Same here. I was about fifteen, though.
King didn't lead me to any knock offs. From King I went to cats like Fritz Lieber, Richard Matheson, Seabury Quinn, E. Hoffman Price, R.E. Howard, and that creepy old Puritan from Providence. Got all bogged down in pulp back then, didn't get out till the Splatterpunkers came along. That's writing puberty for me. Eighties.
Have since devoured about everything. Behold, my herald approaches...