My first two readers were my wife,Tabitha, and Leanora Legrand, my daughter-in-law. Both were tough, humane, and helpful.

Nan Graham edited the book down from the original dinosaur to a beast of slightly more manageable size; every page of the manuscript was marked with her changes. I owe her a great debt of thanks for all the mornings when she got up at six a.m. and took her pencil in her hand. I tried to write a book that would keep the pedal consistently to the metal. Nan understood that, and whenever I weakened, she jammed her foot down on top of mine and yelled (in the margins, as editors are wont to do),'Faster, Steve! Faster!'

Surendra Patel, to whom the book is dedicated, was a friend and an unfailing source of comfort for thirty years. In June of 2008 I got the news that he had died of a heart attack. I sat on the steps of my office and cried. When that part was over, I went back to work. It was what he would have expected.

And you, Constant Reader. Thanks for reading this story. If you had as much fun as I did, we're both well off.

S.K.

If you didn't want Under the Dome to end, then pick up The Stand, Stephen King's epic novel in its original form, with a foreword by the author himself.

First came the days of the plague… Then came the dreams…

Dreams that warned of the coming of the dark man. The apostate of death, his worn-down boot heels tramping the night roads. The warlord of the charnel house and Prince of Evil. His time is at hand. His empire grows in the west and the Apocalypse looms…

Visit: www.stephenking.co.uk for a list of all Stephen King's exciting titles published by Hodder

Visit www.hodder.co.uk and www.stephenking.co.uk for related material, links and more exciting information about the author and his other titles.