Thanks to several readers who pointed out the following connection.From Stephen King's "On Writing," in which he discusses how writing is like a sort of time travel/telepathy relationship with the audience:
"Look-here's a table covered with a red cloth. On it is a cage the size of a small fish aquarium. In the cage is a white rabbit with a pink nose and pink-rimmed eyes. In its front paws is a carrot-stub upon which it is contentedly munching. On its back, clearly marked in blue ink, is the numeral 8."