The novel draws heavily and selfconsciously from traditional fairy tales, and from the folkloric art of storytelling. Unlike common misconceptions of this once popular performance art, fairy tales were intended for both children and adult audiences. This is especially true of The Eyes of the Dragon, which addresses the ambivalence of marriage, the desire to please parents, and the need for love. The fairy-tale tone is augmented by the medieval setting, the depiction of Arthurian courage, a conscious use of suspense, and allusions to various legends.

The book is also another instance of authors writing books for their own children. King's daughter, Naomi, read one of his books and decided she did not like horror novels. King dedicated the book to Naomi and to fellow horror writer Peter Straub's son, Ben; both of them are also characters in the novel.