ABOUT
Beyond the Page
Sheena Blankenagel is the recipient of numerous awards from organizations including L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Contest, the Utah Original Writing Competition, and the notable Olive Woolley Burt Awards. Her short stories have been published in Heritage Writers Anthology: A Collection of Prose, Poetry, and Art, and Utah’s Best Poetry and Prose 2025, and Creating Hope; the League of Utah Writers Anthology. THE FIRST SHE-STALLION is Sheena’s second novel.
Forever enamored by all things mythoi, Sheena’s passion for crafting fantasy stories is infused with vital themes of tolerance and equality: exploring gender nonconformity, LGBTQ+ culture, and empowering marginalized groups.
Alongside writing, she volunteers regularly by teaching classes at her local chapter of the League of Utah Writers, hosting critique groups for burgeoning authors, and contributing articles to local newsletters and journals. Sheena feeds her inner artist by whisking her family off on outdoor adventures like camping, horseback riding, and soaking in hot springs.
Writing Style
Lush, descriptive, and brimming with interiority.
High stakes. Propulsive battle scenes. Thought-provoking dilemmas.
Each story is designed to make the reader feel seen, while reminding us all that we’re stronger than we think.
Unique Perspective
I was raised in a culture that forbade me from living my truth.
My community was quick to tell me what I could do, and quicker to tell me what I couldn’t, because I was a girl.
Every time it occurred, a glaring realization seared my mind: capability has nothing to do with gender.
That belief is in my bones.
It's in this book.
Alexis is the character I needed and never had.
I was raising my babies and rafting rivers, navigating the swift moving waters of both.
I’ve learned that life begins outside the comfort zone.
Whether I’m digging my paddle into a rapid, taking my kiddos out horseback riding, or handing a fresh manuscript to a reader, there’s no reward without risk.
That knowledge carries me through each novel I write.
It can be frightening to pour my heart onto the page, but the reward of following my passion always pushes me through.
Before I called
myself a writer
Inspirations
I’m endlessly drawn to mythological fantasy and historical retellings.
My shelves are full of stories where strong female protagonists change the world or the alter course of the future.
I can’t stop exploring books that question the issues of society and the foundations upon which they were built.
