Moose Jaw miracles

The people of Moose Jaw and area were wonderful hosts to Dionne and Graham Warner and Al and I as we joined them for their 12th annual Canadian Cancer Society Living and Learning fundraising luncheon on Tuesday. The event was held at the beautiful Timothy Eaton Gardens and we were treated to a tasty lunch of soup, salad, sandwiches and desserts. Dionne was the guest speaker for the luncheon and every eye was on her as she told her story of battling cancer seven times.

The people at one table were even heard to yell out, "No!" when she stated that in December 2009, she was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer of the liver, lungs ("And I've never smoked a day in my life,") and bone cancer in her rib, spine and pelvis. Most people in the room could not believe that she was there the day before she was due for her weekly chemo treatment. There were tears of sadness and empathy but also much laughter throughout her address.
A very touching moment for Dionne and me came while we were signing books for customers after the luncheon. An older gentleman and his wife came through the line-up and, as is our habit, I signed the book and then handed it to Dionne so she could sign next and then hand it to Graham to add his signature and hand the book back to the happy customer. When this gentleman got to the spot in front of Dionne, he said to her, "You saw me six weeks ago at chemo ... You gave me a hug." Then he placed his hand over his heart and patted his chest twice ... and slowly said to Dionne, "You made me feel special."

Dionne and I were both temporarily speechless, moved by his profound gratitude for what Dionne would consider such a simple act. I said to the gentleman, "She has a way of doing that, doesn't she? She makes everyone feel like they are the most important person she has spoken to that day." The gentleman smiled and agreed. He then grabbed Dionne's outstretched hand and thanked her again before he went on his way. He turned around one more time with another smile and nod to the woman who had given him a small boost six weeks earlier - in the form of a hug.

As he walked away, he turned to me and said, "You wrote a good book."

All I could say was, "Thank you."

This little Piggy...

When I was younger, I wrote poems for school projects, for fun and to express myself. Since I became a journalist 30-some years ago, poetry took a back seat to true stories. A recent contest by the Saskatchewan Writers Guild peaked my interest, challenging us to write a poem about Hogs for an upcoming promotion. I fully intended to submit the poem, but Al and I were on the road and I missed the deadline. We did have fun creating our rather simple, but funny poem.... so here it is - to brighten your day....

Our Hog Poem
By Al and Deana Driver

I wanted a dog
Mom got me a pig
It started to eat and then it got big
And now it's a hog.
Soon it will be bacon.


HA HA HA! Have a great day, everyone!

Speaking to students always a blast

Going into a school and talking with students about my writing and publishing is one of my favourite adventures. You never know who will be listening (or not), who will ask questions (or completely ignore you) and who will actually be paying such close attention that they later come up to you with compliments and many more questions relating to their own writing future!
I spoke to an Entrepreneurship 30 class today at O'Neill High School in Regina SK and was pleased with their attention and their questions afterward - about my business, my writing, the cost of publishing a book, and the timeframe in creating and growing our business to the point it is at right now. A young lady came up to me afterwards and talked about her goals of becoming a writer. Those one-on-one chats are always special and make me feel proud to do what I do and share the little bits of knowledge that I have.

At St. Augustine School in Humboldt SK last week, I was greeted by enthusiastic, polite students who seemed to enjoy the stories of my writing and our many DriverWorks Ink books. While we ran out of time for the Grades 5-8 students to chat with me afterwards, the younger students (Grades 1-4) in my first presentation asked at least 30 questions and made me grin all the way home with their inquisitive honest queries:

How long is your longest book? (That I wrote? Longest in the number of words? Never Leave Your Wingman is about 90,000 words.)

How long did it take you to write the longest book? (I wrote for two months straight - from start to finish because I had a tight deadline. I write more quickly than some writers I've met.)

What's your favourite book? (Of the ones I wrote or published? They're all kind of like my babies and it's hard to choose a favourite one, so I won't.)

How do you get the words so small? (Ah... the type size in the finished book ... It can be adjusted with different computer programs.)

Is the lady who has cancer - she's dead, right? (Nope. Not at all. Dionne Warner, subject of Never Leave Your Wingman, is on vacation right now, enjoying her week off of chemo with some friends  - she's doing very well!)

Are the cats still alive? (Yes, the cats in Letters to Jennifer are still alive and well, ordering around their Live-In Person - author Sharon Gray.)

