Even the Master of Horror Gets Scared: Stephen King on His Own Fears

American author Stephen King has built his reputation on stories that terrify readers, but the writer behind “It,” “The Shining” and “Pet Sematary” is not immune to fear himself.

In past interviews, King has discussed a number of fears that cause him anxiety, offering a glimpse of the personal unease behind his reputation as a master of horror.

King has also acknowledged that some of those fears have found their way into his literary work. His comments point to a connection between the things that unsettle him and the fiction that has made him widely known.

While the supplied account does not identify the specific fears he described, it highlights a contrast at the heart of his career: an author celebrated for frightening others can draw on anxieties of his own.