to fling F-bombs and S-bombs about.

An aside: Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft isn't a how-to book, it's a how-I book. If you're looking for Stephen King's How-To book, it's called Danse Macabre--and it didn't read nearly as well.
 

P.S.: All the above is about writing, I hope you are aware of that.