Monsters in the Archives

Illuminating and original, Monsters in the Archives takes us deep into Stephen King’s private papers to show us how he crafted some of his most iconic, haunting books and took possession of so many of our imaginations * Amy Tan, author of The Joy Luck Club *Caroline Bicks has penned an affable, compulsively readable mix of memoir, biography, and heady analysis of Stephen King’s iconic early works enhanced by access to early drafts and notes. Monsters in the Archive is a treat for fans of Stephen King as well as anyone who ever wanted more of a peek behind the curtain at the great and terrible authorial Oz * Paul Tremblay, author of A Head Full of Ghosts *Literary scholars dream of having access to the drafts and notes of a major writer, then talking with the author about decisions, great and small, that inform the work. Caroline Bicks, who gets this rare chance, makes the most of it, offering a deeply engaging account of her discoveries in Stephen King’s archives. It will be treasured by admirers of his novels and is a must read for anyone curious about how great books get written * James Shapiro, Professor of English, Columbia University *

Caroline Bicks is an internationally recognized Shakespeare scholar with a long list of publications on early modern drama, gender, and the history of science. In 2017, she became the inaugural Stephen E. King Chair in Literature at the University of Maine. Bicks is the co-host of the Everyday Shakespeare podcast which already has thousands of followers.