Skip to main content

The Year I Turned 18 Blogfest





So, today I am taking part on Cally Jackson's bloghop, The Year I Turned 18, to celebrate the release of her novel, The Big Smoke!

Well ... the year I turned 18 was full of ups and downs, though I still remember it as one of the best years ever! I really embraced the magic of the age, feeling like I could do anything I wanted, and what I wanted was fun.

I had an incredible group of friends, and every Friday night, we went to our local pub for karaoke! It was always part karaoke, part disco and the landlord of the pub was amazing. All he wanted was for everyone to have fun, and if that meant dancing on the tables, so be it! He even purposely put an extension on the karaoke room so there would be more room to dance, and there were tables set up at the side specifically for dancing!

The lead up to my 18th was an interesting one. I got involved in a relationship with a guy much older than me and he was ... well ... not good for me. Without going in to too many details, I'll say that I had a very lucky escape when he left, but at the time, I was kind of heart broken.

My 18th birthday was probably one of the best nights I've ever had. I had a big party, and it ended with me realising I was in love with the guy I'd been best friends with for years. The memory still makes me smile. He asked me on a date a few days later, in a very awkward phone conversation lol. We ended up dating for three years, and had some great times together. :D




Heh, this photo always makes me laugh - it was taken in the toy shop in town when we were on our way to celebrate a friend's birthday party! I'm the one in the outrageously short skirt lol!

The Big Smoke



Ceara’s desperate for love; Seb’s desperate to get laid. Ceara adores reading novels; Seb hasn’t finished a book in years. Two strangers, both moving from small country towns to Brisbane – the big smoke. As they prepare to attend the same university, their paths seem set to collide, but they keep missing each other. Maybe fate is keeping them apart, or maybe it’s just chance.

When the semester starts, things get complicated. Ceara’s best friend withdraws from her, Seb’s closest mate turns into a sleazebag, and the relentless demands of university make their stress levels soar. Before their first semester is over, both Seb and Ceara will be forced to question who they are and what they want from their lives. Will they have the courage to find the answers, or will they crumble under the pressure? And when they finally meet, will it be love at first sight or a collision of headstrong personalities?


Labels:

Comments

  1. Suzanne Furness2 November 2012 at 09:43

    Sweet story, Kyra. I love digging out old photos and having a good old trip down memory lane :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Cally Jackson2 November 2012 at 11:30

    Sounds like a great year! Love the photo. Thanks for taking part in my blogfest. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. L. Diane Wolfe2 November 2012 at 12:14

    If there had been karaoke for my birthday party, I would've cleared the room!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Nick Wilford2 November 2012 at 12:26

    Great pic! I've only taken part in karaoke once, and that was a rap song because I can't sing. You should have seen my gangsta moves... actually you're lucky you didn't!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Suzi2 November 2012 at 12:58

    Could you sit in that skirt? :)

    I love watching karaoke. But I don't sing. I've got no guts!

    ReplyDelete
  6. M.J. Fifield2 November 2012 at 13:16

    I love singing karaoke. If I've had enough to drink first...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Alex J. Cavanaugh2 November 2012 at 13:33

    I can sing, just not in front of other people...

    ReplyDelete
  8. Neurotic Workaholic2 November 2012 at 14:08

    Cally's story about the university students sounds interesting. And your story about turning 18 was interesting too. I still have my journal from that year, and I can still remember how it felt to be that age. But at the same time it feels so far away now, and I have to admit that I miss some of the things about being a teenager. Life seemed to be at least a little bit (sometimes, a LOT) simpler back then.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Sheena-kay Graham2 November 2012 at 17:01

    Love the legs Kyra. Nice post glad you had fun on your 18 b'day. You have the right guy now and that's all that matters.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Christine Rains2 November 2012 at 18:09

    That's fantastic you really embraced your age! That's such a fun picture too. Have a great weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Carrie-Anne2 November 2012 at 20:37

    Nice photo! You had a lot of guts to wear something so short in public. I'd be too afraid something would blow or slip out of place.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Annalisa Crawford2 November 2012 at 23:04

    What a great memory. I'm impressed with the karaoke - people bribe me with drinks not to take part!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Shannon Lawrence3 November 2012 at 00:24

    The karaoke sounds fun! Nice guy to do that. And sounds like a wonderful year!

    Shannon at The Warrior Muse

    ReplyDelete
  14. Mark Koopmans3 November 2012 at 12:46

    My 18th is sealed and under lock and key.

    Not even Adam Carter or Harry Pearce can get the truth... at least not in Season Six of "Spooks" or "MI-5" as it is known over here :)

    *Thanks for sharing and the memories :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Trisha5 November 2012 at 03:36

    My 18th was a bit of a disappointment, but my 21st was heaps more fun! :)

    I like your 18th story here.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous7 November 2012 at 00:47

    Looking back at old photos is always a great trip down memory lane. Your post makes me want to see if I can find any from my 18th year!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

IWSG: Performance anxiety

Welcome to the August edition of IWSG, hosted by the amazing Alex J.Cavanaugh ! So, as most of you know by now - because I haven't shut up about it LOL - my first novel, Game On, has been released. The blog tour officially starts next week (YAY!) but I find myself becoming increasingly nervous. A blog tour not only highlights my book, but me. What if people don't like me? What if my guest posts suck, and everyone thinks I'm boring? If I can't engage people in 300 words on a blog, they probably aren't going to pick up my book. And then there's the "what happens next" question. I plan to make Game On into a series, which feels a bit arrogant of me. I don't know how many people are going to like the first book, should I really be planning to keep the series going? So far, Game On has actually been incredibly well received. I've had great reviews, so maybe I shouldn't worry about people not liking it, but what if Book Two isn't as goo...
81 comments
Read more

GUTGAA Meet and Greet!

Oh, I have SO been looking forward to this!! But, before I start, I need to send a huge apology to Emily R.King and Melodie Wright. I signed up to their What I Did Last Summer Bloghop , but it looks like I'm not going to have the time to participate. :( I've never backed out of a bloghop before, but as you may have noticed, I've been kind of out of the blogging loop for a while and now I'm struggling to catch up! Please go and check out Emily and Melodie's hop, though - it's fun! :D NOW, onto GUTGAA! This amazing blogfest was put together by Deana Barnhart , and was designed to help writers in their quest to find an agent, plus help form connections between writers. The idea is genius and I am so excited to be a part of it! So, I am going to begin with the meet and greet questions, and I'll be hopping around to other blogs later! :D Bio : Kyra Lennon was born on the South coast of England, and to this day, still lives by the sea. Fiction wr...
119 comments
Read more

IWSG: Am I doing it right? And does anyone care?

Happy IWSG Day! This genius idea created by Alex J. Cavanaugh is a place for all of us insecure writers to gather together to talk about our worries, and cheer each other on. Check out the full list of participants here ! Think right now about your favourite writers. How do you feel when you know they have a new book being released? It's usually something like, "HURRY UP, I CAN'T WAIT ANYMORE!" right? And also, think about when one of your super talented blog buddies announces they've got a book coming out soon. That is even more exciting because it's someone you know, someone you may have seen struggling to reach their goal of publication. Someone you've seen go through the rough times, and have finally made it to where they want to be. I can tell you that when Jolene Perry, or Nyrae Dawn announce a book release - I bounce up and down like a crazy person! These two awesome ladies are writers I absolutely adore for their ability to write so natural...
98 comments
Read more