Introducing Laurel Houck
- motownmysteries
- Mar 18
- 3 min read
At times it still surprises me that I’ve been able to connect with so many talented people from different parts of the world. Sometimes it’s through the wonders of technology, with social media and the internet playing a big role. Yet other times, we have a common bond. Laurel Houck and I are both part of the Inkspell Publishing family.
Let’s meet Laurel.
Everyone takes a different path to becoming a published author. What was your journey like?
Long. Very, very long. I began writing at the age of six, got hooked on reading (the Bookmobile had nothing I hadn’t read), and ping-ponged from poetry to picture books to novels. The path is littered with multiple rejections and heartbreaking disappointments. I had sold six books to two major publishers, only to have all cancelled due to fiscal reasons totally beyond my control. But writing is worth the sacrifice. Or I’m a masochist!
Let’s get wild. Your latest book has been selected by a streaming service to be made into a movie (or series). The producers have asked for your thoughts on casting the top three characters. Who would you choose?
Okay, that’s wild for sure!
Selah: Emma Stone
Will: Ryan Gosling
Torque: Jason Momoa
Do you prepare an outline before you start writing a story?
Nope, never. I actually start with an idea that quickly becomes a title. The title is my outline. The term “working title” is true, in that it works as the touchstone that grounds me, but is a bit precarious if an editor wants to change it at publication. So far, that’s not been a problem. By letting the characters and their circumstances speak to me as I write, it gives me great latitude to explore multiple genres and experiment with unusual situations while staying true to my original vision.
Tell us about your latest book.
Life on the streets is hard but it’s deadly when a young woman battles addiction…
Where is home…when you’re homeless?
Selah gets through life using lies, sex, and faux concern as a veneer to forget the past and to achieve personal gain. She barely tolerates her job bringing medicine to the streets. Will is the only man who has refused her body. She resents that his God stands between them.
Will pastors the homeless no matter who or where they are. He conceals a past that is anything but pure. His biggest temptation is his love for Selah. But he refuses to compromise his faith.
When Selah’s deceased husband appears to her—more dangerous in death than in life—the careful control she has used to cope slips away. Evil takes control as she falls far from the life she had carefully planned. And then farther still.
Selah must make a radical choice as an epic spiritual battle rages. Because she has finally found a love worth protecting at all costs.
Is there redemption at the intersection of brutal reality and saving grace?
Please share an excerpt.
Their hands met as Selah discarded the stick and Will moved it aside. Each reached to stroke the cheek of the other. Selah shivered, not from cold, but from the feel of Will’s cheek, soft skin covered with a stubble of growth. She ran her hand up the side of his face, caressing his temple with her thumb.
Will responded, his hands kneading her shoulders, moving down her back inch by inch in small circles, working their way around to her chest. They stopped for a brief moment as he searched her face for approval, and then continued his languid pursuit.
Selah stifled a moan, loathe to break the spell being cast. But when his fingers suddenly stopped, she murmured, “Oh, Will…” on a long, lingering breath.
His eyes closed as his hands moved to capture her head and pull it toward him. For the briefest of moments, their breath mingled as they paused, noses touching. Then Will tilted his head and his lips met Selah’s.
What’s the next project you’ll be working on?
I’m working on several things right now, including an alternate history romance and a memoir—and then there’s the picture book, the historical fiction novel, the middle grade series…
Follow these links to discover Laurel’s books.
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