An Interview with Laura Cox, author of This Divine Mystery

Laura Taylor Cox was born in Nashville, TN, and raised in Lewisburg. She earned her BS degree from Vanderbilt University and holds a Masters of Communications in Theater Arts from Regent University. While studying at Regent, she met her husband, Bill. They have been married over forty years and have four children and seven grandchildren.

Laura studied drama at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Los Angeles, then studied Shakespeare at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London, England. She has had numerous roles in industrial films and videos. Laura has written, produced, directed, and acted in many plays and sketches for her local churches over the years.

Laura has believed in Jesus since being a young child. When Laura was seventeen, she became an avid follower of Jesus and a student of the Bible. Her journey with Him over the last five decades had been an adventure of growing in the grace and knowledge of her Lord and Savior, Jesus, the Messiah.

Who/what made you want to write? Was there a particular person, or particular writers/works/art forms that influenced you?

I am an avid reader. My first memory of reading was Robert Louis Stevenson’s A Child’s Garden of Verses. A huge influence in my early years was the Nancy Drew series. Through Stevenson, I loved poetry. Through Nancy, I was building a foundation of courage.

Throughout my life, I would say or think, “Wow, this would make a good book,” or “This would be a great title for a book.” I would tell people, “You ought to write a book.” No one ever took me up on that, so I decided I would start writing.

Last summer, I was in Edinburgh and saw on my maps that there was a writer’s museum right around the corner from where I was. It was in that moment that I realized I was a writer and I deserved to go to that writer’s museum. Robert Louis Stevenson was one of the main writers they honored at the museum!

What other professions have you worked in? What’s something about you that your readers wouldn’t know?

I worked for my father as a young adult as an office assistant, but my heart was out in the big, wide, wonderful world. I had a part time job as a model, modeling instructor, make-up artist, and actor when the jobs would arise.

I had the first line in CBN’s soap opera, Another Life. My character was Vickie Lang, a server in the campus restaurant, The Huddle. The line? “Another cup of coffee, Professor Mason?” Some things you never forget!

Tell us the story of your book’s title. Was it easy to find, or did it take forever?

My working title was “Faith for Answered Prayer.” I had “This Divine Mystery” chosen for a future project. As I was entering the publishing phase, I found out that most non-fiction books had a subtitle that told a little more about the book. Nothing seemed to fit. One day my daughter said, “Why don’t you use This Divine Mystery as your title and Faith for Answered Prayer as the subtitle?” Sometimes the obvious is veiled from our sight. It made total sense to use both of these titles for this book. I absolutely love the way it turned out!

How did it feel when you first saw your book cover? Or when you first held your book in your hands?

I was very apprehensive as I opened the box that contained my preview copy. I knew I liked the cover on the PDF, but would it be too pinky-purple wrapped around a book? I cried when I opened the box. It was more beautiful to my eyes than I ever dreamed!

If your book had a soundtrack, what are some songs that would be on it?

Antonin Dvorak is one of my favorite composers. To me, his music, especially the minor symphonies, elevate one’s soul to the gates of heaven, opening to the very throne room of Almighty God. Since one of the themes of the book is knowing that God has raised His kids and seated them with Jesus in the heavenly places Dvorak’s music would be a must for the soundtrack!

What is one thing you hope readers take away from reading your book? How do you envision your perfect reader?

I see my perfect reader as a devoted Christian who loves to read and study the Bible and books pertaining to faith. I would love for my readers to come away knowing that they are the most beloved of God, that He wants only good for them, and that they are seated with Him in heavenly places whilst they are seated on their couch in their own living room. That makes them the connection that Jesus talked about when He taught His disciples how to pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

What was the most rewarding/meaningful part of publishing your book?

The stories that I am hearing from readers about how the book has impacted their lives. One reader told me that the story I related about eating ice cream with my grandmother helped her with a decision she was facing in her own life. I thought, “That story?” God knows what each and every one of us needs at each and every moment. We have to tune our ears to hear Him.

What new writing projects are you currently working on? Or, other projects that are not writing?

I am currently working on a thirty-one-day devotional as my writing project.

I am almost through with a flip property that I have transformed from a very smelly (its nickname was “the stinky house”), very dirty, very distressed house to a beautiful jewel of a home that anyone would be happy to live in.