Leslie never planned to be a writer, but she always wrote. In high school, she wrote and produced weekly cable TV shows, one of which earned an Ohio Governor's Award.

After an especially cold winter, Leslie escaped to sunny California. After touring the golden state via higher education, Leslie went to film school at USC, where she produced the Student Emmy winning short, "War Games."

After film school, Leslie spent a year as the West Coast Production Manager for JCNR, a major commercial company, then wrote between production gigs on films, music videos, cable specials, and tv commercials. Her feature credits include the cult classic "Witchboard", Prince's "Sign O'The Times", and Charles Bukowski's "Barfly."

Once a mother, Leslie started writing seriously. Her humorous essays evolved into her first book, then her second, and third.

The what-ifs of modern motherhood drove her to fiction soon after, and the result was her prize-winning debut novel about adultery, 66 Laps. Soon after, her screenplay, "Heartless," was produced as an independent film.

Now, she is working on another novel, continuing her exploration of both the light and dark sides of contemporary women.

Leslie lives in Southern California, as close to the beach as possible.

Show full bio

Hide full bio