Hattie, Get a Haircut!

An Interview with Jenna Glatzer

Hattie is afraid of getting her hair cut, but she’s in for a surprise after she makes the solemn declaration that she will “never, no way, not at all” let anyone cut her hair.  Soon, it grows so long that birds nest in it and kids jump rope with it. She changes her mind and decides to get it cut, after all, and learns she can do a good deed in the process by donating her hair to Locks of Love.

Why did you want to write your book?

Two reasons. First, although I’m told I was an “angelic” kid (possibly by biased relatives), I was not nearly so angelic in the hairdresser’s chair. I was squiggly and squirmy and prone to kicking and crying. I didn’t even like to have my hair brushed (it was knotty!).

I was at the hairdresser recently and watched a little girl flailing around and screaming, and I felt a sympathetic kinship with her. She was my model for Hattie: a rebellious girl who has nightmares about visiting the hairdresser’s shop, but a kind heart. When I was young, I loved to read about other kids who I could relate to, and I think this book would have become one of my favorites.

Second, my sister, who has always had long hair, recently cut it short. I didn’t know she was going to do it, so I lost the opportunity to tell her about Locks of Love, a great program that makes free customized wigs for kids who have hair loss conditions. I felt lousy that she “wasted” all that great hair, and I wanted to do something to help raise awareness about the program.

Most of the hair donations come from kids, so I thought I’d go straight to the best volunteers! For kids who have a fear of going to the hairdresser, it might encourage them to know that if they can overcome their fear, they can do something terrific for a kid in need.

Who is the audience for your book?

All kids age 3-8, but especially girls.

Where are you from? How has that place influenced your writing?

I’m from Long Island, but have also lived in Greenville, South Carolina; Boston, Massachusetts; and Schenectady, New York. They’re all great places to meet “characters,” and I think you never really know what makes your town unique until you’ve traveled elsewhere. New Yorkers have a reputation for being rude, but I’ve come to believe they’re just more straightforward than most. I think I’ve inherited that straightforwardness in my writing.

Have you always been a writer?

I was a stage actress first, and children’s theatre was my favorite!  I was playing Cinderella when I developed a terrible panic disorder that made me quit my acting plans. I wanted to find another way to still spark kids’ imaginations, and writing proved to be a great way to do that.

Did you have any pitfalls or difficult times in the writing process?

This book was a joy to write. It went through several incarnations in the editing process, though, where we (my editor and I) were trying to find a balance between the whimsical tone of the book and the Locks of Love message. There was another character in the book at one point—a child with a hair loss condition—but she ended up making this rhyming picture book too “heavy.” Above all, I wanted this to be a fun read, and didn’t want to beat anyone over the head with a “moral of the story.” So I kept revising until we all felt we had the right tone and a fast-paced storyline. And have you noticed how great my illustrator is? That was the easiest part... being asked to critique her work, and just saying, “It’s perfect! That’s Hattie!”

Which books or authors have most influenced you?

I was such an avid reader even before most kids learn to read. My mom was great about reading to me, over and over if I requested, but she just couldn’t keep up with me... so I did what any sensible child would do: I got a flashlight and learned to read under the covers!

My favorite-ever children’s books are Where the Sidewalk Ends (Shel Silverstein), Freckle Juice (Judy Blume), Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day (Judith Viorst), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (Judi Barrett), Where the Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak), and How the Grinch Stole Christmas (Dr. Seuss).

I write across a wide range of genres—everything from how-to books to memoirs to health books to rhyming picture books. The things that seem to follow me around no matter what I’m writing are humor and “friendliness.” My fans tell me all the time that they feel like I’m sitting in their living rooms having chats with them when they read my books, and I’m thrilled to hear that. I don’t write with strangers in mind. I write books like they’re letters to my friends.

Is there a message in your book?

Hattie has a choice in this book. Although her mom certainly wants her to get her hair cut (“no more arguments!”), Hattie is the one who makes the decision that she’s ready for it... and she chooses to donate her hair to a child in need. A forced good deed isn’t worth a whole lot. I think that when a child is encouraged and presented with good options, the child will, more often than not, learn to do what’s right.

Do you have any quirky writing habits?

I blow bubbles in my office for inspiration.  My cat sits on my computer monitor while I write (or on my mouse when she’s trying to get my attention). When I’m working through a storyline, I tend to think of my characters as real people who I’m just watching, so my family gets a kick out of it when I rush in and say, “You’ll never guess what Hattie did today!”

Which is your favorite part of your book?

The scene where Hattie’s hair grows around the block. I love the knitting grandmother, the horse chewing it like hay... I adore looking all around a page and discovering new things to laugh at.

What is next for you?

I recently worked with Celine Dion on her authorized biography (For Keeps), and that’s coming out in October. I also have The Street-Smart Writer, a book about how to avoid scams in the writing world, coming out in December. Right now I’m ghostwriting a self-help book and a memoir. My writing life never really slows down, but that’s okay. I think I have the world’s greatest job!

So how do I get this book?

The book will be released in November. To pre-order it now, visit any of the links below...  

Moo Press

 Amazon.com  

Barnes & Noble 

...Or, better yet, ask for it at your local bookstore! 

Book Details: 

Publisher: Moo Press
Release date: November, 2005
ISBN: 0972485309
Hardcover/Library Binding 8 x 9
Pages: 32, full color
Price: $19.95

afraid to get a haircut, fear, hair cut, Locks of Love, afraid of hairdresser