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Local Writer Has the (W)Right Stuff

Jason McCarty
Staff Writer

Scott County native Laura Wright weaves suspenseful stories, which are full of local color and action in order to entertain curious readers.

Wright, who currently lives in Hiltons along with her husband Sean, son Isaac, and mother Lillian Chambers, offers readers a fiction cocktail with a splash of The Twilight Zone and a twist of Hannibal Lecter.

“I like to be very active in my writing, so I like to start out with a lot of action, and build it into some suspense,” said Wright. “That’s what I like to read, so I think it is important to incorporate what I enjoy reading into my writing.”

Soon after her father’s death in 1988, Wright began writing poetry and short stories.

“My father had a long bout with lung and brain cancer,” said Wright. “Shortly after his death, I began writing, and that is when it all began.”

Wright experimented with writing during her high school years, and at the same time she enjoyed reading authors like Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Robert McCammon and Agatha Christie.

“Many writers have influenced my writing, including local writer Ann Cooper who lives in Hiltons,” added Wright. “She has given me a lot of good advice, and she is a real good friend.”

Wright graduated from Gate City High School in 1993. During her senior year at Gate City, Wright’s first poem was published, “Angel with a Broken Wing,” by the Scott County Virginia Star.

By 1996, Wright had written over 800 poems and 200 songs. She then moved on to short stories, and later novels. Her first novel, While I’m Dying, appeared as an electronic book on the website <http://www.freefiction.com> in 2001. However, the online publishing company soon went under, and her work was no longer available online.

Wright also published work with the travel magazine Tennessee Style in 2001, but shortly after Sept. 11, she became a victim of an unstable American economy.

“After the Sept. 11 disaster, many of the magazine’s sponsors pulled from the publication, and the magazine folded,” said Wright.

Currently, she is a freelance writer for the Bristol Herald Courier and busy writing pieces published by Chicago’s Penknife Press, Ltd.

“I found Penknife online, and I looked at some of the books they published. The cost for readers really caught my eye, and I figured they were the best bet for me,” said Wright. “They also let me design my own covers.”

In 2005, Penknife published Wright’s collection of short stories titled Timeslips & Terrors.

Timeslips takes readers on a paranormal journey through life, death, and something in between, with all of the stories set right here in the local region.

“Everything I write is pretty much set in Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina,” said Wright. “Especially in Timeslips, almost every short story takes place in the region.”

One story in particular, “A Dead Rose,” made a huge emotional impact on one of Wright’s readers.

“It is a story about a woman who has lost her husband, and can’t get over it,” said Wright. “One time a woman had told me that she felt exactly like the main character after losing a loved one. I couldn’t believe my work had touched someone like that. I just write to entertain, and that just really meant something to me.”

This closeness to the region is also evident in the title of her latest novel Virginia Creeper, which is currently being evaluated by Penknife for publication.

Wright’s latest novel will be available for order in major bookstores in a few months. While waiting for her latest suspense thriller to emerge, you can order some of Wright’s earlier works at major bookstores, or visit her website at www.laurawrites.net.

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