My Imaginary Friends with L. Penelope

L. Penelope
  • 4.9 (29)
  • Books
  • Updated Weekly

Award-winning fantasy & paranormal romance author Leslye Penelope shares perspectives on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week’s best thing.

  1. 6d ago

    The Fire That Forges You

    Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/live/AedkGHaBsVI Book News! Zahara Preorder Campaign is live! - https://lpenelope.com/preorder made list of “Books That Feed an Elder Millennial’s 90s Nostalgia” from SheReads magazine - https://shereads.com/books-that-feed-an-elder-millennials-90s-nostalgia/ Angelborn/Angelfall flip book is available! https://shop.lpenelope.com/ Announcements Mastermind Retreat - September 4-6, near Baltimore, MD - https://inkandmagicretreat.com/ Storybeast - Build Your Author Empire Conference - June 27, online - https://www.storybeastpodcast.com/buildyourauthorempire Mahogany Books Texture Book Club - June 28, National Harbor, MD Jane Friedman - Writing from Your Why workshop - July 29, online - https://janefriedman.com/writing-from-your-why-with-leslye-penelope/ - $25 early registration Fiction Makers Conference - August 22, in-person, Baltimore, MD - https://lpen.co/fictionmakers From SF to Gaza Book Raffle fundraiser - bit.ly/sfgzraffle   The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    26 min

  2. Apr 27

    Knowing What to Keep (and What Not to)

    Watch on Youtube Mentioned: lpenelope.com — My new website inkandmagicretreat.com — Apply for the Ink and Magic Mastermind Retreat (Tihs September, outside Baltimore) Angelborn and Angelfall by Leslye Penelope — now with new covers, PREORDER THE FLIP BOOK NOW FROM MY STORE Femforce — brand photo shoots in cities around the country (find them on Instagram) The Scholomance series by Naomi Novik The Monsters We Defy and Daughter of the Merciful Deep by Leslye Penelope — my previous books with magic rooted in African traditions Gaithersburg Book Festival — May 16, 2026 in Gaithersburg, Maryland Vellum — Mac app for laying out print books The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    26 min

  3. Apr 15

    Work Life Balance vs. the Reality of a Finite Existence

    Watch on Youtube Mentioned in the podcast: My new book: The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass: https://lpenelope.com/book/the-inevitable-undoing-of-zahara-douglass/ My author Newsletter : https://lpenelope.com/newsletter/ Landlord’s Lamentation (short interactive fiction): https://lpenelope.com/book/landlords-lamentation/ Notion Social: https://notionsocial.app/ Sunsama (timeboxing app): https://sunsama.com/ Timeboxing article: https://lpenelope.com/2014/04/timeboxing/ Substack post "Notes from Draft 2: Plotting from Character": https://myimaginaryfriends.substack.com/p/notes-from-draft-2-plotting-from One Stop for Writers: https://onestopforwriters.com/about-character-builder Ink & Magic Writing Retreat: https://inkandmagicretreat.com/ InstaLove University - happening now: https://lpen.co/ilu26 Fiction Makers Conference in Baltimore this August: https://lpen.co/fictionmakers The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    28 min

  4. Mar 16

    What Happens After Agent Feedback (My Revision Process)

    Watch on YouTube Mentioned: The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass - coming August 11, 2026 - https://lpenelope.com/book/the-inevitable-undoing-of-zahara-douglass/ Instalove University Virtual Conference - running now! - https://lpen.co/ilu26 "Level Up Your Business with Mindset w/ Heather Hildenbrand" - all day workshop 4/11/26 - https://marylandromancewriters.com/mindset-workshop/ Whimsical - https://whimsical.com/ Jule Kucera - https://julekucera.com/ My worldbuilding course - https://learn.myimaginaryfriends.net/courses/imaginary-worldbuilding My Father's Shadow film   The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    27 min

  5. Feb 23

    Live From VirtuousCon

    Watch on YouTube  Ink & Magic Retreat - https://inkandmagicretreat.com/ The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass - coming August 11, 2026 My interview with Beverly Jenkins VirtuousCon   The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    20 min

  6. Feb 2

    Preparing for Draft 2

    Watch on Youtube Mentioned: - Build Your Author Funnel LIVE - Sat. Feb 7, 2026 - The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass - releases August 11, 2026 - Scene Study: Before & After - "The Eternal Library" - Aeon Timeline software - Locally Crafted in Gaithersburg, MD - HBCU grads, please take my survey: https://tally.so/r/zx7kJg - Read for Pixels Event The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    24 min

  7. Jan 12

    New Year, New Challenges

    Watch on YouTube Mentioned: Ink & Magic Writing Retreat Applications open until Jan 16, 2026 - https://inkandmagicretreat.com/ EVENT: Me and Nicole Glover - January 15, 2026 - 7pm ET online + in-store at East City Bookshop in DC - Register Read The Starseekers by Nicole Glover Margie Lawson - https://www.margielawson.com/lawson-writers-academy/ Ray Bradbury Challenge Writer Kaia Alderson - https://www.kaiaalderson.com/ The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton - https://bookshop.org/a/582/9781934414903 Falling in Love with Hominids by Nalo Hopkinson - https://amzn.to/452HDSC A Black Women's History of the United States - https://bookshop.org/a/582/9780807001998 Story Engine deck - https://storyenginedeck.com/ Plur1bus TV Better Call Saul Playing Big by Tara Mohr - https://bookshop.org/a/582/9781592409600 Freedom app - https://freedom.to/ Erykah Badu New Year's Invocation   The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    33 min

  8. 12/15/2025

    Writing is Hard, Y'all

    Watch on YouTube Mentioned: Ink & Magic Writing Retreat - https://inkandmagicretreat.com/ The Better Writer Podcast with Olivia Bedford Preorder my next book: The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass    The My Imaginary Friends podcast is a behind the scenes look at the journey of a working author navigating traditional and self-publishing. Join fantasy and paranormal romance author L. Penelope as she shares insights on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week's best thing. Subscribe and view show notes at: https://lpenelope.com/podcast | Get the Footnotes newsletter & become an Imaginary Best Friend: https://myimaginaryfriends.net Support the show: Website | Instagram | Facebook Music credit: Say Good Night by Joakim Karud https://soundcloud.com/joakimkarud Creative Commons — Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported— CC BY-SA 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Music promoted by Audio Library https://youtu.be/SZkVShypKgM Affiliate Disclosure: I may receive compensation for links to products on this site either directly or indirectly via affiliate links. Heartspell Media, LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

    27 min
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4.9
out of 5
29 Ratings

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Award-winning fantasy & paranormal romance author Leslye Penelope shares perspectives on the writing life, creativity, inspiration, and this week’s best thing.

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