Aged to Perfection Author Spotlight: Charise M. Studesville
Title: The Perks of Being A Hoodoo Rose
About Charise M. Studesville
Charise wrote her first story on a chalkboard at 5 years old. Since then, she's expanded to writing books, films, and tv shows, mostly on paper. She's also the proud mom of four.
Author Q&A
Q: What's a misconception about midlife that you'd like to clear up?
A: We are not obsolete or past our prime. We are the precise opposite of that, smarter, wiser, focused, practiced, resolute, innovative, seasoned. The idea that beauty and desirability are traits that belong solely to women under 40 is the most preposterous and damaging offshoot of Madison Avenue modern advertising tropes there has ever been. I look around at my friends who are over 40, and I am awestruck at the everything-ness that they encompass. One friend just turned 70 this year, and she is the most vibrant, brilliant, beautiful human I know...still writing, editing, dating, and falling in love. We didn't grow up knowing that was a possibility. But now we are creating a new paradigm for ourselves, and the women who will come along after us. Also, sex after 40 is way hotter and more fun than anyone ever told us. We know ourselves, our likes and dislikes, our bodies. It's honestly the best kept secret of midlife.
Q: What was your favorite part of writing Paranormal Women's Fiction?
A: The relationship between the sisters. While the main story revolves around two sisters in their forties, there are three generations of sisters in this story. While I was writing it, I was missing my own sister. She lives in Louisville, KY, while I live in Los Angeles. My heart has ached all through the pandemic that I couldn't just hug her. Writing this story brought the spirit of our being reunited back to my mind and heart. We have had to work at our relationship. But no matter the bumps in the road, we are one another's fiercest allies and protectors. And there is no one who can make us laugh like we do with each other. Our kids always know when we are talking, because we sound like we are 16-years-old, giggling as we tell our secrets. Writing this story brought all of that into play for me.
Q: Tell us a bit about your story.
A: The story is ultimately about family, the sacred bond that sisters can have with one another, and the ancestral traditions and ties that bind us to each other. But it is also about the possibility that romantic love is out there for each of us, simply waiting for the right time to make its arrival into our lives.