Stephen King knows you may be feeling like you're stuck in one of his horror novels during the coronavirus pandemic – and he’s very sorry about that.
The author, whose post-apocalyptic pandemic novel The Stand came out in 1978, was asked during a recent interview with NPR if this is the closest he’s come to stepping inside his own narrative.
“I keep having people say, ‘Gee, it’s like we’re living in a Stephen King story,’” King said.
“And my only response to that is, ‘I’m sorry.’”
He also said it’s “not very comfortable to be me” at the moment.
King has tried to limit comparisons between the coronavirus and the superflu that decimates humanity in The Stand.
However, he did share a chapter of the novel last month to help illustrate how viruses spread and to urge people to observe social distancing measures and other safety rules.
For King, a pandemic was “bound to happen”.
“There was never any question that in our society, where travel is a staple of daily life, that sooner or later, there was going to be a virus that was going to communicate to the public at large,” he told NPR.
The author said he has made “wonderful progress” on a novel while on isolation, as writing has become “a good way to get away from the fear” for him.
Here's the full interview from NPR: