This month it was my distinct honor to welcome Flat Stanley to Austin, Texas. For anyone not aware, Flat Stanley is the poor boy who was flattened by a bulletin board. At first his parents were rather bummed, but then they realized having a flat son had its perks. For one thing, they no longer had to buy him airline tickets–they could just mail him wherever he wanted to go.

My seven-year-old niece Sarah mailed Flat Stanley to me from Kentucky a few weeks ago with a letter warning me to show Flat Stanley a really good time. At the end of his visit, Flat Stanley wrote back to Sarah explaining how he hiked mountains and rubbed elbows with Austin’s literati:

From the Desk of Flat Stanley

Hi Sarah,

Thank you so much for sending me to Austin, Texas! To tell you the truth, I was afraid it might be super boring, but as it turned out, I had an amazing time.

Flat Stanley reaches the top of Mount Bonnell in Austin, Texas!

Your aunt, uncle, and five-year-old cousin took me on a hike at a place called Mount Bonnell. Your little cousin said, “Don’t worry, Flat Stanley. It’s only 106 steps to the top of the mountain. And from there you can get a great view of the city.”

Easy for him to say! He’s more than three feet tall. It took me 10,806 steps to get up to the top. I was huffing and puffing up a storm. But I did it! Everyone was proud of me. Your cousin said, “You did a great job!”

When I looked out across the Colorado River, the view was gorgeous. Plus, at the precipice, there was a little park. “Hey, this is cool,” I told your cousin. “But watch out for the cactuses.”

“You don’t say cactuses, Flat Stanley. The plural of cactus is cacti!” he said. As you can see, that kid’s pretty smart.

The one thing that little cousin of yours forgot to tell me was not to sit on one of those things. Ouch!

Well, after we came down from the mountain, I tended to my wounds. I was all sweaty so I took a shower and got dressed. Then it was time for a night out with Aunt Shana and her writer friends, the Delacorte Dames and Dudes. They all write books for teenagers.

Delacorte Dames and Dudes gather to welcome Flat Stanley to Austin.
From left to right, April Lurie, Shana Burg, Jenny Ziegler,
and Varian Johnson. Not pictured, Dame Margo Rabb.

We ate dinner together, while they droned on about their websites and blogs and trips to visit students in schools. It was pretty boring, but then April said, “Hey, Flat Stanley, have you ever thought about writing a book?”

That certainly perked me up! “How did you know?” I said. I think I blushed a little bit. “I have the whole story planned out in my mind.”

“I could just tell,” April said. “You know, Flat Stanley, if you want to be a writer, you better read a lot.”

“Really?” I said. “That’s sort of a problem, because I’ve got to travel all over the world. I don’t get a lot of time to read.”

“Oh, yeah, April’s right,” Aunt Shana said. “Reading is the most important thing a writer can do! But don’t worry, Flat Stanley, while you’re here in Austin, I’ll take you to a party to celebrate the release of a new book.”

“Cool!” I said. And it was cool. Super cool!

The next day we went to the bookstore where the author, Liz Garton Scanlon, read us her new book called All the World. At first I thought, “I can already read chapter books. I don’t read picture books anymore.” But then I heard Liz read the story and I was sucked right in!

Liz Garton Scanlon at her release party with Flat Stanley.explained to me that this is actually a book for people of all ages, including adults.

“The author is a poet,” Aunt Shana said. “That means she tries to discuss very complicated ideas with very few words. That’s why the book is short with pictures.”

“Ohhhh!” I said. And after I read the book myself, I knew what Aunt Shana meant. There was a whole lot to think about in those pages, especially for a guy like me who travels around the entire world.

At the end of the party, I stood in a really, really long line to get one of Liz’s books signed for you and me. I hope you like it!

Thanks again for sending me on such a life-changing trip.

Love,

Flat Stanley

It was great fun to participate in the Delacorte Dames and Dude (DDD) panel discussion at BookPeople today. The topic was “Everything You Wanted to Know about YA Lit But Were Afraid to Ask.” Author Sarah Bird was our lovely moderator. Members of the DDD are all published by Delacorte Press, Random House and live in Austin. From right to left are: Margo Rabb, Jennifer Ziegler, Varian Johnson, April Lurie, and Me.

Before we all took our seats at the table, I told the Delacorte Dames and Dude (DDD) that the reason my eyes are puffed out like plums is because I have an allergy to mangoes, and I touched a mango just the other day. (No, I didn’t know I had the allergy at the time.)

The Delacorte Dames and Dudes started in like a Greek Chorus: “Oh, you can’t tell in the slightest.” And “No one would ever guess in a million billion years!” After becoming thoroughly convinced, I decided not to let my hair fall in front of my eyes like I had originally planned. I pulled it back in a barrette instead.

Even though I was finally looking back to normal, I wanted to go ahead with my planned public service announcement, so after the introductions I told the audience, “In case anyone’s wondering, I’m recovering from a mango allergy.” Honestly, after the sweet reassurances from my co-panelists, I knew no one could actually spot a trace of the reaction on my face anymore. But you know how people take up whatever cause they’ve been scarred by? My new cause is mangoes! I want people to know that you can really be allergic to this seductive little fruit—not just the orange flesh but the skin—so you better watch out!

With that out of the way, the five of us on the panel had a good old time discussing everything from submissions, to editing, to marketing for YA lit. We talked about how to find an agent and how subjective the acquisitions process is. And we discussed swear words and sex in books for young readers.

Well, it wasn’t two minutes after the discussion ended that I was rushed by a half dozen friends who came to inquire as to my well being. “Oh, I’m so glad you said it was the mangoes. I was worried you were in a wreck!” “I thought you’d been crying all day.” And “I was so relieved to hear you look terrible for a reason” or something to that effect.

While Delacorte Dames and Dude are some of the best people on the planet, take it from me, you can’t believe a word they say!

You can catch the DDD at the Writer’s League of Texas Conference. Our panel will be held June 27th, 10:15am.

Photo Credit: Donna Bratton