Jeff Kinney Biography

Jeff Kinney is an American writer whose talents are not limited to writing alone. He is also a cartoonist, producer and game designer in addition to being the bestselling author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

Born on February 19, 1971,  Jeff grew up in Fort Washington, Maryland, United States where he attended the Bishop McNamara High School. As a kid fond of reading, Jeff delightfully read books of authors such as Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Piers Anthony, and J.R.R. Tolkien. He went on to study at the University of Maryland at College Park during the early 90s. It was during his student life at the University that Kinney generated the idea of and created Igdoof, his famous comic strip which appeared in the campus newspaper, The Diamondback. The success of Igdoof encouraged Jeff to decide on being a cartoonist. In 1995 Kinney moved to New England.

Jeff started working on The Diary of a Wimpy Kid sometime during 1998, however, it wasn’t published until the spring of 2007. The second book of the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules came out in 2008 followed by Diary of a Wimpy Kid Do-It-Yourself Book in the same year with a revised and expanded version in 2011. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days both got published in 2009. Like 2009, Jeff published two more books of the series in 2010, entitled, The Wimpy Kid Movie Diary and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth. So far the last book of the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever came out in 2011. The series gained quick popularity and attained the number one position on important charts with a worldwide sale of 42 million copies up till 2010.

The Wimpy Kid series was adapted to screen with the release of Diary of a Wimpy Kid on March 19, 2010 by 20th Century Fox. Jeff contributed to the movie as an executive producer. With mixed reviews from critics, the film did well on the box office. A second film Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules followed with its release on March 25, 2011. The third movie of the series is expected between March and April of 2012.

In addition to topping the list of the New York Times bestselling author, Jeff Kinney’s name also appeared on the Times magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential People in the world. He won the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children’s Book Award in 2009. The award is proof of Kinney’s immense popularity among young readers since it is voted for by children.

Preparing for another upcoming book, Jeff Kinney also works as an online game developer and designer. Amid his creations is the famous children’s website Poptropica.com. He resides in Plainville, Southern Massachusetts with his wife, Julie and their two sons, Will and Grant.