What was Stephen King’s first novel?

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Long before he became the literary boogeyman keeping readers up at night, Stephen King was just a kid from Portland, Maine with an overactive imagination and a penchant for the macabre. Born in 1947, King's journey to the throne of horror began in the pages of comic books and on the screens of late-night monster movies. Little did the world know that these childhood obsessions would one day spawn a legacy of terror.

King's love affair with writing started early, proving that some habits are hard to break – especially when they're destined to reshape an entire genre. While other kids were out playing stickball or trading baseball cards, young Stephen was hunched over a typewriter, unknowingly preparing for literary world domination. In 1965, at the ripe old age of 18, King became a published author when his short story, "I Was a Teenage Grave Robber," found its way into the pages of the fanzine Comics Review.

After graduating from the University of Maine in 1970 with an English degree, King found himself in the truly horrifying world of high school teaching. By day, he molded young minds. By night, he molded terrifying tales that would one day mold a generation of horror fans.

It was during this time, in the early 1970s, that King embarked on his most ambitious project yet. Picture this: a small laundry room in a trailer, a typewriter precariously balanced against a washing machine, and a young writer pounding away at the keys while surrounded by the sweet aroma of fabric softener. Who says domestic life can't be the backdrop for literary greatness?

This novel, born in humble circumstances and initially rejected by publishers (clearly, they hadn't had their coffee yet), would go on to become a sensation when it hit bookshelves in 1974. It catapulted King from obscure teacher to master of the macabre faster than you can say "redrum."

So put on your thinking caps (preferably not ones cursed by an ancient burial ground). Can you name the groundbreaking novel that marked Stephen King's debut and ushered in a new era of horror fiction?