Conversations with Laurel

When an injured tennis pro meets his match on the courts, he learns a painful lesson about love! Humorous short story!

Spoiler Alert: This is a sad story about moving and losing a beloved pet, but also about changes in life and finding the "poetry" in unexpected events.

WARNING! Language and graphic language that might disturb some listeners! "Hungry Horror" is a screenplay in which visitors to the Virtual Reality (VR) Fright Museum get their money'w worth: a scary experience that changes them forever.

Author Minette Lauren visits with Laurel McHargue to discuss her novel "Race for the Sun: The Soul Watcher Series Book One"--which "combines romance, mystery, and suspense with a unique and refreshing take on the afterlife"--and "Sins of the Sister"--a killer thriller, which she co-wrote with Zoe Tasia.

Short story 14 is a lighthearted alien abduction story!

Poet Judy Cole visits with Laurel and shares her poems and the story of her evolution as a writer. Judy and Laurel talk about some poetic forms, but not 100 of them! And have you heard of "flarf poetry"? Perhaps it was inspired by Gertrude Stein!

Author Keith Steinbaum discusses his latest novel "You Say Goodbye"--a Beatles-inspired murder mystery--and his first novel, "The Poe Consequence," which will be re-released in March 2020. Keith and Laurel discuss inspiration and the amazing child whose efforts launched Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation for childhood cancer research.

Author Saralyn Richard talks with Laurel about her murder mystery "Murder in the One Percent"--a page-turning whodunnit set in the upper crust of society.

As race crew for her husband during the 2017 Ouray 100 Endurance Race in 2017, Laurel bemoans her discomfort in the cold rain, then chastises herself when she witnesses the brutal conditions the racers endure.

Strack Press Presents "Warm Springs" by Michael Kilman--anthropologist and author of the Science Fiction series "The Chronicles of the Great Migration." Kilman lectures at the University of Colorado at Denver and works on his YouTubeseries "Anthropology in 10 or Less."

In Short Story 13, a young marriage counselor learns a difficult lesson about breaking the rules after a stimulating session with an eccentric older couple.

Laurel shares her experience competing in Leadville's Turquoise Lake Half-Marathon and her thoughts on nipples.

Sara Potecha, author of "West Point Woman: How Character is Created and Leadership is Learned," visits with Laurel on the Alligator Preserves podcast. Sara and Laurel have many things in common, including their graduation from West Point in 1983 with the 4th class to include women! They share West Point stories and discuss Sara's self-help book on leadership with advice applicable to every workpla...

Short story 12 is about a woman who fears insanity. At age 60, she is sent on a mission by her personal orb.

In Alligator Preserves Episode 51, Laurel McHargue interviews Robert Goswitz about his debut novel--"The Dragon Soldier's Good Fortune"--a unique account of a young new draftee's first tour in Vietnam . . . with a mystical twist.

Laurel presents her Waterwight trilogy--a YA fantasy adventure completed and available today. She talks about its genesis and narrates the first two chapters of Book I.

After her husband suggested she listen to a Hidden Brain podcast about the difficulties of long marriages, Laurel decided to brainstorm about her own thoughts on the matter before listening. She didn't think they were having any problems! A humorous look at aging in relationships.

Short Story 11, The Foxhole, was inspired by a couple of suggestions made by my son and his gf. It will be included in a linked story collection--with West Point, the United States Military Academy--being the common element.

Author Howard Levine talks with Laurel about “Last Gasp,” his new political thriller, and about his writing process and where he finds inspiration. Laurel still can’t believe Howard hasn’t read Dan Brown . . . !

Award-winning author Kathleen Kaska visits with Laurel and discusses “A Two Horse Town,” the second book in her Kate Caraway murder mystery series. An animal rights activist herself, Kathleen focuses on those she relates to best: the underdogs. She writes in multiple genres, including historical fiction, and also talks about her Sydney Lockhart mystery series and mystery writer “triviography”!

Short Story 10 is about the divorced wife of a West Point brain surgeon who--after defecting to the rival team--finds a way to reconsider where her loyalties lie. This Army-Navy rivalry is filled with surprises.

Laurel shares a humorous essay about her experiences with medically induced menopause, and discusses the (oftentimes ridiculous) realities of aging! Watch this episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/qrylsgsq3fM

Laurel believes we do birthdays wrong! To celebrate the start of her 6th decade, she honors those who raised and tolerated her, and those who've helped to make her the person she is now.

In this last episode of 2018, Laurel does what everyone says people should do every day: She considers the things she's grateful for. Okay, fine--She considers the things for which she is grateful! Like prepositions.

Laurel describes her unusual experience with fruitcakes over the years.