Author: R.L. Stine

Fun article in the Bradenton Herald by Donna Hartman about R.L. Stine. His Goosebumps series remains consistently popular with young readers. He describes his early career and his other books. He made me laugh with this comment about his own child:

Interestingly, his son Matthew, 24, has never read any of his books. In the mid-1990s when the "Goosebumps" series was at its peak, Matthew was at the right age to enjoy them.

"I made my son the star of one of my 'Fear Street' novels and he didn't read that," Stine said. "I'm convinced that if you're an author, your kid will be a non-reader. It's an easy way to get to Dad. He read only Garfield comics."

But, Matthew turned out OK. He majored in English, read James Joyce in college and now works as a sound designer and a sound studio manager in New York.

Stine knows many authors of other children's books:

He is friends with Lemony Snicket (aka Daniel Handler, the author of the children's series titled, "Series of Unfortunate Events")."He grew up reading me," he said.

Parents thank him:

Despite a world of electronic distractions, Stine believes children still make time to read.

"I can't tell you how many parents come up to me and thank me for getting their children interested in reading," he said. "Parents should let children read what they want to read."

Amen.