When Lórien Briscoe started writing stories at just four years old, she never imagined that her childhood hobby would turn into a business. Now a second-year student majoring in film and media arts at the University of Utah (plus five minors and a certificate in criminology and sociology) Briscoe has built a creative enterprise around her love of writing and storytelling.
“I’ve always loved to write,” she said. “When I was 4, I found an old Lego Ninjago fan fiction I had written. That’s how far back it goes.”
Briscoe recently received a grant from Lassonde’s Get Seeded program to fund developmental editing on the elements of plot, structure, character development, and pacing for her next project, which will be a standalone fantasy novel originally titled “Between the Lines of Villainy.”
“It’s a villain origin story,” she said. “A dystopia disguised as a utopia, where a hero has to become a villain to save her stagnant society. It asks the question, is conflict necessary for advancement?”
“Developmental editors usually charge around $2,500 to $3,000 for a 100,000-word book,” Briscoe said. “The Get Seeded fund is helping me take that next step.”
That early spark of creativity has grown into something much bigger. By the time Briscoe was twelve, she was attending Teen Author Bootcamp (now called StoryCon), a Utah-based conference where local bestselling authors teach young writers how to write scripts, descriptions, roleplaying, and much more. She attended the event for seven years, learning skills in writing, worldbuilding, and publishing processes. Skills that quickly came in handy in her life.
At 15, Briscoe self-published her first novel, an urban fantasy titled “Magic’s Escape: Wingless.” The story follows twin siblings who are kidnapped by their abusive mother, only for one of them to be drawn into a world of magic, clans, and survival. Briscoe describes the plot as “a dual-arc fantasy that is focused on family.”
“My protagonist was inspired by my cousin,” Briscoe said. “We were really close growing up, but we stopped hanging out around the time I started writing the book. It was my way of processing that and missing her.”
Unlike many young adult fantasy novels, “Magic’s Escape” stands out for what it does not include: romance. “I’ve read hundreds of fantasy books, and every single one had romance,” Briscoe explained. “There’s nothing wrong with that, but I wanted to explore stories that focused on survival, family, and resilience.”
Briscoe’s experience shows more than just creativity; it also shows entrepreneurship. From learning how to self-publish at a young age to leveraging her internship with ABC4’s “Good Things Utah” for media exposure, she has built her brand from the ground up. “When I was interning, they let me do a segment about my book,” she said. “That motivated me to republish it and get serious about marketing.”
Now, she’s looking ahead: creating booktrailers, planning advertising, and expanding her online reach. “I’ve always loved fantasy,” she said. “Writing is just about finding your specific niche, and mine happens to be fantasy without romance.”
Learn more about “Magic’s Escape: Wingless” at Amazon here or Barnes and Nobles here.
Great article! I appreciated how it tells the story of Lórien Briscoe — turning a childhood love of writing into a real, entrepreneurial project. Her novel’s premise (“a hero becomes a villain to save her society”) is really thought‑provoking, and it’s inspiring to see how she’s using Lassonde’s support to grow her craft and business. Thanks for sharing this.