Laura Whitcomb

Laura Whitcomb (born December 19, 1958) is an American novelist and teacher.^[1] She is best known for her book A Certain Slant of Light,^[2] which has been optioned for a film by Summit Entertainment.^[3] Whitcomb has won three Kay Snow awards and was runner-up in the Bulwer-Lytton Writing Contest.^[4][when?]

Laura Whitcomb
Born	(1958-12-19) December 19, 1958 (age 66) Pasadena, California, U.S.
Occupation	Author
Website
www.laurawhitcomb.com

Background

Whitcomb grew up in Pasadena California in a mildly haunted house.^{[citation needed]} She received a degree in English from California State University in 1993. Whitcomb wrote several books including A Certain Slant of Light in 2005, and its companion novel Under the Light in 2014. She also authored the historical fiction novel, The Fetch and a couple of how-to books titled Novel Shortcuts: Ten Techniques to Ensure a Great First Draft, and Your First Novel: An Author Agent Team Share the Keys to Achieving Your Dreams.^[5] She has taught language arts in California and Hawaii and was the runner up in the Bulwer-Lytton writing contest for the best first sentence of the worst science fiction novel never written. She lives in Wilsonville, Oregon.^{[citation needed]}

Reception

Critical reception for Whitcomb's work has been mixed to positive.^[6] Kirkus Reviews has largely panned Whitcomb's work, criticizing it for being "forgettable" and not living up to its promise.^[7][8] In comparison, the American Library Association made A Certain Slant of Light one of their book picks for 2006 and the book was praised by Publishers Weekly.^[9][10][11] However, A Certain Slant of Light was chosen for the "Discover Great New Writers" program at Barnes & Noble bookstores. The Fetch was #5 in the top ten of Children's Indie Next List 2009.

Published works

Fiction

• A Certain Slant of Light (2005)^[12][13]
• Under the Light (2014)^[14]
• The Fetch (2010)^[15][16]

Non-fiction

• Novel Shortcuts (2011)
• Your First Novel: An Author Agent Team Share the Keys to Achieving Your Dream (2012, with Ann Rittenberg)