About Leon M A Edwards
My name is Leon Edwards, and I was born on Friday 24th January 1975 at Southampton General Hospital in Hampshire, UK.
I grew up in a small town called Romsey, twenty minutes from Southampton, where Titanic left for New York in Hampshire.
My current full-time occupation is an Accountant specialising in tax.
My dream now is to be able to become a full-time author as I have fallen in love with writing a story. However, it was not something I thought of doing when growing up and choosing a sensible job.
When I was a child, I dreamt of becoming an actor between the age of five and twelve but never pursued it due to being afraid of failure and living in an unknown town.
Without realising, I have been mentally writing books in my head ever since I was five years old up to today. My story ideas came from black and white cowboy television shows and eventually the ‘Star Wars’ saga.
My stories went from grown-up children’s stories to adult themes as I went through life having my own experiences. My main characters are about ordinary people who go about their daily lives in the real world. They are not seven-foot-tall, with bulging muscles and chisel features, apart from the bad guy. My characters are about people who do not have a perfect body or the perfect teeth. But they can be the heroes you see in films still. I guess I like to tell my readers that anyone can be the saviour of the day.
I prefer my plots to be mainly in America as I find England a bit dreary and not much scenery to make my stories exciting. My last book ‘Cold Bones’ was written in Marion, one of the nice towns I have never been to. One of my readers could not believe how accurate my description of the town and people was. Which gave me great reassurance that I know what I am describing.
Even though I write in various genres such as romance, action and adventure, thrillers, terrorism and espionage; they all have the same running theme. The main character is someone you would not notice in a crowd. They are plain and nothing much to write about, pardon the pun. But they always get the bad guy.
My characters also have a story of their own that they have to live with, such as self esteem, confidence and fitting in with society. Their past is not fluffy clouds and the perfect childhood to be envious of. They are people like my readers who can resonate and give them hope that they can still make a difference in the world. They are just as important as famous people that appear to have a perfect unblemished life.
I even wrote ‘Eternity Wing And A Pray’ that is about the drug world that films and books depict as unstoppable. The toughest, muscular and gun toting man cannot stop. My key characters I decided to write about have disabilities that people feel are a hindrance to them adding something to society. The characters are again ordinary and the kind you would easily meet walking in the street. But they are highly intelligent and gifted, that an Angel saw in them. They are best in the world for tackling the drug cartel. And they were never seen coming because of their disability. The Angel is perfect but even he knows where he can find talent in people who the majority of the world automatically write off.
I also wrote a second book about the drug pandemic that unfortunately will never go away, was Ponta ‘Delgada A Good Place to Die’. I wrote the main character as another plain clothed man who his clients used to avoid paying tax. His clients see him as a wimpy, unassuming, and unthreatening man. But he has a brilliant mind for finding flaws in politicians’ laws and policies then manipulating in his favour. When he realises, he could do good for a change, he uses his skills to thwart a threat. Even a self loathing attractive hot female CIA agent does not see him coming. The message is that even he can win over the gorgeous girl to make her realise that life is not about being attractive and getting what you want in life. It is about doing the conscious right thing without wondering what you can get out of it. But at the end of the book, there is a nice reward.
When I first began writing my first romance book ‘Blind Love’, I thought I could make myself write Boons & Mill or Jacky Collins book. But quickly realised that I struggled to write make believe and unrealistic characters. I soon found it easier to write about a black man who suffered bullying because he was different. He didn’t find the same interests as fun. It caused him to go into his shell and keep to himself and ended up observing the world rather than living it. These are the characters I love to write about. Give my readers hope that even if you are in that dark place, you still can find love and be accepted like everyone else.
My books also touch on bullying in the present and how the character overcomes it. ‘By Chance’ is no different. But the main character I write about is leaving a message of defending yourself and going after your dream. You are in control of your destiny, not the person who gives you problems.
So, the stories I write are about leaving a message that tells my readers that it is alright to be different and not to feel ashamed or embarrassed about it.
To make my characters authentic in a make believe world is pouring my own experiences into my characters as much as I can. So, my stories will never be out of touch or run its course for future generations reaching their milestone.
It would be great if I could touch everyone of all ages, but they will only attract a certain age group that can resonate with my characters.
That is enough about myself and what I write. I look forward to hearing from my readers and finding out about their interesting and no dull life.
enquire@leonmaedwards.com
