Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Hello there!
I’m a relatively friendly, relatively outgoing girl who has somehow made it forty years on this planet (so far; I’m hoping for even more in the future!). Although I’ve hated writing for most of my life, I’ve been actually enjoying it for the last few months. Here’s to hoping that will continue for years to come!
As a young person (in middle school and high school), I wrote a variety of poems and short stories, and I find that I have returned to that basic theme now, in my middle years. That being said, I’m currently loving the Kindle Vella medium, where I’ve been working on the novel I’ll talk about in answer to the next question. See below.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book, Gedra Gets A Man, is a smutty fantasy novel (more on that in answer to a later question) inspired by looking around to see what my readers really wanted to read. When I identified that, I immediately began working toward giving it to them!
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I tend to write without reserve. I write as the words come to me, and I let the story take me where it will. Sometimes, it goes in surprising directions I could never have predicted!
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Oh, man, that’s a long answer! There have been tons. Here are a few: Dr. Seuss, Nora Roberts, Michael Crichton, Stephen King, Agatha Christie, Robert Frost, Robert Browning, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Robert Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, and Arthur C. Clarke, to name a few.
What are you working on now?
Currently, I’m mostly working on writing the Kindle Vella novel that I mentioned earlier, Gedra Gets A Man.
It’s a fantasy story about a young woman who discovers that her child is destined to prevent a catastrophic war between the species (vampires, werewolves, demons, aliens, fairies, and humans) that would otherwise destroy the human race.
When she finds out, she realizes that any child she could possibly have would be insufficient to the task, so she determines to create one capable of doing what is needed to get the job done. Action, adventure, sex, love, humor . . . it’s all there!
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
So far, I’ve primarily been engaging on Twitter. My following on there isn’t huge, but I enjoy the interactions, and I feel like I’ve built a pretty decent community.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Have fun! You don’t have to be the next Nobel Prize winner, and it doesn’t really matter if your old English teacher from high school looks down her nose at you or not. As long as you’re having fun and your readers are having fun, you’ve accomplished something worthwhile.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Another hard one to answer! I’m going to go with, “Be careful what you wish for — you just might get it!” I think it’s a good rule to live by. And “the grass is always greener on the other side,” while not being advice necessarily, is something else to be cautious of, perhaps followed by, “Money isn’t everything.”
What are you reading now?
Well, let’s see. I’m reading The Fellowship of the Ring to my daughter and Cat Warriors, I believe it’s called, to my youngest son. Other than that, quite a decent amount of Twitter feeds, as well as random articles such as “Control Anger Before It Controls You” and the Wikipedia page for the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to enter more short story and poetry contests as they arise, as well as continuing to work on Gedra. I actually intend to make a sequel to Gedra Gets A Man, not to give away too many details, and I may end up making it into a trilogy when all’s said and done. I also have a sci-fi story that I’ve written the first page of (Running Out of Ronel on Vocal) that I might expand into a novel in the future. Time will tell on that one.
What is your favorite book of all time?
This one is impossible. I actually have no idea what the answer is. But here’s a list of some that everyone should read: Fahrenheit 451, David Copperfield, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Fellowship of the Ring, The Stand, Lord of the Flies, And Then There Were None, and Gone With the Wind (but only after you’ve seen the movie). Those are the ones that spring to mind.
Also, if you’re feeling . . . especially daring . . . give The Amber Chronicles and The Book of the New Sun a shot. Oh, and Terry Pratchett stuff. And Douglas Adams, of course, particularly his Dirk Gently books . . . the list really does go on.
Author Websites and Profiles
Laura Pruett Amazon Profile
Laura Pruett’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account