Laurence J. Schmit – or Larry, to most folks who know him – has a lot of stories racing around in his head.

One of those stories evolved into his latest novel, “Killshot: Doing right is never wrong.”

“Again it’s another enjoyable, feel-good book, which is typical of my writing,” Schmit said with a smile.

His first novel, “Krisa,” told the story of a 12-year-old girl who must fight for survival alongside a Michigan grad student who finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. If the name wasn’t a dead giveaway, “Killshot” also has an edge of action and adventure cutting across its 370 pages.

“But you really do end up with a ‘feel good’ feeling in the end,” Schmit said. “The bad people usually change over and the really bad people we usually get rid of. But there’s also a subtle message in there about religion and illegal immigration.”

Schmit said that his book goes into a bit of detail about the trek illegal immigrants go through to get to U.S. soil and how, once here, the many make contributions to society.

“The prime girl in this story, you don’t really know where she’s from until the very end,” Schmit said. “…She’s here helping others; that’s her purpose.”

When asked where the story of “Killshot” originated, Schmit said it was simply the loudest voice in his head.

“I have 100 stories going on in my head at all times,” Schmit said. “I’ve got file cabinets filled with sequels to “Jekyll and Hyde,” “Phantom of the Opera” and all these other different stories. I’ve got three other books at home right now that I’m just trying to get proofread to get them out.”

Schmit said he wasn’t looking for this story, it just sort of fell into place. In “Killshot,” he added that one of the other factors that gives the story its weight is the fact that the incidents that happen in the background are based in reality.

Schmit said this latest novel took him about a year to get on paper.

“One of my daughters read this and said it was better than “Krisa,” so we moved it up and got it completed and out the door next,” Schmit said.

And it makes sense that his head would be filled with so many adventures. He grew up in Michigan with nine brothers, a “hunting knife on his belt, a rosary in his pocket,” according to his profile.

From there, he went into politics in California before shifting into a career in teaching. Eventually, he and his family settled down in Fountain Hills, where Schmit substitute taught and coached sports like the high school boys soccer and tennis teams.

Nowadays, Schmit plays a lot of tennis; specifically in the mornings with his doubles partner, his wife, Betty. When they aren’t on the courts, he likes to spend time with all of his kids, grandkids and great-grandkids.

“We spend a lot of time with the family,” Schmit said, lighting up. “We’ve got 13 great-grandkids. We just got back from Wisconsin, actually, where we watched two of our grandkids play in a 1,300-member orchestra.”

Schmit’s desire to finally put pen to paper actually came from a family member.

“I saw a book they were reading and said ‘what are you reading this trash for? You shouldn’t be reading this,’” Schmit said. “She told me there were no good books out there, so I told her I’ll write you one.”

Most importantly, Schmit said he likes to keep his books clean. He wants folks to be able to read his books in public or have them sitting on the coffee table without fear of someone picking it up and giving it a gander.

“I think ‘Killshot’ is a kick back and relax kind of book,” he said. “It’s for pure enjoyment. There are a few subtle messages in there you might learn from, but it’s a clean book anyone should be able to pick up and enjoy.”

For those who wish to pick up a copy for themselves, “Killshot” can be found on Amazon.com.