Secret Windows Explained

Secret Windows
Author:Stephen King
Country:United States
Language:English
Subject:Writing
Publisher:BOMC
Release Date:October 2000
Media Type:Print (Hardcover)
Pages:433
Isbn:0-16-500643-9
Followed By:Faithful (book)

Secret Windows: Essays and Fiction on the Craft of Writing is a collection of short stories, essays, speeches, and book excerpts by Stephen King, published in 2000. It was marketed by Book-of-the-Month Club as a companion to King's On Writing. Although its title is derived from a King novella (Secret Window, Secret Garden), it is not otherwise related to that novella or the film adaptation, Secret Window.[1]

The texts in the collection are primarily concerned with writing and the horror genre. Several of the entries have been published elsewhere, including introductions King had written for other authors' novels, as well as introductions and essays from King's previous books. This volume also includes several short works that had not been previously published elsewhere, including lectures given by King, an interview with King conducted by Muriel Gray, a never-before-published short story by King, titled "In the Deathroom," and an introduction written by Peter Straub.

Contents

TitleOriginally published in
Introduction by Peter StraubPreviously unreleased
Dave's Rag Dave's Rag (1959–1960)
The horror market writer and the ten bears: A true storyWriter's Digest (1973)
Foreword to Night ShiftNight Shift (1978)
On becoming a brand nameAdelina magazine (1980)
Horror fictionDanse Macabre (1981)
An evening at the Billerica (Massachusetts) library1983
The Ballad of the Flexible BulletFantasy & Science Fiction magazine (1984)
How It happenedBook-of-the-month-club news (1986)
Banned books and other concerns: The Virginia Beach lectureVirginia Beach Public Library (1986)
Turning the thumbscrew on the readerBook-of-the-month-club news (1987)
"Ever et raw meat?" and other weird questionsThe New York Times book review (1987)
A new introduction to John Fowles's The CollectorThe Collector (1989)
What Stephen King does for loveSeventeen (1990)
Two past midnight: A note on Secret Window, Secret GardenFour Past Midnight (1990)
Introduction to Jack Ketchum's The Girl Next DoorThe Girl Next Door (1995)
Great hookers I have known
A night at the Royal Festival Hall: Muriel Gray interviews Stephen King1998
An evening with Stephen King1999
In the DeathroomBlood and Smoke (1999)

Notes and References

  1. News: Gray . Richard . Inconstant Reader: Secret Windows – essays and fiction on the craft of writing . 23 March 2023 . The Reel Bits . 8 January 2022.