One Way or Another

'A VIVID, HEARTFELT TRIP INTO THE HUMAN SIDE OF ROCK 'N' ROLL . . . PAINFULLY HONEST AND INSIGHTFUL, THIS IS A PUBERTY BLUES FOR THE '80S GENERATION.' Richard Lowenstein, director of Dogs in Space and He Died with a Felafel in His Hand

I looked down at this man who adorned the bedroom walls of girls all over the world. His eyes were spinning, his makeup was melting and he had the goofiest grin on his handsome face. This was what the Vulture Club was about. This was fun. This was as rock and roll as it got. I was bedding this rock god on behalf of every teenage girl who had ever imagined doing exactly this – and it felt fantastic.

In 1981, fifteen-year-old Nikki McWatters is living in a Gold Coast suburb, dragging herself through humdrum schooldays and dreaming of losing her virginity to a rock star. With three friends she starts the Vulture Club for aspiring groupies – and so begins a festival of sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. By day Nikki is a dutiful student; by night she collects rock stars, crawling out her bedroom window and sneaking backstage to meet the band.

As Nikki gets older, her conquests get bigger and the stakes get higher. Soon she finds herself in Sydney, chasing an acting career and carousing with her idols. From Australian Crawl to INXS, Pseudo Echo to Duran Duran, she is living her teenage dream – but is the groupie life all it's cracked up to be?

One Way or Another is a rollicking ride through a world of pub rock, big hair, wild nights and mornings after. With irrepressible humour and a bulging little black book, Nikki McWatters recalls an age when everything seemed possible – even if everything wasn't such a good idea.

About the Author

Nikki McWatters has had a varied career, from film and television acting to teaching to legal counselling. She lives in Queensland with her husband and children. One Way or Another was shortlisted for the Emerging Author Award in the Queensland Premier’s Literary Awards.