About Deb Donnell

I’m Deb Donnell. I’m an author, publisher, editor and founder of Keswin Publishing Ltd.

My purpose is to help non-writers overcome their fear of writing, so that they can create a legacy to share with others. How? By teaching them a simple system where they learn to discover, mine, cut and polish their buried writing diamonds.

I’ve been passionate about the written word since I first learned to form letters. I self-published my first book, Ted's Story, at the age of ten.

I was attracted to the idea of becoming an author and publisher because I knew that I could share my ideas, experiences, skills and knowledge with my readers, and help them change their lives.

As an adult, I’ve worked in a variety of industries, including publishing, banking, graphic design, marketing and jewellery. Besides being a qualified editor and proofreader, I am also a GIA (Gemological Institute of America) Diamonds Graduate.

In 2003 I came up with my Diamond Writing System which helps non-writers release the book inside of them. To test the system, and with Self-Publishing Expert Dan Poynter’s help, I released my fifth book, Trails to Treasure, in the same year.

“Like me, Deb Donnell does not want you to die with a book still inside you.”
Dan Poynter

I started writing Cafe Reflections in 2004. I always intended it to be a book, however the Internet proved to be a great testing ground. In fact, I tested the Diamond Writing System for two years in a training forum for online small business owners.

This has now evolved into my own writing and publishing training website, which you can learn more about at the Small Biz Writing Training Centre.

The Cafe Reflections I started writing in 2004 have now become a very import record of the recent history of my city, Christchurch, New Zealand. On 22 February 2011, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck at 12:51pm. I was at work in the central business district.

The city was evacuated not long after, and a permiter cordon fence was put up. The inside area was labelled the Red Zone, and since then, most of the buildings have been, or are being demolished. Our central city is no more.

It became clear that I needed to turn my cafe reflections, and the photographs I had been taking, into a book, which was released on 29 October 2012. You can find out more about that HERE.

Please have a look through this and my other websites that I have linked you to. It would be my pleasure to be able to help you create a written legacy from your own experiences.

My Mission

To help people to create their legacy by showing them how to mine their writing diamonds.

Find out how Deb Donnell can help you create your written legacy