In my neverending quest to highlight people who are working to accomplish their hopes and dreams, it is a pleasure to share an author with my readers today who is a fellow Hallmark Channel Fan as well as a Heartie! Dione M. Sheehan is a skilled, self-published author, and earlier this year, I had the opportunity to ask her a few questions about her current and future writing aspirations. It is my delight to share her with my readers today!
RH: Why did you decide to become a writer?
DS: You know, if I had to say where I grew up, I’d say Walnut Grove. And if I had to say where I met God, I’d say on the banks of Plum Creek. These stories, penned by Laura Ingalls Wilder, invited me into a world where family and faith intersected, a world where anything was possible but everything had to be earned. I found similar worlds among the pages of Louisa May Alcott and Janette Oke, soon discovering that this was where I wanted to be. As the stories and characters gripped my soul, I knew I wanted to tell similar narratives. I wanted to make people feel the way I felt. And so I became a writer.
What do you remember about the first thing you ever wrote? Feel free to elaborate.
When I was in first grade, I wrote a short story about a girl participating in the Iditarod, Alaska’s iconic dogsled race. I scribbled away in my “Story Journal,” though I’m quite sure I misspelled “story” and assumed one page was an awfully substantial chapter. But the experience was fun, and it transported me to a land of snowbanks and Siberian Huskies. Ever since then I’ve been crafting stories and writing them down…and I even adopted my own Siberian Husky along the way.
Please tell us about this first book of yours An Engagement With War. What inspired you to write it? Please tell us the premise.
An Engagement With War takes place in Kansas during the Civil War. It is a historical fiction novel that follows a young woman named Annie Lore as she navigates a budding romance and aspires to become a doctor. With the war threatening her plans, Annie’s story becomes one of resilience. She must find her purpose when her fiancé leaves to join the Union ranks, and she must discover what she’s willing to sacrifice for love…when the time comes.
This book was inspired by my love of history, romance, and the American frontier. I was excited to place a female character in the unconventional field of medicine and brainstorm the challenges that might arise. And I was eager to unravel the complications of a romantic relationship during this difficult time.
What message do you hope people will take away from your book?
I hope that this book inspires people to consider that, while life may not always have perfect endings, it might very well have everything we need to be content.
How did you go about publishing this first book? What are the benefits and the challenges of publishing your book in that way?
I self-published this book. The process was relatively straightforward, and the benefits include having total control over the book design and layout. Unfortunately, it is difficult to get self-published books into brick and mortar stores and, thus, it can be hard to promote these books.
Any other upcoming books that you can tell us about?
I have many ideas I’d love to run with, though there is one I’m particularly excited about. The story is once again within the Christian historical fiction romance genre, and it takes place in Boston during the Revolutionary War. It really extends the question of where one’s loyalty lies and how to live with yourself when you feel you’ve made an unforgivable mistake. I hope to begin the writing process soon, though I have recently been experimenting with screenwriting and am now at the point where I need to decide if this is a book idea or movie idea. Either way, this will be a story of forgiveness and compassion, and I can’t wait to share it.
Do you have plans to write in other genres? Please elaborate if you like.
As I mentioned a bit before, I’ve recently been venturing into the screenwriting arena. I am having a great time and trying to learn as much as possible. It’s a different mode of writing, and I’m really excited to see where it might lead. Of course, I still love novel writing. Historical fiction romance is my favorite genre, but I will certainly expand into others as I feel led.
What do you like to do in your free time?
Ahh, free time! Well, I spend much of my free time immersed in storytelling of one form or another. I really enjoy reading novels and watching frontier dramas—my favorite of which happens to be Hallmark Channel’s When Calls the Heart. I also cherish time spent with my family and my Siberian Husky, Maya Moonshadow. Beyond that, I can often be found in fitness studios, old bookstores, or historic downtowns.
It warms my heart to connect with such a committed Christian and Hallmark fan, and I am grateful for every opportunity I have to highlight those in the online community who are accomplishing amazing things while steadily working towards pursuing their passions. Dione is certainly one of those special people, and I hope that everyone will visit her links below and consider buying her book as well. Who knows? A few years from now, we may turn on our television sets and watch a Hallmark movie that was penned by our very own Dione M. Sheehan, and we all can say, “We knew her when…”
FOLLOW DIONE
#Hearties I am so excited to share my book trailer with you!!! The talented Heartie @AlyCartiglia produced it, and I am so grateful to her! Please watch and feel free to leave your thoughts! #AnEngagementWithWar #HistoricalFiction #Romance #Christian pic.twitter.com/faUs53JAl3
— Dione Sheehan (@DioneMSheehan) August 26, 2018
