The author of the Goosebumps and Fear Street series avoids nonfiction: “I never read it. I hate anything real.”

What books are currently on your night stand?

A friend once accused me of reading “beach reading” all year long, and I think she was right. I read mostly thrillers, mysteries and new fiction. Waiting for me right now: “Salvation of a Saint,” by Keigo Higashino; “Disclaimer,” by Renée Knight; “The Stone Wife,” by Peter Lovesey; “A Question of Blood,” by Ian Rankin.

Who are your favorite writers — novelists, nonfiction writers, journalists, poets — working today?

Thinking about this question made me realize that most of my favorite authors are no longer with us. Not sure what that says about me. But here are living authors whose books I never miss: John le Carré, Donna Leon, Harlan Coben, Joseph Kanon, Robert Crais, M. C. Beaton, Garrison Keillor, Charles Todd. Don’t ask me about nonfiction. I never read it. I hate anything real.

And your favorite writer of all time?

I have to name Ray Bradbury here. His stories turned me into a reader when I was 9 or 10. I’m still amazed by the range of his imagination and the beauty of his prose. I think “Dandelion Wine” may be the most underrated novel of all time. Every page makes me gasp. I read it once a year to remind myself what good writing is like.