This author’s creativity flows in all directions.
Please, introduce yourself. Tell us about your personal life, family, education.
Hi! I am Laurie Woodward. I have a son and daughter, who are both grown and wonderful lights to others. We often get together for hikes, vacations, or just nice walks on the beach. I feel so blessed to have them in my life. I received a B.A. in social work from San Diego State University and worked in that field until my son was born. Then I went back to school to earn my teaching credential from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. All the while I was journaling and writing short stories and poetry.
The Book and the Series
For more than thirty years I worked full time as an elementary school teacher yet still made sure to keep up with my writing, starting my first novel when my kids were young. During my tenure, I coached Battle of the Books, advised the student council, and worked on programs to stop bullying and promote peace. I received many awards including site teacher of the year and grants to make anti-bullying videos. Since I was bullied as a kid, stopping it has been a theme in my work as both a teacher and a writer.
Although most of the time I work as a novelist, I’m also a screenwriter, blogger, and poet with work published in multiple journals and anthologies. I was a collaborator on the award-winning anti-bullying film, Resolutions, and have written and directed several student-made videos. I loved watching their confidence grow as they learned about the film making process. My published novels include Dean and JoJo: The Dolphin Legacy, Finding Joy, Forest Secrets, and the fantasy series, The Artania Chronicles.
What do you like doing in your spare time?
I like going to the gym and try to get there five or six times a week. I lift weights, workout on the aerobic machines, and get my groove on in Zumba classes. Since I live on the Central Coast of California, I am able to explore its abundant beauty. I love hiking with friends and family while taking in our gorgeous ocean and mountain views. We also are home to an active music scene and I can often be found listening and dancing to our local bands. My two Boston terriers are little balls of energy and love going on long walks.
If you are a writer, are you an avid reader?
Ever since I was a young girl, I have loved to read and usually had a book in my hand on every trip. My favorite genres are science fiction, mysteries, and thrillers although I do read literary fiction sometimes. My favorite books of all time are Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein, Walden Pond by Henry David Thoreau, and Dune by Frank Herbert. I have read each of them at least five times.
Good poetry has a depth that can touch hidden parts of us. We all feel lonely sometimes but a poem has the ability to reassure us we really are not alone. Over the years I have turned to Emily Dickinson, Charles Bukowski, Langston Hughes, and Maya Angelou for comfort and inspiration.
Challenging Herself
What is your ultimate writing goal as you see it today?
My goal is always to improve and challenge myself to grow in my craft. I ask myself, “What is the best way to write this?” Then, I try to condense events down to their most minute moments to give the reader a rich experience.
A couple of years back after I’d written several novels, I wanted a new challenge so began to study screenwriting. What a different animal! It took a great deal of work but now I’ve written about a dozen including the adaptation of two my novels, Artania and Forest Secrets. I keep revising them to make them as tight as possible and have had some promising interest from Hollywood executives.
I’m nearly done with the first draft of time travel manuscript, my first science fiction novel, and am working hard to make sure that all of the physics references are accurate by doing extensive research. I love how much I’ve learned about quantum physics this last year!
What inspired you to write your first book?
I was driving through Denali National Park in Alaska on a family trip when I noticed the absolute uniqueness of each tree. Each had a personality all its own. This sparked the concept of a creature that was both tree and human that needed protection. From that idea Forest Secrets was born.
How do you decide on the title of a book?
This is always so challenging! I usually start with a list of every title I can think of. Then I set it aside and go through it seeking the one that seems to encompass the book’s theme. I’ve also asked people to vote on favourites on social media. That’s how I got the title for Finding Joy.
Have you developed a specific writing style and why?
I have tried to incorporate the attributes of authors I admire over the years. For my children’s books I like to be a little quirky like Roald Dahl. In fantasy I try to use metaphors like Dean Koontz. For my coming-of-age novel, I was inspired by Catherine Ryan Hyde. Now that I’m writing science fiction, I’m using some of Blake Crouch’s staccato rhythm and use of shorter chapters and paragraphs to maintain suspense.
How much of your books is realistic and experiences based on someone you know, or events in your life?
With the exception for Finding Joy, all of my plots come from my imagination. I do draw inspiration for characters from friends and family, but none are exactly like them. For me, it’s more fun to build a character from scratch than just copy a real person. Part of my process is to outline and that included character sketches for all of the major players in each story. It also helps if you have notes about their homes, backgrounds, heights, builds, education, etc. to stay consistent over three hundred pages.
Favorite Writers
Who is your favorite writer, and what is it about their work that really strikes you?
Dean Koontz is my favorite because he always includes a protagonist that I can’t help but root for. He then thrusts them into extraordinary circumstances that demonstrate the strength of their character. As they tackle one obstacle after another, he reveals likable aspects of their personalities. Koontz also has the most amazing imagination with fantastical plots written with beautiful prose that take me away to another world.
If you could not write, how would you express what you wish to convey through any stories?
In college I minored in dance and have choreographed many numbers for myself and my students over the years. I dance everywhere! In my living room while vacuuming, down the stairs after a workout, or with fingers on the steering wheel while driving my car.
As a teacher, I was the director of our school’s talent show for many years which included writing the scripts, helping kids to fine tune their acts, and leading the entire school in line dances like The Macarena and The Cupid Shuffle. It was so fun!
Do you have a blog or website viewers can visit for updates, events and special offers? Include HTML links to any and all of your sites.
https://artania7.wordpress.com/ is my blog.
http://www.artania.net/ is my website.
https://nextchapter.pub/authors/laurie-woodward-childrens-fiction-author is my publisher’s author page.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B00JCPIX5I?ingress=0&visitId=ee9d5ede-eefe-4e0d-8e33-9416a7e5958e&ref_=ap_rdr is my Amazon author page.
https://www.facebook.com/woodwardwriter is my Facebook author page.
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm15557219/ is my IMBD page.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/laurie-woodward-aba55936/ is my LinkedIn page.
