Laurali Rose "Bunny" Wright (née Appleby) (5 June 1939 – 25 February 2001) was a Canadian writer of mainstream fiction and

mystery Mystery, The Mystery, Mysteries or The Mysteries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional characters *Mystery, a cat character in ''Emily the Strange'' *Mystery, a seahorse that SpongeBob SquarePants adopts in the episode " My Pre ...

novels. Many of her stories are set on the coast of British Columbia.

Early life and education

Wright was born in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

. She was educated at

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

, the

University of Calgary {{Infobox university , name = University of Calgary , image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , former ...

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a Public university, public research university with campuses near University of British Columbia Vancouver, Vancouver and University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, in British Columbia, Canada ...

, and later at

Simon Fraser University Simon Fraser University (SFU) is a Public university, public research university in British Columbia, Canada. It maintains three campuses in Greater Vancouver, respectively located in Burnaby (main campus), Surrey, British Columbia, Surrey, and ...

(Master of Arts in Liberal Studies, 1995).

Career

In 1959, Wright worked as a

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

at the Fraser Valley Record; she wrote for the Saskatoon '' Star Phoenix'', but her first article was for ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'' about being a teenager in Germany. She later moved to Calgary, where she was mentored by

W. O. Mitchell William Ormond Mitchell, (March 13, 1914 – February 25, 1998) was a Canadian writer and broadcaster. His "best-loved" novel is '' Who Has Seen the Wind'' (1947), which portrays life on the Canadian Prairies from the point of view of a smal ...

. She worked in California for an advertising agency. While in Vancouver, Wright met John Wright. The two were married, and she spent time as an actor with her husband, including a stint doing summer stock in

Dawson City Dawson City is a town in the Canadian territory of Yukon. It is inseparably linked to the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–1899). Its population was 1,577 as of the 2021 census, making it the second-largest municipality in Yukon. History Prior t ...

. She worked for several years as a journalist at the ''

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The C ...

'', eventually becoming assistant city editor, before turning to full-time writing in 1977. Wright published her first novel, ''Neighbours'', in 1979. Her earliest novels were literary fiction; after the publication of ''The Suspect'' (1985), her first mystery novel and winner of the 1986

Edgar Award The Edgar Allan Poe Awards, popularly called the Edgars, are presented every year by the Mystery Writers of America which is based in New York City. Named after American writer Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), a pioneer in the genre, the awards hon ...

for Best Novel, she concentrated almost exclusively on the genre. One further work of literary fiction, ''Love in the Temperate Zone'', appeared in 1988. In addition to the Edgar Award, Wright received the

Arthur Ellis Award The Crime Writers of Canada Awards of Excellence, formerly known as the Arthur Ellis Awards, are a group of Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the Crime Writers of Canada for the best Canadian crime and mystery writing published in t ...

and wrote several adaptations of her novels for

CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

. Her novels have been published and distributed throughout the world in several languages. ''The Suspect'' has been adapted for the stage and, at various times, the "Alberg and Cassandra" series has been optioned for film and television. It is the basis for the television series '' Murder in a Small Town'', which premiered in 2024.

Personal

Wright rarely used her given names for any purpose. She published all her novels as L. R. Wright (except in the US, where she appeared as Laurali Wright), and was known as Bunny in her personal life. She and husband John Wright had two daughters. Wright died of

breast cancer Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

on February 25, 2001.

Bibliography

The Alberg and Cassandra Mysteries *''The Suspect'' (1985) *''Sleep While I Sing'' (1986) *''A Chill Rain in January'' (1990) *''Fall From Grace'' (1991) *''Prized Possessions'' (1993) *''A Touch of Panic'' (1994) *''Mother Love'' (1995) *''Strangers Among Us'' (1996) *''Acts of Murder'' (1997) The Edwina Henderson Mysteries *''Kidnap'' (2000) *''Menace'' (2001) Other novels *''Neighbours'' (1979) *''The Favorite'' (1982) *''Among Friends'' (1984) *''Love in the Temperate Zone'' (1988)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, L.R. 1939 births 2001 deaths 20th-century Canadian novelists Deaths from cancer in British Columbia Canadian mystery writers Edgar Award winners Canadian women novelists Writers from Saskatoon Canadian women mystery writers 20th-century Canadian women writers Canadian women non-fiction writers 21st-century Canadian novelists 21st-century Canadian women writers 20th-century Canadian journalists Carleton University alumni University of Calgary alumni University of British Columbia alumni Simon Fraser University alumni Deaths from breast cancer in Canada Novelists from Saskatchewan