“Hair is fun and gross and weird and loveable,” says author Mary Thompson. Luscious locks are at the center of her latest middle-grade novel, “Evil Fairies Love Hair.”
“[Hair is] known to have special power in various mythological traditions, but to be honest, the acknowledgement of that in the book came later. I just thought it was funny!”
“Evil Fairies Love Hair” follows Ali and her classmates as they raise flocks of fairies in exchange for a wish granted. It all sounds good in theory, but there are a lot of rules — stated and unstated. On top of that, the fairies only eat human hair and the flock starter can’t use their own or get help from anyone else. As Ali digs a little deeper, she learns the fairies have an ulterior motive that could change life as everyone knows it forever.
Mary says ideas for books literally pop into her head. “I know people want a better answer, but there is no plan,” she told Cracking the Cover. “There is no database of magical creatures and silly plotlines. I can’t explain how my brain works!”
In the case of “Evil Fairies Love Hair,” the title popped into Mary’s head while she was on the subway. “I knew love meant eat because there’s nothing better than eating gross food. But don’t worry, when you eat hair for magical reasons, it tastes like whatever food you love!”
The challenge following the idea was turning the title Mary thought up on the subway into a full story, and creating the backstory of the fairies.
The fairies in “Evil Fairies Love Hair,” as well as characters in Mary’s other books, “Escape from the Pipe Men” and “Wuftoom,” aren’t based on existing mythology. It’s not something the author likes to do.
“I took the idea that there are little magical creatures in the world and tried to create something new with it,” she said. “These are magical creatures that originated on the beaches of Oregon! They are New World imps!”
The first book Mary actually finished writing was for adults. Soon after that, she wrote her first middle-grade manuscript, and never looked back.
“I just felt more connected to the story about kids,” she said. “I found it much easier to empathize and think up situations with kids in them. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to understand the adult world well enough to write about it! I’m not planning on growing up.”
The difference between adult and kid worlds is imagination, Mary says. “Kids are free to use their imaginations. Adults might scoff and say, “that’s weird!” like that’s a bad thing. But kids haven’t lost that ability to let their minds go to interesting places.”
As with many things, Mary’s writing has evolved over time. Her first book, “Wuftoom,” was dark and emotional. Her second, “Escape from the Pipe Men!” was a sci-fi adventure with some humor, but it was mainly action. “Evil Fairies Love Hair” is about the humor.
“I guess you could say I’ve become less dark and more fun,” Mary says. “Then again, I’m working on some teen stuff that goes back to the dark side, so overall, I would say that I’ve become more versatile. You might see me doing any of these things in the future.”
Learn more about Mary Thompson, including what wish she would make if she grew her own flock of fairies in this complete transcript of her interview with Cracking the Cover.
Follow all the stops on Mary’s blog tour!
Monday, Aug. 11 — Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers
Tuesday, Aug. 12 — The Book Monsters
Wednesday, Aug. 13 — The Children’s Book Review
Thursday, Aug. 14 — Cracking the Cover
Friday, Aug. 15 — Read Now, Sleep Later
Saturday, Aug. 16 — Beauty and the Bookshelf
Monday, Aug. 18 —Word Spelunking
Tuesday, Aug. 19 — Flashlight Reader
Wednesday, Aug. 20 — The Compulsive Reader
Thursday, Aug. 21 — The Haunting of Orchid Forsythia
Friday, Aug. 22 — Small Review
Monday, Aug. 25 — The Hiding Spot
Download a free activity and Reader’s Theatre kit for “Evil Fairies Love Hair.”
