Writer-actor-singer
Leonard Bassed was born in the town of Middleburg, Mpumalanga and raised in
Johannesburg. He started taking vocal
lessons at age eight and studied drama throughout his high school years. A mentor encouraged him to pursue an acting
career. Leonard went on to complete
acting classes in both South Africa and later Los Angeles. Currently, when not writing or singing,
Leonard continues to study acting techniques with the renowned Margie Haber
Studio in Hollywood. In his free time, he enjoys travel, reading and movie
going. His latest book is The Witch Port Video Game.
WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:
Website: https://leonardbassed.com/
Facebook
page for author: https://www.facebook.com/leobassed/
Twitter
page for author: https://twitter.com/LeonardBassed
About the Book:
Title: THE WITCH PORT VIDEO GAME
Author: Leonard Bassed
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 108
Genre: YA
Author: Leonard Bassed
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 108
Genre: YA
BOOK BLURB:
Leonard
Bassed had no plan to write a novel titled THE WITCH PORT VIDEO GAME when he
set out to create a movie script with a similar name. “I had written the pilot script first and I
kept the same ending for the novel…everything from the script I wrote found its
way into the finished book version of ‘The Witch Port Video Game,’ said
writer-singer-actor Leonard Bassed. “I
was able to spend more time developing the characters and their world…the whole
thing was just such an organic experience and extremely enjoyable, creative for
me.”
THE WITCH
PORT VIDEO GAME tells the story through the lives of three ordinary teens who
live in the fictional town of Cradle Creek, USA – a small town they hope to one
day escape, attracted by the bright lights and promise of the Big City. All three are students at a prestigious
performing art school with hopes of one day making names for themselves in the
entertainment world.
Mr. Bassed
continued about his story, “A chance encounter the three have with a girl named
Bianca Morris threatens to derail their plans. Bianca introduces them to an
enticing video game, ‘The Witch Port Video Game’. This encounter, coupled with the arrival of
the MacQuoid brothers sets in motion a series of bizarre events that spins
their lives into chaos and disarray as the three head into a world of sorcery
with an ultimate fight for survival.”
As a young
boy growing up in South Africa, Leonard dreamed one day of working in the
arts. He wanted to write, to act, to
sing. While drawn to acting and song
writing, he was also a good story teller.
“The auditions I would go out for as an actor were never reflective of
the kinds of roles I was after to play. It was this realization that led me to
writing the pilot script which I planned to pitch to TV and movie
producers. But, once I finished the
script I’d grown too attached to the characters and the wonders of their world
that ultimately led the script into the shape of a full novel,” he went on to
say.
PRAISE
“While the book’s final moments leave us with a
rather sudden, enigmatic ending, an end note does indicate a sequel Witch Port Igniting the Coven on the
horizon. For those who enjoy the entertaining literary chemistry that results
from inquisitive teens and their foray into the mysterious world of sorcery,
Bassed’s venture should prove an intriguing reveal.”
--Pacific Book Review
“Filled with cheeky references to famous
pop-culture stories of sorcery and mixed with some classic teenage angst, this
book is a fast-paced, suspenseful story. The novel’s premise that some
teenagers gain special powers through a video game is an updated, modern take
on magic and suits the story quite well for a 21st-century setting. The author
sets up the story mechanisms so that everything that happens through the
students’ video game play also happens in real life. The author states that
this novel was originally a screenplay, and those elements shine through, from
the descriptive settings to the fast pace in which the action occurs on the
page. It will be interesting to see how the protagonists grow with their powers
in the sequel.”
--The U.S.
Review of Books
Book can be purchased at the
author’s web site at www.leonardbassed.com
Thank you for this interview! I’d like to know more about you as a person
first. What do you do when you’re not
writing?
I’m
a singer/songwriter and actor so when I’m not writing I spend my time in
studio, recording my music or simply getting my ideas down. Auditioning for various theatric projects and
commercials or taking class.
When did you start
writing?
I’ve
written all my life mainly for my own enjoyment. I’d start off with the best of
intentions but would lose steam, up until now I couldn’t find subject matter
that really resonated with me as profoundly as The Witch Port Video Game does. The whole thing came to me fully
formed as though it were the book I were always meant to write.
As a published
author, what would you say was the most pivotal point of your writing life?
When
I initially adapted the pilot script into a novel I did so with the intention
to self-publish. I had the realization that the book would turn out to be
exactly what I wanted it to be; there was something so satisfying in that for
me.
If you could go
anywhere in the world to start writing your next book, where would that be and
why?
This
is a hard question because I enjoy traveling in general. Ideally, I’d love to
write at any coastal or cabin setting, I’ve glamourized the idea of being
secluded with nothing to do but write. I’d also love to visit Amsterdam
again, but I doubt I’d get much writing done.
If you had 4 hours of
extra time today, what would you do?
In a
perfect world I’d respond by saying I’d write, but I have so much
administrative things to do outside of my craft I’d probably choose to tackle
that.
Where would you like
to set a story that you haven’t done yet?
I would like to set my next book in a fictional town that
I’ve yet to coin.
Back to your present
book, The Witch Port Video Game, how
did you publish it?
I chose to self-published my novel, I wanted to maintain
full creative control.
In writing your book,
did you travel anywhere for research?
It was my traveling that sparked the idea to write my novel,
but I only began the writing process when I returned home to South
Africa from Los Angeles,
California, USA.
I was fortunate enough to participate in a Baltic tour seeing much of Europe
a few years prior and all these experiences served to enrich my writing.
Why was writing The Witch Port Video Game so important
to you?
I was an out of work actor when I wrote the pilot script;
the projects I’d audition for weren’t reflective of the roles I hoped to book.
This realization led me to write The Witch Port Video Game pilot, but upon its
completion I was hooked and knew I had to carry on writing, at that point I was
too invested.
Where do you get your
best ideas and why do you think that is?
I
get my best ideas every time I’m isolated from the outside world, whether I’m
out in nature or somewhere where communication with me is limited. I’m an
introvert so I guess that’s when I feel most comfortable, and when you calm and
in your element that’s when creativity flows.
Any final words?
In closing I’d like
to thank you for this interview, much appreciated. For more on my book please
head over to my website www.leonardbassed.com.
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