Author Uncovered: Cherry Cheva (Author Interview)

Yo peeps! LOL! For this week's Secret Agent Uncovered, I interviewed Cherry Cheva! She's the author of the already-released She's so Money and her upcoming book DupliKate. She's so nice! And she likes Thai food...duh! She's Thai and who doesn't like Thai? I LOVE their Chai Yen! So yummy! Anyway (I'm getting of topic here! LOL), she was awesome to answer all of my random questions regarding her and her books...well, here it is! Enjoy!

Check out my review of She's so Money over here!


Current Releases:



Upcoming Books:



How does it feel like, knowing your books are on those bookshelves in
a bookstore?
It feels AWESOME. It feels very “official,” like hey, here is a thing that I can point to that I wrote that somebody can pick up and read! What? That’s crazy! How did that happen? And I’m equally psyched that my book is in libraries. I looove libraries.


Did you base any of your characters on real people?
Only the surface details of some of them. The structure of the family in She’s So Money is like mine, and Maya is loosely based on me, what with the whole Thai restaurant thing and being from Michigan and whatever, but personality-wise, the characters are all made up.


What is your typical day?
Get up, go to work at Family Guy, drink free coffee, eat free candy, eat free chocolate, eat free ice cream, eat free pudding, and pitch a bunch of jokes around a big table with all the other Family Guy writers, all of whom are hilarious and also eating many free things. It is not a bad way to spend a day. :) Then if I’m also working on book stuff I do that when I get home, unless it’s too late and I’m tired, which is often the case.

What’s the best thing a reader ever said to you?
Uh, you giving me an A+? :) I think I may have to go with the classic “Everything’s my favorite!” thing here because literally every time someone says the book made them laugh out loud, or they related to Maya’s character, or they thought Maya and Camden were a good couple, or whatever, I mentally squeal with delight. Oh, someone once said they liked Camden/Maya better than Bella/Edward, which was awesome.


What was the last book you read and loved?
Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn.

Any phobias you’re willing to admit to?
I will NOT sing karaoke in a place where there’s a stage and the whole bar can hear you; I’ll do it if someone sings with me and it’s one of those little rooms you rent out with just your friends, but get up in front of a whole place? No way.

What’s the last thing you Googled?
Ha! Probably something having to do with So You Think You Can Dance. I’m obsessed. Wait, I’ll just check-- oh, it was The Cleveland Show, which is the Family Guy spinoff coming out this fall, because I wanted to know how TCAs went (that’s this press thing where reporters get to ask questions about new shows that are premiering).

What’s one thing you’re really proud of?
Well, actually managing to be paid to write, because that’s not exactly a job that’s easy to get, but even before that, making the decision to give writing a shot in the first place. My parents were pushing me towards being a doctor or a lawyer when I was a kid (ah, Asian parents), and then I actually went to law school, but instead of becoming a lawyer, I put all my stuff in my car and moved to LA. I didn’t know anybody there, but I wanted to see if I could get a job in the entertainment industry and eventually break into writing. So I’m proud of deciding to do that. Plus this way I managed to avoid taking the bar exam. :)

How are you and Maya alike? How are you different?
We are both short, Thai, from Michigan, and have one younger brother. We have both waited tables in our parents’ restaurant but she’s way, way, way better at it than I am. She’s also much smarter and harder-working. Oh, and she’s much hotter than I am and has much better vision.

What’s the most challenging aspect of writing? Easiest?
Ugh, oh my god, it’s all hard, it’s so ridiculous that something can be super hard and a pain in the ass, yet also super fun and the best thing ever. Okay, probably first draft because there is nothing on your screen yet. I mean, I usually work off an outline, but it’s still way easier to rewrite over pages that are already there. The easiest part is...hmmmm. Picking character names isn’t too taxing, I guess. I’m not that fussy about them, so for the most part I just choose something that sounds right and get on with it.

Is it fun being an author and writer for Family Guy (I love Family Guy!!!)?
YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES SO FUN OH MY GOD YES YES YES THANK YOU! :D

That's it! I hope you enjoyed the interview! And watch out for Cherry's upcoming book DupliKate! :-)