Today we’d like to introduce you to Justin Leslie.
Hi Justin , it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
As an author, I like to tell tales, as I stated before. I often tell people you can believe as much as you think I’m willing to tell when it comes to my story. A lot has changed over the past two years. To date, I have written now sixteen books and produced several best-selling audiobooks. The one and only Luke Daniels performs the Max Abaddon Series and the newly minted traditionally published Descending Worlds series through Podium. I finally got the holy grail of writing… A book deal. Even more pressing has been doing this over a span of now four years primarily as an independent author. What could possibly still go wrong?
The now three main series I currently write are the Max Abaddon Series, Urban Fantasy stuff; the Sinking Man Series, Zombie stuff; and The Descending Worlds Series, Sci-Fi stuff. Yes, I finally completed the space opera I had half-written sitting in a dusty computer folder and even got a book deal.
Yes, much has changed, and the path to get where I am today has been a ride of relationships with other authors and my dreaded arch-nemesis…marketing.
One of the biggest shifts since we last talked was learning the traditional publishing scene, including book deals, who is a good fit, and the eternal question: Am I a good enough writer? While I’d like to think so, as I did land a book deal for one of my series. I still find myself working a full-time job and looking more at the long game when it comes to my writing. Even better, I have been able to pay it forward with several other up-and-coming authors, giving them guidance and help along the way.
I’ve learned a lot about building my fan base and writing to market as best I can—two things that new authors often overlook and, in some cases, need. Like I was told, just write and then figure the rest out. There is more to the equation, but since I don’t write to specific popular markets, think romance, etc.…. the books need to be out there, and I have been pushing them out.
To answer your question, the path has not changed much other than learning the game so to speak, A long and surprising path led me to become an author. I joined the army at eighteen and was able to retire after several long years. The odd thing about traveling around the world and having time to do things like read was I found myself devouring entire series. Plus, I needed the escape.
I eventually started branching out to the indie titles and quickly learned that people were out in the world self-publishing books.
Needless to say, after a night of rather questionable cheap whiskey and some time in my office behind the computer, I had typed out the first chapter in what would become the Max Abaddon Series.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No road is ever smooth unless you don’t go on it. For me, the writing has come a long way, and I am much better today than I was even yesterday. With all that being said, the hardest thing has been actually getting an audience and, when I did, keeping them engaged. Even though this is not focused on helping authors, the following is something every new author needs to realize.
I have done cons as a guest and am quickly learning that getting out in front of people is a key part of an industry that is, for the most part, introverted, at least to the public. I find most successful authors rather outgoing, and in the competitive space, it is a must. You have to be present for your readers.
To get back to it, I still find myself having two major roadblocks. First, writing to market. For any author who wants to make a career out of writing, it is at times hard to write what you want versus what the market is buying. No, I don’t have a pen name yet writing smutty romance novels, but time will tell…. In this space, most genres authors like to write in are often overshadowed by monolithic books that will always be the best. Yes, I said it. Writing is just like any other business if you break it down to its bones. You have to have something people want to consume.
I look at it like this, and I use romance novels as an example because they often sell regardless of quality. Before anyone gets upset, there are hundreds of great authors, if not thousands, in this space. It’s more of a numbers game, and I feel it has been flooded, but the readers still consume it at an alarming rate. Trust me, I’ve done the research.
Readers want value but also quality for their money outside that genre, in my experience. This is where volume comes in. If you want to keep readers, you have to supply a steady stream of quality, coherent products. It’s harder than readers think to get a book out that is pushing for quality. When I say quality, I mean covers, good audio narrators, and the ever-dreaded good editor. The struggle here is to find the happy medium. This is why I recommend writing in more than one genre and to NSW (Never Stop Writing). I’ve taken a few risks here, and they are paying off.
Secondly, and this is still a scourge of my existence, is proper editing and AI in the market. Yes, I still struggle with getting books out and proper editing in a timely fashion that is cost effective. If you want to write and move books, you don’t have the time to tweak everything in your manuscript. I still suffer here, and to be honest (I hate it when people say that), my writing has gotten much better and to a point where I feel if I re-wrote several of my early books, I would likely pull in several more readers. I have done some tweaking, but in the end, it’s hard to go back while pushing forward.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
As I mentioned before, I was in the Army for several years and also have a regular job. In my civilian career, as I call it, I am a national sales manager for one of the larger global companies covering healthcare for North America. Yes, I can get dressed up in a suit outside of my writing.
As for my writing, I have been laser-focused on quality—quality editing, quality audiobooks, and quality art. This is what I think sets authors apart. Yes, I know a good cover can turn a mediocre book into a best seller or a catchy title, but in the end, I pride myself on the effort I put into focusing on the reader’s experience.
With AI flooding the market—yes, that includes AI-generated audiobooks, I feel it is diminishing the readers’ or listeners’ experience. In the end, I focus on audiobooks. It’s what I’m known for. I would also like to note that I have a superpower when it comes to writing and making up new characters. Anyone who reads my books knows I love introducing new characters. I’ ‘m proud of my audiobooks, and if you listen, you will hear music, blooper reals, and anything else I can do to enhance the listener’s experience. I am constantly thinking of new things.
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
My favorite childhood memory is more of an experience that has gone away. Saturday mornings are the one thing that I always remember as some of the best times of my life.
The smell of lightly burnt toast sitting on the kitchen table as I walk downstairs to several cereal boxes. On special weekends, the scent of pancakes and syrup took center stage. The sound of the old land line phones ringing, and on TV, cartoons played as I hopefully got up early enough to watch the newest cartoons. GI-Joe, the Smurfs, DuckTails, you name it. The almost ear-splitting treble of the old-style TV speakers echoing off the walls.
There was also something about watching the commercials between cartoons showing the latest toys, and even more so around the holidays when I would scan the JCPenney catalog while eating Golden Grahams and watching TV still in my cheap Star Wars pajamas.
Nostalgia is a real thing for me, and growing up in the 80’s and 90’s even more so. It was the overall vibe of things.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://justinleslie.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaxAbaddonbooks/
- Yelp: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/fsdv7acnxd
- soundcloud: https://www.audible.com/author/Justin-Leslie/B082GHVMD3
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Justin-Leslie/author/B082GHVMD3?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true
Image Credits
Thumbnail GE2 includes Luke Daniels and Author Hunter Blain with Justin S Leslie. GE0 is a panel of authors I was on at a Coastal Magic Book Convention
