By Tiffany Merlo Phelps
mail@floridanewsline.com
Ever since she was a little girl, author Deanna Decker has loved to write and to act. She started with writing plays for friends in elementary school — plays that they would all eventually perform together for the neighborhood. At Florida State University as a communications and English major, she would continue with a script writing class and completed an internship at an NBC affiliate station as well as worked as a Disney character in Orlando while on school breaks. She also managed merchandise at a Planet Hollywood store. After graduation, Decker’s father, a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force, encouraged Decker to earn her Microsoft certification because he knew that she also had an interest in computers. She took his advice, and that decision eventually led to a job with Cerner, a supplier of health information technology platforms, services and hardware. She moved to Kansas City, Missouri, for the job where she met her husband, a database administrator also at Cerner. A few years later, he accepted a job at Shriners Hospitals for Children in Tampa, and the couple moved to the Tampa area. Decker continued to work remotely for Cerner. When the couple’s first child, Aiden, now 18, was born, Decker decided that she would become a stay-at-home mother. Soon, they had now 16-year-old daughter Ava and now 12-year-old daughter Alaina. That season of life in Tampa brought Decker, who is also certified as a Functional Medicine Coach, back to writing; she wrote “The Final Guardian,” a young adult novel, in one year. After finishing the book, Decker sent it to one publisher, received a rejection letter and promptly shelved the manuscript. Meanwhile, the family made a move to Atlanta and then finally to Ponte Vedra Beach to be near family. Ten years later, Ava discovered the book on her mom’s shelves. She read it, loved it, and wanted to know why it had not been published, very eager for the next installment. “In that moment, as a 47-year-old stay-at-home mom, I decided nothing would stop me from publishing my book. Since then, my children have been my biggest supporters, embodying the very lessons I’ve taught them. Whether we succeed or fail, the important thing is to try, because it is never too late to learn and grow,” she said. Decker, who went on to self-publish “The Final Guardian” and whose pen name is D.M. Decker, is currently working on the second installment in the three-part series.
Q: With a military father, you moved every two to four years during your childhood. Which locations did you like the most?
A: Germany just because of the amount of history, the things to see and the ease of getting around. I also liked living just outside of Washington, D.C., in Maryland in the North Potomac area because I spent three of my high school years there and loved it.
Q: What prompted you to write a Young Adult novel?
A: Some of my fondest memories are from my first three years of high school, so that is probably why my book comes out of that time period. Then, my family moved me my senior year. I had a lot of teenage angst as a result. I was able to use this in The Guardian Series which is a blend of high school drama and the fantasy of the past.
Q: Where do you do most of your writing?
A: I mainly write from home, in the car waiting for one of my kids at an after-school activity, or at one of the many local libraries.
Q: What are your hobbies, and what do you like to do as a family?
A: I like to play tennis at The Yards. We love to go hiking, very much outdoors people. We all love to go to amusement parks and have a goal to go to every one in the United States. We are big family people, especially with all of my family living in Jacksonville.
Q: What is your personal philosophy towards life?
A: I firmly believe the universe has our back, and sometimes we may not totally understand something, but there is a direction to it.
Photo courtesy Deanna Decker
Deanna Decker
