{Guest Post by Laura Pauling} Life Lessons from Prom Night

Hey guys! Today, I am excited to bring you a guest post from the author of Prom Impossible, Laura Pauling. She'll be talking about some of her prom experiences that she used to shape Cassidy's story. So without further ado, let's give Laura a warm welcome! 

Life lessons from Prom Night

Gosh, prom can be so complicated yet so simple at the same time.

Some girls start thinking about prom months before. They might see that guy they’ve been crushing on for weeks or maybe months, and their hearts can’t help but pitter patter at the thought of being asked by him.
Or maybe, they’re falling hard for their best friend, wondering if he’ll ask, and if he does, how will they survive the night? Should they let the guy know how they feel?

I dated this one guy on and off over the course of my senior year. His eyes were those startling blue kind of eyes that a girl fell headlong into, and boy, did I ever.

I really, really wanted to go to prom with him.

There were several factors that played into prom that last year of high school. By our senior year a lot of the “groups” started melding together. Friendships spread and it became extremely hard to have a small group of people over because that would turn out to be about fifty people. Everyone was friends with everyone else. Maybe not super close but close enough.

It was a neat experience and one I haven’t experienced since.

So you’re probably asking what this has to do with prom? By the spring of our senior year this melding of groups left prom wide open. This guy with startling blue eyes? We danced on edge of dating seriously but going to prom together was in no way a given or assumed.

And one of his close friends asked me.

Looking back now, I barely remember senior prom, but there’s one picture in my yearbook that says it all. It’s a picture of me and blue eyes dancing together.

Even if you don’t get asked by the guy you’re crushing on, sometimes things have a way of working out.
For me as I wrote Prom Impossible, all my experiences from prom nights influenced the story. The more I wrote, the more I realized that as important as one night may seem, often, it’s not who we go with or whether we have the best dress that matters. Not even the memories, because those will fade.

Instead, it’s realizing that when things don’t work out the way we want them too, we need to move forward. Eventually, in hindsight, we’ll see how that one night fit with the rest of our life. How, at times, life has a way of working together for good.

the book:

Title: Prom Impossible

Author: Laura Pauling

Release Date: May 1, 2014
Publisher: Redpoint Press
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iBooks

1 girl + 
1 prom +
3 guys = Prom Impossible

Cassidy decides her senior year, including prom, will be about Michael, the boy destined to be her soul mate. One problem. He hasn’t figured that out yet.
But certain events meant as innocent pranks—that weren’t completely her fault—introduce her to Zeke, the reformed bad boy. And cutting deals in the boys’ bathroom with Jasper, the hottest guy in school, lands her in a complicated web of half-truths.
At the end of the year, she’s dateless the day before the big night but risks a lot more than her pride if she can’t fix her mistakes.

Prom Impossible is a modern-day Shakespearean romantic comedy in the world of teens, true love, and life.

the author:

Laura Pauling:

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Laura Pauling is the author of the exciting young adult Circle of Spies Series and the time travel mystery, Heist. She writes to entertain and experience a great story…and be able to work in her pajamas and slippers. Prom Impossible is her newest YA romantic comedy, published as of May of 2014. To keep up on her new releases sign up for her newsletter so you don’t miss out!

Thanks for sharing that experience with us, Laura! I never went to prom (junior or senior), so I have nothing to share. Please, share some of YOUR prom experiences with us! We'd love to hear all about them :)