21 Proms by David Levithan
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 Merrel
eISBN 978 1407 15947 8
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