I’ve Always Wanted to Write
Hi, I’m Les Brown. In 2022, I sat down and wrote my first novel. Then I wrote three more. Now I’m working on my fifth. They’re part of a series called We Are Not Saints—LGBTQ novels exploring what it means to be a person of faith when the church doesn’t think that’s possible. My characters are priests and monks, teenagers and acolytes, all trying to figure out who they are in a world that demands they choose between their identity and their faith.
Why am I telling you this?
Because I started out with no idea how to begin. Five novels later, I’ve learned a lot—and I’m still learning.
I’m not a writing instructor. I don’t have an MFA or years of teaching experience. What I have is five completed novels, a lot of trial and error, and plenty of mistakes I can tell you about, so maybe you won’t make them too.
This blog is about sharing what I’ve learned.
Some things worked for me. Some things bombed spectacularly. Some things surprised me—both the challenges I didn’t expect and the rewards I never saw coming. I’ll share all of it.
If you’ve ever thought about writing a novel, you’ll get practical lessons from someone who recently figured it out: how I developed the stories (and when “pantsing” worked for me and when it didn’t), the character development breakthroughs that changed everything, my biggest plotting challenges and how I faced them.
If you’re interested in the We Are Not Saints series, you’ll get character backstories that didn’t make it into the published books, deleted scenes and why I cut them, behind-the-scenes looks at how these stories came together, and early glimpses of Sycamore Boy (coming 2026).
Here’s what you won’t get:
This isn’t a creative writing course. I can’t teach you craft—there are people far more qualified. And I certainly can’t teach you talent.
But I can tell you what worked in my experience. What didn’t. What I wish someone had told me before I started. What resources helped. What expensive mistakes I made. The hidden benefits that made it all worthwhile.
You’ll take what’s useful and ignore the rest.
What to expect:
I’m sure you’ve heard people say, “I should write a book someday.” Almost nobody says, “Have you read my latest book?”
The gap between those two statements? That’s what this blog is about. The actual experience of sitting down and doing it. Creating a whole universe of people and places that never existed before. The practical steps, the emotional journey, the logistics of getting from “I want to write” to “Here’s my published novel.”
Some of my lessons will be about craft—how I approach outlining, character development, revision. Some will be about the business side—publishing options, cover design, marketing. Some will be purely about the experience—what it feels like to write “The End” for the first time, or to hold your first printed book.
And woven through it all, you’ll get to know the characters from We Are Not Saints in ways the published novels don’t reveal.
Join me:
I’ll be posting regularly—lessons from my writing journey, character deep-dives, practical tips, and updates on Sycamore Boy.
Want exclusive content?
Next time, I’ll tell you how it all began—with a high school typewriter, a terrible idea, and the embarrassing manuscript I still have somewhere.
Talk soon,
Les