Carrie Fancett Pagels Interviews Dan Walsh

Dan Walsh is the author of The Discovery and of Remembering Christmas and four other novels, published by Revell and Guideposts. I met Dan through some online groups, including ACFW and at the ACFW conference.

Dan, welcome to Overcoming Through Time – With God’s Help.  We appreciate your willingness to share your testimony of overcoming with our readers.  Would you tell us about the most difficult thing in your life you have had to overcome, with God’s help?

There are three things that probably share that distinction. One would be losing my best friend to leukemia (somewhat suddenly after a successful operation that doctors said would lead to his full recovery). Another would be almost losing one of my children, spiritually speaking, when for a lengthy season they appeared to be choosing a destructive lifestyle (thankfully, God turned them around). And finally, it would be the deceitful betrayal in ministry by someone I trusted and thought was a friend. Hard to say which of these three was the most painful.

(Comment by CFP: I find this very interesting since Dan was recently extremely ill and required hospitalization. Tells us how sometimes other attacks are more difficult than those on the body.)

What is your favorite bible verse and why?

Probably Isaiah 26:3, which says: “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you. Because he trusts you.” This verse, and similar ones, have pointed me to the most necessary thing to overcome the trials of life, including the three tough ones I just mentioned.

Disability friendliness: Is this latest release available in audio format or do you have any other works available on audio?  Do your e-books have audio capability? Do you have any in large print? 

Authors don’t usually have a say in which of their books get made into audio versions. My first two have been picked up by Oasis Audio and turned into audio books, but so far the others haven’t. A few have also been picked up by other publishers and turned into large print versions (I know The Unfinished Gift and The Deepest Waters have). All have been made available as Ebook versions (like Kindle and Nook), which I do believe have audio capability. 
Even though I don’t own an Ebook reader, my wife does, and it’s one of the reason I encourage people who need large print books to get one. You can instantly increase the font size for every book to large print, if you have one.

What has been the most important thing you hope your readers will get from your books and why?

I like to write about the themes that matter most in life (by God’s definition, not so much ours). Then I like to craft stories that reveal God’s perspective on those themes, played out in the lives of credible, captivating characters going through big dramatic things (and occasionally some interesting small ones). Situations get pretty tough in the beginning and middle of my books, and maybe even more so near the end but, because I’m writing from a Christian perspective, I love endings that reveal the power and lovingkindness of God, so that the reader is stirred to put their hope in God for whatever they’re going through in real life.

As you researched your books, did you learn anything that particularly touched your heart?

In each book, I learn things that deeply affect me. There’s that old saying “walk a mile in my shoes,” which I suppose is suggesting in order to truly understand what someone else is going through, we really need to experience it ourselves. That’s not actually possible, since none of us can control all the circumstances we face, but I think we can learn to empathize and care about others by learning to listen well. And when we do listen, to listen to their hearts, not just react to their words.

When I write, I experience a good measure of this, because I have to get deep inside my character’s hearts in order to communicate their experience in a way that connects with my readers. I imagine it’s not unlike an actor “getting into character” for a role. The result is a pretty good simulation of “walking a mile in my shoes.” It’s not uncommon for me to feel deep affections and emotions as I write certain scenes and chapters.

In this latest work, do you have any topics useful for bibliotherapy, or therapeutic influence through reading about a disorder or situation?

In The Discovery, one of the major themes is the destructive power of lying and deceit, and the very real affect it has on our own soul and in the relationships of those around us (particularly the people we love). This book is really a “novel within a novel” as many reviewers have called it, because it begins with a grandson discovering an unpublished manuscript written by his late, mega-bestselling grandfather. As he reads this manuscript, so does the reader. Early on, the grandson reads this: “In the past two months, he had become aware of how heavy words become when you carry them alone. Lies, spoken to someone you love, were heavier still.”

By the end of the book, the man who wrote these words also learns how liberating it can be to finally “speak the truth in love.”

Thank you Dan for agreeing to answer these questions.  Have a blessed day and keep on writing!!


Here is a link to Serena Chase's interview with Dan on USA Today.


Dan Walsh books can be purchased on Amazon, as well as on CBD, and other bookstores. 

How Readers Can reach Dan on the internet:

His website is www.danwalshbooks.com with buttons to follow him on Facebook or Twitter. On the menu, he has a “Blog” and a tab for  his “Books” with buttons beside each book to order them from a number of online stores (like Amazon or Christianbook.com). 

GIVEAWAY:  Leave a comment and your email to be entered in this week’s contest.  Drawing will be late Saturday.  Your choice of this author’s books, choice of format*. Void where prohibited by law. *International winners will only receive the book in ebook format not as a paperback.