Author Bio:
Angel Leya’s a quirky girl who enjoys strange facts and putting love and magical fantastical things into all her fiction. On the serious side of things, she loves helping others.
Leya is a wife and mother of two beautiful children. She’s a transplant from rural New York, currently living in sunny South Carolina. Feel free to drop her a line anytime!
What inspires you to write?
An assortment of things, but dreams play a big part in my ideas. For instance, I’ve had one recurring dream occasionally throughout my life – I met my perfect match, the man of my dreams, and it was such a beautiful thing. Naturally, it was my first idea for a book – what if a man really met his One in his dreams? What would bring them together? Why did it have to happen through dream form? It was a story I had to explore, and it grew into the novel it is today, though being my first novel, it’s not nearly up to my current satisfaction, so it needs a bit of a rewrite.
Tell us about your writing process.
I’m a little bit planner, a little bit pantser. I started out pantsing it all the way, but kept getting stumped as to where to go next. As I’ve learned more about the craft of writing, I’ve included a lot more planning. My most recent unpublished novel is about a man being revived in modern/near future times from the ancient past. That took a lot of planning, most of which I do in a notebook. That was particularly fun, because I had to make a language for this man, and there was a bit of planning and notes that went into crafting that.
Almost all of my new ideas start out as a few lines on paper and expand from there when I feel like I’ve got enough of the story to start writing it.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I don’t have that deep connection with my characters that some writers seem to have – in that respect, I’m perhaps a bit too logical at times. There was this one time, however, when I felt like I was watching a scene with two of my characters just chatting back and forth. That was quite amusing. 🙂
Who are your favorite authors?
I read so many books as a youth, I don’t even know. The authors that stand out in my mind the most are C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, and more recently Stephenie Myer and J.K. Rowling, though I’m certain there’s more.
I’ve also had the pleasure of connecting with some incredible authors – Olivia Folmar Ard, Laine Cunningham, Rebecca Enzor, and Chrys Cymri to name a few. I recently finished Chrys Cymri’s book, The Dragon Throne, and I could hardly put it down. Then I read the end, and the twist practically made my mind explode. I haven’t felt that in a while, and I LOVED it.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Initially, I self-published out of convenience. Then I found out how hard it is to sell books when you’re the only marketing it gets. Now I’m looking to become a hybrid author. It’s still a long way off right now, but I have confidence that I’ll get there one day. Until then, I’m happy to learn more about this self-publishing thing, and maybe one day I’ll become fairly successful at it.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
Really, I think there’s room enough for both self and traditional publishing. It’s a big world out there, and both institutions have their benefits and drawbacks. I do, however, think that the traditional publishing industry as a whole needs to take a long, hard look at where they are and where they want to be, and decide if they’re willing to change with the times or not.
What genres do you write?
romance, fantasy, sci-fi, poetry, memoir
What formats are your books in?
eBook, Print
Website(s)
Angel Leya Home Page Link
Link To Angel Leya Page On Amazon
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