Diane graduated from The Ohio State University with a B.S. degree. She met her husband Tom while teaching at an orphanage. They enjoy their life in Ohio and have been blessed with six children and several grandchildren. Diane started writing nonfiction and was published in Woman’s World and The Catholic Telegraph. Later, she decided it would be a nice escape to write fiction. She wanted to keep her sanity amid a large family. Now, she is the author of Amish fiction, historical Christian fiction, inspirational contemporary romance, and chick-lit mystery.
Visit Diane Craver online
The Amish Mother’s Secret
Lindsay is 40 and single when tragedy strikes. Diagnosed with stage 4, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma cancer, her instinct is to right the wrongs in her life. Driven to break free of her alcoholic mother at 17, she fell for Harris.
Harris' life was already planned out for him. Falling for Lindsay had been a dream. However, compelled to wed the woman his parents chose for him, he'd left her to endure a shaky marriage.
Pregnant with identical triplets, Lindsay adopted two daughters to an Amish couple, the Yoders. In the years that followed, Mrs. Yoder worked hard to keep her away.
When you let go of a miracle, can you ever capture it again? Revealing the truth may prove more devastating than the hurdles that came before…and all that will surely come after for a woman fighting for her life.
- ISBN: B0BJP47WPS
- Publisher: Vinspire Publishing
Interview with Diane Craver
Diane Craver's love of Amish fiction started more than fifteen years ago, but she discovered her love of writing it a little later.
What made you want to write Amish fiction?
My first Amish book I read and bought was Hidden by Shelley Shepard Gray. I loved the story and talked to her at an author and reader event. She encouraged me to write Amish or Mennonite fiction. I wish I had listened to her and wrote Amish fiction in 2008, but I waited until 2012 to write my first Amish romance, A Joyful Break. I found myself loving writing about the Amish way of life. I have self-published two Amish series.
What did you learn while writing The Amish Mother’s Secret?
When I started writing The Amish Mother’s Secret, a friend of mine had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. I decided to have a character, Lindsay Prescott, diagnosed with this same type of cancer. While I was writing it, I learned I had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. It was a shock to learn I had cancer. My friend and I wondered why we both had gotten NHL. I learned that I was blessed by the overwhelming support of friends, relatives, and readers praying for me. I wanted to give this same strong faith to Lindsay. It was hard at times to finish my manuscript when I was suffering from treatments, but God gave me the strength and inspiration.
You write in quite a few different genres. How do you keep your head straight when you’re switching between them? Do you write them one at a time, or sometimes multiple at a time?
I wrote one genre at a time. Although I have written in several genres, the last several years I have been focused on writing Amish fiction. I am planning on returning to writing non-Amish stories after I finish the third book in my Amish Adoption Series.
If someone were to look at your Google search history (all for research of course!), what types of things would we find?
Amish research would be one thing on my Google search history. I wish I had an Amish friend to bounce ideas off of but I don’t. I do get informative emails from Amish America about a wide range of relevant Amish topics and from their website. Another thing someone would find is research about tinnitus and what to do about this constant buzzing noise I have. It sounds like what you hear in the summer when the windows are open and you hear crickets or bugs. An ENT doctor thinks it was caused by my chemo treatments. I had a hearing test and I don’t need hearing aids.
What do you want readers to take away from The Amish Mother’s Secret?
I’d like for the readers to see how God worked in Lindsay’s life. It was no coincidence that He brought blessings out of her having lymphoma. Lindsay had many sad things happen to her but she persevered in her growth as a Christian. Whenever we have health issues or other challenges, God is always with us and gives us His unconditional love.
If you could have coffee with an author, dead or alive, whose work you admire, who would that be? What would you ask him or her?
I’d love to have coffee with Catherine Marshall. I loved her book, Christy. It’s based on her mother’s life as a schoolteacher of mountain children in the poverty-stricken area in Tennessee. I also enjoyed reading her book, The Helper. I even directed a high school play, A Man called Peter. It was about Catherine’s husband when he was a chaplain of the US Senate. I’d asked Catherine about her life as a writer and how God guided her to write such amazing books.
What’s your go-to drink while writing?
My go-to drink while writing is coffee. Also, I might drink hot chocolate. During the summer months I like iced tea too.
What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?
I love spending time my husband, six children, and several grandchildren. I enjoy swimming and going for walks in our subdivision or in parks. My daughters and I went to Florida for my birthday last year. I’m always ready to go to the beach with family. I also enjoy watching TV, movies, and I read a lot of books that keep me from writing.
What books are on your TBR pile right now?
