Igdoof

Igdoof is a comic by Jeff Kinney. It is a precursor to the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, and was published in the University of Maryland's campus newspaper. Igdoof's name comes from "a plastic dinosaur he and a former girlfriend had christened using nonsense syllables."

Plot
Igdoof, a college freshman, lives in a dorm with his neat roommate, Ralph. Igdoof "says exactly what he wants and has no inhibitions," inspired by "exactly what [Kinney] would be if [he] were allowed to be."

Kinney later planned to change Igdoof's plot to Igdoof and Ralph sharing an apartment, and Ralph having an "entry-level job" while Igdoof attends night school. Following requests from syndicates, he changed the plot to Igdoof in high school.

History
Igdoof was created by Jeff Kinney while studying computer science (later changed to criminal justice ) at the University of Maryland. It was published in Diamondback, the campus newspaper, from 1990 to December 13, 1993. Igdoof was a success during its run, with merchandise being produced and sold. Kinney commented, "This could possibly be the biggest thing ever to happen to me."

Kinney was kicked out of university after an incident in which he used bright green poster boards and they disintegrated from rain, staining the campus. He spent "about three years" sending Igdoof to syndicates, although none of them agreed to publish it. Kinney then got a programming job and created Diary of a Wimpy Kid as a side project. The original draft of the book was 1300 pages long and took 8 years for Kinney to write. It was then published online on Funbrain, with a new page being posted every day. At, Kinney showed Diary of a Wimpy Kid to Abram Books editor Charles Kochman, who "instantly loved it." Kinney was surprised at Kochman wanting to publish Diary of a Wimpy Kid as a children's book, having written it as "a primer or a nostalgia piece for adults." Once the series was published, it became popular worldwide, and Kinney retired attempts to get Igdoof published.