“Sometimes you have to write the story you want to see in the world.”

There was never any question that Lee Hadan would be a writer. Born and raised in the sci-fi/fantasy community, she spent most of her early years listening to tall tales around the campfire, and later, spent her summers working at the local Renaissance Fantasy Faires.

With her parents both being voracious readers themselves, Lee grew up surrounded by books of all sorts, and discovered her passion not only for reading fantasy, but later, for writing it herself. Although it is a sometimes-unpopular opinion among authors, she is an outspoken supporter of fanworks, particularly fanfiction, and believes that there is no better way for a beginning writer to learn than by seeing the good, and bad, of amateur writing.

“Writing is a way of life,” she says when questioned about her chosen vocation. “It’s just something I’ve always done. I started with little stories, the kind all kids write. When one grew wildly out of control, I named it Breakwater. After that one, I was hooked!"

One of the most important things to Lee is portraying strong, her female characters with strength and agency.

“There are so few great female characters out there in fiction. A lot of times, it seems like they’re either Warrior Women, or Princesses, or Queens. Real women aren’t one thing all the time, and neither are the women I write about. Who says you have to be one-note? You can like swords and pretty dresses at the same time!”

Lee lives in Washington State with her husband, their boa, Q, and a handful of watchful local crows. You can find her on Tumblr, Twitter, and Patreon where she answers questions and posts short stories that sometimes take a life of their own.