Do you ever take a vacation? (Hmmm... do I look that tired? Or did I baffle them by listing all the books and projects we've worked on lately?... We just had a short vacation, but maybe I need another one.)

How long have you been writing? (Since I was a little girl... but I've been getting paid to write for the last 30 years. Cool, huh?)

Compliments & a Book Reading Party!

          We had several wonderful interactions with customers at the Yorkton Sunflower craft show this past weekend. While I was introducing our various books to a woman and her friend, another woman came up to the table, pointed to the Never Leave Your Wingman: Dionne and Graham Warner's Story of Hope book and said to the complete stranger I was talking to, “If you buy any book on this table, buy this one! It’s so good! I loved it!” I thanked her very much for her wonderful compliment. She made my day.

            Several people said they had seen Dionne and Graham Warner and I being interviewed on CTV News At Noon, some had heard Dionne or all three of us interviewed on the radio and several more read the article about D & G in the Regina Leader-Post.

            A few people came by and said they had read Alan Buick’s The Little Coat: The Bob and Sue Elliott Story and they really enjoyed it. “That’s a great book!” A woman, typical of many we meet at these shows and book signings, told us she was getting goose bumps on her arms as we outlined the story of Bob and Sue (the soldier and the little Dutch girl) and the child's coat that drew them together forever.

            We heard compliments as well about Prairie Pilot: Lady Luck Was On My Side by Walter D. Williams. Women said their husbands loved the book and many readers have marvelled at the lives that Walter saved and the daring antics of this adventurous 1950s pilot.

            Ron Petrie’s Running of the Buffalo book also attracted some comments. One lady said she loved reading his humour columns in the Regina Leader-Post. “Tell him he’s appreciated because he’s very, very good,” she said. Another woman told us how she and her husband bought the book for her elderly mother last fall and her husband didn’t want to give it away at first. “Do we really have to give it to her?” he asked. Then he told his mother-in-law, “When you go, I want that book.” It turned out that the elderly mother-in-law died a few months later and her husband got the Buffalo book back, and he is apparently very happy with this bequest!

            The best story came from a woman who said she was a neighbour of Graham and Dionne Warner when they lived in White City, SK. She and some friends had a Book Reading Party with the Never Leave Your Wingman book. She bought the book and a number of her friends wanted to borrow it, but she wouldn’t let them because she was still reading it. So they decided to all read it at one party. So 20 people got together and passed the book from person to person, for five hours, reading it aloud to each other. “When one person started to cry and couldn’t read any more, we’d pass the book to the next person and they’d read. We had so much fun and a lot of wine!” she said. And, in honour of Dionne’s battle with cancer, each guest brought $5 to the Book Reading Party, which was donated to cancer.

            So we say a huge, HUGE THANK YOU to all of these wonderful people for sharing these stories and compliments with us. It makes our efforts as authors and publishers all that much more worthwhile and fulfilling.

             I can’t wait to hear what the people of Carlyle and area will tell us at their Homespun Craft Show & Sale this weekend!

Swim For Life a great event!

Well done, town of Wynyard, Saskatchewan - and especially well done to the two 20-year-old women who organized the first Swim For Life event in that town on Friday evening!!! Swim For Life was like Relay For Life, raising money for the Canadian Cancer Society, but teams instead must have a team member in the swimming pool at all times during the 12-hour event rather than a team member walking the relay track. This beautiful community raised more than $11,500 for cancer with their event!! YIPPEE for them!!

They invited Dionne Warner, the inspiring seven-time cancer survivor and subject of the book Never Leave Your Wingman (along with her supportive husband Graham) to be the guest speaker for the event. Photos are below.

But first - can you vote? For Dionne, that is! Please!!! She is taking part in a contest called I Can Achieve, and we encourage you to cast a vote for her every day for the next 25 or so days (making you eligible to win a $100 gift card with each day's vote) but more importantly, gaining Dionne more votes so that she can further spread her courageous, inspiring story of living life with cancer to more and more people and bring them hope! Here's the link -  I Can Achieve contest - Vote for entrant Dionne Warner

The point of all this poolside fun in Wynyard was to raise HOPE!!!

Dionne Warner shares her story with the great people of the town.

