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The writing bug bit hard and early for Bennettsville, SC native Cheris
F. Hodges. As a student at Marlboro County High School, Hodges knew she was going to be a writer. She joined the school's newspaper staff and
decided journalism was the way to go.
Upon graduating in 1995, she enrolled at Johnson C. Smith University and
majored in journalism, all the while working on her novels.
While working at the Covington News in Covington, Georgia, Hodges wrote
and self-published Searching For Paradise.
"After covering police and courts all day, I needed an escape. So, I
pulled out my laptop and started writing 'Searching,'" she said. Fiction
had always been an escape for Hodges, she said.
After completing her first novel, she tried, unsuccessfully to find an
agent and publisher. Determined to share her work with the world, Hodges used the internet publisher Iuniverse.com.
A year later, she completed her first romance novel, "Revelations." This
time, she found an agent and a publisher that saw the value of her work. Maryland agent Sha-Shana Crichton signed Hodges to her agency and with in months, she had a two-book deal with Genesis Press Inc.
"Revelations" went on to become one of Genesis's best sellers. Fans and
critics alike lauded her second Genesis Press novel, "Cautious Heart".
Hodges sticks to her South Carolina roots in her new novel, "A Love of
Her Own," setting it in Columbia.
"A lot of people write books about the south and don't really capture
the flavor of the Carolinas. I want to put South Carolina and North
Carolina on the literary map."
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When did you know you wanted to write ?
I knew I wanted to write after I read "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings." Maya Angelou had such a powerful story and I wanted to write about my reality. When I read books growing up, I never saw my friends and our experiences.
How do you get in the mood to write? Do you have a special writing space?
Anything can put me in the mood to write, a song lyric, a line from a movie or something like that. My special place to write is on my sofa, in front of the TV, believe it or not.
Tell us what inspired you to be a romance writer? Do you ever expect to deviate from the genre--or have you deviated? If so, where?
I never set out to be a romance writer. But when I started writing and sharing my stories with my sister, she pointed out to me that I was writing romance. I guess it's because I'm surrounded by so much love. My parents have been married for nearly 40 years and I guess I still believe love conquers all. I do plan to write something other than romance. I have a few mysteries in me. My novel "Cautious Heart" was a romantic suspense. The next time I write a story like that there will be more suspense than romance.
Tell your fans about your latest novel, Just Can't Get Enough? What inspired you to write this novel?
Just Can't Get Enough is the story of Celina Hart, she returns to her South Carolina home to take care of her sick father. Next door she runs into her childhood best friend, Darius McRae, a former Washington DC lawyer who returned to South Carolina to take over the family business. As he and Celina reconnect, his deranged ex stirs up a lot of trouble for the new couple.
In looking at all of your work, do you have a favorite?
Oh man! That's like picking your favorite child. LOL. I would have to say "Second Chances At Love" is my favorite that's in print. But a book that I'm working on right now looks as if it's going to be my favorite.
Whose work do you love to read? What is your favorite book?
I love to read everyone! But some of my favorite authors are Altonya Washington, Brenda Jackson and Eric Jerome Dickey to name a few. My favorite book is "Their Eyes Were Watching God." That was a deep book on so many levels.
In the world of writing, who inspires you? Who would you like to work with?
My sister is actually my biggest inspiration. She got married and had children young, but that didn't stop her from following her dreams. I'd love to work with Eric Jerome Dickey. His mind amazes me.
What advice can you give aspiring authors?
Develop a thick skin. Don't say that you're trying to write a book-just do it like Nike. Once you've finished your manuscript, be prepared to rewrite. Don't try to write like your favorite author, find your own unique voice and you will go a lot farther.
Tell us something interesting about yourself that you wouldn't normally expose when first meeting someone (we call this the sistah-confession :)
I'm totally obsessed with Ford Mustangs. It took me 16 years to finally get one. If I see a vintage pony car, I slow down and stare
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