Some people are completely unhelpful in a writer’s journey. You know the type—the ones who say you can’t do something or that your writing doesn’t have an audience. Lara Lazenby has certainly faced her share of naysayers. People told her she couldn’t write a book about a child with cancer because no one would read it. After beating cancer four times herself, Lara refused to let anything hold her back anymore. After writing on and off for nine years, she finally finished her book. Scars, Scribbles, and the Power of Crayons won First Place for Unpublished Literary Fiction in the 2018 Royal Palm Literary Awards. Laura discusses working through medical battles, the importance of being able to write anywhere, and overcoming naysayers in this week’s RPLA showcase.
Lara’s Writing Journey
In college, I “bled on the page” for the first time in a personal essay, The Other Two Scars. Too intimate for public eyes, I hid that story until a mid-life crisis—cliché but true. I had to finish that story but the little girl inside of me had too much to say. What began as a stand-alone memoir evolved into a work of fiction after I took my name out of it and made Death a character. I spent the next nine years writing about my childhood cancer while fighting medical blindsides including kidney cancer, dialysis, and transplant.
The Winning Entry, Scars, Scribbles, and the Power of Crayons 
Logline: Lexi, A mischievous seven-year-old with stage III cancer, has epic arguments with Death and makes deals with God to stay alive.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard the words, “Nobody wants to read about a child with cancer.” It took decades to ignore comments like that, swallow my fear, and pick up a pen. Growing up, there were no books about someone like me. There were no colored ribbons, bobbles, or beads—I was completely alone. Survivor guilt is a heavy burden and I carry the memory of my little friends.
Read an excerpt of Scars, Scribbles, and the Power of Crayons here.
Two Truths and a Lie, Writer’s Edition
Always carry a notebook.
If you don’t write every day, you’re not a serious writer.
Mind mapping works for writing a novel.
What’s true? Memory slips. Always carry a notebook. I’ve written many scenes and chapters outdoors, in lobbies, waiting rooms, hospital beds, the car, on the deck of more than one cruise ship—living in Florida has advantages—and my favorite, a cabin in Sedona’s Red Rock Country. The most powerful way to write from the child’s eye is to hide in small spaces, lie in the grass, climb forbidden objects, and write in that moment.
Mind mapping is the best way to get everything out of my head. Fast. It’s an “organized mind dump” of setting, mood, character, events, plot, snippets of dialogue—you name it. Mapping allowed me to dive deep and weave symbolism throughout the story.
The lie? If you don’t write every day, you’re not a serious writer. Ignore the naysayers who don’t know you, your situation, your passion, or your purpose.
Coming Next from this Author
Scars, Scribbles, and the Power of Crayons is published! Currently, I’m working on book 2 in the series. Nine-year-old Lexi is older, but cancer isn’t the only monster she must fight. Death, of course, will stir things up. He’s so fun to write.
Connect with Lara
Please visit www.laralazenby.com to find out more about me. You can find my essay, The Other Two Scars, on my blog. For updates, please join my newsletter. I’m also on Facebook at @Laralazenbyscars and Twitter @Lara_Lazenby.
More about RPLA
The Royal Palm Literary Awards competition is a service of the Florida Writers Association established to recognize excellence in members’ published and unpublished works while providing objective and constructive written assessments for all entrants. Judges include literary agents, publishers, film producers, current or retired professors, teachers, librarians, editors, bestselling and award-winning authors, and journalists from across the nation. Entries are scored against the criteria set by RPLA using rubrics tailored to each genre. Winners are announced at the annual FWA conference during the RPLA awards banquet. To learn more about RPLA, click here for the guidelines.
Rick Bettencourt
Go, Lara!
Amarilys Rassler
Inspiring! Thank you.