Get ready for chills and thrills when Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween hits movie theaters on October 12. The sequel and the original Goosebumps film, which came out in 2015, were inspired by the Goosebumps book series by R.L. Stine.
But did you know Stine didn’t want to write the books at first? He had been working on a horror book series for teenagers called Fear Street. His editor suggested he try writing for a younger audience. Stine eventually gave in and agreed to write four books.
The first Goosebumps book, Welcome to Dead House, hit bookstores in 1992. At first it just sat on the shelves. But then word spread about this twisted tale. Soon, readers couldn’t get enough. From Night of the Living Dummy to The Haunted Mask, kids around the world fell in love with Stine’s spooky stories. At the peak of Goosebumps’ popularity, Stine wrote and published a book every month—churning out 62 in only five years!
Writing that much is a lot of work. Luckily, Stine says, he has never experienced writer’s block. He starts each book by brainstorming a spine-tingling title. Once he has the title down, it takes him less than two weeks to write the whole book! Many of his stories feature familiar monsters, such as werewolves, mummies, and ghosts. But one of Stine’s storytelling talents is making everyday objects terrifying, such as lawn gnomes, pianos, and even a dish sponge!