DIANA R. JENKINS has written more than four hundred stories, comic strips, and articles for children and teens as well as three books of children’s plays. She lives in Montgomery, Ohio, with her husband, a medical physicist. She earned her bachelors degree in special education from Ball State University and a reading specialist master’s degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. After twenty-plus years as a special education teacher, she became a freelance writer. Diana is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Besides being one of the largest organizations for writers and illustrators, it is the only professional group specifically for those individuals working in the fields of children’s literature, magazines, film, television, and multimedia.

PBM:  Your bio says that you taught special education for over twenty years. What prompted you to change careers?

Diana: I enjoyed teaching but it’s a tough profession, especially as a special education teacher. Even as a child, I loved to write. In 1991, I won the fiction contest for Highlights for Children magazine. Since then, my stories have been published in various magazines and with my husband’s support, I became a writer full time.

PBM:  Did your “teaching years” influence your writing style?

Diana: As a teacher, I read many stories to my students and took note of what they liked, what made them laugh, what they talked about afterwards. I also observed their concerns and worries, so yes, my students influenced my future stories.

• Louis May Alcott, Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary, Arthur Conan Doyle, mythology, theatre classes, stories of the saints

PBM:  Which authors have most influence you and why?

Diana: That would be Louisa May Alcott, Beverly Cleary and Arthur Conan DoyleArthur Conan Doyle. I find that all three of them created such great, timeless and unforgettable characters. They taught me that first and foremost you have to weave stories with interesting people even before you consider the plot.

PBM:  What was the title of your first published book?

Diana: It was Just Deal With It in 2004 (a collection of humorous plays with real-life settings and contemporary characters published by Teacher Ideas Press). I actually had written several middle school level novels but wasn’t able to find a publisher for them. Then I thought about how a kid’s story is mainly convened via dialogue, as is a play. So, I decided to focus on plays and my first book was born

PBM:  Your books of plays are called “Readers Theatre.” Just what is this?

Diana: It means the students don’t have to memorize their lines but can read from the scripts. It can be done. My plays are written in a way that they can be performed by having the children read from their desks or move around with props, etc.

PBM:  So, tell us about your ties to Pauline Books & Media?

Diana: I bought a copy of the book, Children’s Writer & Illustrator’s Market and in 1997, one of my short stories; I’m Not Funny was published in the magazine you used to have for children, MY FRIEND. The editor liked my style and asked me be the author for a monthly comic book series called Stepping Stones. It imparted simple God lessons for children and ran for five and a half years. It also was the most popular feature in the magazine. When that series ended, I was commissioned to do a second comic book series called Saints of Note (two children travel back in time to meet the saints).

PBM:  Was that a big jump for you – from short stories and plays to comics?

Diana: Not really because like a play, comics are dialogue based.

PBM:  I noticed that both in Saints of Note (which has recently been published as a paperback) and your new book -- Spotlight on the Saints: A Year of Funny Readers Theater for Today’s Catholic Kids, you bring contemporary children into your stores, and also inject a good bit of humor. Why is that?

Diana: My audience is the contemporary child and I want them to take something from saints’ life that they can apply to their life.  I tell the story from a modern child’s point of view so it’s not just a tale of someone who lived hundreds of years ago. As for the humor, this keeps the story on a fun level so I can talk about honesty, responsibility and other virtues without being preachy.

PBM:  Could home school programs or even individual parents use your plays?

Diana: Yes, they are workable in a small group – just have the children take more than one part and have them do different voices.

PBM:  What can we expect next from your pen (or should I say computer?)

Diana: I’m working on a collection of short stories on the sacraments for Pauline Books & Media. Each story revolves around situations which a contemporary child would encounter and is interwoven with facts on sacraments. There’s a mixture of serious and humorous stories.

P.S. Diana Jenkins is also one of the contributors for two other children’s books recently published by Pauline Books & Media -- Friend 2 Friend and Now You’re Cooking!

If you would like to contact Diana for speaking engagements, workshops or questions, you can do so via her website or chat with her on her blog.

Website: www.dianarjenkins.bravehost.com 

Blog: www.djsthoughts-dj.blogspot.com