Quotes from R. L. Stine

I've made myself laugh from some ideas - but I've never scared myself.

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.

I've had a very sheltered life. What can happen to you if you stay home writing all day?

I've never dreamed of a story idea. I have such boring dreams.

I drive a lot in the summertime, but after that, I don't drive if there's snow predicted for anywhere in 500 miles.

I have a cheat-sheet for each one of my characters about their personality, the way they look, etc. So there is no possible way that I could have writer's block.

Everything that has happened to me has been amazing and surprising.

I'm obsessed with radio. It's a good start to Sunday morning.

I have a great office.

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!

Read. Read. Read. Just don't read one type of book. Read different books by various authors so that you develop different styles.

I always just wanted to be funny. I never really planned to be scary.

If you do enough planning before you start to write, there's no way you can have writer's block. I do a complete chapter by chapter outline.

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.

Normally, I spend a week on the outline and take two weeks to write the book.

Most fears are basic: fear of the dark, fear of going down in the basement, fear of weird sounds, fear that somebody is waiting for you in your closet. Those kinds of things stay with you no matter what age.

I used to get a haircut every Saturday so I would never miss any of the comic books. I had practically no hair when I was a kid!

I've had a very sheltered life. What can happen to you if you stay home writing all day?

I've never turned into a bee - I've never been chased by a mummy or met a ghost. But many of the ideas in my books are suggested by real life.

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.

When I write, I try to think back to what I was afraid of or what was scary to me, and try to put those feelings into books.

Believe it or not, my introduction to scary literature was 'Pinocchio.' My mother read it to me every day before naptime when I was three or four. The original 'Pinocchio' is terrifying.

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.

I guess I'm way too kind and generous, and a saint - if you can believe that!