21 Proms (24 page)

The Prom Gallery

 

Jodi Lynn Anderson
asked a boy named Pat to prom and never recovered from the rejection, which probably stemmed from the chunky plastic jewelry she wore and the fact that one time she accidentally drooled in front of him. She was later reprimanded by Sister Miriam for dancing too close to her date. She is the author of such novels as
Peaches, Tiger Lily,
and
The Vanishing Season.

Holly Black
is the author of the bestselling Spiderwick
Chronicles, the Modern Faerie Tale series, the Curse Workers series, the Magisterium series (written with Cassandra Clare), the Newbery Honor book
Doll Bones, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown,
and
The Darkest Part of the Forest
.
Visit her on the web at
www.blackholly.com
.

Libba Bray
did not get asked to prom. Not even after she posted her phone number in black electrical tape in a strategic location on her body. One
arranged
(*cough* pity *cough*) date later, she did manage to go to prom and has a vague memory of pogo-ing to the B-52's. Libba is the author of the novels
A Great and Terrible Beauty
,
Rebel Angels,
The Sweet Far Thing, Going Bovine, Beauty Queens,
and
The Diviners
. She invites you to drop by her website,
www.libbabray.com
. 

Rachel Cohn
did not go to prom.  Her books include
Gingerbread
,
Shrimp
,
Cupcake
,
Beta
, and, with David Levithan,
Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist.
Visit her on the web at
www.rachelcohn.com
.

Elizabeth Craft
lives in Los Angeles. She and her writing partner are the authors of a young-adult novel,
Bass Ackwards and Belly Up.
Elizabeth is happy to report that despite being emotionally scarred by numerous high school dances, she managed to meet the man of her dreams.

Melissa de la Cruz
is the author of the bestselling series The Au Pairs, Blue Bloods, and Witches of East End. Her story is absolutely true. Just thinking of her date's beer-and-whisky-laced breath still makes her swoon. She is married to a very cute guy who never attended a prom. At their wedding they danced to Annie Lennox's “Seventeen Again” because Melissa thought of her wedding as the ultimate prom.

Daniel Ehrenhaft
did not attend a prom, but he did rent an expensive tuxedo once. Now he owns a tuxedo. He is wearing it as he writes this. (Okay, he is wearing boxer shorts and a smelly T-shirt.) His wife went to an amazing prom in New York City, and her date was a really nice childhood friend who went on to become a famous screenwriter
— and, yes, Mr. Ehrenhaft is jealous on a variety of levels. His novels include
Tell It to Naomi
,
10 Things to Do Before I Die
,
Drawing a Blank
,
and
The After Life
.

Aimee Friedman
is the
New York Times
bestselling author of the novels
South Beach
,
French Kiss
,
Hollywood Hills
,
A Novel Idea
, and
Breaking Up: A Fashion High Graphic Novel
. Her work was also featured in the holiday romance collection
Mistletoe
. A native New Yorker, Aimee wore all black to her prom, and the event was held down the street from Grand Central Station. She only had one date, who was very nice, but she likes imagining what it might have been like to have three.

John Green
is the author of
Looking for Alaska,
An
Abundance of Katherines, Paper Towns, The Fault in Our Stars,
and (with David Levithan)
Will Grayson, Will Grayson.
John's high school had no prom; instead, it had this thing called “Senior Banquet.” John took Amanda Key, the great love of his high school life, to Senior Banquet. Amanda, under the mistaken impression that they were going as “just friends,” proceeded to break John's heart by making out with Stuart Nelson. Damn you, Stuart Nelson. Damn you to hell.

Proms, cotillions, homecoming dances:
Brent Hartinger
did them all — always with opposite-sex partners, and he was always the perfect gentleman. Which makes sense in retrospect, but which didn't make his dates feel any less fat and unattractive at the time. Brent now lives in Washington state with his appropriately gendered partner Michael.
He is
also the author of a bunch of books, including
Geography Club
,
The Last Chance Texaco
,
Grand & Humble
,
Split Screen
, and
Dreamquest
. Visit Brent online (or inquire
about play production rights) at
www.brenthartinger.com
.

Will Leitch
 is the author of many books, including
Life as a Loser, Are We Winning?,
and
Catch
.
He was also the founding editor of the late, great
The Black Table
. He has written for all kinds of places with italicized names. He wishes he could play a musical instrument.

David Levithan
went to prom four times, but never really
got it right. He did, however, get the idea for this
anthology after writing about it. His books include
Boy Meets Boy
,
The Realm of Possibility
,
Every Day, Two Boys Kissing, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist
(with Rachel Cohn), and
Will Grayson, Will Grayson
(with John Green
)
. Check out
www.davidlevithan.com
.

E. Lockhart
went to prom in an embroidered 1920s flapper dress that still hangs in her office. She also wore a feather boa that turned her neck black. Her books include
The Boyfriend List
,
Fly on the Wall
,
Dramarama, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks,
and
We Were Liars
. Visit her on the web at
www.theboyfriendlist.com
.

Leslie Margolis
is the author of
Fix
,
Price of Admission,
and the Annabelle Unleashed series. Her date for her junior prom took out his retainer when dinner was served and placed it on the table between their plates. He did not put it in his retainer case first. He just left it out there. Her senior prom wasn't much better. Leslie can be found at
www.lesliemargolis.com
.

