Interviews Around the World with Mona Hodgson

Welcome to “Interviews Around the Globe” with our newest author Mona Hodgson. Welcome Mona. Come and Meet Mona Hodgson and then I will jump into the Interview.




You can Contact Mona Hodgson at these sites:

Websites: http://monahodgson.com/blog/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Author.Mona?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MonaHodgson

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/monahodgson/

Describe your *Latest/Recent* book in 20 Words or Less?

In The Quilted Heart novellas, women in the St. Charles Quilting Circle begin to rebuild their war-torn lives.

Where or how did you come up with the idea for your story (in this book)?

Charmed by the historic district and riverside setting of St. Charles, Missouri, in 1999, I knew I wanted to someday set a story there. I drew on my family quilting history and my tendency to write about women who experience second chances, and went back to Saint Charles for three novellas that set up Prairie Song, a wagon train story.

How important are names to you in your book(s)? Do you choose the names based on liking the way it sounds or the meaning? Do you have any name choosing resources you that you?

I usually choose a name based upon sound, its feel on the character, and it’s authenticity for the nationality and the time period. I borrowed the name Elsa Brantenberg from my mother-in-law and gave it to the hostess for the quilting circle.

I have a couple of baby naming books, including Baby Names Around the World.

Which of your characters (in this book) is your favorite and Why?

Maren Jensen is one of my favorites. 1) She is a Danish immigrant, like my step-dad. 2) She is living with sight degradation, a condition we now know as RP (Retinitis Pigmentosa), a disease three of my aunts and six of my cousins live with.

Was there a certain scene *in this book* that was harder for you to write than others?

The one that immediately comes to mind is the scene in which Caroline finally receives an answer to the question that has held her captive. Not what she wanted to hear.

If you could cast your characters in the Hollywood adaptation of your book, who would play your characters?

It would probably be animated. Voice of Jennifer Lawrence. She is quirky and fun loving like my daughter.

What was your favorite part to write and why?

Part of the writing process or part of the story? I have a love/hate relationship with endings. I love writing them because it means I've gotten to know the characters deeply…I've journeyed with them to a satisfying conclusion. I hate endings because I've gotten to know the characters well and I don’t want to say goodbye. That’s why writing three novellas in The Quilted Heart was fun, especially when I knew they were the prequel to Prairie Song. I took them into the next stories with me.

Just as your books inspire authors, what authors have inspired you to write?

Lauraine Snelling, Cathy Marie Hake, Gayle Roper, Robin Jones Gunn, Robin Lee Hatcher, Janette Oke, Liz Curtis Higgs, Deeanna Gist, Tamera Alexander, Carol Cox, DiAnn Mills, and oh so many more.

Do you read your reviews? Do you respond to them, good or bad? Do you have any advice on how to deal with the bad?

I don’t read all the reviews. Very few, really. When a reviewer personally sends me a copy or a link, I read it and thank them. I don’t generally respond to critically negative reviews. I choose to remain focused on my partnership with God. He has the final say on everything, not critics. Just as I pray for all my readers, I pray for book reviewers–that my stories will meet them where they are and nudge them deeper into their relationship with God; that they’ll grow in His amazing grace. I know from personal experience that sometimes thatʺmovingʺ meets resistance and stirs a critical spirit.

What are you working on now? What is your next project?

I just finished the edits on THE FAMILY QUILT, a Cripple Creek novella in A Cup of Christmas Cheer by Guideposts, October 2014.

I’m starting another novella for a four-story anthology, due out in 2015.

Caregiving — a mother with late-stage Alzheimer’s Disease, a step-dad with bladder cancer, and a mother-in-law. I’ve been in this situation for a while, and getting out will mean saying goodbye on a whole new level.


Thank you for taking part. Your responses were entertaining to reading. I have read all or most of your books and I love them. I am waiting for your next book that come after Prairie Song. I would like to thank Mona for coming by Interviews Around the Globe.