PICTURE perfect endings are a common feature in romance novels, but Limerick author Laura Ashley Gallagher says she prefers to stay away from the stereotypical happily ever after trope.
Earlier this month, the Dooradoyle native released her ninth book, a festive romantic comedy titled Jingle Belle, where main protagonist Belle finds herself on a blind dinner date gone wrong, only to realise the chef in the restaurant is her childhood sweetheart Miles.
Laura published her first book in 2021 but says her love of writing came long before then. Speaking to the Limerick Post, she explained that it was only when she was sitting her Leaving Cert exams that she realised she had a way with words.
“I kind of stumbled on it by accident when we had to write short stories for English and that’s when I realised I’m not too bad at this,” she joked. “But I was always an avid reader, me and my grandmother used to always share books with each other.”
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“I started writing my first book when I was 17 and finished it when I was 18. My grandmother, who has since passed away, was the first person to read it.”
Writing took a back seat for Laura when she had her son at the age of 22. But the writer’s block was broken during the pandemic, when she published three Amazon bestsellers, followed by the Skeptically in Love series, released earlier this year.
The prolific local talent has also signed with audiobook publisher Podium Entertainment to record her novels as audiobooks.
And despite writing being her full-time job, her talents proved to run far deeper than professional pursuit when the creative outlet provided her much-needed room to process following a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2023.
“There were days I wasn’t able to get up or I needed to use a cane. Earlier this year, my speech totally went and I couldn’t speak. I think that’s when writing became a big solace for me because it was the only way I could get my words out,” Laura shared.
While the author hasn’t written about MS in any of her novels yet, she has written about what it’s like to live with chronic illnesses including endometriosis, chronic fatigue, and anxiety.
It is this glimpse of reality Laura hopes to portray in her work where readers can relate to the characters and the challenges they face.
“I got an email recently from a lady who read one of my books, It Should Have Been You, which deals with a female character who suffered quite a lot of domestic violence. She wrote thanking me and said she didn’t feel so alone while she was reading it, I think that is so important.
“We can’t relate to people who are perfect because none of are like that. It’s nice to have someone you can relate to in fiction and escape for a little while”, Laura added.
Closer to home, the streets of Limerick may very well form the inspiration for the authors next release, saying that she would love to write a series set in the Treaty City.
“We have such nice scenery and I always get inspiration going out for a drive so it’s definitely in the pipeline. Although they’d probably all end up in the Icon at the end of it, and the main character would have to be a hurler.”