Award winning novelist and screenwriter, Denise Deegan, summarizes all she is and does in the best of ways: "I'm a storyteller." And what a storyteller she is. In this candid conversation, she takes us back to deciding to give up a lucrative business to write a novel, her ability to move past fears and doubts by always following her gut, and pivoting to one of her favorite mediums - film. This conversation is sure to inspire not only budding novelist, but anyone who lets fear hold them back from pursuing their passions.

Writing women's fiction under the pen name Aimee Alexander (the combined name of her two kids), and Young Adult titles under her own name, Denise's books have been published by Penguin Random House and Hachette.

Her coming-of-age novels include the much-loved trilogy, The Butterfly Novels: And By The Way, And For Your Information and And Actually and the epic novel of Irish revolution, Through the Barricades. And For Your Information was nominated for an Irish Book Award and is being adapted for film with Treasure Entertainment.

Denise's short comedy film, The Innkeeper, has won multiple awards, including Best Comedy and Best Actor awards at the Canberra Short Film Festival.

00:00 Sound bites
00:37 Introduction Denise
02:31 A love for writing
04:47 Following your gut to write a novel without no previous experience
06:28 Starting at zero
07:00 A day in a writer's life
09:28 The first book
11:23 An agent, a publisher, and a novel within 9 months
12:16 The Butterfly Novels
13:43 A passionate, angry, sarcastic, vulnerable teenage girl's voice in my head
14:42 How a story 'comes' to you?
15:12 A trilogy: the story of three teenagers
15:47 Writing for the character of Sarah
18:32 Self-publishing after being with traditional publishers
19:50 Revisiting and editing the first books to republish
21:00 Writing about mental health issues
22:42 Exploring the many facets of life is the best thing for your career
23:35 A passion for the medium of film
25:21 Award-winning short film "The Innkeeper"
30:00 The process of writing for TV and film vs writing novels
36:00 Turning novels into scripts
38:15 Moving beyond your fears to pursue your passions at any age
42:16 Advice to aspiring storytellers
45:14 Journaling or walking in nature to gather ideas
45:56 The empowering world of self-publishing
48:05 The importance of building a community around you - your personal brand
51:56 Advice to parents of budding storytellers
57:05 Through the barricade: a historical love story
59:42 A dedication
01:00:55 Have fun and play

Follow Denise:
X: @denisedeegan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/denisedeegan/
https://denisedeegan.com/

Through the Barricades 📖
And By The Way 📚
And For Your Information 📚
And Actually 📚
Available on Amazon under Denise Deegan

The Accidental Life of Greg Millar 📖
Available on Amazon under Aimee Alexander

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