An Interview with the Author: Dear God series

Now, you might have noticed that Holy Heroes rarely carries fiction. 

We enjoy sharing real-life stories of the saints but every once and a while, there is a fiction book that is so good…we just can’t pass it up.

Our NEW Dear God books are just that.

We sat down with Patti Armstrong, the author behind the Dear God books to hear how she created this amazing series!

What inspired you to create this series?

Our family life of faith and fun inspired me. The characters are reflections of real children: our three oldest boys. Although the book is fiction, many parts are inspired by real events!

Also, I was once a secular writer. I gave my gift of writing back to God in prayer one day and he immediately began directing me to the spiritual. Suddenly, the only articles I was assigned had things like prayer and guardian angels mentioned in them! It was not too long before I was all in on writing in union with my faith.

What has been your favorite part of writing each book?

It’s so much fun!  I go back in time to when my kids were young, and I put them into the stories and things unfold from there.  A treasured memory of mine was hearing my oldest son laughing while reading the first book and saying: “That is exactly what Luke would do!”

What is your hope for readers of this series?

To enjoy themselves while being inspired by true-to-life feelings about God and prayer while the adventures and humor unfold. The fast-paced stories integrate both humor and serious thoughts on a developing faith life; making sense out of prayer when you don’t get what you asked for.

What words of wisdom can you share with parents striving to raise Catholic kids?

Live it and love it and be open to questions.  We have 10 kids. Some have stayed enthusiastically faithful, a couple are just now returning, and a couple others are on the outside. Regardless, we are unshakable and consistent in our own faith.

My husband and I now have the joy of reading and praying with our dear grandchildren as the circle of life goes on.

We read to our children 365 days a year, so the Dear God books have been easy to write. The books that our children loved were entertaining to me too so I wrote in a way that the whole family could enjoy!

By far the most satisfying and surprising feedback I’ve gotten is hearing that kids are reading the books over and over multiple times.  And don’t worry…a third book in the series is in the works!