Sheri Graves

Sheri Graves, an award-winning journalist, has been writing for publication more than five decades.

Her debut novel, Deep Doo-Doo, is the 2015 Crime Fiction winner in the 9th annual National Indie Excellence Awards.

She is a writer and editor, an author and a writing coach, as well as a teacher of memoir writing. While on the staff of The (Santa Rosa, CA) Press Democrat (1963-2004) she won numerous writing awards, including first place prizes from the Press Club of San Francisco, the California Newspaper Publishers Association, and the National Newspaper Publishers Associations; as well awards for journalistic excellence from the California Medical Association, U.S. Public Health Service, The Playboy Foundation, National Foundation/March of Dimes and the American Dental Association, as well as the U.S. Navy, Marines, Army and Air Force in addition to many professional organizations.

During her years as a journalist, she was a union member who fought diligently to improve conditions for workers injured on the job and for women.

Born July 10, 1944, in San Jose, California, she has lived in Santa Rosa, California, since 1959. She is a product of public schools, a rural background and loving parents.

She married late, divorced early and raised two children as a single mom. She shares her home with her daughter and two grandchildren but spends much of her time at her 92-year-old mother's home.

"Call me fortunate," Graves said. "I have enjoyed being a world traveler and an adventurer."

Her activities, as a reporter and as an adventurer, have ranged from king crab fishing in Alaska to sheep shearing in New Zealand.

She became a novelist, she said, "to stretch from journalistic non-fiction into the creative world of fiction."

Her novel, Deep Doo-Doo, was written as homage to her years as a reporter covering a wide range of subjects.

"I may be retired as a newspaper reporter," she said, "but I never want to stop growing as a writer."

Sheri is a woman who adores chocolate, fine wine, ice cream, mystery novels and wide-brimmed hats. She believes in love, laughter, family, friends and volunteering, all of which play major roles in her life.

She is a seasoned public speaker and event planner and also experienced at designing and writing materials for various organizations.

Deep Doo-Doo is a mix of genres. Graves describes it as "a humorous crime thriller," although others have called it a satire. Most reviewers have said it is "hard to put down." The book, published Oct. 28, 2014, is the first of a trilogy and takes place in Santa Rosa, California, with a protagonist working at The Press Democrat. Graves is working on her second novel, tentatively titled "Turkey in the Straw," as well as a how-to memoir writing book based on her blog, which may be accessed through her web page at sherigraves.com.