Graham and Dionne Warner are placed front and centre (well, kind of - on the far left of the front row which is technically almost centre) in the group photo of the first-ever Swim For Life fundraiser, which was organized by two wonderful young ladies in Wynyard, SK. The event was prompted by the death of one of these women's aunts from cancer. The hope is to keep raising money so a cure is found - so no other family has to endure what this family and many other families encounter when  cancer strikes.

(left to right) Graham and Dionne Warner, Deana and Al Driver - poolside in Wynyard, selling and signing Never Leave Your Wingman books - as the delightful Mayor Sharon looks on. 

Never had this happen before

At today's Edmonton book signing for Never Leave Your Wingman and Prairie Pilot as well as promoting The Little Coat, we sold some books (always a good thing and the goal, of course), but had two other unique experiences:
An older woman came up and handed me and my sister (who had joined us for the afternoon) each a book that she had purchased for $2. She gave us an interesting explanation (which I will pass on to a journalist colleague for a possible story) but essentially, she buys books and donates them in memory of her son who passed away years ago. I guess we looked like we needed a book or would at least accept her gift.
Also, a young man from Great Britain who writes poetry asked me how to get published and then insisted on reading me one of his poems, seeking any advice I could give him. (I told him my thoughts on his poetry and directed him on to the Alberta Book Publishers Association to find poetry publishers. I also named a Saskatchewan publisher that does wonderful poetry books.)
Topping it off, I met a woman who wants to talk to me further about the Never Leave Your Wingman book and use an excerpt for a sociology paper she's writing on health and wellness.
So that was a fascinating afternoon.

Never Leave Your Wingman hits Edmonton!

Well, Al and I (of DriverWorks Ink) have made it through the first half of our summer Saskatchewan-Alberta book promotion trip and we're about to introduce Edmonton readers to the inspiring true story that is Never Leave Your Wingman: Dionne and Graham Warner's Story of Hope. We expect you'll hear a lot more about this amazing seven-time cancer survivor (the lovely 'Woo Hoo!'-filled Dionne Warner) and her fun-loving husband Graham in the near future as events unfold but, for now, I will just concentrate on sharing the book at three events in the next two days in Edmonton (see the agenda below). Then we're dropping off some books for Crandleberry's gift shop in North Battleford, and signing again in Saskatoon on Sunday. So if you or someone you know is in Edmonton or Saskatoon in the next few days, tell them to stop by to say hi or tune into CTV Edmonton's Noon News on Friday to catch a glimpse of me (the author) as I share the inspiring love story and hope-filled message of Dionne and Graham as they battle cancer with costumes, music, laughter and hope.

Thurs. July 28 - 1 p.m. - Deana Driver signing Never Leave Your Wingman & Prairie Pilot & selling The Little Coat, Chapters Southpoint, Edmonton AB
Fri. July 29 - CTV Noon News - CTV Edmonton - Deana Driver interviewed about Never Leave Your Wingman
Fri. July 29 - 3 p.m. - Deana Driver, signing Never Leave Your Wingman & Prairie Pilot & selling The Little Coat, Chapters Strathcona, Edmonton AB
Sun. July 31 - 1 p.m. - Deana Driver, signing Never Leave Your Wingman & Prairie Pilot & selling The Little Coat, McNally Robinson, Saskatoon SK

A little something extra with your inspiring book

Today, at the Pasqua Hospital Gift Shop in Regina, Dionne Warner and I signed copies of Never Leave Your Wingman: Dionne and Graham Warner's Story of Hope. (Graham stopped by for a few minutes to sign as well before heading to a work appointment.) Among the people who stopped to buy a signed copy of the book were: two or three people who had either heard us on the radio or seen the article in the Regina Leader-Post, several people who were either undergoing chemotherapy or their spouses were undergoing chemo, some hospital staff who got to know Dionne when she volunteered at the cancer clinic before her latest diagnosis and treatment began, and a few people who saw our sign and were intrigued by her story of surviving cancer seven times. We heard some compliments from people who'd read the book and one man was pleasantly surprised when he saw another DriverWorks Ink title on a bookmark we gave him: "You did The Little Coat?" he asked. Yes. Yes, we did, I said proudly. So that was a fun conversation as well.
   And, as usual, Dionne came with a little something extra to brighten everyone else's day. She carried in a bag of small rocks and each rock had the word 'Hope' painted on it. She then handed out these 'Hope' rocks to cancer patients, survivors and customers who were purchasing the book for a patient or survivor. Continuing to do what she can to bring hope to others - that's Dionne Warner.