Stephen King’s early life was full of problems. He was Born September 21, 1947 in Portland, Maine to Donald and Nellie Ruth Pillsbury King. His father left his family two years after he was born, so his mother had to raise him and his brother in extremely poor conditions, having to take multiple jobs just to get by. Despite this, King's mother loved him and his brother very much. Their home was always rented and the well they used dried out constantly, requiring Stephen to make trips to a spring in a different field. They had no way to bathe in their house either, so to take a bath they would have to walk half a mile to his aunt's house (“Stephen King”). Though he had friends, King felt like an outcast among his classmates. He was overweight and lacked coordination, causing him to become very unhappy. In his dreams, he would often feel inadequate, and was usually ridiculed in some way. As a result of this and his father's absence, King used his imagination to develop a daredevil alter ego named Cannonball Cannon. With such an active imagination and the anxieties he faced constantly, King feared going suddenly insane. He became extremely fearful of death due to television violence he often saw and had thoughts of being jumped by strange figures in dark streets. Due to this, he created a scrapbook of mass …show more content…
This paper was eventually traced back to him and he was brought to the office, fearing suspension. He was not suspended, but had to apologize to all of the people he had made fun of. His guidance counselor decided to put his talent to better use, having him write sports for the Lisbon Enterprise. After high school, he attended the University of Maine. His mother wanted him and his brother to be successful, encouraging King to submit his writings. She sent them both $5 every week to spend, though they only found out later that she would often skip meals to do so (“Stephen