Taylor Leigh
Author of Adult Fantasy
Come for the books, stay for the chaos.
Taylor is an unrepentant horse girl who used to believe she had power over the clouds. She’s been trying to recapture that feeling ever since.As a member of the visually impaired community, as well as someone with chronic mental health conditions, she loves writing fantasy stories that explore disability, the human condition, and just what it means to be a monster.After a stint turning into a husk in the desert, she’s returned home to coastal North Carolina where she enjoys spending time with her zoo of animals and sneaking plants past her spouse.You can find out more about her various projects here.
Represented by Ben Miller-Callihan at Handspun Literary
Projects
Art By: @kristenliart
THE CITY OF DRAGON GLASS:Nefeli's gift of sensing magical relics has made her a world-class thief, but tapping into her power comes with a cost: her vision. With every use of her magic, her degenerative eye disorder worsens. A few more heists and Nefeli fears she'll be left with vague shadows in the dark—something she's avoiding at all costs. What use is a thief who can't see what she's trying to steal? But when her sister Sadiya's fragile health crumbles, Nefeli must choose: her sight or her sister.Against Sadiya's wishes, Nefeli agrees to a dangerous job posing as a noble at a political summit. If Nefeli can hunt down a long-hidden relic for a secretive influential family, she'll earn enough for her sister's treatment. The catch? The summit is crawling with dragons, scheming politicians, powerful magic users…and worst of all, Kadir, a former fling who knows Nefeli's not who she claims to be.Nefeli only has a fortnight to find the missing relic before access to the palace closes for another century. If she's going to succeed, she must rely on Kadir's help, despite the risk of him blowing her cover at any moment. And with her vision tunneling in, completing the job will force Nefeli to confront her biggest fear: without her sight, who is she?STATUS: Coming Soon to Sub
Art By: @polarts_iv
THE SOUL WEAVER:Conscripted spirit mage Astraea may have feared and misunderstood power, but with how little she can truly wield she’ll never earn her escape from the battlefield that took her father’s life. When the enemy captures her and her friend, Astraea’s meager control over her magic snaps. She animates a corpse in front of the enemy’s death mage, Brynnan. His ultimatum? Train with him in secret, or her friend burns.Astraea agrees, but she has a plan: take him down from the inside and earn her freedom. But Brynnan understands her power better than anyone, and Astraea must play a careful game as something draws her magic to his. One wrong choice could destroy the very people she’s desperate to protect—and curse her to becoming Brynnan’s newest weapon.STATUS: Revising
THE MERCHANT & THE PIPER:It’s been one hundred twenty seven and a half years since Nissa was caught in a compromising position with Cian, the now-king of the Everrealm, effectively ending their childhood friendship for good.When the gates to the Enchanted Forest blow open ten days before Samhain, releasing a poltergeist into her store to wreak havoc, Nissa storms to the castle, demanding the egregious error be fixed. But Cian has pissed off the wrong creature this time, and his magic is siphoning away into a curse, weakening the boundaries of the realms.Alongside her seeing-eye enchantment (a magicked rat skeleton with ADHD and a penchant for romantic escapades) and the king (a grumpy know-it-all Nissa swears she detests), Nissa must traverse the Enchanted Forest in search of just what it will take to break the curse, and rid her store of its pernicious newest occupant. Even if her mother thinks it’s a great reason to close shop and finally settle down with a nice, upstanding faerie.With the veil thinning, and the threat of all the spirits of the dead spilling across realms permanently, Nissa and Cian must decide whether they can set their past aside and save the Everrealm, the Neverrealm, and the Enchanted Forest itself.STATUS: Drafting
ONE PRAYS, ONE PLEADS:When Wrenetta Levreau and her betrothed, Dorian Baudelaire, arrive at her family’s abandoned estate, something in the residence whispers to her of long-buried secrets rotting amid the foundation of the town. Wren is determined to unearth every last one—including those of the mysterious Vesper Dubois.The town adores Vesper, but to Wren she is nothing but cold. Rumors abound of haunted burying grounds—as well as a long history of the Dubois family protecting the women of the town, sometimes by lethal means. And despite Vesper's chill, something seems to tether the three together.The closer Wren gets to unspooling the sordid past of her and Dorian’s families, the more she is beset by hallucinations of drinking blood and forbidden trysts…while haunted by the sense that Dorian knows more than he's let on. Woven beneath it all is the past narrative of Seraphine Dubois, a woman who fell in love with Wren's ancestor—and witnessed just what the families are willing to resort to if anyone dares threaten their power.With a hurricane looming, Vesper, Wren, and Dorian are caught in a magnetic pull none of them can deny, one that risks upending everything expected of them—and reaping the consequences for such defiance.STATUS: Drafting
Contact
The best way to stay in touch is to follow me on Threads or Instagram, as well as subscribing to my newsletter Potions & Ponderings.
For any business-related matters, please contact my literary agent Ben Miller-Callihan at Handspun Literary