Thanks for stopping in, my name is Edwin Leskin and I am an aspiring professional author who seeks to pull big questions into meaningful moments with my work. Below you can find some projects I’m working on, links to collaborate, and short works.
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CURRENT NOVEL PROJECT [2026]: BEAUTIFUL CUT
“Though the worst serial murderer in history terrorizes the city, though his family is breaking, though he’s a failure and he knows it, Lom cares about one thing only… Cat Racing.”
Beautiful Cut is my most recently completed novel project, a 115k word adult fantasy genre-hybrid, fusing sports fiction and murder mystery on an island loosely based on the Yucatan Peninsula. This work gives readers huge doses of high octane races, wild parties, and bloody murders, but ultimately centers on the two main characters’ moments of transformation in the face of brutal odds, both those imposed upon them and those they nurture in their own souls.
I’m currently seeking representation for Beautiful Cut with reputable literary agents. Interested in learning more? Reach out to edwin@edwinleskin.com
MAYAN JAGUAR ART between circa 550 and circa 950
courtesy of Pango Books
READING FOR JANUARY: The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese
Started this one a couple times but held off until a time when sadness and poingancy might resonate a bit better.
I’ve loved the beautiful, migrating descriptions in this novel, and the short and long themes that circle back page by page and chapter by chapter. Little devices on the page that Verghese use continually draw me in deeper and have a lullaby-like quality to them.
I would say I’m excited to see where this one goes, as I’m half-way through at this point, but I’m not excited so to speak, as there is much sorrow coming down the line, that much I can tell. But this book presents the sorrows that befall us all in a soothing way, like a dream.
ALSO READ IN JANUARY: Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
A lovely little palate cleanser. Many things to appreciate in this book, but most of all I enjoyed the POV of an old woman. We rarely get such viewpoints in honest, down to earth ways. The character doesn’t bemoan her age as much as she strives to get through the day, with who she is as a senior being the mode of how she operates. If you need something light and positive (despite grief being central to this tale) I do recommend it.
PERSONAL UPDATE 1/14/26: HOME SWEET HOME
After 400 days out of our house my wonderful wife and I have returned to our Swannanoa, NC home, which was destroyed in Helene. I’m sure there is much to process and unpack from the experience, and those lessons come slowly.
For now, its just so good to build back what we had even better.
