Her novels The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc (2002) and The Bad Behavior of Belle Cantrell (2005) were Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club featured selections.
[2] Her other credits include episodes of The Highlander, The Equalizer, Knots Landing, The Waltons, Dynasty, Crime Story, CHiPS, Family, Love Boat and The Lazarus Syndrome.
Her first novel The Scandalous Summer of Sissy LeBlanc, published by HarperCollins, dealt with "murder, adultery, and regular church attendance" in the small southern town of Gentry, Louisiana.
Booklist described it as: "Set in the small southern town of Gentry, Louisiana, this tale of lust, jealousy and regret unfolds playfully amid a colorful cast of eccentric small-town characters.
"[8] The New Orleans Times Picayune hailed Sissy LeBlanc as "probably the sexiest, wildest girl ever to live in Gentry, La.," and praised "Loraine Despres' hilariously diverting first novel.
"[11] Goodreads hailed Belle Cantrell as "A sexy, sassy story of murder, adultery, romance, bigotry, and regular church attendance, with laugh-out-loud humor and a cast of zany, endearing characters you won't forget.
AudioFile magazine found that: "From the opening, in which Belle says she hates feeling guilty about having killed her husband, to the madcap close, this story of murder, adultery, earthy sex, and regular church attendance is anything but predictable.
"[14] In addition to her own written work, Despres taught screenwriting at UCLA for seven years and supervised the writing staff of a TV series for Grundy-UFA and RTL Television in Germany.
Loraine Despres continues to live in Los Angeles with her husband, Carleton Eastlake, a writer/producer who served on the board of directors of the Writers Guild of America, West.