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However believable his plots seem to his readers, Stine insists he has never lived one of his stories. "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. For example, one Halloween my son, Matt, put a mask on and then had trouble pulling it off. That gave me the idea for The Haunted Mask."
Although he never experienced terror first hand, he did enjoy reading about it. "When I was a kid, there were these great comic books called Tales From The Crypt and The Vault of Horror. They were gruesome. I discovered them in the barbershop and thought they were fabulous. I used to get a haircut every Saturday so I wouldn't miss any of these comic books. I had no hair at all when I was a kid!"
His ideas came from two sources: his memory and his imagination. "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." He also keeps a tribal mask and a skeleton hanging in his writing studio to provide eerie surroundings. Although he handles the writing by himself, Stine says he gets "lots of help from my editors, my readers, and my friends."
Kids reading Goosebumps may be looking for a scare, but the laughs they get are no accident. Before he was R. L., he was Jovial Bob, author of such works as 101 Silly Monster Jokes, and Bozos on Patrol and editor of Bananas magazine. His ability to know what kids will laugh at , as well as what will frighten them, makes the Goosebumps series all the more enjoyable for his readers.
Stine started writing when he was 9 years old! He would write stories and jokes on an old typewriter and hand them out at school. "The teacher would grab them and take them away," Stine says, "but I kept doing it." He wrote for his high school newspaper in Columbus Ohio. After graduating from Ohio State University, he moved to New York City, where he worked on a variety of writing jobs.
Although his books are fun and exciting, writing them is serious stuff. He treats writing "...like a job." To unwind after work he enjoys playing the pinball machine conveniently located in his own apartment.
For aspiring authors, Stine feels reading is as important as writing. He offers this advice: "If you want to be a writer, don't worry so much about writing. Read as much as you can. Read as many different writers as you can. Soak up the styles. You can learn all kinds of ways to say things." As a boy he read Norse legends, Greek myths, Edgar Allan Poe and baseball stories. "And Mad Magazine changed my life." Author biography courtesy of Scholastic, Inc.
"My first job in New York was making up fake interviews with movie and TV stars for a group of six movie magazines. I never spoke to the stars I wrote about. I wrote three-to-four "interviews" a day, all out of my imagination."
"'I've written over 300 books but I never learned to type. I use only one finger, the pointer on my left hand -- that's all. Three hundred books on one finger! The finger is very ugly now -- completely bent and curled and callused. When I show it to audiences, they can't believe it! This is my sacrifice for my art!"
"Sometimes kids show up at my country house and ask if my son Matt can come out and play. That's because they saw him mentioned in the back of my books. But they're very disappointed when he comes to the door -- because Matt is in his mid-twenties now! They were reading very old books! Matt is a musician, composer, and sound designer. You can hear his music at my web site, www.rlstine.com."
"I hope my readers get a chance to see my 4-D movie, R. L. Stine's Haunted Lighthouse. The movie stars Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Lea Thompson, Weird Al, and others. You can find it playing at four parks: SeaWorld San Antonio, SeaWorld San Diego, Busch Gardens Tampa, and Busch Gardens Williamsburg, Virginia. Watch out -- you might get very wet!"
Anonymous
Posted June 14, 2007
How would you feel if a new strange kid moved to your block and you didn¿t know much about him or her? In the book Goosebumps: The Ghost Next Door by R.L. Stine, Hannah is trying to find clues about the new kid on the block. I think this book is interesting because it¿s like a mystery of finding who is the ghost and who is not the ghost. For example, there¿s one part in the book where Hannah wonders why she¿s never seen her neighbor. She says, ¿How come I¿ve never seen you?¿ (9). This was interesting because it tells about Hannah wondering why this boy who she doesn¿t know is here. Another example is when the new neighbor, Danny, fell and Hannah didn¿t hear a thing. Stine writes, ¿And she thought about how he had seemed to float to the ground, landing silently from the roof. Silent as a ghost¿ (34). My last example is when Hannah writes letters and her friend doesn¿t receive it. The illustrator also gives clues of who is the ghost. Throughout the book I was wondering why the author keeps giving different clues, making it a mystery of who was the ghost. I would recommend this book to the fourth fifth and sixth graders because it¿s a serious book about different things that happen and that makes it a mystery. I like this book because it made me wonder why would a ghost save another person. I like this book better than the other Goosebumps because it¿s about ghosts and it¿s scary.
