Check Out Lauren Underwood’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Underwood

Hi Lauren, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My story starts with my love for reading. When I was really young, I remember both my parents emphasizing the importance of reading, always reading books to me before bedtime and letting me choose each one. My dad, in particular, has fond memories of this because I always brought a stack of books to him that he claims “had the most words.” To this day, my personal collection of books stands at about 630 and continues to grow on almost a weekly basis.

My love for reading eventually led to my love for writing. I give a lot of credit to my fourth and fifth grade teachers, who really pushed my creativity whenever we had writing time. I remember writing comedic stories that made my fifth grade teacher laugh so hard that it inspired me to keep writing. Since then, I’ve always wanted to impact others and have them find their own special meaning through my writing.

I started writing fiction stories in middle school and high school. I was so blessed to have close friends who read my work. I knew, growing up, that I would love to be a writer and author, so I pursued this dream in college. I went to the University of Kansas, where I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in English/Creative Writing. I especially loved my fiction and poetry workshop courses, where I was able to write whatever I wanted and share it with the rest of the class.

After college, my dream became a reality when I landed a content writer position at a digital marketing agency in Overland Park. While the writing was more SEO-focused and a lot different from what I liked to write in my free time, it still gave me the opportunity to be creative every single day, which I loved. I still work for the same agency, where I have now moved into a more managerial role requiring SEO strategy work, writing and editing, social media management, and more.

Still, I pursued writing outside of work as well, deciding to write my very first poetry book titled “these nights I spend with my ghosts.” I struggled a lot with mental health in college (depression and anxiety), and poetry was the best outlet I could find to express my emotions. That is really the basis of the book and where my inspiration came from. I never thought I would share my poetry with anyone, but after college, I realized that putting together the poems into a “story” of sorts could be very impactful to a lot of people. I self-published the anthology and soon found out that many people found meaning and related to my words. A few months later, I self-published my second poetry book titled “my bones in your backyard,” because I wanted to write more about relationships (specifically, romantic relationships) and how they can affect us both in the moment and long afterward.

I’m so proud of both poetry books and hope they continue to impact others. Now, my goal is to focus on a novel I’ve been working on in the contemporary fiction genre.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. There are really two things that come to mind when I think about any struggles that I’ve experienced:

1) Deciding to be an English major was a bit daunting because I was told by many people in my life that there wasn’t much I could do with it. This was later proved wrong in college when I learned how many opportunities are out there for English majors. Still, I felt nervous about my decision, wondering if I was making the right choice. It gave me anxiety about what I would do after college. I knew being a full-time author wasn’t lucrative at the time, so I needed to pivot and find something else. At the end of the day, I’m glad I stuck with my choice because it seemed to work out the way it was always supposed to.

2) My struggles with mental health in college really made things challenging. This was especially true during my senior year when I felt weighed down constantly by depression and anxiety. Everything felt hard, and to top it off, COVID-19 was occurring at the time. My whole life seemed to be uprooted by this disease in my head. Sometimes I wonder how I made it out alive; however, it was the little things that saved me – my family, friends, and even my sweet dog. Now I look back and feel proud of myself for pushing through, because it’s shaped me into a stronger person today.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I currently have two poetry books published, which I will describe below. I think what sets my writing apart is how raw and honest my poetry is. I don’t try to beat around the bush or tread lightly on subject matters that are real and controversial. I want the world to know even the smallest nuances of how we can face depression and, later on, how we reach some level of healing. I also aim to express in my writing that healing is an ongoing thing and not something that just happens and stays that way. We are constantly healing from the things that have happened to us.

The two poetry books I’ve written are as follows:

1) “these nights I spend with my ghosts” – At its core, this is a story about grief–more specifically, the grief we feel toward ourselves when something happens that changes everything. Truth be told, our lives are marked by moments of befores and afters, when we find ourselves completely changed by one single moment. Our mental health changes us. Our experiences change us. Our family and friends and past lovers change us. It’s how we navigate those changes, how we reflect on the things that happen to us, that allows us to heal over time. This poetry book is built on this concept. Told in three parts, the reader is taken through a journey of heartbreak, depression, and resentment; of feeling lost and searching for a connection; of finding healing and true renewal. Told with raw honesty, the reader will find that despite their struggles, they never are truly alone.

2) “my bones in your backyard” – This is not your average love story. In fact, this is a story about being in love when you shouldn’t be. This is a story about the rawness, the pain, the betrayal. The loneliness that comes despite being in a relationship. The mourning that comes when it’s not working out. The insanity that comes afterward. And yet, just when we think we’ve been broken down into so many small pieces from our past heartbreaks and mistakes, we find the one that gives us hope. This is a story about the journey it takes to get there. “my bones in your backyard” is told in three parts, taking the reader on a journey from death to life. In our darkest moments, despite the ways that others have hurt us, we can learn to rise again in another life.

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I could name so many people in my life who are my biggest supporters and cheerleaders.

First and foremost, my family. I feel so blessed that I have such an amazing family–not just my parents and brother but also my extended family. Everyone has always been so close, and I’ve learned over the years that not every family is like that.

Second, my friends. The moment I released my poetry books, they were the first to buy them. They’ve cheered me on in so many other parts of my life too.

I’m so thankful for my coworkers and all the teachers and professors that I had throughout my education.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://laurenunderwoodwriter.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenunderwood_author/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurenunderwoodauthor