Stephen King | Bio, Net Worth, Age, Family, Children, Novel, Career

American author Stephen King is particularly active in the genres of horror, suspense, fantasy, and supernatural fiction. King is frequently referred to as the “King of Horror”. He has been successful in penning more than 350 million copies of his more than 60 books.

Stephen King| Early Life & Family

On September 21, 1947, in Portland, Maine, Stephen Edwin King was born. Nellie Ruth (Pillsbury) is Stephen’s mother and Donald Edwin King is his father.

When Stephen was two years old, his father abandoned the family, leaving his mother to look after him and his older brother, David.

Stephen King on his birthday Source: Google

The boys saw little of their mother because she worked many menial jobs to support her kids.

Moreover, when King was a child, he discovered a box of fantasy-horror stories and books that had once belonged to his father and devoured them all.

Also, King started creating his own stories by the time he was seven years old.

Stephen King| Education

Stephen graduated from Lisbon Falls High School in 1966 after attending Durham Grammar School. He began writing a weekly column for THE MAINE CAMPUS, the school newspaper, in his sophomore year at the University of Maine at Orono.

As a member of the Student Senate, King was also involved in student politics. His decision to assist the anti-war movement on the Orono campus stemmed from his conservative belief that the Vietnam War violated the Constitution.

Stephen earned a B.A. in English and was certified to teach high school English when he left the University of Maine at Orono in 1970.

Stephen King| Novels

King’s debut book, Carrie, about a tortured teen who exacts retribution on her peers, was published in 1973 and became a bestseller.

Later, Sissy Spacek played the title role in an adaptation for the big screen. The Shining (1977), Salem’s Lot (1975), Firestarter (1980), Cujo (1981), and IT (1986) were among the next widely read books.

Stephen King book — Novels written by Stephen King Source: Google

King worried that readers wouldn’t accept more than one book from an author within a year, so four early books — Rage (1977), The Long Walk (1979), Roadwork (1981), and The Running Man (1982) — were released under the name.

The alias was created due to what he heard playing on his record player at the time, “You Ain’t Seen Nothin’ Yet,” by Bachman Turner Overdrive, and a novel by Richard Stark, who was Donald Westlake under a pseudonym.

Stephen King| Professional Career

King keeps coming up with provocative projects and working on them. He has written for television shows like Under the Dome and Kingdom Hospital, the latter of which is based on his 2009 novel.

King released the novel 11/22/63, which uses time travel to attempt to avert President John F. Kennedy’s murder, in 2011.

Joyland (2013), a thriller written in the pulp-fiction style by King, leads readers on a quest to find out who committed an unsolved murder.

Then, as a surprise to the public, he published Doctor Sleep (2013), a prequel to The Shining, which debuted at No. 1 as a bestseller.

Following the release of Mr. Mercedes (2014), the author went on to publish Finders Keepers (2015) and End of Watch (2016), completing the crime trilogy.

Moreover, King co-authored Sleeping Beauties, a book about a mysterious virus that causes women to become cocooned, in 2017 with his son Owen.

The novella Gwendy’s Button Box, which he co-wrote with Richard Chizmar, was the second project he completed that year.

Mr. Mercedes’ first season premiered on the Audience Network in 2017, and the IT remake made a sizable amount of money at the box office.

2019 saw the release of adaptations of Doctor Sleep, IT Chapter 2, and Pet Sematary, another work by Stephen King.

Stephen King| Personal Life

King and his literary spouse share their time between Maine and Florida.

Stephen and Tabitha King have three kids: Naomi Rachel, a minister; Joseph Hillstrom, a renowned author of horror fiction who goes by the pen name Joe Hill; and Owen Phillip, whose debut book of short tales was released in 2005.

Furthermore, King was among those who received the National Medal of Arts in 2015 in recognition of his prolific productivity and professional accomplishment.

Stephen King| Net Worth and Salary

Stephen King gives away roughly $4 million of his yearly estimated net worth of $500 million.

Moreover, this book launched King’s successful career as an author. It revolutionized the horror genre and quickly became a beloved read.

At the time “Carrie” was published, King received a $2,500 advance payment, which would be equivalent to about $15,000 in today’s money.

In contrast, the paperback rights to the book were sold for $400,000, which is equivalent to more than $2.3 million in today’s US dollars.

Stephen King| Age, Height & Weight

Stephen King has a height of 5 feet 8 inches, 172 centimeters, and 1.72 meters. In terms of weight, he is around 74 kg (or 139 lbs) in kilograms.

My collaborator on SLEEPING BEAUTIES (who happens to be my son Owen, not Wen) has a new novel coming out next month. It’s a firecracker! pic.twitter.com/XNRfJ5MYkF

— Stephen King (@StephenKing) February 15, 2023

Stephen King was born on September 21, 1947, making him 73 years old at the moment.

QUICK FACTS

Name: Stephen Edwin King
Birth Year: 1947
Birth date: September 21, 1947
Birth State: Maine
Birth City: Portland
Birth Country: United States
Gender: Male
Best Known For: ‘New York Times’-bestselling novelist who made his name in the horror and fantasy genres with books like ‘Carrie,’ ‘The Shining’ and ‘IT.’
Industries
- Fiction and Poetry
Astrological Sign: Virgo
Schools
- Durham Elementary School
- University of Maine
- Lisbon Falls High School
Father’s Name: Donald Edwin King
Mother’s Name: Nellie Ruth (Pillsbury)
Spouse: Tabitha King
Children’s: Naomi Rachel, Joseph Hillstrom, Owen Phillip
Height: 5ft 8 inches
Weight: 74kgs
Social Media: Twitter, Youtube

FAQs

What are the top 5 fears of Stephen King?

Stephen experienced a variety of fears from a young age. He was afraid of the dark, snakes, rats, spiders, therapy, deformities, cramped places, choking, dying, flying, and other things.