On the heels of the news that best-selling horror master (and EW columnist) told the audience at a Toronto book signing that he was considering writing a sequel to The Shining, King tells EW.com that he’s got no immediate plans to revisit the character of Danny Torrance. “It’s a great idea, and I just can’t seem to get down to it,” says the author in an e-mail. “People shouldn’t hold their breath. I know it would be cool, though. I want to write it just for the title, Dr. Sleep. I even told them [at the book signing], ‘It will probably never happen.’” Still, King — whose most recent novel is this month’s Under the Dome — can’t quite shut the door on the Shining sequel, adding, “But ‘probably’ isn’t ‘positively,’ so maybe.”
Nov 25
2009
06:08 PM ET
Stephen King on proposed 'Shining' sequel: 'People shouldn't hold their breath'
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Please, please, please reconsider. I read way more often than I should, and have extremely varied taste, but I didn’t realize it was possible to be scared by a book until I read The Shining. I was pregnant with my second child, and I made my husband go to Home Depot in the middle of the night for a Nite Lite. But the fear wasn’t the best part. The richness of the story, and the character of Danny are the best parts for me. It would be a very satisfying experience, indeed to read a sequel.
I love, love The Shining. It bugs me when people are so critical of Stephen King, he’s really created some enjoyable (and scary) works of fiction. If it was well done, I’d be pumped about a Shining sequel.
Stephen King would be the perfect author with a good editor. The only criticism of his work that sticks is taht he wanders pointlessly in way too many scenes of his longer works. We know that he can write without wandering. He is one of the most brilliant short story writers ever but he needs someone to tell him that if the story is complete in 300 pages, he shouldn’t include 300 more. Unless he gets paid by the word still. Don’t know if I would read a Shining sequel. At some point, reality has to intrude again and consequences have to be faced. But he is always best at showing us how awful people are to each other so it might be a good read.
If the grown-up version of Danny Torrance meets the grown-up version of Charlie McGee, I’m all for it. I always thought that FIRESTARTER was the only Stephen King novel that could truly bear a sequel.
Never mind The Shining, what about The Dark Tower? We need more Roland!
If you go to his official site, there’s news that SK does have an idea for another Dark Tower Story, tentatively titled the Wind Through The Key Hole that he’d like to start in roughly eight months.
I don’t know if it’s a Roland story or not, but any more Dark Tower material is a good thing.
I hope theres not going to be a sequel to the 1980 movie shining.That was a Horrible movie.
The movie WAS terrible, but the made for TV movie with Stephen Weber was GREAT! It stayed true to the book – rent it!
Never mind The Shining or the Dark Tower, how ’bout a sequel to IT?
SPOILER!!!
It’s almost time for another iteration of It’s cycle (I think it’ll be 28 years in 2012), and he left it rather open-ended if Ben destroyed all the eggs.
It would be something to read if he goes back to his old way if writting I haven’t be able to get into his new books. So i’m all for it
The Toronto event was not a book signing – far from it. Mr. King even refused to sign copies of his new book outside afterwards when asked by a small group of eight or nine fans. It was quite disappointing.
I say do it. I want to know what happens to Danny.
a sequel to “The Shining” sounds great on paper and will probably make a lot of money but it’s regardless a bad idea,
I want to know what happens to Jack at the end of Black House! I’m ready for the 3rd book!!
Jack Sawyer is one of King’s best creations, and I would love to hear more adventures of Jack as the Coppiceman of the Territories.
Has Stephen King ever done a sequel? I can’t think of one. Someone must know . . .
I just bought “On Writing” and I’m on the second book of the Dark Tower series.
Also, I wish King was in every issue of EW. I’m always so disappointed when it’s one of the others. No offense to the others.
@Rrobertt: Well, Black House is a sequel to the Talisman. There are seven books in the Dark Tower series. And there are many, many characters who appear or are mentioned in more than one work. Dick Halloran of The Shining, for instance, appears in one of the backstory segments of It.
I’m a big King fan, and I loved The Shining, but this seems like a non-news article to me.
He said he might consider a sequel in Toronto, and then immediately said don’t bet on it. Soooo? You’re writing that the sequel that he’s already more or less debunked has been…more or less debunked.
When was King in Toronto for a book signing? I missed it!