Name: Laura Besley
Age: 46
Current City: Leicester, UK
Do you feel like you are making the most of what you can do at your current age?
Yes, I do. I’m currently a Creative Writing PhD student. It’s a lot of work alongside family life, but I love it as I spend my days writing (& all that goes along with that, such as editing, proofreading, critiquing, etc.) and learning about writing & writers.
How did you end up living in the city you live in?
In 2017, my husband and I decided to move back to the UK after having lived abroad for ten years (in Germany and Hong Kong). For ourselves and our children, we wanted to be closer to our families.
In Germany and Hong Kong, we were both EFL teachers, but I was pregnant with our second child, so it was only my husband looking for work as we relocated back. First, we lived in Cardiff for three months while he taught a summer school programme at Cardiff University and then he got a job in Leicester. We’ve been here ever since.
What keeps you living in the city you live in?
My husband’s work, the children are settled at school and now my PhD programme. I could do it remotely, but I’m very please I don’t have to.
What do you tend to notice first about strangers?
I think it’s impossible not to first notice what people look like. However, I love looking at people’s gestures, their gait, or listening to the way they speak. Recently, I was in a café and there was a man nearby chatting to two women sitting at a table. He kept putting his hand in his pocket, jangling some change, then taking it out again. I love these tiny things that people do.
What do you think strangers first notice about you?
I’m pretty sure what most people first notice about me is that I’m tall – I’m 5’11!
What do you hope strangers notice about you?
I don’t mind what people notice about me – that’s up to them, really.
What do think those that know you say about you?
My kids would tell you five things about me: I love reading, writing, coffee, beaches and the cold weather!
What would you hope they would say?
Kind things, hopefully. I always try to be kind about others.
What do you hope never changes about yourself?
My love of learning.
Are you the person your younger self hoped to become?
If I’m honest, I don’t think I had any idea what or who I would become as an adult. As a child and a teenager, being an adult seemed the dream – to be able to do what you wanted, when you wanted. But, it’s much more complicated than that. Life can be hard. However, as I get older, I feel I know myself better and I’m trying to be more accepting of myself.
Did you follow your childhood dream?
Not at all! When I was a child, I wanted to become a doctor – I used to wear an old white shirt of my dad’s & play ‘hospitals’. I loved Casualty which I watched religiously. But when I got to secondary school, it became clear I was not suited to studying the sciences.
At the time, it was a real blow and for a long time after, I had absolutely no idea what kind of job I wanted. I drifted from catering to retail to teaching. In my mid-thirties, I started writing, and finally found my place.
Have you ever been a mentor to someone? Is that role you’d want to take on for someone?
I’ve been a writing mentor before and I really loved it. It was wonderful to watch that person grow and develop as a writer.
How do you view the role of job and career in your life? Does it play a role outside of money?
Absolutely! Obviously, we all need money to get by and I’m very grateful I live a comfortable life and have enough to provide for my kids. But I have no aspirations to win the lottery or to become a millionaire.
Currently, I’m funded to do my PhD which, again, I’m massively grateful for. I’m a writer and realistically, I might not earn much money from my writing. But it’s absolutely what I want to do with my life and as long as I can keep doing that, I’ll be happy.
If one thing about your life could change immediately, what would it be?
The weather – it’s too hot for me right now!
Faith in Strangers 