Billy Merrell
is the author of
Talking in the Dark,
a poetry memoir, and co-editor of
The Full Spectrum
. He has been to five proms, and was even up for Prom King once, though he was defeated by an athletic jazz musician. Sigh. Visit him at
www.talkinginthedark.com
.
In addition to writing novels such as
Bras & Broomsticks
,
Don't Even Think About It,
and
Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have)
,
Sarah Mlynowski
went to her high school's senior prom three years in a row. Was it because she was über popular? Because she had to twice repeat her final year? Because there were rumors written about her on the boy's bathroom wall? To find out the real story go to
www.sarahmlynowski.com
.

Lisa Ann Sandell
wonders, who likes to wear a corsage?
Really?
Wilty roses, ferns, and baby's breath on an elastic band that is guaranteed to cut off any chance of blood flow to the fingers? You've got to be kidding. She did indeed go to the prom, though, and wore the corsage.
As well as a navy blue, bedazzled-in-sequins-all-over sheath
that probably made the whole experience that much worse. Lisa is the author of
The Weight of the Sky
,
Song of the Sparrow,
and
A Map of the Known World
. She lives in New York City, but you can visit her online at
www.lisaannsandell.com
.

Ned Vizzini
is the author of
The Other Normals,
It's Kind of a Funny Story
,
Be More Chill
, and
Teen Angst? Naaah
.
.
.
He started writing for
New York Press
in high school, which garnered him the embarrassing status as a “writer/wunderkind” (Gawker) but has now ascended to the realm of the “former teen wunderkind” (
New York Magazine
). His work has been honored by the American Library Association, New York Is Book Country, BookSense, and the Chicago Public Library.

While in high school
Cecily von Ziegesar
never had a prom or a prom date, but if she had to pick a date for the prom she'd pick her extraordinarily handsome and devoted Cornish Rex cat, Pony Boy. Cecily prefers to dress down, but her young daughter dresses like she's headed for the prom every day, and her toddler son never leaves the house without lipstick and nail polish. Cecily lives in the vicinity of New York City, where she writes about people who grew up in or in the vicinity of New York City.

Due to the legendary Boy Shortage of 1992 (and so NOT due to her severe case of Shyness Cripplingica
)
,
Adrienne Maria Vrettos
went to her senior prom in a suburban packed with the most coolest, yet most dateless, ladies you've ever met. It was wicked awesome, and they didn't need no stinking boys anyway!  She is the author of
Skin,
Sight, Burnout,
and
The Exile of Gigi Lane
. You can find her online at
www.adriennemarievrettos.com
.

Jacqueline Woodson
turned in her prom story just after she won the Margaret Edwards Award for achievement in teen literature. She is the author of numerous acclaimed novels, including
After Tupac and D Foster, Beneath a Meth Moon
,
Feathers
,
The House You Pass Along the Way
,
Hush, I Hadn't Meant to Tell You This
,
If You Come Softly
,
Locomotion
,
Miracle's Boys
, and the Newbery Honor book
Show Way
.

About Advocates for Youth

 

Advocates for Youth, based in Washington, DC, is the only organization that works both in the United States and in developing countries with the sole focus on helping adolescents make safe and responsible choices about sex.

Advocates promotes the core values of
Rights.Respect.Responsibility
.®

 

Rights:
Young people have rights to accurate and complete sexual health information, confidential reproductive and sexual health services, and a secure stake in the future.

 

Respect:
Young people deserve respect. Valuing young people means they are treated as part of the solution rather than dismissed as part of the problem. Young people should be involved in developing programs and policies that affect their well-being.

 

Responsibility:
Society has the responsibility to provide young people with the tools they need to safeguard their sexual health, and young people have the responsibility to protect themselves from too-early childbearing and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including HIV.

 

Advocates works to raise youth and adult awareness of reproductive and sexual health issues; promotes public policies that support rights, respect, and responsibility for young people; and develops youth-friendly programs for communities in the United States and developing countries.

To find out more about Advocates for Youth and its issues, visit
www.advocatesforyouth.org
.

 

All of the authors in
21 Proms
have donated their portion of the proceeds from the sale of the book to Advocates for Youth.

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First published in the UK by Scholastic Ltd, 2015

This electronic edition published by Scholastic Ltd, 2015

 

Text copyright © David Levithan, 2015

 

“You Are a Prom Queen, Dance Dance Dance” copyright © Elizabeth Craft, 2007; “All She Wants” copyright © Cecily von Ziegesar. 2007; “In Vodka Veritas” copyright © Holly Black, 2007; “Your Big Night” copyright © Sarah Mlynowski, 2007; “Off Like a Prom Dress” © Billy Merrell, 2007; “Mom called, she says you have to go to pro” copyright © Adrienne Maria Vrettos, 2007; “Better Be Good to Me” copyright © Daniel Ehrenhaft, 2007; “Three Fates” copyright © Aimee Friedman, 2007; “The Question: A Play in One Act” copyright © Brent Hartinger, 2007; “Shutter” copyright © Will Leitch, 2007; “Geechee Girls Dancin', 1955” copyright © Jacqueline Woodson, 2007; “How I Wrote to Toby” copyright © E. Lockhart, 2007; “A Six-pack of Bud, a Fifth of Whiskey, and Me”copyright © Melissa de la Cruz, 2007; “Primate the Prom” copyright © Libba Bray, 2007; “Apology #1” copyright © Ned Vizzini, 2007; “See Me” copyright © Lisa Ann Sandell, 2007; “Prom for Fat Girls” copyright © Rachel Cohn, 2007; “Chicken” copyright © Jodi Lynn Anderson, 2007; “The Backup Date” copyright © Leslie Margolis, 2007; “Lost Sometimes” copyright © David Levithan, 2007; “The Greatest American Morp” copyright © John Green, 2007.

 

eISBN 978 1407 15947 8

 

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