Pete Hautman is the author of many books for young adults and adults, including the National Book Award–winning Godless, the Klaatu Diskos trilogy, and Eden West. His most recent book for middle-grade readers is Slider, which Booklist lauded for its “crystalline prose, delectable detail, and rip-roaring humor.” Pete Hautman divides his time between Wisconsin and Minnesota.

I grew up in a large family in a little house with a lot of books and paintings on the inside and a big woods on the outside. I wanted to be an artist like my mom, and I loved comics, so I decided to be a comic-book artist. After a few years of trying to draw comics I realized that I wasn’t very good at drawing, so I decided to write books. It took a long time for me to figure out how to do it. I spent thirty years doing other things sign painting, printing, pineapple cutting, tire repair, graphic design, and building cabinets. Finally, at age thirty-seven, I figured out that if I wanted to write books, I had to plant my butt in a chair and write. Every day.

About My Work:

It worked. Since then, I’ve written more than twenty-five novels, mostly for teens and younger readers. My biggest and most exciting project was The Klaatu Diskos, a time-travel trilogy that took more than a decade to write. When I started writing The Klaatu Diskos, I didn’t know how long it was going to be, how hard it would be, or how many years it would take. But if I had to do it over again — I wouldn’t change a thing. The final book in the trilogy, The Klaatu Terminus, was published in April 2014.

Three Things You Might Not Know About Me:

1. I am very disciplined; I take at least two naps every day, but never more than four.
2. My dog’s favorite thing in the world is to watch the toilet flush.
3. I wrote my first book at age eight. It was called My Autobiogrphy. It was a very short book.