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John W. Leys

Goodreads Author

Born

in Oceanside, Long Island, New York, The United States

Website

https://johnwleys.com/

Twitter

eliyahu5733

Genre

Poetry, Fantasy, Religion

Influences

Allen Ginsberg, Leonard Cohen, Bob Dyan, Lord Byron, Erica Jong, Walt ...more

Member Since

December 2012

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/jwleys

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John W. Leys was first moved to write song lyrics after being introduced to the Beatles and Bob Dylan when he was a teenager. A chance encounter with a radioactive fountain pen turned him into a ukulele playing poet, a curse he’s had to live with for decades

The greatest influences on his poetry have been Lord Byron, Leonard Cohen, Allen Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Catullus, Erica Jong, and a chemical imbalance in his brain.

John’s first poetry collection, The Darkness of his Dreams, was published in 2019. His second book, Whispers of a One-Eyed Raven: Mythological Poetry, followed the next year. He’s also been published in anthologies from Indie Blu(e) Publishing, one of which he helped edit. He often wonders, in the third person, if anyone reads t ...more

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What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

John W. Leys Most important: don't give up. Keep writing and, as hard as it can be, share your work with other writers you trust to get honest feedback. Grow as a …moreMost important: don't give up. Keep writing and, as hard as it can be, share your work with other writers you trust to get honest feedback. Grow as a writer, but always be true to yourself. I've found great inspiration from something Allen Ginsberg once said: “To gain your own voice, forget about having it heard. Become a saint of your own province and your own consciousness.” Write what you want to write, how you want to write it. Don't write what you think an audience might want to read, write what reflects your soul and your audience will find you.(less)

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What are you currently working on?

John W. Leys My next project is a collection of poetry inspired by mythology, especially Celtic (Irish and British/Welsh) and Norse mythology, though others will b…moreMy next project is a collection of poetry inspired by mythology, especially Celtic (Irish and British/Welsh) and Norse mythology, though others will be represented as well. Some poems will be retellings of myths, comparing the variations of the stories that have come down to us, some will be meditations on these stories, and some will be sprung from my own imagination, inspired by these great tales and the manner in which they were told in works such as the Book of Taliesin, the Mabinogion, and the Norse Eddas, to name a few.(less)

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John W. Leys’s books

Average rating: 4.14 · 7 ratings · 4 reviews · 4 distinct works

	Through The Looking Glass: Reflecting on Madness and Chaos Within by Kindra M. Austin (Goodreads Author), Candice Louisa Daquin (Goodreads Author) (Editor), John W. Leys (Goodreads Author) (Editor) it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 4 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Darkness of His Dreams: Poetry 3.33 avg rating — 3 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Whispers of a One-Eyed Raven 4.50 avg rating — 2 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	When the Banshee Howls and other poems it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 1 rating — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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57 posts
John W. Leys's Blog

Letter to Lord Byron

Exactly 200 years ago today Lord Byron died of malaria in Missologhi, Greece. In observance of this day I present the first of a series of poems I am writing called Letters to Lord Byron. These “letters” are written in ottava rima, the form Byron used for Don Juan.

The Portrait of Lord Byron by Thomas Philips that hangs over my desk.Letters to Lord ByronLetter #1To the right honorable Lord Byron,I Read more of this blog post »

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Published on April 19, 2024 20:00

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John is Currently Reading

John W. Leys is currently reading

The Zohar: Pritzker Edition, Vol. 1 (Volume 1)

by Daniel C. Matt

bookshelves: judaism, currently-reading

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Mar 02, 2022 01:57AM

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John W. Leys wrote a new blog post Letter to Lord Byron Exactly 200 years ago today Lord Byron died of malaria in Missologhi, Greece. In observance of this day I present the first of a series of poems I am Read more of this blog post »
Apr 20, 2024 05:29AM · like

More of John's books…

John’s Quotes

“Do not act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over you. While you live, while it is in your power, be good.”
― Marcus Aurelius

tags: be-good, goodness, morality

798 likes

“You are a little soul carrying about a corpse, as Epictetus used to say.”
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

tags: corpse, incarnation, mind-over-body, soul

552 likes

“No man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.”
― Socrates

1295 likes

“Of what use is a philosopher who doesn't hurt anybody's feelings?”
― Diogenes of Sinope

tags: feelings, offend, offense, philosopher, philosophers, philosophy

201 likes

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