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Colonial Beach writer is queen of romance
Colonial Beach novelist Sherryl Woods discusses her work and growing up in Colonial Beach
BY REBECCA BLATT
Date published: 8/6/2007
BY REBECCA BLATT
Colonial Beach resident Sherryl Woods, 63, always did well in school.
The Arlington native enjoyed most of her classes and brought home A's and B's. But one below-average mark on a first-grade report card still sticks out.
Next to "makes up stories" Woods' teacher, Katherine Fling, wrote "DF," which stood for "experiencing difficulty."
"Apparently I overcompensated," Woods said.
That's an understatement.
After working as a journalist for a decade, Woods decided in 1980 that she had had enough.
"I said, 'You know, it's just not fun,'" she said recently in her Colonial Beach living room, which overlooks the Potomac River. "I went in the next day and quit."
The romance-novel market was booming, and Woods decided to give fiction writing a try.
Within nine months she had completed two novels, one of which was published in 1982.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of her entrance into the publishing world. Her books have been translated into 12 languages and sold in 20 countries.
Four of them have made The New York Times best-seller extended list, and Woods will release her 107th novel, "Mending Fences," published by MIRA Books, in late September.
The author said she has written so many books that she no longer remembers her characters' names or plots' twists. But she shows no signs of slowing down.
"Every now and then I think that I'm getting close," she said. "But then something comes along, and I keep right at it."
In order to produce so many novels, Woods keeps herself on a tight schedule. She allows herself two weeks to mull the basic plot points of each story, eight weeks for crafting the first draft and two additional weeks for revisions.
Her most recent books have run more than 400 pages, so Woods holds herself to a 50-page-per-week pledge to meet her deadlines.
But she said the key to her creative process is not planning and pacing, but allowing her stories to pour out unencumbered.
"My mental process as I'm writing is so by-the-seat-of-my-pants that I rename characters midstream," she said. "I love that point where the book takes off, and you're just sort of communicating it or channeling it into the computer."
Woods said she finds inspiration for her books everywhere from conversations with acquaintances to her latest vacation spots.
Read more stories about Westmoreland
Date published: 8/6/2007
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