With his origins deeply rooted in Guam and its culture, LeFever captures the essence of island life in his full-length fictional novel, “BEAUTiFUL ESCAPADE.”
What began as a poem quickly turned into the first chapter, according to LeFever. He says the main character, a Chamorro, originally from Guam, now living in Los Angeles, has a unique vocabulary and uses it as “a professional blogger.”
“His story focuses mainly on love, culture, philosophy, dreams and reality, art, and of course, Guam,” says LeFever of his book’s main character, Rick Duenas. “I’ve attempted in capturing the beauty of the island as well as some current issues. It’s a mix of humor and drama with high entertainment value.”
LeFever, who considers himself a multifaceted artist, possesses numerous talents in acting, dancing, directing, modeling, rapping and writing. BEAUTiFUL ESCAPADE is only a testament to one of his many talents to be taken seriously.
Presently, he lives in Los Angeles as he tries to make his way around the “Hollywood game,” pursuing his passion for acting.
“Although I am not a professional, I strive every day to become one, mainly in acting, dancing and writing,” says LeFever. “My ultimate dream is to spread art, love, truth, and optimism to my island in all ways possible.”
From passion to pages
During his final year in college, LeFever fancied upon writing a poem about the nature of the moon. Thus began the inception of BEAUTiFUL ESCAPADE.
“After mulling it over in my head for a couple weeks, I started writing it out,” says LeFever.
His first chapter begins as a dialogue shared between character Rick Duenas and the moon. Subsequently, he took a poem he wrote a few months prior and blended it into the second chapter. LeFever continued to write about things that interested him and concepts he wondered about to further develop his story.
“A little later, I experienced a wild night that involved me actually speaking to the moon. I wrote it into a short story and decided to use that as a turning point,” says LeFever. “The biggest challenge was bridging what I already had to the turning point. From there, I was able to figure out how to end it.”
While LeFever’s novel seems reminiscent of Beat literature, he says “the story of BEAUTiFUL ESCAPADE was not predetermined. It manifested through fate.”
The book is available in hardcover, paperback or digital (PDF download or Amazon Kindle). It’s available on www.lulu.com.
Future endeavors
A lot of exciting projects are in the horizon for LeFever as he continually seeks ways to express his art in any endeavor worthy of pursuit.
Currently, he is working on final edits to an independent, feature-length comedy film which he helped conceive and direct with friends on Guam.
The movie, titled “Raw Meat,” will be released soon.
“Don’t judge by its title — there is depth,” LeFever laughs. “It was shot on Guam last summer. I’ll be expecting its release in just a few months.”
LeFever also says he is working on the script for another movie he plans to shoot with his Guam friends.
If that doesn’t seem like enough on his plate, he still plans on writing a continuation of BEAUTiFUL ESCAPADE.
“This is only the beginning,” he says. “I’m currently writing the second book which begins right where the first ends, and I plan to make it into a four-book saga. Who knows, maybe more!”
