Meet Laurie Kehoe, Author

Dear Readers...

When I'm not writing, I'm involved in a multitude of other projects, foremost among them 

• Books and Brews, in which Michael Agnew (Minnesota's first beer cicerone) and I interview local authors as Michael pairs craft brews to their reading and....
• editing Gabriel's Horn's annual poetry anthology.

This year was our maiden voyage, with the theme of JOY. Our goal is to provide a paying market for poets writing in traditional and classical forms. I was delighted with the quality of poets who responded, with their impressive credentials and backgrounds and am very proud to feature THOMAS R. SMITH and DAN BLUM, two very accomplished wordsmiths. We have a number of poets from the Twin Cities, but also from around the United States, from Canada, and from the United Kingdom. I look forward to having even more countries represented next year. 

If you're a poet and would like to submit, please visit our submission page.

OUR FIRST EVENT … will be 

• July 7, 2017 at 

• Next Chapter Books, 38 South Snelling, Saint Paul, MN,  

• 2 to 3:30. 

• Wine, beverages, hors d'ourves and readings from several of our poets!

1. In previous installments, we've met the poets of Startled by JOY 2019. Today, we meet Lauretta Kehoe, who submitted her grandmother's poems. Lilly Gelle will be featured in another post, but the writing talent goes down through the generations, and today, we'll be talking about Laurie's own work. 

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2. I met Laurie several years ago, with A Dream of Dragons. Laurie sent me a copy of the book and I thoroughly enjoyed it, finding it both an engaging story that drew me in, and well-written. It's one of those books that leaves me with vivid images of its events, even years after reading it. Today, Laurie talks about writing A Dream of Dragons.
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4. So now, please welcome

Laurie Kehoe

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2. Tell us about your newest book or series. 
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4. While doing my family research, I found that we were involved in the Salem Witch trials.  I see a story there with supernatural elements, perhaps Aeyohem, the angelic race introduced in our debut novel A Dream of Dragons.  Right now, before I can start the story, I am reading several books on Salem to understand as much as I can.  I am also compiling a book of poetry written by Michael, my husband.  A Dream of Dragons has been rewritten and is with an editor now.  It is called Dragons in the Night.  I have also submitted a volume of my grandmother’s poetry, called Gypsy Heart, for publication. 
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2. Tell us a little about your background.
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   Originally from Chicago, I live in Las Vegas now with my husband of 27 years and co-author, Michael.  We have five children, three grandchildren and two cats.  I grew up wanting to be an artist but life got in the way when I had my daughter while still in high school.  I still managed to go to art school at night but then married my first husband, had a son and got divorced.  I went back to school to study paralegal science and 22 years later got my two-year degree. I don’t do as much art as I used to and now find my creative outlet in my writing. 
   

3. How long have you been writing and what got you started? 
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5. I’ve been writing for many years off and on but took it back up again three years.  Michael and I realized that as we get older, we don’t want to miss life.  He has gone back to doing comedy and getting into acting and I thought I’d like to write a book. So I did. 
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4. What books influenced you the most and did they impact your own writing? 
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6. Ted Dekker’s “When Heaven Weeps” was a big influence as well as the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. 
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5. What inspired your book? 
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7. A dream I had before I had my son.  I had written it down in a short story and when I wanted to try to write a book, it seemed like a great idea. 
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6. Tell us about the research you did for it. 
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8. I had to research the town of Venice, Florida although I’ve been there many times.  I think the most research was on the medical questions and fight techniques.  
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7. Who is your favorite character in your book? 
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9. Henry.  
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11. How much of yourself is in that character? 
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13. A lot.  I used a lot of my own fears and insecurities to give Henry conflict. 
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8. They say write what you know. How much of your life, your experiences, your career or hobbies, come out in your writing? 
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10. Henry being an artist was not only from my life but a lot of him was based on my own father, including his life in the Navy. 
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9. We can’t write only what we know. What research have you done and how do you research? 
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11. Most of the research was either online or talking to other people about life in today’s Navy. 

10. What are you working on now or what is next for you? My story about the Salem Witch Trials. I am also putting together a collection of Michael’s poetry. 
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11. Who or what has inspired you most in life and why? 
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13. Christopher Reeve said, “So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.” I believe that. 
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12. What do you think is the most important thing, in order to live life well? 
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14. Faith.  In God first, yourself, and your loved ones. 
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13. What advice do you have for other authors? 
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15. Not to give up.  Don’t listen to the nay-sayers, surround yourself with people who will hold you up. 

  

• About the Author:
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Lauretta loves science fiction and fantasy. Not finding many that reflected her Christian faith, she decided to write what she wanted to read. Then Michael added his input to A Dream of Dragons, the couple’s debut urban fantasy novel.  The story has been rewritten as Dragons in the Night, nominated as a Judge’s Favorite in the 2018 Ink & Insights contest.  

Lauretta has been published in several anthologies: Creative Writing Institute's 2017 Anthology "Lost," Enchanted Anthologies: “Once Upon a Cursed Time,” "Christmas Nightmares: and “Fractured Fairytales, Volume II,” and “Black, Blue and Purple Pain.”   

Lauretta has studied with Jerry Jenkins via "Your Novel Blueprint" class, Ted Dekker’s "The Creative Way" and James Patterson's “Master Class.” 

• Author Links:
• Author Site ~ Author Facebook ~ Dream of Dragons at Facebook ~ Twitter
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About the Book:

Free-lance artist, Henry Williford was resigned to the single life. When he discovers a naked, helpless woman on a Florida beach, his life changes forever.  He names her Anne and is amazed at how quickly she learns to become a woman. 

Their days are filled with joy and discovery, as together they seek to find the answers to Anne's elusive past, while their nights are plagued by dreams of golden dragons that soon become nightmares of black dragons, fire and death. When a forgotten enemy resurfaces and threatens to take the life of her new love, Anne learns of her amazing origin, but is faced with a terrible choice. 

For the record, I read A Dream of Dragons even before it came out, and I really enjoyed it!

The Battle is O'er is now available!

Start from the beginning: Prelude One 

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For other posts on other authors:
PTL Perrin's Terra's Anthem
Seventh Born by Rachel Rossano

For more on my books, click the images: