Writer’s Desk with Shannon Sue Dunlap
Tricia Goyer
Writer’s Desk with Shannon Sue DunlapShannon Sue Dunlap lives in hot and humid Houston, Texas, where she writes stories with a dose of laughter and a spoonful of love. Shannon loves traveling, chocolate, Jane Austen, and Jesus. She’s a big fan of happy endings and believes the heavenly Father has tailor-made one for each of us.
Connect with Shannon on her website, Instagram, Facebook, and Bookbub, and sign up for her newsletter.
More about Hearts AweighCheeky septuagenarian matchmakers, the “Shippers” are on a mission to secure a dreamy Mr. Right for Abby O’Brien, a sunny, optimistic childcare worker for Monarch Cruises. She loves her job looking after the children of vacationing parents, but harbors one unfulfilled desire: to be a wife and a mother.
With his shy five-year-old daughter in tow, divorced elitist lawyer Spencer Randolph Masterson has anything but romance in mind. His goal on the MS Buckingham is to persuade his mother, Daisy, to leave her ridiculous cruise ship lifestyle and return to New Orleans. But Daisy isn’t interested in life on land. Besides, she and her matchmaking posse have a marriage to arrange.
When a secret from Daisy’s past surfaces and threats of blackmail start flying, the Shippers must protect their own while attempting to convince Spencer’s scarred heart to weigh anchor and boldly set sail for a future with Abby.
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Enter to win a copy of Heart Aweigh*Due to shipping prices, giveaway open to US addresses only*Q&A with Shannon Sue DunlapARCF: Can you introduce us to the “Shippers” and explain their role in the story?
SSD: The Shippers are a matchmaking posse who are all about relationships. They’ve chosen to spend their golden years living on a cruise ship and setting up happy endings for the young people around them. Emily Windsor is the boss Shipper, a career navy wife who treats every operation like she’s storming an enemy blockade. Althea Jones is the hug-first-ask-questions-later Shipper. Her Creole sass and joyful spirit enliven every proceeding. Daisy Randolph Masterson is Althea’s best friend, though they couldn’t be more different. Descended from the privileged Southern aristocracy of New Orleans, Daisy approaches everything with good manners and a desire to not make waves. And, finally, there’s the snarky Shipper, Gerry Paroo. A former librarian (and secret author of romance novels), Gerry never had a happy ending of her own but is determined to help the young people find theirs. Although some may consider the Shippers meddling and bothersome, these ladies have too much heart to back away from a challenge. Love is the goal, and they won’t stop until they attain it.
ARCF: The plot involves a secret from Daisy’s past and threats of blackmail. How did you develop this storyline, and what does it reveal about Daisy’s character?
SSD: I didn’t know about Daisy’s past when I wrote Love Overboard, the first book in the series. Back then she was the sweet, quiet, well-mannered one. But when her estranged son Spencer shows up in Heart Aweigh, it unlocks a difficult aspect of her personality. Suddenly, I discovered the “sweet one” had things she didn’t want to talk about—not to her family or anyone else.
I think we’re all like that. No matter how polite or “Christian” a person may be, we’re all sinners saved by grace. Even though God has forgiven us, sometimes it’s hard to forgive ourselves. Our past mistakes torture us as the “what ifs” wear a permanent groove in our brains. Daisy thought she’d escaped from her past by running away to a life at sea, but the memories are still there. It takes courage for her to face the issues and finally experience true deliverance.
ARCF: What was your favorite scene from this book?
SSD: Just one? Pretty much any scenario where all four Shippers are involved is a favorite. I especially like one scene near the beginning of Hearts Aweigh when Spencer is trying to talk to his mother while she sits with her three friends in the bingo lounge. Spencer is wearing a suit and attempts to have a serious conversation, but Emily throws in her two cents, Althea sings a song, and an Irish cruise-worker in a sequined jacket flirts with Gerry while calling out Bingo numbers. It’s a hoot.
ARCF: Can you discuss the significance of the title “Hearts Aweigh” and how it relates to the story’s message?
SSD: I grew up in a Navy town where you were more than likely to hear “Anchors Aweigh”. The song talks about leaving the past behind and setting sail which seems like a good metaphor for romance. Love takes courage. Although remaining in port is safer, true success and happiness can only be found when a person is willing to “weigh anchor” and sail into the unknown.
ARCF: If Hearts Aweigh got picked up for a movie adaptation, who would you want to cast for the main characters?
SSD: I wanted to answer this question so much, but I ran into a problem: I’m more likely to be watching a Korean drama than an American TV show or movie. (I’m referring to the sweet, romantic stories, not the violent ones that are so popular on Netflix these days.) I doubt many readers would know who I meant if I said Park Seo Joon would be great as my wounded, single father hero, Spencer. 
But Jane Seymour would be fabulous as his mother, Daisy. (I’ve been a fan since Dr. Quinn days.) Like my character, she’s petite and elegant. Other than her, I have a hard time picking from the current actors, since I’m familiar with so few of them.
ARCF: If you had to pick a song to represent Hearts Aweigh, which would it be?
SSD: “Matchmaker” from the classic musical Fiddler on the Roof. A little on the nose, I know, but the lyrics fit so well with my heroine Abigail O’Brien’s attitude:
Matchmaker, Matchmaker
Make me a match
Find me a find
Catch me a catch
Abby isn’t shy about asking for help. She wants love, and she’s not afraid to use unconventional means to find it. Her heart is crackling with love, and she just needs an outlet.
ARCF: Were there any real-life experiences or events that influenced the plot or setting of the novel?
SSD: The original inspiration for this series came from a TV news feature about an older woman who had skipped the nursing home and retired on a cruise ship. I believe she was eighty at the time. The report showed her living aboard, dancing with the cruise director, and living a far different life than most women her age. This sparked the whole idea for the Shippers and their antics.
ARCF: Can you share any challenges you faced while writing this book, particularly in developing its suspenseful elements?
SSD: I have no personal experience with blackmailers, thank the Lord. The suspense plotline required some technical research, although I can’t be too specific without spoiling the story. But the greatest challenge for me came from a different aspect of the book. The humor.
Writing “funny” has never been very difficult for me. Once in a university class, we were reading our stories aloud, and I had to go first. As I started to read, my classmates laughed aloud, and it surprised me. I hadn’t intended to write a funny story. That’s just how it came out. It’s always been that way, and I’m used to the humor happening organically. But while writing Hearts Aweigh, my family faced some heartbreaking challenges involving my mother’s battle with Parkinson’s Disease and dementia. The caretaker life is a brutal and exhausting one, both physically and emotionally. In the peaceful moments when I sat down to write, I didn’t feel very joyful or funny. It took a lot of help from my Heavenly Co-Author to finish the story. God was “the lifter of my head” in that season, but I’m happy with how the story turned out in the end.
ARCF: What do you hope readers will take away from Hearts Aweigh after turning the final page?
SSD: A lighter heart and a lifted chin. Life throws a lot of sucker punches—things we don’t see coming that knock us off our feet. Unexpected illness, financial struggles, workplace drama, divorce, taking care of aging parents. During these difficult times, I hope Hearts Aweigh brings a mental vacation for the reader and a laugh to their spirit. As the Bible says, a merry heart does good like a medicine.
ARCF: And finally, can you share what you have coming up next?
SSD: I’m finishing a small-town Texas romcom series. The last book Vintage Sweetheart releases in October. I’m a big fan of days gone by, complete with two record players, an extensive vinyl collection, a wardrobe of swing dresses (which I actually wear), and a lifetime’s worth of old movie musical songs stuck in my head. It seemed a no-brainer to create a heroine who loves these classic things as much as I do. But she’s also harbored a secret longing for her childhood sweetheart. When he returns to town, she grabs hold tight and is determined to finally make him her own.
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