Finally, there are the true loves of my heart: the booksellers, and the book bloggers. I hope I’ve made a book you like here, because the way you had my back with Our Stop made me so grateful, and I want to please you forevermore. Writing reviews online or in stores, putting what I made in window displays, on tables in the middle of the stores, pressing it into people’s hands when they asked for advice on what to buy or sending them to a blogpost you did … You’re the most important piece of the publishing puzzle. Thank you for every kind word, social media tag, email. Thank you for making me feel like I’m okay at this gig.

And to you, the reader. I never thought I’d end up writing books about women’s love lives but the truth is, it fascinates me. Our romantic lives reflect our wider lives, so when we talk about feelings of self-worth, self-respect, fears of being seen, the need for our friends, how our relationships with our primary caregivers impact our adult behaviours … What we’re really talking about is love, period. Romantic love, yes, but familial love, platonic love, sexual love, love for the self. I suppose what I mean is: ‘women’s fiction’ is just human fiction, and I love having the space to explore that humanness. Thank you for buying my books, for telling your friends about them, for leaving reviews on booksellers’ websites, for posting about them on Instagram, and for coming out to events to say that you, too, enjoy exploring humanness. It’s a funny old thing, isn’t it, trying our best day after day. My characters and I are right there in the trenches of learning with ya.

Here’s to having the self-respect of Francesco, then, and the curiosity of Thomas. I want to strive for the emotional insight that Priyesh has, the humour of Sharon, and the open-heartedness of Clementine. Mostly, I want to forever allow myself to right a wrong path, like Penny. Deciding what we want in this life and then making it happen is the best way to know we’re not just living – but alive. Because of these imaginary friends of mine, I feel a little bit more ready to give the world hell. My hope is that you will, too.

Don’t forget to check your boobs,

Laura x

Keep Reading …

Nose in armpit.

Elbow in back.

Not every romance starts with flowers …

If you fell head over the heels for The Love Square, then you’ll love Our Stop – a not-quite-romance of near-misses, true love, and the power of the written word.

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