Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashlea Hearn.
Hi Ashlea, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
I am a native St. Louis writer, musician, and avid golfer in Seattle, Washington. I was raised in the historic neighborhood of Pasadena Hills until the age of 10. In the summer of 2006, my family relocated to Edwardsville, IL, where we established roots. I attended Columbus Elementary School for 5th grade and moved on to attend Liberty Middle School and eventually Edwardsville High School. Throughout my educational career in the Edwardsville School District, I discovered my passion for music and became a member of both the middle and high school orchestras as a violinist. I participated in additional extracurricular activities, including the EHS Junior Varsity and Varsity Golf Teams and the French Club. I am a proud graduate of Edwardsville High School, graduating early in December 2013.
My Bachelor of Arts in Communication is from Columbia College, where I also dabbled in screenwriting and directing under my Minors in English and Film Studies. In 2016, I was a guest speaker for a Freshman Poetry class for my work written in a Creative Writing – Poetry class. The following year, I had the honor of being the Introduction Speaker for Author Sarah Manguso at a book reading by the CC English department. I presented more of my unpublished poetry and creative nonfiction work for two years at the Central Methodist University’s Humanities Conference in 2017 and 2018.
After a year of being an editor and managing editor of the Columbia College Literary Review, I was elected Editor-in-Chief in 2018. My time as an editor and managing the review helped me realize that while I loved writing and presenting short creative pieces like poetry and short stories, I wanted my work and the action book series I had dreamed up since middle school – published on even bigger platforms. I finished writing my first novel in my senior year of college in 2019 and finished the second book in the series the following year in January 2020. Genesis Mortalis, Book 1 of the Take It Trilogy, was finally published with New Degree Press in May 2021.
Throughout college, I received six honorary awards, most notably The Elizabeth Award in 2019 – given annually to a distinguished graduating senior female student with outstanding accomplishments in leadership, volunteerism, community service, and involvement with the Columbia College community. I was the second student to receive this award since it was first established in 2018, and I have my name displayed on a plaque inside the school.
I have been a member of the Army Reserves since 2014 and am a 1st Lieutenant. Genesis Mortalis is my debut novel and was originally written as a film script based on my love for espionage and action movies. I am currently working on finishing and publishing the next two books in the Take It Trilogy, a novel about an orphaned cellist and an action war thriller.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been smooth?
Not! When it came to writing this YA action-crime thriller, writing the action scenes was by far the hardest part of the draft. I didn’t have much reference to reading “good” action scenes in books (I’ve read examples of action scenes I thought were hard to follow or badly written), so this was a part I had to edit so many times to get it just right – my editor was able to be my second pair of eyes to tell me when these were done well. When we see action scenes in movies, they’re done so fast and seamlessly, but in books, you have to learn to slow everything down and still have everything flow while keeping the scene interesting. It’s an art form in itself, writing action.
Throughout the book, there are Portuguese and a lot of Russian instances since the second half takes the main characters on a mission in Russia. Incorporating these foreign languages into the manuscript was also highly challenging. I don’t speak another language first off, so I had to do a lot of research and use friends who are bilingual for reference (Google translate can be helpful, but you should only rely on it partially!) The main issue I ran across was trying to include just enough of a different language to add authenticity and enough context clues in the text to understand the language without adding too much and risking confusing readers.
Publishing in itself was another initial obstacle. Initially, publishing with a traditional publisher was the best route. So I submitted my manuscript to dozens of publishers, including a few in England, since the main characters in my book reside in London. It took me from submitting in January to November 2020 until I found the publisher went with New Degree Press. My best friend came across a book writing program called the Book Creators Program by Georgetown Professor Eric Koester and passed the LinkedIn post along to me, suggesting I take the class. I originally signed up, but since I had already finished the first two books in my series, I asked them if it would be okay for me to submit my finished manuscript to the publisher they work with (after completing the program, they select the best writers to publish with their publisher New Degree Press). After submitting, I was green-lit to publish a few weeks later with NDP! I’m forever grateful to have found this publisher because, unlike traditional publishers, NDP helps authors raise the money to publish their books, allowing them to keep all the rights. This is a huge perk that many authors need to consider when choosing to publish with a more established traditional publisher, something I thought was important. Around the same time, I came across my current author mentor – best-selling author Anna David – and her podcast Launch Your Book, in which she preached the truth about publishing with a traditional publisher (which she had originally done) and how they can choose not to market your book at all if they don’t think it has a much potential compared to other authors in your publishing cohort. Anna now runs her own hybrid publishing company, Legacy Launch Pad Publishing, to help authors and business owners publish. Ever since discovering Anna and her amazing advice for authors, I have become her mentee to learn how to succeed as an author.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a newly published YA action-crime thriller author known for my debut novel Genesis Mortalis, Book 1 of the Take It Trilogy. Publishing this novel is what I am most proud of, as this has been a dream of mine since I first started drafting scenes for the book in middle school. The book’s overall theme is what sets me apart from other authors, especially in my genre. My book is about twin billionaire heiresses, Madisyn and Marcelle Montevega, who start a secret vigilante organization targeting some of the most wealthy and corrupt business people and criminals worldwide. The twins are British and live in London but are also mixed race. I can break many stereotypes with my characters, typically in action scenes.
Networking and finding a mentor can positively impact one’s life and career. Any advice?
Don’t be afraid to reach out to people, even if you think they’re too “big” to notice or want to help you! I recommend studying the person you want to be your mentor before reaching out. In one of my favorite success podcasts – Darren Daily On-Demand by Darren Hardy – one of his episodes speaks on finding a mentor, saying, “Find one person who has been successful in an area you want success in, and go deep with them.” For my current mentor – New York Times bestselling author, Ted Talk speaker, and TV personality Anna David – I listened to her podcast Launch Your Book and studied her past episodes. Her content made me realize this was someone I wanted to learn more from to be as successful as her in becoming a bestselling author one day and a public speaker. I reached out to Anna on her publishing company’s website – Launch Pad Publishing – telling her how much I appreciated all of her content and that even though I probably couldn’t afford to work with her hybrid publishing company (she typically works with business owners and entrepreneurs who want to publish a book to promote their businesses further – and at the time I wasn’t an entrepreneur), I would love to learn as much as possible from her. She immediately emailed me back and allowed me to Zoom her so we could meet! Normally her “consultation” meetings cost $150 alone, and I could talk to her for free.
Ever since meeting Anna, I have followed her religious content: I signed up for her newsletter, even bought some of her online classes for authors, and followed her on all social media. We now follow each other on social media, she has purchased my book and promoted me in one of her new books, and she even recently invited me to one of her client’s book launches in LA, where I could meet her in person a couple of months ago. If this story teaches people anything, it’s that when you find someone you want to become your mentor, study them closely and then continue showing up in their lives (interacting on social media, using their online resources, studying all of their content, and letting them know why you want them to be your mentor).
Pricing:
- Ebook – $3.99
- Softcover – $21.99
- Hardcover – $28.99
Contact Info:
- Website: www.aehearn.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angel_ashlea/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashlea.hearn
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashlea-hearn-35a20a185/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUw2yYFlukkDEJVySlw-H5Q
