One Direction - One Direction: Where We Are (100% Official): Our Band, Our Story

Hi everyone, weve very excited to welcome you to the eBook edition of Where We Are. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed writing it!

When we look back over our time in 1D so far we can hardly believe everything thats happened to us. There are so many things were proud of, but the ones that really stand out are having three number one albums (and particularly all of the writing we have done on Midnight Memories), all of our tours (which have been incredible), winning some amazing awards and our first ever movie, This Is Us, becoming a number one box office hit.

We owe it all to you, the fans. If we tried to express how grateful we are to each and every one of you wed run out of words, so well keep it simple THANK YOU x

Lots of love,

Louis, Liam, Harry, Niall and Zayn

May, 2014

CONTENTS

I ts impossible to put into words how much my life has changed since The X Factor. For a start I live in London now, Im in a band and I get to travel to amazing places Its ridiculous when I think about it!

When I compare us now to us in the early days of The X Factor, I know weve improved so much as a group. In everything from harmonies and movement to understanding what it is to be onstage and be in a group. I think weve gained a lot of confidence and we all feel that we can really be ourselves in front of the crowd.

As much as my life is totally different to how it used to be, in some ways things havent changed that much, because I can still live a normal life. People always ask me, Is it impossible to do all the things you used to do? but actually I can still go for a drink or dinner and not get papped. I just have to be a bit cleverer about it than I used to be.

If I just want to go out somewhere I try not to think about it too much. I just go and do it. You could drive yourself crazy worrying about whether its safe, and you have to live your life. I know that there are certain places where people know me, or their friends do, and if they recognise me they wont be bothered.

There are times when things can get a bit intrusive, but you just have to get on with it. If youre walking down the street and someone takes a picture, so what? Youre in public, so you kind of expect it, and its not a big deal. But if someone were to take photos of me in my house, that would bother me. You have to have somewhere thats private.

One of the mottos that Ive learnt since I joined the band that I try to stick by is: Work hard, play hard and be kind because it works. In order to have a good time you have to work hard to be successful, and being kind to people should be a given. If everyone was a little bit nicer to people, the world would be a much better place. You have a choice where you can either be all right to someone or you can be a little bit nicer, and that can make someones day.

ABOVE: Kicking off the Take Me Home world tour at the 02 Arena in London. 23 February 2013

W eve been so lucky because weve been able to go to some incredible places. Of the places weve visited so far Sydney is one of my favourites. Its pretty English its a lot like London in terms of their culture and the way people are but everythings just a bit happier because the weather is great, and things move slightly more slowly because people are chilled out.

I also love LA, although I think you have to make it your own. If you go there not knowing anyone its not that great, because you need to know where to go and how to get there. If you have friends you can meet at parties and restaurants, LA is the best place in the world. But if you were on your own youd feel quite lonely.

New York is very different to LA but equally brilliant. In New York you can go out and meet people really easily. Theres stuff going on every night and its always so busy that you could easily go out in the early evening and stay out until morning. Its like London there too, but sped up. If you were staying in New York and you woke up with jet lag at 4am and wanted to see a gig, there would probably be one going on somewhere. No one really eats until 10pm and dinner will go on until 1am. Its very cool. You can people-watch in New York too, which I really enjoy.

Weve met some incredible people on our travels. Michelle Obama was great, and I think she and Barack probably really are just the way they come across in the press very normal. Theyre being themselves, they just happen to have ridiculously high-profile jobs. I think Michelle is an amazing First Lady. Everyone seems to love her, and I think thats because shes so warm and kind.

Personally, when weve been travelling Ive always tried to meet locals and see how they are in their hometown. When we were in Chicago someone from our record label introduced me to a couple of local guys. I played golf with them and it was nice to go out and do something different. Coincidentally, they used to be mates with Barack Obama and play golf with him every Sunday, and they said hes really down to earth. One of the guys even invited me over to his house for a barbecue, so I went over and met his family. Things like that are really special.