The author James Patterson has decided to pull an upcoming novel called 'The Murder of Stephen King', deciding that it wasn't a good idea.

In a statement released Thursday through Little, Brown and Company, Patterson, whose books have sold more than 300 million copies, said he didn't want to cause King or his family 'any discomfort.'

The book was intended as a tribute to King, a King-like story of an obsessed fan out to get the writer.

But Patterson, who co-authored the 150-page novel with Derek Nikitas, said he had learned that fans in real life had 'disrupted' King's home.

Shining star: Stephen King makes an appearance on Good Morning America in November last year; King has said in the past that James Patterson is a 'terrible writer' who is 'very successful'

'My book is a positive portrayal of a fictional character, and, spoiler alert, the main character is not actually murdered,' he said.

'Nevertheless, I do not want to cause Stephen King or his family any discomfort. Out of respect for them, I have decided not to publish 'The Murder of Stephen King.''

Unfortunate title: The book was due to be released in November

Despite the jarring title and Patterson's best-seller status, the novel ranked just No. 30,491 on Amazon.com as of midday Thursday.

King, author of The Shining and The Dead Zone, had no involvement with the book and declined to comment last week when asked about it by The Associated Press.

Patterson said last week that he and King don't know each other, although there is some public history between them. In a 2009 interview with USA Weekend, King said Patterson was 'a terrible writer but he's very successful.'

Patterson shrugged off the remarks as "hyperbole."

The novel about King was a featured work in the prolific Patterson's BookShots series of brief, inexpensive fiction. As a replacement, he will be releasing the novel 'Taking the Titanic' in November.