When I first heard of the Texas Institute of Letters, I envisioned a museum. Something like the Met but with pedestals featuring large, soft sculptures , in the manner of Sesame Street, of the alphabet. ("Over here we have an excellent D; now if you follow me, we'll explore the Hall of Vowels.")

It turns out it is nothing like that at all. It's a serious and well-respected group whose members are a lot of really excellent writers with Texas connections. 

So it's a real honor – and I say that humbly, not as a brag – to be able to say that the group has given Revenge of the Star Survivors its 2018 H-E-B/Jean Flynn Award for Best Middle Grade Book.

Any thanks that I expressed would probably sound overly gushy, so let me just leave you with a song from Willie Nelson, who was just elected to the institute this year. 

Stardust 1978

Before Revenge of the Star Survivors reaches the end of its first calendar year, I wanted to take a moment to offer one more round of thank-yous. 

First -- thanks to the Dallas Observer for making it one of the 10 Best Books of 2017 by Local Authors. If you know the local authors on that list -- they are pretty darn good, and it was a big, pleasant surprise to see my name among them.

Second -- thank you, Texas Library Association, for making Star Survivors a Spirit of Texas Reading Program-Middle School pick. Anyone who has read the book might suspect that I have a soft spot for libraries and librarians, and it's humbling to get recognition from them. (See you at the TXLA conference in Dallas, librarians!) 

Finally -- thank you, readers and everyone else who has been so kind and supportive of my little book of nerdish delights. What an amazing year it has been. Because of you. I am grateful. 

And -- we're not done yet! Because Revenge of the Star Survivors has a busy 2018 ahead. A sneak peek: 

If you're in Corpus Christi, I'll see you on Feb. 17 at the Teen Bookfest by the Bay. It will be a fun day, with all these other impressive writers. 

If you're in Highland Park, I'll see you at the HP Litfest on Feb. 23. (And congrats, Scots, on that whole football thing, which I hear is a big deal to many people.)

And on April 20-21, look for me at the North Texas Teen Book Festival, tucked in among this list of astonishingly fantastic authors. Seriously -- if you are reading this, you will want to be there. 

I hope to be able to make a few additional announcements soon. Until then, thank you for reaching for the Star Survivors. (Did I really just write that? Sorry.)

This post is for the people attending this morning's screening of Ex Libris, which I will be introducing. 

It's a photo of me at the New York Public Library earlier this year, and I promise to tell everyone the whole story later. 

UPDATE: As promised, here's the full story behind that photo.

So, Dallas VideoFest had a screening of the movie Ex Libris yesterday, and they asked me to help introduce it. It is a documentary about the New York Public Library. I don't think the VideoFest folks knew that I have some strong feelings about the library, even though I made my first visit there only a few years ago. 

I found the library by accident. I was in New York for my day job, and on a free evening, I had time for my favorite New York activity: Walking in a random direction until I find something interesting. In past years, this approach to sightseeing has led me to great bookstores, beautiful parks and all kinds of famous things that impress those of us who grew up in the middle of the country. (It also led me to at least one woman wearing a shirt made of paint, a guy with a python around his neck and a couple of offers to buy illegal things. So although I highly recommend this method of tourism, if you are the age of the characters in Revenge of the Star Survivors, I suppose you should ask an adult first.)

Anyhow, I got about half a mile from my hotel, and I came upon the rear of a lovely white building. "I think I'll check this one out," I said. I rounded the corner and -- there were lions! Famous ones. I had found the New York Public Library. It quickly became one of my favorite buildings in New York -- this beautiful, amazing temple to the importance of books and knowledge. And Ghostbusters. But mostly books and knowledge.

I snapped this photo at the New York Public Library in 2013. 

Revenge of the Star Survivors was then just an unsold manuscript. But when it finally became a book, one of the nicest endorsements it received was from ... the New York Public Library, which put it on their list of recommended middle-grade fiction. "Character-driven, Fast-paced, Realistic fiction, Witty," they said. 

Which meant a whole lot to me, and to the book. As I told the VideoFest crowd: It's one thing to get a nice review. But when the librarians at one of the greatest libraries in the world give you a shout-out -- people pay attention. I also thought that Clark and his friends, who spend a lot of time in their library, would think it was totally awesome. 

So when I was back in New York this spring, a couple of months after the book was published, I made it a point to stop by and see whether I could find the book on the shelf. It turns out, I was able to make the trip with my editor, Kelly Loughman of Holiday House, whose kindness and wisdom shaped the book into something much better than I could have accomplished on my own. 

When we arrived, I had a double surprise. 

First, the book was right there, on the shelf, almost as soon as we walked in. So that was exciting. 

Second, the librarian at the desk -- and I am pretty certain I caught a glimpse of her in Ex Libris, singing "Old MacDonald" to toddlers -- enthusiastically greeted us and pulled out this beautiful ledger filled with signatures of all the authors who have appeared at the NYPL. She let me be one of them. 

She also encouraged me to sign the library's copy of the book. 

And that's what's happening in the photo. I don't know if you can really tell, but I have a funny look on my face -- in that photo, and the one below. Why? 

Well, that's the look of an author who is fighting back tears. Because I spent a lot of years assuming that Clark, Ricki, Les and the rest of the Star Survivors crew were going to live only in my head. When I saw them in the New York Public Library, I realized -- they belong to the world now. To you, if you're reading this. 

It was a happy feeling. 

And that's the story of the photo.

Thanks, NYPL.