Forty years after Stephen King introduced readers to the haunted environs of Derry, Maine, IT still looms large over horror fiction. In STILL FLOATING, editor Tom Deady assembles an all-star roster of authors, scholars, artists and publishers to examine the legacy of King’s landmark novel – from Pennywise the Dancing Clown’s place in the pantheon of horror icons to the enduring power of the Losers’ Club and the universal fears lurking behind Derry’s streets. More than a retrospective, STILL FLOATING is a celebration of the novel’s ability to shape readers, inspire creators and remind us that the monsters we faced as children never truly disappear.
RUE MORGUE recently had the opportunity to sit down with Tom Deady to chat about STILL FLOATING, coming September 2026 from Greymore Publishing.
STILL FLOATING celebrates four decades of IT, the novel Stephen King famously called his “final exam on horror.” After spending so much time immersed in its legacy, what do you think makes IT endure when so many other horror novels have faded from popular conversation?
First and foremost, the characters. The Losers resonate with such a wide demographic. There’s a little bit of at least one of them in just about everyone. Stephen King captures the magic of childhood in his characters more realistically than any writer I know. In IT, he once again reminds us what it was like having everything in front of you, every summer day, every friendship, every possibility. What separates this from his other brilliant coming-of-age tales is introducing us to the adult versions of the Losers. I think it really hits home – at least it does with me – seeing the characters grown up, living their lives and sadly, forgetting all about their childhood.
Second, Pennywise. he (she?) is arguably King’s most recognizable villain and belongs in the conversation with the classics: Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, Jason, Michael Myers. If there were a Mount Rushmore of horror villains, Pennywise would be in the discussion.
Finally, the writing is the glue that holds the characters and their stories together. King’s ability to show us the world through his characters’ eyes with such vivid and honest description puts the reader right in the heart of Derry. His talent in doing so raises both the fear and the empathy to higher levels.
In STILL FLOATING, contributors range from novelists and scholars to artists, publishers and Stephen King historians, with a total of thirty names on the anthology’s table of contents! When assembling your contributors, what perspectives did you feel were essential to understanding IT?
Great question. I talk in the foreword about how I originally planned to write the entire book myself and quickly realized it would not suffice. To properly honor the novel, it would take many voices, and not just other writers. IT has touched so many people that I wanted as many perspectives as possible to highlight the importance of the novel.
The impact it has had on writers was the easy part. It was the broader effect I wanted to explore. The film and television adaptations, the gorgeous limited-edition volumes of the book, the iconography of the red balloon and the paper boat, fear of clowns, pop culture, and, of course, the literary analysis. It was daunting at first, but when I began reaching out to people, the response was amazing.
The authors were a no-brainer. I’ve heard many of them speak about King’s influence on their career. What I didn’t expect was such personal insight. I knew the book changed my life but didn’t realize the profound impact it had on so many. I hope I managed to capture the ripple effect it has had beyond the horror writing community.
Pennywise has become one of horror’s more recognizable villains, but IT has always been about so much more than one evil clown. Did working on this anthology change your own understanding of the novel’s underlying themes of childhood, fear, memory and community?
Absolutely. To analyze a novel with the depth and breadth of IT is difficult. A lot of the themes you mention can be very subjective, and the understanding of them is influenced by the reader’s own memories. I’ve read the novel at least a dozen times, and while each reread enlightens me and surprises me, it is still through the lens of my own childhood experiences. I can empathize with the Losers, but I can’t adequately feel what they feel and truly claim to understand their fears.
Bill is grieving the loss of his brother, Stan is Jewish, Mike is Black, Bev is a girl who is sexualized by almost every male character in the book, Ben is overweight, and Eddie has been traumatized by an overbearing hypochondriac of a mother. I was never any of those things or lived through any of those experiences. Reading these personal and deep essays from people who have had similar experiences has certainly given me a deeper appreciation for the characters that King created.
Other essays explore the theme of community and the setting of Derry, Maine. These are the ones that surprised me the most. While Derry is certainly unique in its history and characters, these essays changed my perspective. Derry really could be Anytown, USA… or New Zealand!
From Stranger Things to countless coming-of-age horror novels, IT casts a remarkably long shadow over modern horror. Looking back over 40 years, where do you see its fingerprints most clearly on today’s writers and storytellers?
Well, most clearly in my own work. Haven is strongly influenced by IT, as well as by Boy’s Life and Summer of Night. And you already mentioned Stranger Things; I’m not sure that would exist without IT as a precursor. But Pennywise’s fingerprints are everywhere.
Jeff Strand’s Autumn Bleeds Into Winter, John Boden’s Jedi Summer, The Shadow Year by Jeffrey Ford, John Durgin’s The Cursed Among Us, Ronald Malfi’s December Park and Children of the Dark by Jonathan Janz. And Children of Chaos by Greg Gifune all have things in common with IT, namely strong themes of childhood friendship and nostalgia coupled with great storytelling. I don’t know for sure if these authors were influenced by IT, but it certainly feels that way to me.
What we used to call (and I still do) coming-of-age books are now referred to as “kids on bikes” stories. Is there any more iconic “kid on a bike” than Big Bill riding Silver?
Every horror fan remembers the story or monster that first got under their skin. After editing STILL FLOATING, has your relationship with IT changed?
IT will always be special to me. But reading these essays has given me an even deeper appreciation for the novel and its relevance. So many of the authors opened their hearts and shared such personal stories; it’s really difficult for me to express how profoundly their words and memories affected me. I plan to reread the novel and try to view it through their eyes.
If anything, and I didn’t think this was possible, my affection for the Losers and my fascination with Derry and Pennywise have grown stronger. I’ve always held IT on a pedestal as the greatest horror novel ever written, and seeing the love others have for it only reaffirms that.
