Laura Morgan's Blog
April 24, 2014
January 12, 2014
10 tips to producing an eBook
Delighted to have my article on yahoo lifestyle.
Check it out: 10 tips to producing an eBook
And it even reached an Italian audience!
December 25, 2013
December 23, 2013
My Top 10 Reads of 2013
Mr Loverman by Bernardine Evarist
A delight to read, I did not want it to end. Wonderful characters, fascinating insights; all told in a compelling and playful way. I chomped on the words like they were sweets.
Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins
Addicts beware: I consumed all three in a week, everything else came second. Fresh characters for the 21st century – no staid gender stereotyping here. Men can be kind, women can be ferocious and single minded – the characters are true unto themselves. And it made me want a gold tattoo…
Taking Flight by Sheena Wilkinson
A brilliant young-adult novel set in Belfast. Truthful, punchy and compelling. Dual perspectives told with unflinching honesty.
The Panopticon by Jenni Fagan
A startling, yet imperfect, tale. The joie de vivre of the narrator lifts the bleak subject matter from the depths which it has the honesty to go. Fascinating insights into homelessness and the care system. A linguistic pleasure, especially for those who enjoy the taste of Scots.
Orlando by Virginia Woolf
The greatest love letter disguised as a novel I have ever read. I only wish I had delved into it when I was going through my Vita Sackville-West obsession. Pair it with Portrait of A Marriage for a treat.
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
The only Austen I have professed to dislike – but third time lucky. I think I am now finally old enough to enjoy this novel. No longer was I put off by the wussy protagonist, this time I relished the dangerous sub-plots this novel is rife with.
Dangerous Liaisons by Pierre Choderlos de Laclos
Makes Cruel Intentions look prudish. A flabby middle, but worth it for the lean and exciting ending. So French, so naughty – delicious.
Nights At the Circus by Angela Carter
Since my first reading, I have re-read this novel every other year. A tale is so rich it never tires; so tantalising it always delights. It both tickles and sharpens my brain. Such fluid prose, I feel as though I am sitting on a train watching the story spin past the window.
The Emperor’s Babe by Bernardine Evarist
Normally I cannot stand verse longer than a page, but I was swiftly hooked. I found myself skipping through Roman London along side the protagonist. Starling, vivid and with pinpricks of tragedy.
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Beautiful. Compelling. A protagonist so well drawn, that I cannot dissect; I cannot see her seems. This novel perfectly balances the internal and external, the familiar and unfamiliar. Joint first with Mr Loverman for my favourite novel of the year.
December 8, 2013
Stars Apart’s Soundtrack
Music has influenced every step of Stars Apart – it is the heartbeat that pulses beneath the words.
I had so much fun making this soundtrack, tracing back the influences for each section of the novel, and I hope you enjoy listening to it.
You can listen on Spotify here….
Wake Up: Arcade Fire
That’s All Right: Elvis Presley
Hang Loose: Alabama Shakes
You Go To My Head: Billy Holiday
You’re Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go: Bob Dylan
Toxic: Britney Spears
I’m Left, You’re Right, She’s Gone: Elvis Presley
Video Games: Lana Del Ray
Rape Me: Nirvana
Picture This: Blondie
Boys and Girls: Alabama Shakes
Tightrope: Janelle Monáe
How Do You Do? Hot Chip
Take Yo’ Praise: Camille Yarbrough
October 30, 2013
October 26, 2013
STARS APART is live!
Stars Apart: a tale of love, obsession and betrayal set in the voyeuristic world of celebrity.
Across the crowd, she catches eyes with the biggest rock star of her generation. He beckons her, she jumps stage. His pumped up ego proposes, and they marry, right there, before a stunned audience.
He works all day; their fragile love is sustained through nights of bliss. He asks that she stays hidden from the celebrity obsessed world. She complies, but, as her loneliness increases, so does her frustration. Is it control or love that motivates him? The world thinks they own him – how can he be truly hers? Trust cracks. Can they survive her betrayal?
