Author James Patterson is canceling the release of what was supposed to be his next novel, “The Murder of Stephen King.”
According to the Associated Press, the author released a statement through publisher Little, Brown and Company explaining that he didn’t want to cause Stephen King or his family any trouble. Co-authored by Derek Nikitas, the book was due to be published on November 1.
“The Murder of Stephen King” was planned as a fictional novel in which King is stalked by an obsessed killer characterized as the embodiment of all of the Maine native’s villains combined into one.
Despite the book’s grave subject matter, Patterson intended it as a tribute to the horror writer, explaining on the pre-order page for the book on his official website, “I’m a Stephen King fan, but Stephen King did not participate in the making of this novel, nor is he affiliated with it in any way. I hope he likes it.”
“The Murder of Stephen King” was announced only last week, on September 15. It was set to be presented as part of Patterson’s BookShots series which are advertised as “all thriller, no filler” on the author’s website and are promised to be under 150 pages.
Forbes listed Patterson as the highest-paid author for the third year in a row, bringing in $95 million.
Little, Brown and Company has not returned TheWrap’s request for comment at the time of publication.