R. L. Stine
R. L. Stine
Robert Lawrence Stine, sometimes known as Jovial Bob Stine and Eric Affabee, is an American novelist, short story writer, television producer, screenwriter, and executive editor. He has been referred to as the "Stephen King of children's literature" and is the author of hundreds of horror fiction novels, including the books in the Fear Street, Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, and The Nightmare Room series. Some of his other works include a Space Cadets trilogy, two Hark gamebooks, and dozens of...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWriter
Date of Birth8 October 1943
CountryUnited States of America
I've killed hundreds of teenagers. Hundreds. And I didn't know why. Why did I enjoy doing it so much? Why? And then I realized - I had a teenager at home!
When I was a kid my family was really poor and I remember one Halloween I wanted to dress up really scary and my parents came home with a duck costume. I wore that costume for years! I hated it.
I've had a very sheltered life. What can happen to you if you stay home writing all day?
Twitter is fun because it lets me stay in touch with all my original readers who grew up with my books. I love hearing from readers instantly on Twitter.
I set a goal for myself everyday when I write - 10 pages a day - and it's much harder because I'm too dumb to turn off my Twitter and everything so it's always on and it's a real distraction. It's a major distraction.
So many people in their 20s and 30s, on Twitter, say 'Please write something for us,' so I have to listen to them, they're my audience.
I read everywhere. I read every day. I read on the couch with my dog in the afternoon and at night. I try to read at least two to three hours a day. I read only fiction.
When I write for kids, I have to make sure they know what can't happen. They have to know it's a fantasy. But when I write for adults, they have to think it's real. Every detail has to be real or they won't buy it.
There are some indicators suggesting a bit of a slowdown. That could cause the Fed to pause. The key is about how the Fed talks about the economy, if they talk about weakness worldwide and rising oil prices.
People always ask, 'How do you write so many books?' And I say, I work a lot. I work six or seven days a week.
Kids think you just sit down and start writing. I always tell them you never do that.
Historically a flat or inverted yield curve is bad news for the market but I don't think that is the case this time. Buying of Treasuries won't go away when the Fed stops raising rates. The long-end going down just reflects demand for long-term bonds.
I really wanted to be a cartoonist, and I was in 4th or 5th grade and I would bring my drawings in, and I'd look around, and everyone could draw better than me. Everyone. My drawings were just awful. So that's why I had to write.
I feel that good fantasy will always be in demand. I think children especially need literature that helps them escape from the real world, which is very scary to them right now.