Born in Washington D.C. and raised in Clinton, Maryland, Wright was hit by the acting bug in the eighth grade. Ms. Wright performed in many high school plays such as Gypsy, Our Town, and You Can't Take It With You. She also has a director's credit for the production of Father Says No. In addition, Wright has a few local commercials and numerous fashion shows under her belt.

After being persuaded to audition for the daytime drama Loving, Wright seriously considered a career in acting and as luck would have it, she was cast in the show and later went on to play the role of Ally Rescott Bowman for four years. She carried the role over to the spin-off show The City.

Wright debuted on Guiding Light in August 1997. There for eight years, she played the role of ex-stripper with a heart of gold Cassie Layne. This street smart character won Laura a 1998 Soap Opera Digest Award for Best New Character. And in the same year, she was named one of TV Guide's rising stars in daytime.

Wright resides in the Los Angeles area with architect husband John (married October 7, 1995) and their two children: a daughter named Lauren Elizabeth (born November 16, 1998) and a son named John Michael (born December 21, 2000). In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family, especially watching late night television with her husband. In 2009, John and Laura began marketing their own brand of wine, Standing Sun, out of their organic vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley.

Wright is close friends with co-stars Kelly Monaco and Ingo Rademacher.

In 1991, Wright was cast as Ally Rescott Bowman on Loving. At the end of the show's run in 1995, she reprised her role on its spin-off soap, The City, until its cancellation in 1997. Wright was subsequently offered the contract role of Cassie Layne Winslow on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light, a role she held until November 2005. Upon her departure from Guiding Light, Wright immediately stepped into her current role, that of Carly Corinthos on the ABC daytime drama General Hospital. In 2009, Wright signed a new contract with General Hospital, ensuring her presence on the show through 2013.