James Howe

I became an author because I love words. I enjoyed playing with them when I was a kid, writing stories and plays, and doing whatever I could think to do with words. I kept my love of them growing up and still love to see what they can do.

Words played an important part in my growing up. Not only the written word... but words that flew through the air: jokes, riddles, puns.

I was lucky in getting my first book published; my first book was 'Bunnicula,' which I wrote with my late wife Debbie, for the fun of it.

When I'm with other people who inspire my silliness or sense of humor, I'm funny. When I sit down to write, it's hard not to be funny.

Humor is the most precious gift I can give to my reader, a reminder that the world is not such a terribly serious place. There is more than video games and drugs and nuclear threats; there is laughter, and there is hope.

I like to read fiction, and I particularly enjoy reading young adult fiction. But I also read children's books, adult books, current authors, and classics, but I like fiction the most.

My family was always playing with words. It is little wonder that even after I got serious about writing, I've had a hard time getting serious about words.

I can no more separate my serious concerns about the world from my cockeyed way of seeing it than I can keep apart my personal and professional selves.