Battle of the Authors

Koontz vs. King
Who will rule this ring?
One will win and one will lose
You get to choose...

Horror fiction is one of the most popular genres of today. When we think about horror authors our minds turn to the greats like Edgar Alan Poe, H.P. Lovecraft, and Bram Stoker but also to the newcomers like Stephen King and Dean Koontz. It's no secret that both these authors have cut themselves a big slice of the horror market but in a world where survival means the last one standing at the end of the night...who will live on and who will be laid to rest?

First to enter into our battle is 64 year-old Dean Ray Koontz, aka: Aaron Wolfe, Brian Coffey, Deanna Dwyer, John Hill, David Axton, K.R. Dwyer, Leigh Nichols, Leonard Chris, Owen West, and Richard Paige. If that wasn't enough, he also writes under the name Trixie Koontz in the guise of his beloved dog. Aliases, however, are not the only things this author has an abundance of...he's also well known for using reoccurring themes in his work such as a California setting, a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber Chiefs Special, the words preternatural and ozone, T.S. Eliot references, characters with military backgrounds, and others.

At 62, Stephen Edwin King is the younger of our two combatants. Known pen names include Richard Bachman and John Swithen. Not to be outdone on reoccurrences, however, King is also known for using Maine as a backdrop and creating main characters who are writers.

When we compare these two authors on number of published novels, Koontz is the clear winner with 73 to King's 68. However, both authors have published many more works through short stories, non-fiction, and various collections. Going beyond the writing, King is much more victorious in the movie field with 50 of his titles made into TV/film adaptations while Koontz trails behind with just 17.

Stephen King and Dean Koontz path to writing were both very similar. They had similar childhoods with strained paternal relationships and later in life both found jobs in teaching before making their break into writing.

Today, as well as being well known and respected novelists, these two stand proudly and loudly for their personal political stances. Koontz donates regularly to the Republican Party and King is an outspoken advocate for the Democratic Party.

The two men, while eerily similar in some respects, are very different in their writing of the horror genre and in their readers. Which author rules the stacks of the Crawfordsville Public Library...Koontz or King? Now is the time to stand up for your favorite author (as they would) and give voice for your choice by commenting to this blog!