An Excerpt from
Prom Kings and Drama Queens

Junior year was supposed to be all about Brian Harrington, the prom, and becoming editor in chief of the Crestview Courier. Instead, it was all about handcuffs, hormones, and headlines.

But in a good way.

Not in a skanky way.

Of course, none of it would have happened if it hadn't been for the summer before eighth grade. That's when Brandy and Randy Clausen, my former best friends forever, decided it would be fun to create an I Hate Emily Club.

For no apparent reason, except perhaps that I did not get the memo we were no longer wearing horizontal striped shirts from the Limited Too, I had suddenly become The Target. After a year of being excluded from every shopping trip, sleepover, and party, I vowed I would someday get back at one or both twins.

Around the same time that summer, a hurricane named Emily was in the news. I watched the headlines everyday as they shouted: “Emily Roars Across Caribbean” or “Emily Blasts Through Gulf,” or, my personal favorite, “Emily Rocks South Florida.” After seeing those headlines each morning for days, I decided two things:

1. I really liked seeing my name in print. And,

2. I wanted to be like that Emily in the headlines – to take the world by storm.

Not that I wanted to knock over mango trees or whip power lines across the sky like spaghetti. But I wanted to rock in my own way.

Somehow.