Denman Writing Program Grad Publishes Her First Novel

Diana Jones, of Victoria, one of the Readers and Writers Festival “Writing Week” alumni, has just had her first novel, “The Bearer’s Burden” published by Friesen Press.

Four years ago, Diana took part in the intensive five day writing workshop led by renowned author Jack Hodgins.  She credits the encouragement of both the Denman workshop and Jack Hodgins’s counsel as key factors in getting her novel completed and into publication.

“The Bearer’s Burden” is set during the Great War of 1914-18, with the protagonist a young Scottish man, Joe Mathieson, a miner who is sent to France as a stretcher-bearer.  The book chronicles Joe’s discoveries of battlefield pain, deep friendships and love midst the chaos and suffering of the war.  Diana spent three months in France researching and writing the manuscript.  The book was launched last month at Gorge-ous Café in Victoria, a well-known haunt for book lovers, poets and video enthusiasts.  “The Bearer’s Burden” is available for purchase from Friesen Press and Amazon.

Diana is now working on a collection of short stories and is considering a sequel to her novel.  She’s a fan of the Denman festival and plans on enrolling in Caroline Adderson’s “Writing Week” workshop this July.

Congratulations, Diana, and we look forward to reading your novel and seeing you again on Denman this summer!

April 2017