A Vote of Confidence by Robin Lee Hatcher, Where Are the Children Now?, by Mary Higgins Clark (I read her first book titled, Where Are the Children?), and The Bookseller’s Promise by Beth Wiseman
What can we look forward to next?
An Unexpected Gift will release this year in July. It is Book two in my Amish Adoption Series.
________________________-
Jessica Baker loves sharing her passion for reading with others and connecting readers with authors. In addition to blogging at A Baker’s Perspective, Jessica is a virtual assistant, proofreader, and runs her own business. Though she wishes she had a library like Belle in Beauty and the Beast, Jessica realizes the importance of sharing her books with the world to tell the story, and donates many books to her local library. Jessica Baker lives Central New York with her husband, teenage daughter, beagle, three cats, and four ducks.
What made you want to write Amish fiction?
My first Amish book I read and bought was Hidden by Shelley Shepard Gray. I loved the story and talked to her at an author and reader event. She encouraged me to write Amish or Mennonite fiction. I wish I had listened to her and wrote Amish fiction in 2008, but I waited until 2012 to write my first Amish romance, A Joyful Break. I found myself loving writing about the Amish way of life. I have self-published two Amish series.
What did you learn while writing The Amish Mother’s Secret?
When I started writing The Amish Mother’s Secret, a friend of mine had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. I decided to have a character, Lindsay Prescott, diagnosed with this same type of cancer. While I was writing it, I learned I had Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. It was a shock to learn I had cancer. My friend and I wondered why we both had gotten NHL. I learned that I was blessed by the overwhelming support of friends, relatives, and readers praying for me. I wanted to give this same strong faith to Lindsay. It was hard at times to finish my manuscript when I was suffering from treatments, but God gave me the strength and inspiration.
You write in quite a few different genres. How do you keep your head straight when you’re switching between them? Do you write them one at a time, or sometimes multiple at a time?
I wrote one genre at a time. Although I have written in several genres, the last several years I have been focused on writing Amish fiction. I am planning on returning to writing non-Amish stories after I finish the third book in my Amish Adoption Series.
If someone were to look at your Google search history (all for research of course!), what types of things would we find?
Amish research would be one thing on my Google search history. I wish I had an Amish friend to bounce ideas off of but I don’t. I do get informative emails from Amish America about a wide range of relevant Amish topics and from their website. Another thing someone would find is research about tinnitus and what to do about this constant buzzing noise I have. It sounds like what you hear in the summer when the windows are open and you hear crickets or bugs. An ENT doctor thinks it was caused by my chemo treatments. I had a hearing test and I don’t need hearing aids.
What do you want readers to take away from The Amish Mother’s Secret?
I’d like for the readers to see how God worked in Lindsay’s life. It was no coincidence that He brought blessings out of her having lymphoma. Lindsay had many sad things happen to her but she persevered in her growth as a Christian. Whenever we have health issues or other challenges, God is always with us and gives us His unconditional love.
If you could have coffee with an author, dead or alive, whose work you admire, who would that be? What would you ask him or her?
I’d love to have coffee with Catherine Marshall. I loved her book, Christy. It’s based on her mother’s life as a schoolteacher of mountain children in the poverty-stricken area in Tennessee. I also enjoyed reading her book, The Helper. I even directed a high school play, A Man called Peter. It was about Catherine’s husband when he was a chaplain of the US Senate. I’d asked Catherine about her life as a writer and how God guided her to write such amazing books.
What’s your go-to drink while writing?
My go-to drink while writing is coffee. Also, I might drink hot chocolate. During the summer months I like iced tea too.
What do you enjoy doing when you are not writing?
I love spending time my husband, six children, and several grandchildren. I enjoy swimming and going for walks in our subdivision or in parks. My daughters and I went to Florida for my birthday last year. I’m always ready to go to the beach with family. I also enjoy watching TV, movies, and I read a lot of books that keep me from writing.
What books are on your TBR pile right now?
A Vote of Confidence by Robin Lee Hatcher, Where Are the Children Now?, by Mary Higgins Clark (I read her first book titled, Where Are the Children?), and The Bookseller’s Promise by Beth Wiseman
What can we look forward to next?
An Unexpected Gift will release this year in July. It is Book two in my Amish Adoption Series.
________________________-
Jessica Baker loves sharing her passion for reading with others and connecting readers with authors. In addition to blogging at A Baker’s Perspective, Jessica is a virtual assistant, proofreader, and runs her own business. Though she wishes she had a library like Belle in Beauty and the Beast, Jessica realizes the importance of sharing her books with the world to tell the story, and donates many books to her local library. Jessica Baker lives Central New York with her husband, teenage daughter, beagle, three cats, and four ducks.
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