Before there was Twilight’s Stephenie Meyer, Harry Potter’s J.K. Rowling, or The Hunger Games’ Suzanne Collins, there was R.L. Stine — the original master of children’s horror.
If you grew up in the ’90s (or have kids today), odds are you know the name well. Launched in 1992, Stine’s Goosebumps series became a pop culture phenomenon, captivating young readers with creepy thrills, twist endings, and just the right amount of nightmare fuel.
Over three decades later, his empire, which includes hundreds of books, multiple TV shows, movies, merchandise, video games, and even amusement park rides, has made R.L. Stine one of the wealthiest and most influential authors of all time. What’s his secret? It all comes down to fear… and knowing exactly how much kids love it.
Early Life and Career Beginnings
R.L. Stine was born on October 8, 1943, in Columbus, Ohio. He discovered his love of writing early, finding a typewriter in his attic at age nine and immediately starting to churn out stories and joke books.
Stine pursued his passion through school and later at Ohio State University, where he edited the campus humor magazine The Sundial and earned an English degree. After graduation, he moved to New York City to chase a full-time writing career.
In 1975, under the pen name “Jovial Bob Stine,” he launched Bananas, a humor magazine for teens published by Scholastic. Over nine years and 72 issues, Stine wrote the majority of the magazine’s content, showcasing the wit that would later evolve into something far darker.
A Shift to Horror: Fear Street
In 1986, Stine pivoted from humor to horror with his first novel, Blind Date. It was a success, and he quickly followed it with other horror titles like The Babysitter and Hit and Run.
Recognizing a growing market for teen horror, Stine launched the Fear Street series in 1989.
The first book, The New Girl, kicked off a decade-long publishing run that sold over 80 million copies.
Fear Street focused on teenagers navigating murder mysteries and supernatural events in the fictional town of Shadyside. It became one of the first major horror series aimed squarely at young adults, long before “YA” was even a publishing category.
Building the Goosebumps Empire
With the success of “Fear Street,” Stine began to wonder if a lighter version of the books, featuring younger protagonists and a little less blood and gore, could be as popular. In 1992, he put his idea to the test and published the first book in his “Goosebumps” series, “Welcome to the Dead House.” He was originally contracted by Scholastic to write only six books, but the first title was successful right out of the gate. Six books subsequently mushroomed to 62 books in the first series. Popular spinoffs include:
- Goosebumps Series 2000
- Give Yourself Goosebumps (choose-your-own-adventure style)
- Tales to Give You Goosebumps
- Goosebumps HorrorLand
- Goosebumps Most Wanted
Each book features a different child in a setting that is unfamiliar to them. Maybe the child has moved to a new town or has recently changed schools. Whatever the new situation, the protagonist stumbles into surreal and often scary situations. The books are known for their “twist” endings, and for the fact that, even though the books are categorized as “horror,” none of the characters ever die.
To date, Goosebumps has sold more than 350 million copies worldwide and has been translated into 32 languages.
Beyond Books: TV, Movies, Merchandise, and More
Goosebumps quickly outgrew the page. “Goosebumps” related merchandise has become a lucrative industry. There are multiple boardgames and video games based on “Goosebumps” books, as well as an entire range of clothing, bike helmets, fake blood, skulls, and other Halloween-inspired products, and even underwear. There are “Goosebumps”-inspired amusement park rides at SeaWorld in San Antonio and San Diego, and at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Virginia and Tampa, Florida.
A popular “Goosebumps” television series aired in 100 countries for four seasons beginning in 1995. It aired on Fox in the US and was the #1 ranked children’s show in the United States for three of its four seasons. With the success of the television show, talks began for a feature film version.
After years in development, the first Goosebumps movie, starring Jack Black as a fictionalized R.L. Stine, hit theaters on October 16, 2015 (earning over $150 million worldwide). A sequel, Goosebumps 2: Haunted Halloween, followed in 2018.
The franchise’s total retail sales have surpassed $2 billion.
And, as you might imagine, all of this success has made R. L. Stine a very, very, very wealthy man.
Getty Images
Earnings and Accolades
At the peak of his fame in the 1990s, Stine was personally making more than $40 million per year. Making $40 million in 1995 is the same as making around $80 million today. Today, we peg R.L. Stine’s net worth at $200 million.
His accolades include:
- Champion of Reading Award (Free Public Library of Philadelphia, 2002)
- Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards (three-time winner)
- Disney Adventures Kids’ Choice Awards (three-time winner)
- Guinness World Record Holder: Best-selling children’s book series author of all time.
Despite his massive fortune, Stine has remained grounded. He teaches writing workshops regularly, still tries to answer fan mail, and has been known to personally reach out to parents or school administrators when he receives concerning letters from young readers.
At the height of Goosebumps’ popularity, he was receiving as many as 2,000 letters per day.
Teachers and literacy advocates frequently credit his books with helping millions of children develop a love of reading.
R.L. Stine Today
R.L. Stine’s influence has only continued to grow. In 2021, Netflix released a trilogy of Fear Street films based on his bestselling books, introducing his darker teen horror world to a new generation of viewers. The movies were well-received and helped cement Fear Street as a lasting part of pop culture.
Meanwhile, Goosebumps found new life in 2023 with a rebooted TV series on Disney+, which offered a fresh, serialized take on the original stories and targeted slightly older audiences than the ’90s version.
Stine has remained remarkably prolific, publishing new installments of Goosebumps and Fear Street, along with short story collections like Stinetinglers 2 in 2023.
Even well into his 80s, he continues to write, teach, give interviews, and interact with fans. R.L. Stine’s legacy as one of the most beloved and influential children’s authors of all time only continues to grow.
