Hello!
I’m Laura, I’m an author and journalist based in East London.
My newest novel MAKING IT will be out in the US on July 2nd and the UK July 4th! It is a ‘fun and sexy rom com about anxiety and depression’ and if you would like to read it you can pre-order here in the US and here in the UK. Or from any bookstore of your choice!
You can buy my novel Wild Things here in the UK and here in the US! Everyone loved it even my mum and The New York Times!
My other novels, Tell Me Everything andThe Split are available everywhere in paperback.
I’ve written for Diva Magazine, Stylist Magazine, The Guardian, The Metro and more. I also recommend you click on my piece about lesbian representation in commercial fiction in The Bookseller for the headline alone. If you’d like me to write about serious queer stuff, silly queer stuff and maybe even…heterosexual stuff you can contact me above.
You can also find me and my cat on Instagram at @lauraekay.
Upcoming Events
Love Stories Festival - Manchester, UK - July 13th
ABOUT MAKING IT
From the author of Wild Things comes a heartwarming and relatable queer rom-com about an isolated young woman whose artistic celebration of her pet chinchilla suddenly launches her into the professional art world, reality TV fame, and first love.
Isobel’s life is small: just her, her mum, and her pet chinchilla, Abigail, in their council flat on the Kentish coast. After mental health troubles in her teens, Issy, now twenty-eight, has kept things that way on purpose, only deviating from routine when her part-time job at a paint-your-own pottery studio demands it, or when she’s inspired to create art of Abigail: knitted Abigails, sculptural Abigails, delicately rendered paintings of Abigail.
When the Abigails earn the attention of famous artist and reality TV star Elizabeth Staggs, Issy is awestruck and a little alarmed. These emotions compound when Elizabeth makes Issy an unexpected offer: move to London and work for a year shadowing Elizabeth as she produces her hit arts documentary series. Terrified but determined, Issy agrees, and soon finds herself sharing a flat with a crew of boisterous roommates who welcome her into their queer enclave and attempt to mentor her in the city’s wide world of romantic possibilities. Issy can’t help but wish that one roommate—gorgeous and cool aspiring actress, Robin—might make her mentorship a bit more hands on…even while, at work, she struggles under the guidance of Elizabeth’s harsh and exacting young producer, Aubrey.
But when Elizabeth seizes on Issy’s idea to structure the upcoming season around a group of outsider artists, Issy finds both her work and love lives growing more complicated by the day, whether she’s ready or not. Making It is a nuanced and life affirming look at living with depression and of finding, as we all deserve to, self-acceptance, community, and love.
PRAISE FOR Wild Things
One of my favourite books of 2023. It captures the pleasure/pain of a huge, heartfelt crush, and it also beautifully evokes the warmth of a loving community. I would love to stop by 'the commune' for a cup of tea with them all. A totally gorgeous read ― Beth O'Leary, author of THE NO-SHOW
I completely and utterly adored Wild Things. It's perfectly observed, brilliantly funny, full of queer joy and such a timely exploration of what adult life could and should look like now ― Emma Hughes, author of NO SUCH THING AS PERFECT
Wild Things feels fresh and exciting - a touching and realistic read with wonderful characters. I love Laura's writing ― KATIE FFORDE, author of ONE ENCHANTED EVENING
A gorgeous queer rom-com that will have you laughing out loud ― Glamour
Three novels in and Kay has established herself as one of the bright lights of queer romcom ― Marie Claire
A sparkling, witty read filled with the most down-to-earth, loveable characters. The comedic timing was pitch-perfect too -- Lizzie Damilola Blackburn
Laura Kay has taken it to the next level - real Emily Henry vibes but gay. Joyous, funny, sexy and romantic - a triumph! ― Kate Sawyer, award-winning author of THE STRANDING
Funny and heartwarming and SO brilliantly evocative of the agony/ecstasy of having an enormous crush. . . Makes you want to move to a house in the country with your best friends ― KATE DAVIES, author of IN AT THE DEEP END
Wild Things filled my heart all the way up. A hilarious story of queer friendship, queer longing, and queer triumph ― TJ Alexander, author of CHEF'S KISS
Fresh, fun, thoughtful and hopeful, a joyfully messy story of contemporary queer life ― Bethany Rutter, author of WELCOME TO YOUR LIFE
Heady, giddy, and outrageously flirty, Wild Things is the perfect escapist queer romcom for anyone longing to move to the country with their best friends ― Lily Lindon, author of DOUBLE BOOKED
A spirited whirl through the agony and the ecstasy of a queer crush, and the vital friendships that keep us sane ― Justin Myers, author of THE FAKE-UP
Brimming with both hilarity and heartfelt relationships, Wild Things is a delightful romance, complete with DIY home repair, a beautiful queer found family, and backyard hens. I adored El's journey to realizing that only by taking risks can she really get what she wants, in both life... and love ― Ashley Herring Blake, USA TODAY bestselling author of ASTRID PARKER DOESN'T FAIL
Wild Things really has everything I love in contemporary fiction. A beautiful story of yearning, bravery, different kinds of family . . . my heart was with El the whole time ― Lizzie Huxley-Jones, author of MAKE YOU MINE THIS CHRISTMAS
Deeply felt and wonderfully whimsical, Laura Kay's ode to getting wild is full of will-they-won't-they spark and the resonance of life-changing questions. El and Ray's is the perfect story of leaving everything you know and finding your meant-to-be ― Emily Wibberley & Austin Siegemund-Broka, authors of DO I KNOW YOU?
Joyful, uplifting, heartfelt and properly laugh-out loud funny. A big-hearted story about the messiness of queer friendships and love. Laura Kay always writes the characters I want to be friends with! ― Harry Nicholas, author of A TRANS MAN WALKS INTO A GAY BAR
Laura Kay will have you crying with both tears of laughter and happiness ― VIP Magazine
PRAISE FOR TELL ME EVERYTHING
'A captivating read from a truly exciting talent' - JUSTIN MYERS, author of The Fake-Up
'Truly joyful and uplifting . . . this is a big-hearted story about what really matters in life: friends, family and love' - LUCY DIAMOND, author of Anything Could Happen
'I loved this. . . It reminded me in tone of Steven Rowley's writing. It's clever, uplifting, and funny, but also balances heavier topics like emotional trauma and commitment issues. It was a very bright, lovely read' - EMILY AUSTIN, author of Everyone in this Room Will Someday be Dead
'Tell Me Everything is a book that reads like a crush, all summer and exuberance with a tight, intelligent kernel of anxiety at its core' - MIKAELLA CLEMENTS & ONJULI DATTA, authors of The View was Exhausting
'Hilarious, tender and romantic . . . with characters you'll wish were real and an ending that will leave you fully uplifted' - CRESSIDA MCLAUGHLIN, author of The Staycation
'It's sweet, sexy, funny and full of adorable characters . . . The kind of book that makes you feel like everything's going to be alright!' - MATT CAIN, author of The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle
'Laura Kay's writing is so warm and open-hearted, but also has a dry wit that makes you snort with delighted recognition' - LILY LINDON, author of Double Booked
