GWN: It was during this time that you returned to writing and that inspired you to start a novel. Stories, anecdotes, poetry paved the way toward Chasing Rainbows, Catching Dust. What did this book focus on? Who published it? You even received recognition for it. By whom? You later revived the characters and created a trilogy. This led to the release of Neon Nights in November 2002. Tell us about this.
novel and "Hollywood Blues.    

     Laurie : I was only recently placed on the roster of assignment writers for South Carolina Magazine, but have yet to do any writing for them. I am hopeful for an assignment soon.
With respect to my children's educational picture book series with Journey Stone Creations, there have been recent alterations made to the original plan, which was to release the first book in the series, County Fair, this spring '07, and School Days to follow in late summer/early fall. The remaining two books in the series, Springtime Arrivals and Preparing for Winter, were to be dealt with individually in 2008. While waiting for the debut of County Fair, Journey Stone underwent some changes in which they are now producing a specialty line of Touch and Feel books, which will benefit young readers with special needs. I am very impressed with the Touch and Feel concept and I'm anxious to be part of the venture, so I have agreed for my books to be switched from general marketplace to this new line. In doing so, however, they will take a little bit longer to be released. With regard to the series itself, all stories are written in a rhyming scheme and each one contains a valuable childhood lesson. The upbeat rhymes and consistent forest animal characters assist in making these easy-reading stories fun and memorable, stressing such things as friendship and sharing found in the first book, County Fair, while other stories highlight the importance of teamwork, the acceptance of new siblings, etc. These books will appeal to pre-schoolers and very early grades, ages four to eight, and will assist in conveying some universal lessons while sparking young imaginations.

          GWN: Your fourth novel was co-written with Sasha O'Connor. "Four of Hearts" will be published by Whiskey Creek Press in the fall of 2007. According to GWN reviewer Debbie H. "Four of Hearts is a tale about four friends who decide with the play of the cards to travel to Los Angeles after high school graduation and try their luck at success."  Tell us about each of the girls, their hopes and dreams. 

          Laurie: Actually, my fourth novel was Wild Side, released by Winterwolf Publishing in August 2004.  Wild Side is a rock 'n' roll romp, loosely based on some random observations, conversations and experiences while working in the music industry.  I changed the names to protect the not-so-innocent, and tied it all together with a chick-lit storyline about a woman trying to find herself in the drug-infused, sex-obsessed and often dangerous 80's heavy metal scene.  What came out of it was referred to by one reviewer as "a sexy, saucy, rock 'n' roll thriller that empowers, enlightens, and - most importantly - entertains", and by another as "the most action-packed 'Behind the Music' episode ever!"  The book was voted among the Top Ten Fiction Novels of 2004 in the Preditor's and Editor's annual reader's poll, and was reviewed by celebs, musicians, and music magazines.  The story inspired me to write three songs in the rock genre, which were eventually recorded as a mini-soundtrack that was made available along with the book. Unfortunately, Winterwolf encountered managerial and financial problems that ultimately saw the closure of the publishing house in February 2006, leaving Wild Side without a home.  But that is about to change, thanks to Whiskey Creek Press, as they recently offered a contract for the publishing rights.  Although the cover will be re-designed by Whiskey Creek, the story will remain the same. The new release date has yet to be assigned, but it is presumed it will be made available for purchase by late 2008/early 2009.

          Four of Hearts, co-written with Sasha O’Connor and also with Whiskey Creek Press, is my fifth novel.  Sasha and I have been best friends since grade school. Seeing as she took particular interest in the concept of this book, contributing ideas even at the earliest stages of its development, and considering we have similar writing styles; I decided to invite her onboard as my co-writer.  We chose to draw from our own personality traits in order to create two key characters, and then developed the remaining cast loosely based on the dispositions of our closest girlfriends. Taking into account that over thirty years of friendship exists between us, there was plenty of fuel for the creation process.

