Laura Whitcomb (born December 19, 1958) is an American novelist and teacher. She is best known for her book ''A Certain Slant of Light'', which has been optioned for a film by

Summit Entertainment Summit Entertainment, LLC (formerly the Summit Group, Summit Export Group, Summit Entertainment Group Inc., Summit Entertainment Limited, Summit Films Limited, and Summit Entertainment N.V.) is an American film production label of Lionsgate Film ...

. Whitcomb has won three Kay Snow awards and was runner-up in the Bulwer-Lytton Writing Contest.

Background

Whitcomb grew up in Pasadena California in a mildly haunted house. 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''."Laura Whitcomb." ''Contemporary Authors Online.'' Detroit: Gale, 2010. ''Gale Biography In Context''. Web. 22 Oct. 2012. 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.

Reception

Critical reception for Whitcomb's work has been mixed to positive.

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

has largely panned Whitcomb's work, criticizing it for being "forgettable" and not living up to its promise. In comparison, the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

made ''A Certain Slant of Light'' one of their book picks for 2006 and the book was praised by

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

. However, ''A Certain Slant of Light'' was chosen for the "Discover Great New Writers" program at

Barnes & Noble Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 600 retail stores across the United States. Barnes & Noble operates mainly through its B ...

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) *''Under the Light'' (2014) *''The Fetch'' (2010)

Non-fiction

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

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitcomb, Laura 1958 births Living people 21st-century American novelists American women novelists Writers from Pasadena, California 21st-century American women writers American women non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers