I was going to say that it’s been a while since we got a new short story from King but then I remembered that his last book, You Like It Darker was a collection so I’ll just say that it’s been a while since we got a new short story from King in a magazine.

This time it’s a story called The Extra Hour and we’re getting it in issue #79 of Cemetery Dance. The story tells how Jim Danton tells his lawyer Soames how he is suffering from insomnia. And it’s not just that he can’t sleep. He is getting one extra hour each night. An hour that is much longer than a regular hour and painful. The story is pretty short, only four pages, but as usual King still creates solid characters with real problems. There is also a cool illustration for it done by François Vaillancourt.

I won’t spoil the plot to much but it’s a classic King with a twist on the end. I liked it and it’s impressive to see that he has more short stories at hand just after he’s released a collection. I personally enjoy his shorter works.

The issue also contains an interview with King (done by Bev Vincent) in which he talks about writing short stories. Vincent also has his column Stephen King News From The Dead Zone where he looks at the latest news from King. And as if that isn’t enough we also get an interview with super collector Kris Webster who has seen probably everything that is out there at one point or another and was one of the people behind the first KingCon in Las Vegas last year (a new one is planned for 2026).

Cemetery Dance issue #79 is a real King issue and if you only plan on buying one issue this is the one.