Who are authors influenced by Stephen King?

Richard Matheson (I Am Legend, Hell House) influenced him most as a writer. The absence of his father as a child has also influenced his work, it's very evident if you read most of his novels. His characters are presumably a reflection of himself (like most authors), but his past of Alcoholism and drug abuse has influenced him to lay everything out on the table. It's not a preferred route to travel as a writer, but that's the way King got through his troubles, by putting it on paper.