Pet Sematary is one of Stephen King's most terrifying books and movies, and it was inspired by a real sad event from his family's life. King has crafted some of the scariest horror tales in the history of the genre, but even he gets frightened sometimes, and Pet Sematary proved to be a cause of fear in the author. Famously, King was so upset by what he had written that he stuffed the book away in a drawer, and only finally released it to help fulfill a publishing contract he wanted out of.
Considering how much fans love to be scared by King's work though, it's not really a wonder that Pet Sematary became a huge hit upon release, as anything capable of scaring Stephen King is probably worth reading. One of King's fairly rare forays into zombie territory, Pet Sematary of course centers on Louis Creed, a doctor, father, and husband who makes use of a cursed burial ground to resurrect his daughter's dead cat. When his young son dies, Louis can't help but bring him back too, setting up a chain of events leading to his family's downfall.
Pet Sematary, at its heart, is a story about the universal terrors of grief, and what people might do if they had a way to resurrect the dead. It's been adapted to film twice, and suitably, it traces back to a real-life experience with death.
Pet Sematary: The Macabre Inspiration For Stephen King's Book
Ultimately published in 1983, Pet Sematary's origins trace back to 1979, when Stephen King was serving as a writer-in-residence at the University of Maine. He and his family rented a house nearby, about 12 miles from the campus. The house was next to a busy road, which regularly saw semi-trucks drive down it at high speeds. A kindly neighbor named Julio warned King to be mindful that his kids and pets steered clear of the roadway for their safety. Near the house was a makeshift pet cemetery where local children had buried their deceased furry friends. Sadly, King's daughter's cat Smucky was hit by a truck, then found by King, leading to an uncomfortable conversation about death, and the burial of the animal in the cemetery.
To top things off, King had a close call in which his young son Owen - who's now an author himself - ran toward the road, only to be pulled back by his father. This led King to two related ideas, what if a dead pet could be resurrected, and what if a dead child could. Throw in elements from the classic tale of wishes gone wrong known as The Monkey's Paw, and the recipe for Pet Sematary was born. It's almost eerie how close the book is to King's real-life circumstances at the time, including Julio inspiring the character of Jud Crandall, right down to the line about the road "using up" animals.