Author Wagon with Lesley

Welcome to this weeks Author Wagon with Lesley.

My name is Lesley. I am twenty years old and I currently study English language and linguistics. When I’m not studying, I’m writing stories, poems and articles. I’ve been posting on Wattpad for just over a year now but I’ve been on there for longer. I mainly stick to the teen fiction genre both off and on wattpad but I have been known to divert.

Book: The puzzles of the Past

Blurb: Jane, my adopted sister, was a childhood trauma sufferer.She often wouldn’t talk to anyone for days. It was a complete mystery to what the trauma was she had suffered, but the fear in her eyes only suggested how scary the truth must be. Jane was puzzle, a puzzle with several pieces missing, pieces that my brother and I were eager to find and fit together.

1). When did you start writing and what gave you the inspiration to write?

I can’t remember a time when I haven’t written. When I was younger, I had a speech impediment that left me forgetting words and stuttering a lot. I had speech therapy for three years, where thankfully I was cured. But my therapist there pushed me to write. She gave me a notebook and told me to write stories. At first, they were very short and contained lots of pictures. Soon, I wrote more and more.

In primary school, each Friday we would have a writing class. Everyone else hated it; I looked forward to it.

Then in high school, I was asked to write a diary imagining that I was slave. The others in my class wrote a page or two -I wrote 25 pages. From then on, I realised that I wanted to write. Properly. I began to read and read and take note of everything authors did well or not so. I joined watt pad but only to read at first. I then began university and began to study English language and linguistics in the hope that this would provide useful and helpful. So far it has.

My inspiration for my work comes from a variety of places. I love sitting invisible in busy places. I go to coffee shops and simply listen to conversations around me or I take day trips to places that are particularly pretty or interesting. It is amazing how interesting people are if you only let them talk. You never know where stories will come from.

2). What is writing to you?

The feeling of a pen in my hands or a keyboard beneath my fingers is amazing. It’s satisfying. I write every day. On the days where I can’t or have simply no time I dream up stories even if I don’t write them down. If there’s a story you want to hear then you must tell. No one else will do it justice.

Like breathing, writing is just what I do.

3). How do you handle negative reviews/comments?

Negation is something that everyone has to live with. When it comes to something you truly believe in and have cared for. It becomes more difficult. Seeing the silver lining is essential. Viewing it as constructive criticism is the best that one can do. Learning from it is vital.

Besides, the greatest writers have received hundreds of negative comments and reviews and I have only received a handful so far. I am grateful. One day I hope to receive as many negative comments as J K Rowling did . As then, I will know I have worked hard and earned it.

4). What would you say is your pet peeve when reading someone’s story?

Grammar. If a person uses inconsistent grammar in their work and it is obviously not a typing error then I will most likely not continue to read. Rereading through what you have written is not hard. Nor is using a basic spell check.

Obviously, if English is not their first language then I will offer more leniency. I will offer to help.

5). What would you say was the biggest writing challenge for you? (could be a story, a writers block etc)

My biggest writing challenge has been finding the confidence to show people my work. Before publishing on wattpad, I lurked around like a cat stalking it’s prey. Finally, I did it. Of course, my work is not hugely popular and I’m far from famous but I am thankful for the reads I have. I write for myself, not for others.

The only writing challenge I face now is continuing to find that confidence.