Not a Stephen King Fan, but...
I read the novelette Rita Hayworth and The Shawshank Redemption, my first Stephen King work ever, shortly and only after seeing the film several years ago. The story was tight, well-woven, and hilarious at times. And surprising after hearing of all the usual horror stuff he writes. Today I'm heading to my local B&N to buy my second King work, The Green Mile, after—you guessed it—I watched it last night WITH my tvguardian switched on. The book, from what I read about at amazon, is a full King novel, though written in a series format originally. The story is incredible, a sort of "The Notebook" and "The Chamber" mixed in one film. And I'll bet I'm the last person on earth to see it for the first time.