Wendelin Van Draanen

Wendelin Van Draanen is an international-award-winning, bestselling author of more than thirty traditionally-published novels that are enjoyed by young readers and teens around the world. She is the author of the 18-book Edgar-winning Sammy Keyes mystery series, and wrote Flipped, which was named a Top 100 Children’s Novel for the 21^st Century by School Library Journal and became a Rob Reiner directed Warner Brothers feature film.

Van Draanen has also created two four-book series for younger readers:

The Shredderman books became a Nickelodeon made-for-television movie and received the Christopher Award for “affirming the highest values of the human spirit.”
The Gecko & Sticky books—fun read-alouds, perfect for reluctant readers—are a spinoff of the Shredderman

Other stand-alone titles include The Secret Life of Lincoln Jones (winner of Bank Street College of Education’s Josette Frank Award), Runaway, Confessions of a Serial Kisser, Swear to Howdy, The Running Dream (an ALA Schneider Award winner for its portrayal of the disability experience), her German youth book award and ALA “Best Fiction for Young Adults” title, Wild Bird, and most recently, The Steps—a twisty YA thriller featuring a chess wiz and her deliciously dysfunctional family. Her highly anticipated YA romantasy, Ghosted—a dual narrative love story between a ghost and a girl—is being called “the spiritual successor to Flipped,”and will pub in October 2026.

A high school teacher for fifteen years, Van Draanen is now a fulltime writer. She is married, has two sons, and lives on the Central Coast of California. Her non-fiction book, Hope in the Mail; Reflections on Writing and Life, is part memoir, part writing guide, and part publishing insight, suitable for teen and adult readers, especially those who want to write.

Wendelin Van Draanen’s K-12 School Visit Programs

A typical presentation runs somewhere around 45 minutes. Wendelin’s talks are described as “lively” “energetic” “funny” and “inspiring.”

Her goal as a visiting author is to encourage both reading and writing, and will tailor any presentation to dovetail with the host’s thematic or academic goals.

Below are some of her most requested programs, but if there’s a specific focus book, Wendelin will create a program to suit. All talks include a supplemental slideshow.

Suitable for Audiences 4^th & Up

(Wendelin is very comfortable presenting to large upper elementary and middle school audiences.)

From Inspiration to Publication — A humorous recounting of ten years of publishing rejection prior to Wendelin’s “miracle phone call.”
- Themes: Hard work, persistence, the value of rewriting, everyday life becoming stories, why your story matters.
- Titles: Touches on most titles with an emphasis on how the Sammy Keyes series evolved.
- Audience Size: 50-900

Mad for Mysteries!—Want to get kids hooked on reading? Let’s unlock mysteries!
- Themes: Building curiosity, self-reliance, determination, and spunk.
- Titles: The Sammy Keyes mysteries (Edgar winner), The Steps, Mr. Whiskers & the Shenanigan Sisters
- Audience Size: 50-900
Finding New Starting Lines — How and why an able-bodied author was inspired to write about an amputee.
- Themes: Overcoming barriers of fear, differences, ignorance. Seeing the person, not the disability. Friendship, Teamwork.
- Title: The Running Dream (ALA Schneider winner)
- Audience Size: 50-900

The Book-to-Movie Experience–Behind the scenes of Flipped the book and the creation of its eponymous feature film.
- Themes: Looking beneath the surface, the long-range effects of small deeds, embracing uniqueness, love & crushing.
- Title: Flipped, Confessions of a Serial Kisser, Ghosted
- Audience Size: 50-900
Writers Workshop — Covers creating colorful characters, breaking down the basics of dialog, plot, theme, and tension.
- Students Will Need: Paper & pencil
- Audience Size: maximum around 50

For Younger Audiences

Shred On! — How the Shredderman series evolved and became a Nickelodeon movie.
- Themes: Anti-bullying, inclusion, friendship, art, writing,
- Titles: The Shredderman series, The Gecko & Sticky series
- Best for Grades: 2nd-5th
- Audience Size: 40-150
Gravity and Circles and Pi, Oh My! – A fun introduction to gravity, and the wonders of the number pi
- Themes: Science, math (and physics!) can be fun!
- Titles: Picture books: Gravity Is Bringing Me Down & I Like Pi!
- Best for Grades: K-2^nd
- Audience Size: Depends on venue
- Presentation Length: Limited to 30 minutes

Wendelin Van Draanen’s Keynote Choices

What’s Love Got to Do with It?

Get the inside scoop on how FLIPPED went from a quiet book adored by kids (and their teachers) to an “instant classic” Warner Brothers feature film directed by Rob Reiner, and how 25 years of fan mail inspired its “spiritual successor” GHOSTED.

Finding New Starting Lines

Strap in and hold on! Wendelin Van Draanen takes you on a wild ride through the dangerous streets of her mind. Laugh, cry, and be inspired to see obstacles as opportunity, endings as new beginnings, and persistence as the key to every dream. Spotlight books: THE RUNNING DREAM and WILD BIRD

Books—A Bridge Between Cultures

With novels translated into dozens of languages and a movie that has touched hearts around the world, author Wendelin Van Draanen shares how she came to be the international stage keynote and only American novelist invited to speak at the 2025 South China Book Festival in Guangzhou, China, with a focus on how books/stories are a powerful tool for connection, empathy, and peace.

Be the Oxygen

All of us have a spark inside us—a dream of what we want to be or do. In life we should strive to surround ourselves with people, ideas and, yes, books, that serve as oxygen to our spark. In this talk Wendelin Van Draanen shares the humorous origins of the epiphany she had during the writing of her novel WILD BIRD.

What the Peach Can Teach

How Nature, Nurture, and Knowledge Can Sweeten Our World

If a peach tree can combine disparate elements such as earth and air and sun and water to create something really sweet, imagine what we as a society could do if we learned to see each other’s point of view and worked together. This talk springboards from research author Wendelin Van Draanen conducted while writing her Beatty award-winning novel THE PEACH REBELLION, a story brings together three young women from vastly different backgrounds who must learn to work together to save a family, and in the process unite their community.

Wendelin Van Draanen’s Adult Writer Programs

Doing the Writing Juggle

Psst! Can we focus on you? Former classroom teacher Wendelin Van Draanen and the mother of two wants to share strategies to help you find time to write your book. Session includes efficiency tips, writing craft, and publishing insights.

Writers—Should You Be Committed?

Through her entertaining and educational talk on what it means to be a writer, Wendelin Van Draanen gives insights and practical tips on how to maintain or increase commitment to craft. The talk also includes a realistic peek behind the traditional writing curtain and practical craft strategies such as utilizing global structure, avoiding the sagging middle, and the importance of sticking the landing.