L.L. McKinney Books In Order

Publication Order of Nightmare-Verse Books

Publication Order of Power Rangers: Limited Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Graphic Novels

Publication Order of Anthologies

L.L. McKinney is an excellent American author of fantasy, young adult, fiction, urban fantasy, adventure, science fiction, and romance novels. She is particularly famous for writing the Nightmare-Verse series. McKinney was born as Leatrice McKinney. She is an advocate for inclusion and equality in publishing. In addition to writing, she has spent time reading books for agents and serving as a judge in several online writing competitions. McKinney also considers herself as aa adamant Hei Hei stan, Blerd, and gamer. She resides in Kansas and is always surrounded by nephews and nieces. In her free time, McKinney likes to play with her cat that she has named Sir Chester.

The new writing projects of author McKinney include working on a graphic novel featuring the twin sister of Wonder Woman named Nubia for DC. McKinney also writes poems in her spare time that she often reads out to her nieces and nephews. She claims to have been telling stories since she was small. She has also been reading stories that amused her for a very long time. McKinney never really had to make the decision of becoming a writer. Rather, it just happened. She thinks it was always at the back of her mind to walk down the path of writing after growing up. However, the idea of pursuing publishing struck her mind sometime around the summer of 2007. McKinney believes there is a lot more difference between publishing and writing.

The inspiration for writing her first book came from watching a show of Supernatural. The same day, McKinney had read somewhere that a life action of Alice in Wonderland was going to be made by Disney and it made her wonder how that would appear. The collision of the two things in McKinney’s head gave rise to the fight scene featuring modern-day Alice. McKinney liked her description of the fight scene so much that she decided to develop it into a full-length book. She always advises aspiring authors to find their community and other writers who have similar tastes. Writing is a frustrating and lonely business. So, having a company is always beneficial. And if the company if of another creative person, it is much better to share ideas and thoughts.

McKinney also suggests the aspiring writers to never stop writing. People will always have something or the other to say about their work, but they should not pay heed to their views and be hopeful of the fact that the future is going to be grateful. The thing that surprised McKinney the most about publishing was racism. She knows that people don’t want to hear about it, but sadly, it is the truth. McKinney claims the world of publishing and its innner workings are quite racist in nature. She prays for the situation to change so that writers of all castes and races can publish their work without any discrimination. The path of publishing was not an easy one for McKinney as she had to face over 250 rejections over a period of ten years before she finally succeeded in getting her first novel published. McKinney found her literary agent by following the old approach. But nowadays, many platforms have come up for searching agents both offline and online, which is a good sign for new authors.

As a reader, McKinney’s interest keeps changing as per her mood. With changes in her mood and feelings, her subjects and her tastes also keep changing. When McKinney is not writing anything, she can be found playing video games, taking naps, or watching anime shows. She looks forward to creating many more interesting stories in the times to come and achieve more success. Many prominent critics have shown support to McKinney’s work and she hopes that they keep doing the same for all her future novels. It is her dream to be listed among the top-ranked authors, a dream that she wishes to fulfill very soon. Her family and friends have full faith in her abilities and know that she will achieve all her dreams easily.

The Nightmare-Verse series written by author L.L. McKinney is comprised of 3 novels released between 2018 and 2020. This urban fantasy series is a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. It features the main character in the form of a teenager from Atlanta who struggles with real-world problems and also fights against monstrous creatures emerging from Wonderland. The teenager, Alice, uses a combination of martial arts skills and magical weapons to combat the dangerous creatures. The habit of living a double life makes Alice’s head go for a spin. The debut book of this young adult/fantasy series is entitled ‘A Blade So Black’. It was released by the Imprint publication in 2018. This book opens by mentioning that Alice nearly loses her life in an attempt to avert danger.

After undergoing training to deal with the monstrous entities of the dark realm called Wonderland, she is all set to do the needful. However, her life in the real world is not less than a struggle. Alice has to juggle her overprotective mother, her slipping GPA, and her high-maintenance close friend. When fighting the dangerous creatures becomes more or less a full-time job for Alice, she hears the devastating news of the poisoning of her mentor. To gather the antidote that could save the life of the mentor, Alice is required to venture deep into WOnderland. She is determined to make the journey as she is confident enough to overcome every danger with her fighting skills and powerful magic weapons.

The second installment of this series called ‘A Dream So Dark’. It was also published by Imprint in 2019. Initially, it is depicted that Alice is still reeling from the recent battle and is grounded until she completes her graduation. But, when she learns about her next mission, she is forced to abandon her family and friends to turn the mission into a success. Alice is required to prevent the rise of the Red Lady by finding The Heart. As soon as she begins the missions, she begins to face obstacles. It is only later that Alice realizes that Wonderland has been trying to save her all this while. Shortly after, Alice comes to know that a new enemy in the form of a poet has arises, who has the capability to use Nightmares to influence those living as well as raise the ones who are dead. The poet is looking to claim the abilities of Alice and the power of the Black Queen. Alice realizes that she must confront her worst to defeat the mysterious poet and prevent him from causing havoc.