Leilani writes fiction across genres about magic, monsters, and monstrous ambition. She is a 2024 Kundiman Fellow, a 2023 Lambda Literary Fellow for Emerging LGBTQ+ Voices, and a lifelong learner who loves going down research rabbit holes. She is Native Hawaiian and Vietnamese, and she works to channel all aspects of her identity into her work.

In her day job, Leilani works in mental health programs and policy, helping to secure access to quality services and supports for all.

When not writing, she’s known to go all-in on her various (emphasis on varied) hobbies, including everything from rock climbing to collecting stationery to making a perfectly crispy bánh xèo and catching up on her never-ending to-be-read and to-be-watched lists. She lives in Austin with her husband (whose coffee deliveries are 42% of why her drafts get drafted) and two cats (who take up way more space than 20lbs of fur should).