From the Author:
NOTES (from Pilkey.com)
Often when I talk with kids about writing, they tell me that they can't think of anything to write about.
They try and try to come up with an idea, but they just can think of anything.
So I tell them about PARODY.
In Chapter 4, part 2 of this book, there is a story-within-a-story called 'How The Pee Stoled Potties'. This is called a parody. A parody is when you imitate something (usually something famous, like Lord of the Rings or 'Spiderman') and you make your imitation as humorous or as silly as you can. For example, you could make a parody of Star Wars that starred Junie B. Jones as Princess Leia. Parody is a very good example of how you can write about something even if you can't think of an original idea.
When I wrote 'How The Pee Stoled Potties', I parodied Dr. Seuss's book How the Grinch Stole Christmas.
I've always been a HUGE fan of Dr. Seuss, and I've read his books so many times that I practically know them by heart. So How the Grinch Stole Christmas was a perfect story for me to parody.
I used the same writing style that Dr. Seuss was famous for, but I changed the story to match the rest of the book I was writing. If you compare Dr. Seuss's book with my parody, however, you can find many similarities in the illustration style as well as in the structure and layout. Making a parody of Dr. Seuss's famous book was a great way for me to move my story forward, while mixing things up a bit to make the experience more interesting for my readers.
So next time you can't think of something to write about, make a PARODY of something you love.
Not only is it FUN to write parodies, but you'll never get writer's block because the things you're parodying have already been written for you. --Dav Pilkey
Fun Facts:
1. Billy's favorite book, Mecha Frog and Robotoad are Enemies is a parody of one of Dav Pilkey's favorite books, Frog and Toad are Friends, by Arnold Lobel.
2. Rip Van Tinkle was originally going to be called "Pee-Pee Longstockings". Dav Pilkey changed his name to Rip Van Tinkle for two reasons:
A) he didn't have any stockings, and
B) his character awoke to find himself transformed (into a puddle of pee),
much like the character, Rip Van Winkle, who awoke to find himself transformed (into an old man).
3. Petey's original name was Ralph. In a very early draft of this story, Ralph was a cat scientist who wore glasses. Dav Pilkey can't remember why he changed him to a regular cat named Petey.
4. Rip Van Tinkle was loosely based on a character that Dav Pilkey created when he was a kid. The character's name was Water Man, and he could do all the same things that Rip Van Tinkle could do.
About the Author:
"Considered one of the most popular contemporary authors for readers in elementary school, (Dav Pilkey) is also regarded as a talented artist and inventive humorist as well as a subtle moralist. ...He underscores his works--even at their most outrageous--with a philosophy that emphasizes friendship, tolerance, and generosity and celebrates the triumph of the good-hearted."
-The Educational Book & Media Association
Dav Pilkey is the Caldecott Honor Award-winning creator of more than 40 books for children.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.