My name is Laura Marie Wilson, but I go by Lara. I was born September 15, 1965 in Lawrence, Kansas, where I grew up with a younger brother and several cats. Lawrence is a university town, home of the University of Kansas, and is divided along townie/university lines. All of my friends growing up were children of professors.
I attended public schools, gaining a marginal education. To this day I believe that most of the things I learned during my formative years came from personal research outside the school system. I have always read voraciously and love libraries and researching.
When I was ten my father took a one year position at University College Dublin, so we moved to Ireland. Looking back, it was a wonderful experience, but I know I missed my friends and my cats. Still, I believe the educational level was higher. I recall learning basic algebra, which I was not exposed to in the U.S. for three more years.
Junior High was dull, but I loved High School. I attended Lawrence High (at the time the only high school in town) where I was involved in choir and theatre. I had a small group of friends and made several new ones, all coming out of a different junior high. My senior year was the best year of my life. I took the minimal number of classes, quit choir because the choir director was a big ol' jerk, allowing me to be in the inaugural class "Rise of Communism". That was a wonderful class, and we wrapped it up by having a big dinner party with eastern European and Russian foods. I was also an aide for my favorite astronony/chemistry teacher, and had fun lording it over the sophamores. After playing extras and doing props for several productions, I got one of the lead roles in the final play of the year, a melodrama. The cast became like a family for that time and it was a great way to end the school year.
I graduated with honors, and then partied soberly half the night. The next morning, my friends and I all met downtown outside one of the old theatres, getting in line for Return of the Jedi tickets. I was second in line for opening day! It's still my favorite of the original trilogy.
After high school, I attended K.U.--it just seemed natural. I lived in a scholarship hall for my freshman year, but didn't really know what I wanted to do with my life, so I took a year off. I returned to school and began pursuing a degree in Classical Antiquity with an emphasis on Latin. Along the way I decided that I wasn't going to be able to do anything with that degree, as you needed both Greek and Latin to pursue graduate studies in the field, so I began at first a minor, then a major in History. I made my own field in English/Irish history. At the time K.U. only had visiting professors in that field, so I did it on my own. I went on the Summer Institute to Great Britain in 1996 and discovered my second great passion--English Country Houses--alongside another passsion of English portraiture. Eventually, in 1989, I graduated with a double major, but still didn't know what I wanted to do with my life.
My parents moved to Washington, D.C. for two years, so I lived in their house, and finally got a job as a nanny in the evenings, allowing me to go back to school. I love children--another great passion. I began a Master's program in English History, but then decided I really didn't want to eventually write a dissertation. I'd long since discovered that I loved researching, but hated doing anything with the research. So, I entered the Library Science program at Emporia State University. I commuted the 90 minutes, and finished the program in two years. So, with a Masters of Library Science, I got myself a job as legal secretary.
I still work for the same law firm, though it's gone from a partnership to a single practicioner. I love being a secretary. Although it doesn't pay well, it is challenging enough to keep me interested, but also gives me a lot of free time to pursue great passion number one--writing.
I've always been an imaginative person--I've never been able to fall asleep easily, so as far back as I can remember, I made up stories in my head. When I was thirteen, I began to write them down. In my junior year of high school I met my best friend, Jackie, who also wrote stories, and we collaborated on several. I continue to write these stories, but two years ago I discovered the world of fanfiction and have been prolific in the Buffy fanficdom. Recently I've branched out to Roswell fic, as well. I've begun a novel, but right now I have so many ideas for Buffy fic that it keeps getting put on the back burner. I write erotica. I'm not embarassed by it, and I don't consider it porn. I have convulted plots, too much angst for my own good, and witty dialogue.
In the summer of '99, with the help of my parents, I bought my first house, and so at the age of thirty-four, I finally feel like an adult.
As for the personal/political/religious side: I was raised a Unitarian Universalist and believe that religion should be a personal, private, spiritual thing. I don't think about religion too much. I'm fascinated by paganism and the occult--an interest inherited from my father--but I'm not sure I believe any of it. Politically, I'm sadly becoming more conservative fiscally. I think the government gives away too much money to foreign countries and I'm very anti-military. I think welfare needs further reform, though I think education and the arts need further funding. I'll vote for a pro-choice woman republican, because the more women running things, the better, but I don't care what any government person does in their personal life. I vote mosly liberal, and I'm thrilled silly that my U.S. representative is finally again a Democrat. I'm staunchly pro-choice and pro-woman, being a member of both Planned Parenthood and NOW. I believe a woman should be anything she wants to be. I fully support gay rights as I have several gay and bisexual friends. I'm proud that my church is one of the first on the forefront of all major movements and causes. I'm a passivist, but I also believe that if the U.S. was invaded, I'd jump right in and fight back. I would have made the perfect isolationist in the '30s, as I feel we interfere too much in the business of other countries.
So, that's me. I'm a rather complicated person. I'm a feminist who wants to be a full-time mom and doesn't care about labels. Call me a woman, I don't care that 'man' is a part of the word. They're just words. I get rabid about people changing the words of songs just to make them 'politically correct'.
Back to Lara's Page