My name is Laura, and I’m both a book addict and madly in love with the spooky side of Pittsburgh.

Before we jump into the spiel that sounds like something from a support group for book hoarders, let me clue you in to some backstory.

I was that weird kid, you know, who brought stacks of ten-plus books with them almost everywhere they went. (Much to my parents’ irritation.)  This book obsession only got worse over the years, made more so given the fact that I spent a lot of time writing as a kid. When my father got me to read The Lord of the Rings, my addiction to books was sealed.

My reading journeys have taken me into a number of genres, but the works that have stuck with me through my life are: Tolkien’s, The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, American Gods, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,  God’s 15 Minutes,  A Canticle For Leibowitz, and pretty much any anthology edited by Ellen Datlow.

It was only until some time later that I realized just how much books would come to bear over the course of my life. I got my associate’s in psychology, and when I realized that wasn’t for me, I switched gears to getting my bachelor’s in writing from the University of Pittsburgh. Much of what I have learned about language and effective world-building comes from my time in that program. Most recently, I finished my master’s in publishing from The George Washington University.

Needless to say, I really, really like books and storytelling in all of its forms.

The Book Haunt is a personal foray into the digital humanities, the impact of stories on our lives, and delving into the narrative of Pittsburgh through its independently owned ventures.

So hi, I’m Laura, and I think storytelling is pretty much the greatest thing ever.