          Indeed, it is a tale about four girlfriends, dissatisfied with their dysfunctional family lives, and upon graduation from high school they allow the turn of a card to point them in the direction of Hollywood, in search of fame and fortune, power and pleasure, and for love, respect and acceptance.  The descriptions of the four main characters are as follows:

          Sierra has high hopes of becoming a serious actress, and with help from her friends, she lands the opportunity of a lifetime, and slowly but surely builds a name and lucrative career for herself.  But money and recognition are not enough for Sierra, who strives for the highest of accolades, paradoxically sinking to an all-time low in an attempt to achieve it.  Unfortunately, success isn't everything she thought it would be.  In addition to bringing her a series of unfulfilling love relationships, as well as tearing apart her friendships, it also thrusts her into the grasp of a dangerous and deranged celebrity stalker. 
     With a self-deprecating sense of humour, Robin is the comedian of the group, though most often times she doesn't intend to be. All she has ever wanted was an uncomplicated life, and to get married and settle down with a husband and children.  But the cards hold something more for Robin, and when she takes a chance on a comedy club's open mike night, she is unexpectedly thrown into a new life she never knew would appeal to her and one that she must struggle to maintain.

           Layne is the female Don Juan of the close-knit group, seeking affection and approval from a variety of men, in an attempt to compensate for the lack of attention she received as a child.  Her goal is to become a respected journalist, but Hollywood has its own style of journalism, with different expectations, and when Layne's big opportunity finally knocks, it comes with an ethical dilemma and causes her to make some questionable choices. Her personal life is also problematic, and one fateful night she falls prey to the drunken temper of one of her boyfriends, and in a mocking twist of fate, becomes a victim of Hollywood's headlines.

          Bobbi has a tom-boyish quality, and hides behind a tough façade to prevent her fears and weaknesses from being exposed. Her flawed personality causes her to develop addictions faster and easier than taking her next breath.  Her burning desire is to become a world-renowned film director, and though she certainly possesses the raw talent, unrelenting drive, and necessary industry connections to achieve such a goal, it's never going to happen for her unless she can get a grip on her demons.  Out-of-control gambling, drinking, and cocaine use lead her to a rock bottom scenario that ironically plays out like it belongs on the silver screen, and is one she may never recover from.

          GWN: What happens in their search for fame? What did they lose along the way? How is their friendship tested?

          Laurie: Many things happen on the long and bumpy road to success, including drastic lifestyle changes, a variety of romantic and sexual encounters, and the development of some serious addictions. Priorities change as the women are sucked into the fame game, and friendships give way to the pursuit of self-imposed goals. They lose a sense of themselves, as desperation overcomes dignity, graciousness is exchanged for greed, and morals are replaced with manipulation.  Though the women struggle with their ongoing transgressions and falter in their friendships, for the most part they are able to forgive, forget, and move on. But the real test comes when three of the four cross paths with their careers, and find themselves in a dire make-or-break situation of becoming bigger successes or fading into obscurity. Their unbridled ambition causes them to sink to despicable lows of one-upmanship, whereby mud-slinging and back-stabbing are the order of the day, in an effort to keep each of them afloat.   Will their friendships and careers survive such ruthless rivalry?  All I can say is…buy the book!!

          GWN: What was the most difficult part about writing this book? What did you love writing about?

           The most difficult part was finding the time to write it.  Though Sasha holds a specialist's degree in English from the University of Toronto, this was her first foray into writing a novel, as her everyday job is in an entirely different field.  She holds an executive position in IT for a national bank, and her schedule can get rather hectic and demanding. Additionally, she is married with two young children to care for.  As for me, during the creation of Hearts, I was promoting Hollywood Blues and Wild Side, both of which were released that same year, plus I was writing songs for Heidi Propp, to be included on her debut CD. I, too, am married with a young daughter, deserving of my time and attention. So, everything combined, it wasn't easy finding time to collaborate, and quite often it was done over the phone very, very late at night. Eventually, we mapped out the entire story, chapter by chapter, and then assigned sections based on which one of us was writing a particular storyline.  Every so often we would come together to compare notes and check for continuity.  The process was far from easy, but in the end, we managed to provide a very consistent flow.  Even our editor wasn't able to tell how the book had been divided up.

