Short Bio:
Leo Charles Taylor
Leo is a philosopher, artist, author, and entrepreneur living in Seattle, along with his two daughters Jolene and Kathryn.
His current works include ‘IT happened to the Wuzzlebees’, a comedic indictment on the world’s last economic crash all told in a humorous tale of fuzzy creatures called Wuzzlebees. His newest series is a Pride & Prejudice variation: ‘Pride & Prejudice & Assassinations’. This series injects drama into Jane Austen’s original tale by adding the background of the Napoleonic wars, which were occurring across Europe at the time Miss Austen first published her fantastic novel.
Future projects include more romance novels and a Celtic Myth series which will delve into the wondrous and magical world of the Celtic people as they make their way around the world and through time.
Long Bio:
Leo Charles Taylor
Leo was born in Minneapolis in 1971. At the age of six, his parents uprooted the family and moved to Seattle in search of a more moderate climate. At a young age, Leo showed a talent for writing and twice won school wide writing competitions. From there he excelled in school graduating with honors, including scoring a perfect 5 on the nationwide Advanced placement exams for English.
Leo joined the ranks of his fellow clansman in college and soon left academia to pursue a career in business, an area of economic expression that he had explored since he was 13. At the age of 21, and with the failing health of his father, Leo purchased his Dad’s fledgling Locksmith company, thus allowing his father to retire and live the rest of his brief life in comfort.
Along with his wife, Eveanna, they raised two children and expanded a business of mechanical locks into the area of electronic surveillance, safe cracking, detention work, and alarm systems. Fortunate enough to meet successful businessman at a young age, he learned the lesson to ask questions from qualified individuals, verify their answers, and take their sound advice. This simple tactic, along with frugality and discipline, allowed him and his wife to become successful in business.
Turning to philosophy in his thirties, Leo quickly became enamored with Neuro-philosohpy as well as Practical Philosophy. These interests led to a constant habit of thinking and an odd comment by his youngest daughter, Kathryn. While her friends visited her one day, she gave a tour of the house and happened upon a wandering father so deep in thought that he almost missed the comment and gaggle of girls. “Oh, don’t worry. That is just my dad. He wonders about the house thinking.”
His studies in philosophy and research led him to TED.com, a wonderful site with speeches by some of the greatest minds this world has to offer. The site instantly became a favorite as were the videos. One of which led to the idea of the ‘National Write a Novel a Month’ website. While he did not use this information immediately, it was cataloged for future reference. With the interest of both his daughters in writing, he fell upon old habits of business: find successful people and ask them questions. As a family, they enjoyed time visiting authors, emailing people, researching publications, and of course watching Ted talks.
As an example to his children, as one should always be, Leo entered his first ‘National Write a Novel a Month’ contest and completed his novel ‘It happened to the Wuzzlebees’ with time to spare. The book is a comedic tale regarding the economic crash of 2008 and was written in the vein of ‘Who moved my cheese’ and ‘The richest man in Bablyon.’
From there, Leo spent time learning cover design, editing, publishing, and teaching his younger children along the way, making sure they saw their father struggle, ask questions, and work as hard or harder than themselves. His longest series, Pride & Prejudice & Assassinations, was a furthering of that learning and began a more serious foray into writing. With the rapidly changing publication world, his business mind saw the potential for income and artistic express. These ideas were also fostered by philosophy and Ted.com, for which his is very grateful.
Today, his children are growing quickly, as all of ours are, and he envisions a life free from geographical restraints. Gone should be the need to stay in one location, and for its replacement, the ability to fly too Edinburgh or Paris to research a book. It is with these aspirations, as well as a constant need to learn, that Leo continues to write and expand his stories and reader base.
Author Q&A:
Why did you want to become an author?
Honestly, it is a talent I have had since I was very young. I often found myself to be envious of the kid that could draw very well, or play an instrument perfectly. I once had a friend, when I was 16, that could create a musical composition on his MIDI system in about 10 minutes. I couldn’t even figure out how to get the drums to work in that amount of time. However, I learned later in life, that I could write rapidly and express ideas that would boggle that friend who created music. For the most part, however, I see the changing climate of the publishing world and I see a Titan about to fall. In its place will be more independent authors, and I can easily predicate that we will see an independent the like of J.K. Rowling or Stephen King.
Do you think that author will be you?
It would be nice, but my business mind tells me to run the numbers. Rovia had 51 failed games before ‘Angry Birds.’ My goal is to get better at my craft and to enjoy the process. I find that of all my business ventures, I enjoy writing the most. I can certainly see the business potential.
Why Pride & Prejudice? Why romance?
I have had that question a few times from women, and I have to say that I love Pride & Prejudice. I respect Jane Austen for what she did and the quality of her novels. Besides, I am a romantic at heart. I recall the line from ‘Dead poets Society.’ Why do we write poetry? To woo women. I like the idea of enrapturing a woman’s mind with words.
What are your current and future projects?
I am currently working on a present day Celtic Mythology story that takes place in Seattle. I love Seattle and want to share the city with the world. This story has romance, demons, and action. It will be complicated in its romance, as life often is, horrifying in its demons, and intriguing in its actions. It will tell the tale of the Fall of Rome, and as Rome falls, Seattle will rise. I also plan more romance and mystery novels. I found that I liked the P&P books, and my particular take on them already combined those elements. I like the idea of bringing those ideas forward in time, perhaps to Seattle.
Contact Information:
Leo TaylorPO Box 2022
Milton, WA 98354
Email: leo@leocharlestaylor.com
Book Samples:
[wpdm_file id=10]Pride & Prejudice & Assassinations Chapters 1-3
[wpdm_file id=7]Counterpointe Chapters 1-3
[wpdm_file id=8]A Darker Darcy Chapters 1-3
[wpdm_file id=9]To Please a Princess Chapters 1-3