Back to Featured Interviews >>

MEET BARNEY SALTZBERG
by Ann Stalcup

What did you most like to do when you were a child?

Barney Saltzberg

Play with my friends in the neighborhood. Make tree houses. Draw and play the guitar.

What books influenced you most when you were growing up?

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlotte’s Web, and Stuart Little.

Did you write stories when you were growing up?

I started writing stories in Elementary School. My mother kept a folder with all of my stories. (Hmmm, I should ask her if she still has them!) I started writing songs in the sixth grade and that became my main focus until college.

When you were a child did you ever have moments when you decided that you were going to be a writer when you grew up?

Not a children’s book writer. I thought I’d be a song writer.

When you went to college, were you already pursuing a writing career, a music career, a career in illustrating, or just art in general?

I studied art. My writing career hadn’t started yet.

What inspired you to write your first book?

Someone sent me a Marc Brown book, called Yellow Yellow, as a gift. The drawings were by Mark Allen Stamaty. I was so knocked out by his artwork that I wrote and illustrated a children’s book in college.

What was your first job when you graduated from college and how soon after that was your first book published?

I was working in a bookstore and as a singing waiter. My first book was published in 1981, four years after I graduated college. It was a different time for publishing. I sold my first book immediately. I don’t think it would have gotten published in today’s market.

When you begin a new project, what audience do you have in mind?

I really don’t think about who is going to read my stories at first, I just write things that make me happy, unless of course, I’m working on a really young book. In the end, I hope my work will appeal to everybody.

What are the topics of some of your books?

Looking back, it seems that I’ve written a lot of stories about

characters learning to get along with one another. Mrs. Morgan’s Lawn is about two neighbors, learning how to live next door to one another. The Soccer Mom From Outer Space is about a boy coming to grips with his mother’s over zealous cheerleading at his soccer matches. Crazy Hair Day is a story teaching solidarity when a boy comes to school, thinking it’s Crazy Hair Day, only to find out, it’s School Picture Day.

What kinds of things inspire you to write?

That’s a big question. I’m always on the prowl for a story. I’ve written about lawns. Embarrassing moms. Parents who are too involved with show and tell. I’m inspired by a lot of things.

Where do you get your ideas?

Everywhere. I can write about things I hear. Things I see. Things I’m feeling or my wife and children are feeling. Ideas come from all over!

What gave you the idea for Cornelius P. Mud, Are You Ready For Bed?

I was playing around with the idea of counting sheep. I thought that ‘Count Sheep’ sounded like a good idea for a vampire! The story wasn’t going the way I liked, but I started researching other things to do when you can’t fall asleep. I stumbled into a world of parents who are looking for routines to establish with their children to make going to bed an easy transition. I ended up listing all the things one should do before going to bed. Illuminating the simple list, became really fun and silly.

What really triggers your imagination?

Waking up in the morning!

Have any of your books earned special recognition?

Yes. My wife and children love them all! The Soccer Mom from Outer Space won the Virginia Young Reader Medal. A number of my books have been Junior Library Guild selections. Baby Animal Kisses was a Children’s Book of the Month main selection.

How did your life change when you got married and had children?

I found myself with a live-in person to bounce ideas around with. Having children gave me lots of ideas for stories and songs. I worked at home and was the primary child caretaker, so I found myself working at odd hours. In between naps!

Did it make it easier or harder to find time to write?

It was a little trickier, but I loved every minute of it!

Have any of your fiction stories been about real people or events?

Lots of my stories are based upon real people and events.

When is your next book going to be in book stores?

CORNELIUS P. MUD, ARE YOU READY FOR SCHOOL Candlewick Spring 2007

HI, BLUEBERRY Harcourt/Red Wagon Spring 2007

CRAZY HAIR DAY CD featuring Dustin Hoffman reading the story and other special guest artists, including Jackson Browne.