His father, Pedro Antonio Mera Gómez was a businessman while his mother Josefa Martínez Vásconez, raised her only son alone due to the fact that he abandoned her during her pregnancy.

León Mera received his education at home, which in large part was carried out by great-uncle as well as his uncle Nicolás Martínez who was a doctor.

[1] He is considered one of the precursors of Ecuadorian literature for his famous national novel Cumandá which shows the complicated racial and social intricacies of Ecuador following independence.

This novel was later utilized by Ecuadorian dramaturgists of the 20th century Luis H. Salgado (1903–1977), Pedro Pablo Traversari Salazar (1874–1956) and Sixto María Durán Cárdenas (1875–1947) to each write an opera.

His former residence, the museum "La quinta de Juan León Mera", in the city of Ambato, exhibits his possessions.