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The first book I wrote & published, with the sequel currently in the works, was one of the proudest moments in my life.
The network for creativity
Join 1.25M professional creatives like you
Connect with clients, get discovered, and run your business 100% commission-free
Creatives on Contra have earned over $150M and we are just getting started
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My inner pedantic Virgo is officially celebrating today: my project made it to the front page of Land-book!
Proof that my favorite creative chaos actually works perfectly. I'll be taking congratulations now 🥂
Haha well deserved! Congrats on making the Land book front page.
Just had the best conversation with a copywriter of 20+ years exp that I will never forget.
We were talking about how to stand out as a writer today, given that AI has made everything noisier.
Her answer was simple and a little uncomfortable:
Find your voice. Then trust it enough to say the thing nobody else is saying.
She put it this way: the ones who find their voices and speak up are the ones who make a real difference. It is hard and it is scary and it does not always lead to success. But it is necessary.
Then she said something worth sitting with: if you do not trust your own voice, AI or other, more risk-taking writers will beat you out.
I know what brave copy looks like. I have written it. But the real question is where do we draw the line between bold and reckless, between saying what needs to be said and saying what gets attention for the wrong reasons?
Her answer to that was simpler than I expected: start by saying only what needs to be said. Write fluff and filler and you will fade out.
That distinction matters more now than it ever did.
What is the best piece of writing advice you have received that took time to actually land? 👇
🕯️ I’m excited to share my newest fiction piece: Caged.
This story is deeply personal in the way it explores family, sacrifice, motherhood, and the things we carry silently.
Caged follows a grandmother through what begins as an ordinary day with her grandson. But as the day unfolds, she finds herself carrying more and more emotional weight while trying to remain strong for the people she loves.
One of the things I wanted to explore was what happens when someone becomes so focused on caring for everyone else that they begin to lose themselves in the process.
The monster in this story represents something much deeper than a physical presence.
It represents the things we try to cage.
The emotions we suppress.
The pain we carry.
The responsibilities we never put down.
The parts of ourselves we keep hidden because everyone else needs us to be strong.
✍🏽 Writing this piece allowed me to explore how fiction can show what a character is experiencing without always saying it directly.
I’m continuing to learn how to create characters who feel human, complicated, loving, flawed, and real.
📖 Read Caged on my Substack:
👉🏽 https://leylandthewriter.substack.com/p/caged?r=5pnsd4&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewer
If you read it, I’d love to know what you think.
What do you think the “monster” represents? 👀
And if you enjoy fiction, storytelling, and following the journey of a writer developing their craft, consider subscribing to my Substack. 🕯️📚
