I’m Denyse. I am a freelance journalist, writer, editor, and publisher. I write news, features, blogs, B2B, and B2C content. I also enjoy conducting background research and interviewing people. Some of my favorite work is talking to people about what they’re doing and how they’re living life to the fullest. When I’m not writing, I spend time in nature, on my bike, on a trail, or looking at the beauty of the world to find inspiration for writing. I once saw a tee shirt that fits me to a tee, “I’m a writer – you do the math!” Below you’ll find some of my favorite and most recent works. Like it? Contact me.
Aurealia Writes – Who is Aurealia?
If she knew I was using her name, my great-aunt would protest from heaven. Her name is Margaret Aurelia – Peg for short – and I remember her saying once how much she hated the name Aurelia. I think it’s a beautiful name, and it has become my alter ego of sorts.
My name is Denyse, a name that’s been altered, shortened to Dee, Dede, and even just the letter D (which I loathe, by the way). It is spelled with a Y instead of an I, and more often than not, I get mail addressed to Dency, Denipe, or some other variant of Denyse. I like my name. It suits me. But there are times when I’m writing that I choose to use Aurelia or Aurealia, not to hide behind, but because she’s a little different than Denyse.
Aurelia came about when my sister-in-law asked me if I’d ever asked God my name. My parents gave me the name Denyse, but she said I should ask God who he says I am because – “I called you by name and you are mine,” Isaiah 43:1. He had a name all picked out for me. So, I asked, and the name Aurelia came to me. I remembered that day when Aunt Peg and I had a conversation about her middle name. I don’t even know how it started, but she said her mother would spit it when she was in trouble – Margaret Aurelia! Then she said, “At least it’s not as bad as Kathleen Mabel,” which was her sister’s name. Since Aurelia Writes had already been taken, I chose to add in an extra A – Au-real-ia, which also seemed apropos. It sort of says A Real Ya (you).
Aunt Peg and I shared a birthday, and as far as I could tell, that was really all. She was a musician and a teacher, and had suffered great loss. She once said she loved listening to babies cry because before she had one live birth, there were so many times her babies didn’t live. Despite her loss, Aunt Peg had an incredible sense of humor. She always had me on my guard because there were times when I didn’t know whether she was being serious or not – she had what my mother called a dry sense of humor, and very often it was from the irony that she twisted words to make me laugh. She had a quick wit, and if I could be like anyone, it would be her.
Recently, in looking through some genealogy, I found where the name Aurelia came from. Aunt Peg’s grandmother, my great-great-great-grandmother, was named Aurelia. She was a French-Canadian whose place of birth is simply Canada. It would be interesting, at least to me, to know what sort of person Aurelia LeCroix Gillman was, and if Aunt Peg and I were anything like her.
So, there it is – Aurealia Writes came from one of those
moments written indelibly in me.
Featured Works
Keeping Watch with Jesus, Finding Refuge in Rural Eucharistic Adoration Chapels was published in Catholic Rural Life Summer 2026 Edition.
Columbia Magazine
This was published in Columbia Magazine for the Knights of Columbus, May 2026 edition. I am grateful for the opportunity to meet Kevin Matthews and write a glimpse of his story with the Broken Mary statue that changed his life. Learn more about Broken Mary and Kevin Matthews by visiting brokenmary.com.
Detroit Catholic
This story was recently published in The Detroit Catholic. The family and their entire community are praying for a kidney for baby David.
Hannah and Martin Brown were offered abortion for their son, David; refusing, they now await a blessing to keep him alive
ROYAL OAK — Before he was born, baby David’s parents prayed for a miracle and for a kidney. Read the rest of this story, and find more of my articles in The Detroit Catholic here.
Faith Catholic (Now Great Lakes Bay Catholic) Magazine
Several of my stories appear in FAITH Saginaw. Fortunately, I get to interview people living their faith and loving life, which makes my job a joy. I’ve written about priests, religious, and people on a mission. Click here for more.
