Laura Smith Writer

Welcome

Welcome to Moon Penny Musings.

I’m Laura Smith, a writer, teacher, and runner
based in Western Massachusetts.

Through the lens of a Gen X educator and lifelong student of literature, I weave together the endurance of marathon training with the delicate craft of storytelling, documenting my evolution as a writer on a freshly paved path to publication and self-discovery.

For more frequent reflections, poetry, and a behind-the-scenes look at my path to publication, join me over at Moon Penny Musings on Substack. Subscribe to get my latest essays delivered directly to your inbox

Substack

You can find more about me here.

Below you can find my latest entries.
You can also view my posts by category: Poetry, Fiction, and Non-Fiction.

Please reach out with comments, questions, or opportunities to collaborate.

Diving into the Grief

For my father on Fathers’ Day Jun 17, 2026 My dad died ten days ago and today marks exactly one month to the day he turned 85. When I begin to play with numbers, symbols, synchronicities and look at the totality of us, the father, the child, the teacher, the student, the cyclical nature of…

mslauraasmith's avatar by mslauraasmith

Road to the TCS NYC Marathon: Part 2: Injury Time

There are 154 days until the TCS NYC Marathon and I am coming up on 6 weeks post knee surgery. On April 28 I had arthroscopic surgery for a meniscus tear, effectively ending my 12 year run streak and plunging me into new territory, weeks without my identity as a runner as well as access…

mslauraasmith's avatar by mslauraasmith

New Moon, New Musing

I have been pulling a series of cards each night, simply asking for advice for the remainder of my day and each evening I write about what I think my intuition is trying to relay. Last night I tried a new tactic. The moon was new; it was a supermoon, when the moon is closest…

mslauraasmith's avatar by mslauraasmith
● About Me

I wrote and published my first blog post on May 26, 2009. I was about to turn 36 and had been accepted to Mount Holyoke College as a non-traditional student, on my way to completing a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Medieval Studies. I had managed, finally, to know what general direction I was traveling. As a self proclaimed voracious reader I knew that I needed a vocation that would allow me to engage daily with words: reading words, writing words, and hearing words. I also needed to eat, so I navigated my way to a teaching position and I began to fine tune my craft. I love to teach and I love my students, but I also needed to continue to hone my own literary technique, voice, and style. I continued my education in order to delve deeper into literature, making connections, and most definitely, writing. I gained more confidence as a reader as well as a writer of both creative and analytical text. That first blog post in 2009 is short, the writing average, and the topic mundane, but as I continued to learn from other writers I began to understand that to become a better writer I needed to write more. Each time I write and release a poem, a post, or a story, I hone my skills. I invite you along for the ride, for this journey of mine as I attempt to wrangle a wealth of ideas and competing directions into an organized freshly paved path to publication. I might get distracted along the way, but sometimes those detours lead us to amazing views and new friends. 

● Recent Articles