The Mist is a
horror novella by the American author
Stephen King, in which the small town of
Bridgton,
Maine is suddenly enveloped in an unnatural mist that conceals otherworldly monsters. It was first published as the first and longest story of the horror anthology
Dark Forces in
1980. A slightly edited version was included in King's collection
Skeleton Crew (1985). The story is the longest entry in
Skeleton Crew and occupies the first 134 pages. To coincide with the theatrical release of
the film based on the novella,
The Mist was republished as a stand-alone paperback book by
Signet on October 2, 2007.