Barbara Park — American Author born on April 21, 1947, died on November 15, 2013

Barbara Lynne Park was an American author of children's books... (wikipedia)

My senior year of high school, I was voted 'Wittiest.' So, several years later, I decided to try my hand at writing humor to see if I could be witty enough to make some money.
I find that when I'm struggling to think of how a six-year-old would feel about something, I just have to go right down to the common denominator, find the simplest way that you can look at an object or a problem, and not muck it up with all of the stuff that adults do and over-analyze.
Society just has a way of inhibiting you, which is good and bad.
I was a good kid, but I was just very chatty. Teachers were rarely entertained, but occasionally a child was, which was enough for me. Everything was so urgent. I needed to say it immediately.
I'm not actually sure I'm grown-up enough for grown-up books.