“I believe happiness is being at peace. To achieve peace we fulfill that which we are passionate about, we concentrate on the good around us and give little mind to things that disturb us. We are grateful for everything we have, for life itself.”
Author? Painter? Both!
Ms Dianne Lynn Gardner is not only an artist of words, but she is also an artist of color, of brush strokes, each meticulously placed to hold the light and movement of life.
“I primarily paint portraits, but I also do en plein air and impressionist figure painting. I work in oils and have painted more years than I have written. I began painting when I was 12. I’m now in my 60s.”
This divine author began our interview with giving me an interesting answer regarding what actually catches her attention as a reader.
“I love characters. I want to fall in love with someone in the story, I don’t care if they’re the main character, the supporting character or even the villain. I will stay engaged in a story if I am deeply concerned about someone in the novel. More often than not I won’t fall for the person the reader is trying to get me to like. In fact, if I suspect in the slightest way that the author is trying to manipulate my feelings about someone, rebel that I am, I will pull for someone else. Take Hunger Games for instance. I felt Collins was trying to get me to like Peeta, but I didn’t. I fell in love with Gale and through the whole story I secretly wanted Katness and Gale to get back together. I knew they wouldn’t because I knew the author had made other arrangements, which is why I felt manipulated. No matter how much sympathy the author tried to get me to feel for Peeta, I put up my wall and refused. I still hope they change the final outcome in the movie. Gale would be so much better for Katness!”
So when it comes to writing her own stories, Ms Gardner wants to be sure that she creates a story that touches hearts. She believes this can be done well by having the characters look like real people. Even if they live in a fantasy world, as many of her characters do, they have to be real so that the reader can identify with them.
“I took some psychology courses in college. I love studying the way humans think, what makes them tick, their backstories, their hopes and desires, their goals, their flaws, what they can excel at intentionally and unintentionally. When I begin forming my stories I always begin with my characters because they are the ones that will have to overcome an obstacle, or battle an opponent, or discover who they are, or conquer a fear.”
In Dianne Gardner’s, Ian’s Realm Saga, Ian is the hero but he starts off as an un-hero. He’s young, doesn’t have much self-worth, and depends on his father for identity and approval. When Ian finds out his dad isn’t superman, that his father is as vulnerable as anyone else, his world changes. Through the series Ian is picked apart by circumstances. His weaknesses are thrown in his face and he has to eat crow and accept them. He must then find a way to overcome this fears, his inadequacies, his pride, his hopes and desires, all the things that stand in his way. Then he has to make a final sacrifice.
The series is three books. Deception Peak, Dragon Shield and Rubies and Robbers. But the story doesn’t end there. With the series are four short stories that tell of the legend of the fantasy world Ian travels to, and the wizard Silvio. In book four Diary of a Conjurer, the 
trilogy and the short stories interweave together. Book five is Cassandra’s Castle, a tale of Ian’s daughter who discovers the portal, and there are more stories in the making from there.
Currently, Dianne is in the process of working with an incredible team from Seattle to produce Cassandra’s Castle on film. You can read about the progress of this journey on Dianne’s website.
To connect with Dianne Lynn Gardner, please follow the links below or above:
