Stephen King fans have plenty of good stuff on their plates right now, what with the movie adaptation of his novel “It” about to open in theaters on Friday and other excitement, so IT’s nice to have some personal news about the popular horror and fantasy author.

The first relates to a special screening of “It,” sponsored by King’s own radio station, WKIT-FM in Bangor, Maine on Wednesday evening. As reported by Page Six, when King walked into the theater he got a standing ovation from Bangor residents who were privileged to attend the special screening.

He then went on stage to warn them they were going to be scared out of their seats, but they may as well sit down anyway.

It was an appropriate setting for the special screening as Derry, the fictionalized town in which Pennywise the Clown lives in the sewers and reeks havoc is based on Bangor.

Stephen King and traveling preferences

The second piece of interesting King-related news was obtained by the New York Times. They wanted to know what the author’s preferences were when it came to travel. The interesting answer is that he prefers driving to flying.

He didn’t mention whether his novella “Langoliers” had anything to do with it, but says he will fly – if he has to – but prefers to navigate his own way to his destination. King went on to point out that should your car break down, you can pull over into the breakdown lane. However, if something should happen to your plane when you are at 40,000 feet, you die.

King did add that while occasionally his work takes him overseas, he prefers to be at home. He says he travels if he has to and tries to enjoy it, but that he’s done more Traveling that he really wants to.

Also, as fans know, he has family and Molly, aka the Thing of Evil, waiting for him back home.

King’s idea of a vacation is to head to Florida in winter, with his wife, Tabby flying, while he drives. According to King he thoroughly relies on Siri to get him where he wants to go and should the traffic get too much, she will always find back ways to travel, joking that usually, those back ways don’t include man-eating hillbillies.

Stephen King has modest tastes for a world-famous author

While he must have made a fair fortune with his many books and stories, King’s tastes are modest.

He says he normally stays at Motel 6 while eating out at the Waffle House. He said he doesn’t need anything fancy, just somewhere where he can relax and read a book. King even gave a few tips for lonesome travelers when staying at Motel 6. He said he always asks for a room at the end of the building, to lessen the chances of someone having a party next door. If the motel has three stories, he prefers a top floor room so he doesn’t have to worry about a couple above him “going at it all night long.”

What does the author pack?

When it comes to packing a suitcase, King also keeps things simple. He says he takes only the basics – for toiletries, he relies on what the motel has to offer. However, what he does need to take, and what he packs it into, is interesting to hear.

Everything King does take with him on his travels is packed inside an old battered Samsonite suitcase that he has been carrying with him for around 30 years. He says it drives his wife crazy, but it's everything he needs, even though it's “old school” and doesn’t have wheels.

For each trip, King has to have his iPad, loaded with audiobooks and at least a couple of movies that he wants to see, or maybe just a couple of episodes of “The Americans.” He always has a big crossword book with him, saying they are particularly handy if he flies, as you can’t always read on a long trip.

Probably works well to keep his mind off any incoming “Langoliers” too.

Besides the audiobooks, he always has a couple of physical, actual paper, books with him – the one he’s planning on reading and a backup in case it turns out to be terrible. He went on to recommend the book “My Absolute Darling” to the reporter who interviewed him, saying it's best to take advice from someone you trust when it comes to books.

As for clothing, most of King’s Constant Readers who have seen him speak, know he is most comfortable in jeans and T-shirts.

That is what gets packed into the trusty Samsonite for each trip. He says it makes him comfortable, as he’s not very good with big crowds of people. He said most writers are like that as they prefer to work in solitude and are not made for audiences like actors and comedians are. He added that by keeping clothing simple, also makes it much easier to pack for the trip. King is sometimes seen to wear a jacket, however, if the weather is cooler, as can be seen in the image at the top of this article.

King on big and small screens

Meanwhile for anyone that doesn’t already know, “It” hits theater screens on Friday, September 8, while “The Dark Tower” is currently in theaters. Not to forget, a terrifying movie adaptation of King’s "bondage" book “Gerald’s Game” is heading to Netflix on September 29.There's also a Netflix film adaptation of King's story "1922" coming on October 20, just in time for Halloween.

For those who prefer things serialized, “Mr. Mercedes” is an excellent, gruesome and exciting adaptation of King’s novel on Audience Network. Another upcoming series is “Castle Rock,” which will take several King characters and stories along a brand new route, is coming soon on Hulu.

While we're at it, take a peek at the scary trailer for "Gerald's Game" included below.