Horror Writer's ID Revealed

He didn't bank on the family name, that's for sure, but horror author, Joe Hill, is actually Stephen King's son. His new book, Heart-Shaped Box, hit the stands last month but movie rights for the book sold six months before it was even published! And again, none of this has to do with the fact that he is Stephen King's son. In fact, his own publicist didn't even know it until about two years ago.

Hill (which is his real name: Joe Hill King) has published short works but this is his first novel. He is 34 and lives with his wife and three children in Maine. He keeps his private life as private as possible, noting how a crazed fan once broke into his father's home and threatened his mother, authoress, Tabitha King. Hill's brother Owen is also an author, though his works tend more to the literary than the horrific. In fact, of all the family, the older sister is the only one who is not a full-time writer, even though she is working on a non-fiction project; she is a Unitarian minister.

King himself declined comment on any of this, which came about mainly through blogs until an article published in Variety blew the lid off his secret identity. A lot of bloggers noted the similarity in appearance to King, which sent up red flags and the rumors swirled. King has publicly mentioned the possibility of working with his son on a novel one day, but nothing definite has been set into play.