Iconic horror novelist Stephen King has revealed the top five favorite stories he’s written throughout his lengthy career. For over forty years now, King has been publishing some of the most memorable horror stories of all time. His ability to frighten and engage readers has made him an international sensation, with dozens of his books and short stories adapted into films, television miniseries, and even stage productions.

Of course, with so many books and stories to his name, there’s bound to be the odd underperformer here and there. Fortunately enough for King, however, while some of his novels have been more successful than others, in general, his fan base has ensured that each new release is still an event. It’s only when the film adaptations are considered that audiences are a little bit more problematic. King’s experience with film adaptations of his work officially kicked off in 1976, when Brian De Palma took on the author’s first published novel, Carrie. The film was a hit, and further adaptations soon arrived, with some beloved by critics and audiences alike, yet despised by King. Some of his novels have gone through multiple adaptations, and even today, King remains very specific about how his books are handled on the big or small screen.

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And while fans are well aware of the film adaptations that King hasn’t liked over the years, it isn’t often that he gets to talk about his most favorite fictitious creations. During a recent interview on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, King was asked what he feels the top five books or short stories he’s written are. The responses may surprise some in that his most popular and well-known works aren’t on the list. Survivor Type, Misery, Lisey’s Story, The Stand and Stand By Me aka The Body all made King’s final cut of favorites, with his latest novel, Billy Summers, thrown in for good measure. Check out the full clip with King below:

Though Misery and The Stand indeed received their share of acclaim, given King’s immense body of work, most fans wouldn’t expect him to choose either novel as a favorite. Carrie, for example, was the novel that kickstarted King’s career and saved him from a life that hinged on the verge of poverty. What’s more, it was at his wife’s urging after she retrieved the abandoned manuscript from a garbage bin that he returned to work on it. The same could be said for The Shining, which, while notoriously one of King’s most hated film adaptations of his work, has attracted innumerable readers over the years – some of whom had never read anything else by the author.

But of course, the question posed to Stephen King was not which of his novels and short stories the public enjoy the most. The process of writing a book or short story is much different than how it ultimately fares among the public or with critics. For King, these were the five favorites he could come up with. Why they’re his favorite is another question altogether – one that fans would undoubtedly love to hear the answer to.

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Source: The Late Show With Stephen Colbert