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Posted March 18, 2007
Hannah¿s neighborhood has just gotten a little- weird. Ever since that new boy moved in next door. But when did he move in? Wasn¿t the house empty when Hannah went to sleep the night before? Why does it still look so deserted? She¿s not getting any answers from her new neighbor. He just keeps disappearing in the oddest ways. And he¿s so pale¿ Is Hannah being haunted by¿ The ghost next door???
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Posted February 1, 2007
This book is really great. I felt sorry for the main character (forgot the name) because.. nevermind I'll let all of you Goosebumps fanatics figure out why. I read this book to a kindergartner and she didn't get really scared, just a little frightened.
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Posted January 4, 2007
i absolutely love this book. I think its one of the best goosebumps books i have ever read. I gave this particular book to my friend and after reading it she wanted another one. goosebumps has become her favorite books now. Thank You R. L Stine
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Posted October 22, 2006
When I was in second grade, my teacher retired and gave away all her Goosebump books. I'm now in 10th grade and every once in awhile, I'll pick one up for a quick read. I choose this one and finished it in almost a day. Its a good book, but I've seen a movie, The Others, that was almost identical to this (at least the end was). This kind of spoiled the rest of it for me, so I was mostly disappointed. If you have seen The Others (which I highly recommend) then this book will mostly be a drag.
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Posted October 5, 2005
this book is cool the girl thought dannywas a ghost but actuaally she was and she died 5 years ago in a fire that she thought was a dream. you've gotta read t this my first goosebumps book!!!
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Posted March 31, 2005
I can't believe how good this book is! I mean i read other Goosebumps books but this is the best ONE!!!If you like Goosebumps books your going to love this one!
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Posted March 31, 2005
I love this book.If you like Goosebumps you will like this one...FOR SURE!!
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Posted June 28, 2004
this book is one of the most suspence and mysterious books i have ever read!
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Posted March 24, 2004
I think this is one of the best books.
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Posted April 8, 2003
It's about a girl called Hannah, A boy, Danny moves in next door and she thinks his the ghost, then she finds out the horrible truth about herself.................
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Posted October 17, 2002
This wonderful book is about a girl name Hannah thinks that her new neighbor, Danny, is a ghost. But when Hannah spends more time with Danny, she reveals the truth about herself.
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Posted October 9, 2002
If you have ever read a book by R.L.Stine then you will absolutley love this book. It will catch you by surprise when you get near to the end. it all started when a girl named Hannah met a boy named Danny from next door but Hannah and her family has not seen a mooving truck or anything. Hannah hadn't even seen him at school. A few weeks later she started this theary that Danny was a ghost,but later she would find out the truth. If you what to find out what Hannan's mystery is then read this book. You will love it.
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Posted October 9, 2002
It's about a girl who thinks that her neighbor is a ghost. But when she starts to hang out with him, she finds out the truth about herself...
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Posted July 1, 2002
This is probably my favorite Goosebump book (which is saying a lot, because I have read 60 out of the 62 books in the series). This is also one of the first I've ever read. I reccommend this as the first Goosebumps book you should read, because it really gives you an idea of R.L. Stine's type of writing
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Posted March 24, 2002
It was a great book it had a great ending.It was the first GooseBumps book I read and it's still my favorite.
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Posted February 27, 2002
this book was kind of boring but the end was great
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Posted April 1, 2000
Hannah's happy when a boy of her age moves in next door, so he can help make her lonely, boring summer fun! But Whilst having her fun, she sees strange things. He is very pale, and appears to float!! She comes to the conclusion, she has a ghost next door.... When you read the ending, it all makes perfect sense, and you will really be amazed by the outcome of the book, and how well R.L Stine has put it all together. It's a really good book- but hard to describe all the parts, you'll have to read it yourself.........
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Posted June 8, 2009
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
Hannah's neighborhood has just gotten a little -- weird. Ever since that new boy moved in next door. But when did he move in? Wasn't the house empty when Hannah went to sleep the night before? Why does it still look so deserted? She's not getting any answers from her new neighbor. He just keeps disappearing in the oddest ways. And he's so pale. . . . Is Hannah being haunted by . . . the ghost next door???