Stephen King Brings 'Shining' Sequel 'Dr. Sleep' to Life at Book Festival

Dr. Sleep, Stephen King's sequel to The Shining, was introduced publicly for the first time at George Mason University's 2011 Fall for the Book festival Saturday.

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King read an excerpt from the work-in-progess, which reintroduces The Shining's protagonist Danny Torrance as an adult.

King told the crowd, "I've always wondered what happened to that kid in The Shining."

The prolific author received the event's Mason Award, which recognizes writers who have made "extraordinary contributions to bringing literature to a wide reading public."

Past recipients of the award include Dave Eggers, Things Fall Apart's Chinua Achebe and Three Cups of Tea author Greg Mortenson.

King also spoke during his address about his literary influences and his newest book, 11/22/63, which will be released in November.

Filmmaker Jonathan Demme has optioned the rights to the time-travel novel set against the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The Silence of the Lambs director will write and direct as well as produce the adaptation.

11/22/63 centers on an English teacher who goes through a time portal in an effort to stop the Kennedy assassination. He finds himself dealing with luminaries ranging from Elvis to JFK and meets a high school librarian that becomes the love of his life.