Back to Featured Interviews >>

MEET LAURA HASKINS-BOOKSER
by Bonnie O'Brian

What did you most like to do when you were a child?

Laura Haskins-Bookser

I lived in a world of make-believe when I was a small child. I truly believed in things like gnomes, fairies, and unicorns and would try to hunt for them in our yard, or read about them in books. As I got older though, and realized that other people didn’t believe in those things, I stopped looking for them; even though I still secretly believe they are real.

What books influenced you most when you were growing up?

I read Alex Haley’s Roots when I was a teenager and it was the first book that I fell in love with. I thought that his story was a powerful way to relay history while truly capturing the heart of the people he was writing about. It is still my favorite book.

What audience did you have in mind for your career as a writer - adult or children?

I actually began my “writing career” by writing books for younger readers, but it was very hard to break into the children’s literature market. After writing my non-fiction story in DREAMS TO REALITY, I realize more than ever that my true love is fantasy-fiction for younger readers. I am currently revising my fiction work so it can be reviewed by a new publisher. The book was written for young girls, and is a story about two ordinary girls who are the title characters (Saska and Philomena) who get caught in a hidden world in the forest behind their homes.

How did your life change when you got married?

My first two books are all about my experience being a single and teen mother. Getting married made me realize how hard it had really been for me for over eleven years as a single mom. I didn’t realize how much easier having two people and two incomes could make things. It put things in perspective which led me to write DREAMS TO REALITY in the first place, and inspired me to release the poetry showing my evolution in THE SOFTER SIDE OF HIP-HOP.

Do you work on more than one book at a time?

I find that I work much better when I focus on one project at a time, however sometimes when an idea strikes me, I will cross over to another book or article so I can hold onto the true feelings behind my inspired idea.

What are you working on now? When do you expect to start submitting it to publishers?

I have written another book for young adults, including teen and single moms, called SEARCHING FOR DADDY. The book will be submitted to publishers this summer. It is my first work of fiction for young moms, and is about a girl, Ginny, who was raised alone by her mother, and finds herself pregnant to a musician who leaves town before she can tell him that she is pregnant. Because she doesn’t want her child to be raised without a father, like her own childhood, Ginny decides to make a trip cross-country to find her child’s father. It is on that journey she finally begins to come to terms with her feelings about her own father’s absence.

What do you most want the students to get out of your school visits?

I visit schools simply to let students know that where they are now is not where they will always be. I encourage them to keep striving for more in their lives, even if they are teen parents who have more hurdles to get over. I think I have been so encouraged by the teen parents I meet. They are amazing and often so motivated to be great parents and to do better things with their futures.

Is there anything about yourself that you’d like to share - hobbies, where you were born, special talents other than writing/illustrating?

I have decided that life is not worth living unless you are continually trying new things. I keep creating new lists of places to go, things to do, and experiences to try to keep life exciting. This year’s list includes taking surf lessons, going skydiving, and traveling to two countries that I have never been to. I hope to be an example to my children to not fear trying new things.