Introductory Confession from Courtney Leigh

Hello! My name is Courtney Leigh, and I, am a Historical Women's Fiction/Historical Paranormal Romance-aholic. Put a balanced diagnosis of O.C.D., A.D.D., and schizophrenia together and you get...me. Someone absolutely fascinated by the human condition, an author followed around by obnoxious characters that just won't shut up! How do I cope, you ask? Writing. And lots of it. Luckily northern Arizona is a great place to live for the writing-insane.



I was raised as an Air Force brat, my family having deep roots in the U.S. military. That has to be the reason my strong heroines and heroes come from the WWII era--a time in which an entire generation was altered by war, infused with an appreciation for love, life, the pursuit of happiness and the true meaning of sacrifice. It was also a time of increased paranormal activity, espionage and scientific experimentation... a new age of technological development and intelligence. My characters know things about the human race that they would have never known without being confronted with larger-than-life questions. Am I willing to die so that others can live? Am I alive because someone I do not even know sacrificed himself/herself? Will I ever forget the atrocities I've witnessed, or will happiness be but a fleeting thing? With the end of one war, have we started another, much more dangerous one?


So while I'm constantly followed around by people only I can see or hear (helloooo, schizophrenia), I like to put them to the page mostly because I get to control their destinies (helloooo, O.C.D.). I only wish my writing process requires less book studying and more improvised typing (heloooo, A.D.D.). Ultimately, I want my readers to be affected. I want them to walk away from my books thinking of important concepts and with a deep love for my precious characters. Even though I've been a freelance writer for the past couple of years, I am one who believes there is more truth in fiction than in non-fiction. Which is why it is my true passion, and the reason I volunteer to judge a lot of writing contests. Whenever I love something, I nourish it. And yes, even if that means I encourage the voices in my head to keep talking!


By being a part of this blog I hope to help others with the same compulsion to create as I do. If one of my posts saves you from making the same mistakes I have, or prevents you from crying (because I know what it feels like to be rejected, frustrated and congested), or gives you a new angle to look at writing from, then my goals will have been achieved. As an author, and by becoming a contributor to this blog, I hope to empower, enlighten and entertain. Feel free to post as many questions and comments to as many writers here as you want to, so that we may better serve you. Thanks so much for joining us!