18
May
The Storyteller's Intent
How does the craft happen? Where do stories come from?
2 min read
Author Blog
The mid-life journey of a product leader turned mythological fantasy and children's book author. D.M. De Alwis is a Canadian-born Sri Lankan author living north of Toronto. She has over a decade of experience as a product leader working with startups and has authored children's books and fantasy fiction.
09
May
The Pink Eye Yaksha
Cover reveal and background story behind the upcoming children's KidLit novella, The Eyes of Ess-Vaha (The Pink Eye Yaksha), in collaboration with illustrator Chris Ho.
4 min read
26
Mar
The Chains that Bind us
Do we have free will when we're all pawns in a game of kings? How is the "sacred geometry of chance" built on past lives, current societal events, and what we care most about?
4 min read
24
Mar
Retrospective on A Lion's Pride
A good habit I adopted from years in the tech industry was carrying out a retrospective after something has been finished. Not only should this be done in real time (on a weekly basis) but also over long term milestone completion.
4 min read
08
Mar
🗞️ Hopeful Scraps of Paper
Behind-the-scenes look at the life of an author—author goals including getting my books into bookstores, year-to-date book sales, awards, retrospective on A Lion's Pride and the Pawn of Samsara Duology.
3 min read
03
Mar
UK-based The Wishing Shelf Book Award Results
It's enough to be considered. This year, A Lion's Head was entered for the UK-based Wishing Shelf Book Awards 2025. While I didn't win, I appreciated the feedback received from readers and the award committee.
3 min read
24
Feb
Unfinished business 300 years later from 10,000 years ago
Why do characters appear in Ireland-Ériu in the short story A Water Horse, while The Pawn of Samsara novels are set in ancient India-Jambudiva? Rebirth doesn't care about borders. If you have unfinished business, Samsara might drag you to the coast of Ériu to settle the score.
7 min read
14
Feb
A Library Book
You don't have to buy an author's book to support an author. Requesting their book at your local library is the number one way of supporting authors, especially indie authors.
2 min read
07
Feb
010 | How Buddhist Cosmology Inspired the Pawn of Samsara Duology
No spoilers. The Pawn of Samsara (POS) duology cemented the ground rules for world-building my fantasy universe. Here's a behind-the-scenes look.
8 min read
03
Feb
January Stats | Good Things Come to Those who Wait
I'm in the clouds. I'm drifting. I'm diving. I'm swooping. I'm circling the runway. Will I land? I'm doing what I often do to procrastinate—experimenting and analyzing.
3 min read