Castle Rock is 100% Stephen King fanfiction

Do I have your attention? No? I'll say it again: Hulu original show Castle Rock is fanfiction, plain and simple.

Now, calm down. Take a deep breath and walk with me through this and you will understand that not only am I right, but you might even realize that Castle Rock being fanfiction is not a bad thing.

If you don't know what fanfiction is, well, maybe I should start that fanfiction 101 blog after all. But real quick fanfiction lesson:

Fanfiction (also known as fanfics or even fics) is fiction created by a fan of a particular work. While it is usually written fiction, it does not have to be. Fanfiction can also be created surrounding real people or celebrities (aka RPF or real people fiction). Fanfiction can include any number of characters, storylines, plot points, settings, backgrounds, etc. originating from their source work (TV shows, movies, books, video games, celebrity lives, etc.), but will tell stories not included in the original works. Fanfiction can be heavily based in the original works (canon compliant) or it can be very different and only use bits and pieces from the original work (alternate universe).

With all that in mind—and that's just scratching the surface of what fanfiction is—is it starting to make sense why I'm saying Castle Rock is totally fanfiction?

If not, I'll break it down for you.

Castle Rock is a fictional town in Maine created by Stephen King and used in many of his fictional works. The show also includes characters who have featured in King works in the past, including Sheriff Alan Pangborn. There are a bunch of King Easter eggs thrown in throughout the first season as well, such as Jackie Torrence being the niece of The Shining's Jack Torrence, news clippings talking about the events in Cujo and, of course, the setting of Shawshank Prison from The Shawshank Redemption.

Now, taking that information, think about how Castle Rock is not an adaptation of a Stephen King novel or novella. It was not written by King—though he does have writing credit on IMDb for "characters and setting by"—and though he is listed as an executive producer, he didn't write or direct any episodes.

Castle Rock is a piece of fiction, created by fans of an author, that is based on characters, settings and events created by that author in his original works of fiction. How is that not fanfiction?

The only, and I mean only, argument I will hear against Castle Rock being fanfiction is that Stephen King was involved with the show's creation, which is not typically the case with the creation of fanfiction. But even with that fact, it's got all the other marks of being a fanfiction.

But that's not a knock against Castle Rock. I really enjoyed the show. I probably would have finished it in one sitting if I hadn't been watching it with other people. I also really enjoy fanfiction. It's one of my favorite things on the planet—like it's really high up there.

So, if you've watched Castle Rock and after reading this, you're like, "Huh, I totally see what she's saying, Zoë's so smart." Then maybe you'll give fanfiction a shot. It's not everybody's cup of tea, but it never hurts to check it out. I recommend using ArchiveOfOurOwn.org since it's probably the best website for finding fanfiction for basically everything under the sun.

If you've watched Castle Rock and you're more like, "Hmph, I don't see it." Then maybe rewatch the season with this post in mind, and see if you change your mind (and then check out the Archive, too). Even if you still don't see it the second time around, at least you got to watch a good show again. And if you haven't watched Castle Rock, first off, what are you doing on this blog post? And second, here's what you've got to do: go to Hulu, watch Castle Rock (c'mon, it's only 10 episodes), then check out the Archive, and thank me for being the Wise Recommendation Queen I am.