Interview with Barbara M. Hodges
AY Talks Back
We were thrilled to have some time to chat with Barbara M. Hodges, who is involved in the 2012 Author Yearbook.
Author Yearbook: When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?
Barbara M. Hodges: Oh wow.On my blog talk show, No Limits, I ask this same question of my guests…hum…I’d have to say my favorite book I’ve written is my first, The Blue Flame. I wrote The Blue Flame, fifteen years ago, but even now when I pick it up and start to read, I feel a wave of pride.
Author Yearbook: Do you have any special things you do when writing? For example, some authors listen to a certain type of music, others drink a glass of wine (some too many glasses), and still others exercise to release that creative spirit. What do you do, if anything?
Barbara M. Hodges: I have to do my creating in the mornings, I can edit and promote any time, but to create it has to be in the morning.
Author Yearbook: What is your greatest challenge as a writer?
Barbara M. Hodges: I’m sure you will hear this more than once–promoting myself. I’d rather be writing. I khow an author must do it and I am good at meeting folks, but I’d still rather be writing.
Author Yearbook: What is your greatest reward as a writer?
Barbara M. Hodges: Hearing from my readers how they loved my book and when is the next one coming out.
Author Yearbook: What do you do when you aren’t writing? Any hobbies or special interests?
Barbara M. Hodges: I’m a big NASCAR fan. Jeff and I like to get away in the motor home with the pups and attend nearby races. I also like to paint.
Author Yearbook: In keeping with our theme for the 2012 Yearbook of “Then and Now”, what is your favorite childhood memory?
Barbara M. Hodges: Camping in the summertime at the beach or by a river. Walking along the surfline, braving the chill water to jump the waves. Waking up in the cold mornings, all snug in a sleeping bag, smelling bacon cooking. Setting around a campfire, weaving back and forth to avoid the smoke that always seemed to find me.
Author Yearbook: What are you working on right now? What can we expect to see from you in the future?
Barbara M. Hodges: My co-author, Randolph Tower and I are almost finished with the first draft of, One Last Sin, a mystery about a man found beside a crashed jet. He is not harmed, but has no memory of who he is, or how he got there.
Author Yearbook: Anything you’d like to add?
Barbara M. Hodges: Today is January 22, 2012. Mine and Jeff’s 40th wedding anniversary. I can’t believe how time skips along. Happy New Year to all. May it bring to you whatever it is your heart craves.