Being Laramie Buchanan follows a twenty-three-year-old woman navigating grief, first love, family secrets, and sudden danger. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The first chapter of all of my novels is the framework from which the writing emerges organically. Sometimes a song, an observation, a dream, or a personal experience inspires the setting. The setting of the first chapter of Being Laramie Buchanan is reminiscent of my own law school graduation ceremony that took place at Chautauqua Auditorium in Boulder. I recently saw a photo of me in a cap and gown at that ceremony, and as with all of my novels, I asked the question “what if”? For Laramie Buchanan, the question was “what if someone significant had been missing at the ceremony”? And from there, the story develops with answers provided in the backstory and its aftermath. I discovered that as I write, I am able to see the action develop in front of me – almost like watching a movie. As I sit at my keyboard, it often feels like the novel is writing itself and my fingers on the keyboard are just the tools needed to put it into words on a page.

Family secrets play a significant role in the narrative. Why do you think hidden family histories have such power over our sense of self?

I believe that our sense of self is silently built around us, almost like a hidden building structure, as we grow. It gives us a sense of security by knowing our place in the world, particularly in the closeness of the family environment. But hidden family secrets can shake that “structure”, sometimes almost like an earthquake, and force us to evaluate and repair the damage to make the “structure” safe and strong again. For Laramie Buchanan, the family secret wasn’t in itself “earth-shattering” but it added another layer of conflict and confusion to the complications she had begun to face in her early steps into adulthood.

Crescent Moon Ranch feels almost like a character itself. What inspired the ranch setting?

I was born and raised in Boulder County, Colorado, which is a mixture of mountains and plains. Having lived here my entire life, I’ve absorbed the essence of the exquisite area, and it has naturally emerged in the writing of each of my novels. I have also practiced yoga for several years. So I felt that Laramie needed a place of renewal and peace to allow herself to regain perspective and perhaps experience self-discovery. I have travelled up the mountain canyons many times and could visualize a place like the “Crescent Moon Ranch Yoga Retreat” tucked away on “Raspberry Road” and let my imagination run freely.

What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?

I have begun writing the next novel, which will be a crossover of the literary/ contemporary women’s fiction/ romance genres with a slight fantasy element. This book may be available in late 2026 or early 2027. I also write illustrated picture books in rhyme for children, ages 2-6, one of which may be published within the next year, as well.

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