Faith in Lansing
BRIGHTON — It’s been almost a year since the Mobile Medical Unit of the Pregnancy Help Clinic in Brighton was renovated and made ready for the road. Its journey from an RV lot through a nearly quarter of a million dollar purchase and renovation has it just shy of its destination near the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Michigan State University in East Lansing. The hold-up is hiring a licensed sonographer to help staff it. Everything else about the unit seemed preordained, said Alanha Asher, the registered nurse hired as medical staff.
“It’s a whole God moment — real big God moments with how the whole thing came together,” she said. Read the rest of the article here.
Confluence GLB/Route Bay City
From marches to end human trafficking and slavery to encouraging others toward greater health, and spotlighting local businesses and historical figures, I get to write a spectrum of the good going on in my community. Click here to read more. Search my name, Denyse Shannon, to find links to all of my articles, or peruse some of the work of other journalists in our area.
One of my favorite things to do is sit with people where they are and talk about their passions. This is an interview with Dr. Rajesh Dandamudi, a physician who could practice anywhere, but chose his hometown.
WSGW-FM
For a short time, I had the privilege of working as news director at a local radio station. I interviewed some of the great people doing great things in our community for news segments. You’ll find a few of them by clicking these links. Recovery Facility Opens in Midland, Eating Disorders Awareness. Working in broadcast news, I also worked at WDCQ-Delta College Public Radio and WHMI in Howell. Just like everything I do, I loved the interviews the most. The people behind the scenes are where the story begins.
This is one of the first articles I wrote for Faith Catholic in Lansing. I spoke with one of the foremost authorities on Human Trafficking in the state of Michigan, Dr. Bridgette Carr. Click here: https://faithmag.com/what-can-you-do-about-human-trafficking to read the article. This is one of my favorite interviews. Although the reason for it is painful, Dr. Bridgette Carr is passionate about her work and the elimination of modern-day slavery.
Learn more
Hire Me
In all my years of experience, I contributed to numerous projects, including producing print projects that gave the community insight into important events and changes in their municipalities and schools, and that kept them informed. I have also helped business leaders improve their sales through blog posts and business-to-business and business-to-consumer marketing content. I am available to take on new work. See my contact information below and get in touch.
Work With Me
My skills and specialties include interviewing, researching, and writing for a variety of media, including blog posts, social media, and articles for consumers and corporate communications. I work very well under deadline pressure and am good at getting things done.
Follow Me
My portfolio showcases various commercial and personal projects created throughout my career. There is so much more to what I do than what meets your eyes and ears. Subscribe to my site to get updated when I add new work.
About my writing career
I’m a writer, always wanted to be, have been, and can’t imagine life without writing something. For years, I heard that writing was a nice hobby, but that I should get a “real” job. This is my real job. Everything else I do is my hobby.
For the past few decades, I’ve written in print, broadcast, on social media, and in blog posts. I’ve had the privilege of having my by-line in all kinds of media, and even written some of that ad copy to get people to make a purchase, whether insurance, tires, chiropractic, or fireplaces, or even open lines of credit at their local credit union. I’m known as a generalist when it comes to writing because I am versatile and adapt easily to most situations.
From my early childhood, the only thing I ever really wanted to do was write. Words: painting with them, playing with them, tossing them about a page, and putting them in some kind of order is my passion. This site is all about my use of words. When time affords, I’ll write a blog and post the articles I’m writing on these pages. Please leave me your comments, and when you need something written, contact me.
Today, you’ll find my byline in Route Bay City Faith Catholic Saginaw (GLB Catholic), Faith in Lansing, Columbia magazine, and The Detroit Catholic. A quick search will bring up a few articles from the past here, and more I have personally archived. I have thousands of samples of my writing over the years that give a fair representation of my evolution as a journalist and writer.
Some sites where you’ll find my work
Not only do I have other published works in print, but I’ve also published my own magazine. Ask me for samples!
I write for print, broadcast, social media, and the web.
Aurealia Writes 