Today we’d like to introduce you to Leigh Morgan.
Hi Leigh, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Growing up I hated reading, I was never one to be found picking up a book and spending my day lost between the pages. It wasn’t until I was pregnant with my third boy that I really jumped into reading. I was so exhausted all the time I spent most of my days in bed. So I started reading thrillers and mysteries, then took the leap into fantasy with the ACOTAR series. I DEVOURED those books. And as the saying goes the rest is history!
I was flying through books of all genres, found myself an incredible group of friends through my book club and found a new sense of creativity and magic in the books I picked up.
In 2024 I had this story pop into my brain; a woman who loses everything moves into a new home in search of a fresh start. She’s lost, broken, lonely, and unsure how to live without the person who meant everything to her. Soon after she moves in she starts to hear voices and begins to feel a presence around her. Realizing she isn’t crazy and this “spirit” is real she hesitantly falls in love with him. But can she love someone who isn’t real?
I thought, “Wow, cool story. Can’t wait to read that!” It bounced around in my brain for a couple weeks before I decided to sit down and just type it out. I grew up writing lyrics to songs so piecing a story together came easy enough. Pretty soon that “idea” turned into a real thing. 90K+ words formed my debut novel Promise. Now I had to figure out what to do with it!
So, like any millennial I jumped on social media to figure out where to begin. And this is where I discovered the world of booktok. I met editors, influencers, designers, pr companies, and other indie authors all across the US. Little by little I figured out what steps I needed to take to get my book out into the world.
I like to think that everything in life takes a village and that is how I look at this project as well. It would not have been possible without so many people taking a chance on some random newbie author.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I like to think that nothing amazing comes from a smooth journey, it’s all about mindset and taking the bad and turning it into something good. I was really apprehensive to share with my close friends and family that I wrote a spicy book about a ghost! I didn’t even tell my husband until I was about to send the rough draft to an editor. Obviously he was ECSTATIC and so supportive. I learned that opening up and sharing something that may seem crazy to me was actually so exciting for those around me! We all want to cheer on our friends, so why not give them a reason too?
Another part of the process that I had to be very open to was editing and feedback from early readers. It’s hard to take constructive criticism on something that you spent so much time on and is so close to your heart. But without feedback Promise would not be the story it is today. I had to take everything with an open heart and mind and understand that my “village” was helping me, pushing me and my story to be the best that we could be.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My background is in music business, I’ve worked with musicians and other creative minds for my entire career. I love how music can bring everyone together regardless of your social, economic, political etc. background. I’ve had conversations with people that I have nothing in common with, except the fact that we both love a certain band or they saw my shirt and said they liked it. I feel the same way about books, everyone has different tastes and preferences but when you find someone who likes the same thing, it’s an instant connection regardless if you agree on anything else.
Gosh, it’s hard to talk about what I’m proud of personally without feeling like I’m coming across as pretentious. I’m proud of my ability to evolve and continue learning when the world shifts. I’m really proud of the fact that I am overall a very positive person, not much can bring me down. And I think those two traits really came in clutch while getting Promise published.
Risk taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
Risk is something that bears such a negative connotation, and is viewed by so many as something to avoid taking. But in reality we don’t grow unless we push ourselves and take a step outside our comfort zone. We can’t do that without taking a risk!
Writing Promise was a huge risk. Would my husband think less of me for writing this? Would my friends laugh at me? How much money was I going to lose? What if no-one reads it?
Instead I chose to think on a different level…why not? Why not take this risk? I’m doing this for myself. To do something that is so out there, so different than what I’d ever do.
Why not take a chance on me?
Pricing:
- 15.99 on Amazon
- Free on Kindle Unlimited
- 7.99 on Kindle
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=promise+leigh+morgan
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leigh_morgan_author/
- Other: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/53080865.Leigh_Morgan
