Neil Gaiman cranking out 'tween lit'? Only on 'The Simpsons'

Fantasy writer and Geek Out favorite Neil Gaiman's work might be just about as far away from the tween fare of "Twilight" as anything that also bears the "fantasy" genre tag.

But don't expect Gaiman, who will play an animated version of himself Sunday on an episode of "The Simpsons" that sends up the Stephenie Meyer stories to take any shots at the sparkly vampire series.

In fact, he says they're staples around the Gaiman residence.

"I am a terrible person because I have still not yet read the 'Twilight' books, which means I am the only person in my house," he said. "All of my daughters did."

Sunday's episode of the long-running Fox animated series is called "The Book Job." In it, Homer decides to cash in on the "tween lit" craze and forms a group to crank out the next big hit.

Enter Gaiman.

"Truthfully, the real-life me almost never hangs around in 'Barnes & Nobles'-like bookstores waiting to find groups of local townsfolk who have decided to write a pseudonymous young-adult fantasy series and offering my services," said Gaiman.

"Even if I did, I probably wouldn't be doing the catering," added the author of "Neverwhere," "Coraline," "American Gods" and the influential "Sandman" comics series.

Always known for its wry social commentary, "The Simpsons" has hosted the pen-and-ink version of authors like Stephen King, JK Rowling, John Updike and even Gaiman's fellow graphic-novelist, Alan Moore.

Now that he's voiced himself on "The Simpsons" (be on the lookout for his horrible American-accent impersonation, he says) is there anywhere else in the animated world Gaiman would like to land?

"I'd really like to be a head in a jar on 'Futurama,' " he said. "That way you know you've survived many thousands of years - in jar form."