Master thriller writer Stephen King has penned over 50 novels, selling 350 million copies in a career that spans over 40 years.
“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”
Stephen King
Famous for his terrifying prose, King writes horror, supernatural, science fiction, fantasy and, more recently, crime novels. When asked why he writes, King responds: “The answer to that is fairly simple — there was nothing else I was made to do. I was made to write stories and I love to write stories. That’s why I do it. I really can’t imagine doing anything else and I can’t imagine not doing what I do.”
Having penned over 200 short stories – many set in his home town of Maine and the most famous arguably being his novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption, the basis for the movie The Shawshank Redemption – it was no surprise when he was awarded a National Medal of Arts from the United States National Endowment for the Arts for his contributions to literature in 2015.
Did you know…
1. King credits The Lurker of the Threshold, a short story collection by HP Lovecraft as the catalyst to him becoming a writer.
2. More Stephen King books have been adapted into films than any other living author.
3. Stephen King also writes under two pen names: Richard Bachman and John Swithen.
4. Carrie was originally planned as a short story but King threw out the first draft. It was rescued by his wife Tabitha.
5. Mr Mercedes, King’s first ‘hard-boiled detective book’, was first published in 2014 and featured retired detective Bill Hodges. It won an Edgar Award and, as the first in a trilogy, was followed by Finders and Keepers and End of Watch.
Read on for a list of Stephen King books in order – or find out how his writing has inspired other writers here.
Stephen King bibliography:
| By date | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1. Carrie (1974) | 2. ‘Salem’s Lot (1975) | 3. The Shining (1977) |
| 4. Rage (1977) | 5. The Stand (1978) | 6. The Long Walk (1979) |
| 7. The Dead Zone (1979) | 8. Firestarter (1980) | 9. Roadwork (1981) |
| 10. Cujo (1981) | 11. The Running Man (1982) | 12. The Dark Tower: The Gunslinger (1982) |
| 13. Christine (1983) | 14. Pet Sematary (1983) | 15. Cycle of the Werewolf (1983) |
| 16. The Talisman (1984) | 17. Thinner (1984) | 18. It (1986) |
| 19. The Eyes of the Dragon (1987) | 20. The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three (1987) | 21. Misery (1987) |
| 22. The Tommyknockers (1987) | 23. The Dark Half (1989) | 24. The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands (1991) |
| 25. Needful Things (1991) | 26. Gerald’s Game (1992) | 27. Dolores Claiborne (1992) |
| 28. Insomnia (1994) | 29. Rose Madder (1995) | 30. The Green Mile (1996) |
| 31. Desperation (1996) | 32. The Regulators (1996) | 33. The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass (1997) |
| 34. Bag of Bones (1998) | 35. The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon (1999) | 36. Dreamcatcher (2001) |
| 37. Black House (2001) | 38. From a Buick 8 (2002) | 39. The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla (2003) |
| 40. The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah (2004) | 41. The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower (2004) | 42. The Colorado Kid (2005) |
| 43. Cell (2006) | 44. Lisey’s Story (2006) | 45. Blaze (2007) |
| 46. Duma Key (2008) | 47. Under the Dome (2009) | 48. 11/22/63 (2011) |
| 49. The Dark Tower: The Wind Through the Keyhole (2012) | 50. Joyland (2013) | 51. Doctor Sleep (2013) |
| 52. Mr. Mercedes (2014) | 53. Revival (2014) | 54. Finders Keepers (2015) |
| 55. End of Watch (2016) | 56. Gwendy’s Button Box (2017) | 57. Sleeping Beauties (2017) |
| 58. The Outsider (2018) | 59. Elevation (2018) | 60. The Institute (2019) |
| 61. Later (2021) | 62. Billy Summers (2021) | 63. Fairy Tale (2022) |
| 64. Holly (2023) |
I love stephen king. My first read was pet sematary and have been a fan ever since. I’ve got over half of all his books and I’m working on getting the rest of the collection. There will never be another writer like him.
I adore Stephen King’s novels. Started as a teenager with Carrie and continued reading his books until I got to Desperation. That book scared me so bad I vowed never to read another King book again – and I didn’t for years. But you can’t keep great writing from pulling at one’s heart strings and so I finally started reading King novels again. I read other types of books as well. But reading King books is like eating dessert. When I want sheer pleasure I picked one up and let the story touch my palette in a way no other writer can. My personal favorites (for their unique writing format and intricacy of story structure) are Lisey’s Story and Song Of Susannah. But just about everything he’s written has blown me away.
I’ve been hooked since I was about 12. I think my 1st book was Carrie. I remember getting in trouble with my mom for taking her copy of IT to school. I couldn’t find a stopping point so it got confiscated by the teacher. There are quite a few titles not on the list. My goal is to read them all!
Stephen King is the reason I started reading scary novels. The first novel I had ever read was Cujo. I am a animal lover and for him to make the St. Bernard a vicious animal was the most best thing. Ever since I have loved his writing. I love collecting his novels. Thank u for being a great Author and please don’t stop writing. Thank u.
I have long been a reader of Stephen King. The first Stephen King book I ever read was Christine when I was around 11 or 12. I was always fond of the old Chevy cars. To imagine one that could not only repair itself but “solve” your problems for you was fantastic. I have since read almost every book he has written, except for a few that I could not find in the shops. I have two daughters now that are reading all my King books. I still have most of them, some have been misplaced through many moves around the country. I recommend Stephen King to anybody who enjoys a book you can’t put down.