About the Author
Leslye Penelope, who also writes as L. Penelope, has been writing since she could hold a pen and loves getting lost in the worlds in her head. She is an award-winning author of fantasy and paranormal romance. Her debut novel Song of Blood & Stone was chosen as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time. The novel also won the inaugural award for Best Self-Published Fiction from the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. Her novel The Monsters We Defy won the 2023 Audie Award for Best Fantasy Audiobook.
She was born in the Bronx, not long after the birth of hip hop, but left before she could acquire an accent. Equally left and right-brained, she studied film production at Howard University and minored in computer science. This led to a master’s degree in multimedia and a career in website development. She’s also an award-winning independent filmmaker, co-founded a literary magazine, and sometimes dreams in HTML.
Leslye is an alumna of VONA/Voices and Hurston/Wright Writers Workshop. She has spoken and taught at conferences and festivals around the country including the Baltimore Book Festival, Romance Writers of America, Writers Digest Annual & Novel Writing Conferences, and the Historical Novel Society.
Her podcast, My Imaginary Friends, offers a glimpse behind the scenes of the author life. Leslye lives in Maryland with her feline dependents.
Her most recent novel, The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass, is a contemporary fantasy about a young woman searching for a missing twin sister that only she remembers. Read it now!
BCALA Award
Best Self-Published Fiction
Song of Blood & StoneTIME Magazine
100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
Song of Blood & StoneAudie Award
Best Fantasy Audiobook 2023
The Monsters We Defy
Featured Press
Additional Press
My Diaspora Story with Lucy Wilson-Tagoe - Watch the interview
Fox 2 Detroit - Lit Happens with Syd - Watch the interview
Growing Inspiration with Shana McLean - Listen to the podcast
Speculative Fiction Writing Made Simple – “Writing Fantasy, Building Worlds, and Navigating the Publishing World with Leslye Penelope” – Listen to the podcast
The New York Times – “Love a Heist? These Books Deliver, With a Dose of Magic.” – Read the article
The Washington Post – “June’s science fiction and fantasy books pack a mighty punch” – Read the roundup (paywall)
The Dialogue Doctor – “Leslye Penelope and World Building” – Listen to the podcast
KEKE Magazine – “Can the Romantasy Genre Bridge Diversity Gaps in Publishing?” – Read the article
NPRs “20 new books hitting shelves this summer that our critics can’t wait to read” – Read
Wish I’d Known Then… For Writers podcast – Listen to the interview
The Novel Creature Network with Montrez – Watch the interview
Black Writer Therapy podcast
Fantasy Magazine – “Worldbuilding While Black: The Hair Edition” – Read the essay
Sci-Fi Talk podcast w/ audiobook narrator Shayna Small – Listen to the interview
Fantasy Cafe Guest Post – “When Fantasy and STEM Collide” – Read the post
Washington City Paper – “Leslye Penelope Imbues Black Broadway With Literal Magic” – Read the article
NPR’s Code Switch – “Black reality in a world of fantasy” – Listen to the episode
Washingtonian – “The Monsters We Defy” Is a Historical Ghost Novel Set in DC – Read the article
Publishers Weeky – “A World Began to Take Shape” – Read the interview
Lithub essay – “Writers and Liars: On Fact, Fiction, and Truth”- Read the essay
Locus magazine interview – Read an excerpt (Full interview in the August, 2022 issue)
ConTinual Interview with Jean Marie Ward – Watch the video
At the Bar with Arley Sorg interview – Read the interview
Self-Care Saturday with N.D. Jones – “What it Means to Be a Black Woman in the 21st Century” – Watch the discussion
ONYX Pages – Written with Purpose Author series interview – Watch the interview
TIME’s 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time
Song of Blood & Stone was selected as one of TIME’s Top 100 Fantasy Books of All Time. “The romance is fresh and fun to read, and L. Penelope’s world-building is a feat to watch develop throughout the book…” Read the post
Woman’s World magazine feature
Cry of Metal & Bone makes the list of the week’s best new books in the August 24, 2020 issue of Woman’s World magazine!
“Action, adventure and dynamic characters come to life in this epic saga about two magical kingdoms desperate for peace.”
Locus Magazine – Guest Post “
Over the past few months, as I’ve struggled to write the fourth and final book in my epic fantasy series, Earthsinger Chronicles, I’ve thought a lot about endings…” Read the guest post
Written in Melanin Podcast Interview – Watch the video
Eating the Fantastic Podcast – Listen to the episode
kt literary Podcast – Listen to the episode
Deadline – Frolic Podcast Network Aims At Romance Fans With 13 Shows Showcasing The Genre – Read more
The Virginian-Pilot – “Penelope is coming to Norfolk Read the article
TIME – “The 10 Best Fantasy Books of 2018 – See the List
From Self-Published to Mainstream: An Indie Success Story – Publishers Weekly, Read the Article
Quantum Froth Dispatches Podcast Episode 10 – Listen to the podcast
Reading Glasses Podcast Episode 52 – Listen to the podcast
Smart Podcast Trashy Books – Episode 297 – Listen to the podcast
USA Today Happy Ever After Interview – Read the interview
RedCarpetCrash.com Interview – Listen the interview
Penelope Launches New Series with Major Publisher – Library Journal, Read the article
Author spotlight on Harper Miller’s blog- Read the interview
Indie Author turned Traditional – Read the article
Indie Author Day webcast replay – Watch the video
Transforming Lives: Phenomenal Authors with L. Penelope – Watch the interview
Black Science Fiction Society Podcast – Listen to the interview