Lismore woman pens murder mystery to fulfill lifelong dream

Feb. 9—LISMORE — A fan of literary thrillers and suspense writers the likes of James Patterson, Stephen King and John Grisham, a Lismore woman has written and self-published a murder mystery set right here in southwest Minnesota.

Laura Honken's book, The Best Laid Lies, is now available in both hardcover and paperback on Amazon, and available for pre-order in e-book format. She hopes to also have it available for purchase locally in the near future.

A financial services professional who works from home by day, Honken feverishly wrote the book over the course of a month and a half, writing late into the evenings and on weekends to meet her lifelong goal to become a published author.

Her book tells the story of Ella Dalton, who seemingly has it all with good looks, money, a loving husband and a beautiful stepdaughter named Ava. Ella, though, suffers from severe anxiety and self-doubt, and when her husband is the prime suspect in a murder investigation, she must find the courage to uncover the truth, no matter where it might lead.

Ella resides on a 600-acre farm in southwest Minnesota, and wants to enjoy a secluded life with her family. However, with Ava's mother and stepfather living nearby, Ella is forced to contend with hostility, fear and harassment. When Ava's stepfather shows up dead on her farm, Ella stands by her husband, protesting his innocence, but doubts begin to creep into her mind as the evidence and secrets begin to pile up.

Ella navigates through the lies and deceit as she seeks to uncover the true killer, the motivation behind the crime and the prejudices held by the agent in charge of the investigation.

Honken said the idea for the mystery had been on her mind for about six months before she sat down in July 2021 and began her outline.

"I'd always had the desire to write a novel and I was at that age where I decided to just make myself do it," said Honken, who is no stranger to writing. Her previous experience has focused on writing song lyrics. Twice, she's been named as "one to watch" by the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and is a member of a songwriting group in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

After attending a master class with James Patterson, however, Honken decided it was time to take the leap and begin writing her novel. She drew on conversations with law enforcement officers and spoke to a psychologist to help develop her characters, and established a goal to write one chapter a night, and more on the weekends.

"It may not have been the best writing, but as long as I wrote it, I could always go back and rewrite it," Honken shared, adding that she had several friends and family members who volunteered to read the book chapter by chapter as it was being written.

"They would tell me if a character wasn't working, or if the plot point was weak or didn't make sense," Honken said. Always, they wanted to know what was coming in the next chapter.

Honken said she was drawn to mystery writing through her love of books and true crime shows on television. Among her favorite authors is Harper Lee, writer of "To Kill a Mockingbird", and she also appreciates the visualization that comes from reading Stephen King, and the way James Patterson crafts suspense.

"John Grisham and the law always intrigues me as well, (working) as a compliance person," she added.

Honken said she opted to go the self-publishing route because it is much quicker than working through a publishing house.

"With Amazon and all the ebook functions, the publishing world has changed so much," Honken said. There's also a wealth of information for writers interested in self-publishing through various Facebook groups, and Honken said Amazon is really friendly toward self-publishing.

Now that her dream of publishing a novel has come true, Honken is thinking about writing a second book.

"I actually have an idea for a spinoff of this book with one of the secondary characters," she said.

Honken is currently scheduling book signings, with one already planned in Fulda. The cover of The Best Laid Lies was created with photos taken by Honken's niece, Jessica Zuniga of Worthington, and Honken's daughter-in-law, Tylyn, is designing some of the promotional items for the book.

Upcoming book signings, as well as more information about the book, can be viewed on Honken's website, laurahonken.com.