           What I liked best about writing this book, even more than watching it come together, was the walks down memory lane that were a by-product of conversations wherein we drew from our past and shared experiences.  The laughs we had more than made up for our frustration at trying to schedule agreeable writing times.

7)         GWN: So you've never put aside your love of music. You're actually writing songs. How would you best describe what you've written? What have you written for Heidi Propp, winner of the "Best Female Vocalist" at the 2002 IMTA awards in New York City?

          Laurie:: Like my books, my song lyrics are derived from personal thoughts, feelings, and experiences.  My love of rock music tends to make me lean in that direction, though I have also been known to write some sentimental ballads.

          Directly after Heidi won for Best Female Vocalist in New York, and was being courted by various record labels, she returned to Toronto and put out word that she was looking for a songwriter to help her develop original material.  It was then that we were introduced through the nurse at our doctor's office. Heidi, who is classically trained and plays piano, sax and guitar, has appeared as a soloist in the stage play Hair, has sung alongside Pavarotti in the summer of 1995 for then-President Bill Clinton, performed at the 50th anniversary of the United Nations, and opened the Peace Games with the national anthem.  Looking to break from singing classical music, she was encouraged by record labels to venture into dance music and submit a demo CD for their consideration. I adhered to the request and developed four songs for her.  However, after she gave it a go we decided the genre wasn't comfortable for either of us, and consequently moved to power-pop, rock, and blues. For Heidi's current CD, Strong and Wild, which debuted in February 2006 with RDR Music, I co-wrote ten of the twelve tracks that are featured.  Most of these can be described as power-pop, meaning pop music with a harder edge, some are rock, two are ballads, one has a bluesy feel, and one even stretches toward metal. The title track Strong and Wild along with a song called Cruisin' have received radio play over the past year; however, it is the second track titled Bleary that is to appear on the soundtrack of a black-comedy movie that recently wrapped production in Toronto.  

        GWN: What do you see next in terms of writing fiction?

        Laurie: I have already begun to write my next book, called Revelations.  This one strays from the type of chick-lit I have been used to writing, and can only be described as a psychological thriller.  A brief synopsis of the book is as follows:

          All too soon after Paige Palmer celebrates her dream wedding, she realizes she is trapped in a nightmare of a marriage.  She quickly becomes the victim of abuse at the hands of the man she thought she knew, and fear promptly steps in to replace her illusions of love. Oddly, however, when her callous husband unexpectedly leaves her, she doesn't feel completely relieved by his departure. Try as she might to move on with her life, there is something about his strange and abrupt disappearance that keeps tugging at her - something sinister that she can't leave alone. The unsavoury contents of a bag he leaves behind poses more questions than answers, as do the bizarre and frightening occurrences suddenly taking place in her life.  When a fascinating illusionist enters the picture, with the unique ability to see into the past, as well as predict the future, Paige's questions begin to receive answers, and the real identity of her husband is eventually revealed.  At last she is able to piece together the puzzle that has eluded her all of her married years.  Unfortunately, the final piece holds the most riveting and dangerous discovery of all.  Revelations - it gives new meaning to the vow 'Till Death Do Us Part'.

           I am toying with an idea for another thriller after that, but nothing is definite as yet.  It seems with the completion of each novel I write I am convinced my creativity has been tapped and I don't have another book in me.  Then, after a few weeks rest and some time to concentrate on other things, suddenly my imagination will be sparked and I'm raring to go all over again.

          GWN: How have you promoted your books?

          As with most everything these days, the internet is key to getting the word out, and I do so via my website - www.authorsden.com/laurielonsdale    MySpace is also a great way to network. To that end, I have two sites, one at www.myspace.com/laurielonsdale  and www.myspace.com/lelonsdale   I also do book signings, mostly at local bookstores, libraries and various events, but I have been known to travel in order to make an appearance elsewhere, as was the case with my signing to launch Hollywood Blues and Wild Side at Waldenbooks in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  Another example is my recent trip to Hollywood, CA for the ASCAP music festival, where I showcased some of my books as well as my music, and further discussed them with film studio execs. I have also done radio interviews and some local TV talk shows.