All of the work presented on this blog is © Joanna Peterson.

Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Something New

You guys! I'm working on something new!

I know, I know!

When are the sequels to the other books going to get finished?

Someday. I promise. But I'm kind of stuck so I figured I'd work on something that has been bugging me to get out onto paper (or the computer screen) for a while now.

Want a sneak peek?

I thought you might.

Please keep in mind, this is completely unedited. Like, I wrote it tonight. So be nice in your comments as far as grammatical errors are concerned. ;)

Thanks for reading!

XOXO,

JP



“Community College sucks,” I grumbled as I staggered up the steep marble steps of the oldest building on campus. It was so run down and in dire need of repair that I had to keep dodging the broken steps. I dropped a book. “Son of a –”

“Need some help?” a voice called from behind me.

I turned as I bent down to grab my book, dropping the other five I held clutched in my arms.

“Apparently,” I smiled with a shrug. “Thanks.”

He ran up the stairs easily, not even out of breath when he reached me, and handed me the first book I dropped.

“Thanks,” I blushed as I gathered the rest of my things. “I can’t believe I’m such a clutz. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been up and down these stupid stairs. I should have it figured out by now.”

“The trick is to just keep going,” he said with a smile. His deep blue eyes twinkled at me as the sunlight glinted off them. “Don’t worry if the step is broken. Just keep going. You won’t wear out as easily. Promise.”

“Thanks for the tip,” I laughed. The clock tower chimed the hour and I groaned. “But now I’m late for class. I really need to get going.”

“I could help you get out of trouble,” he offered hastily. Then, as if to cover his eagerness, he added with a shrug, “Or not. Whatever.”

“And how could you get me out of trouble with my professor?” I chuckled. “It’s the first day of class, I’m already behind on my reading, and I’ve heard he’s a real hard –”

“Hey!” he objected. “I’m not that bad!”

My mouth dropped open in surprise. I swear my eyeballs practically popped out of my head. Was I seriously standing there on the steps of the oldest building on campus talking to my professor – and thinking about how awesome his eyes were, because seriously, they were awesome – and had I really just almost called him a hard –?

“Hello?” he waved his hand in front of my face, interrupting my scattered, rambling thoughts. “You still here?”

“Hi, yeah, sorry,” I blinked wildly, trying to regain control of my brain, mouth, and other necessary functions. “Sorry, I didn’t realize you were my professor. Your bio made you sound a lot –”

“Older?” he offered. I shook my head. “Stuffier? Boring? Ancient? I’ll accept any of those answers.”

“No!” I objected. “The course description itself was enough to draw me in, but then when I read your bio and all the things you’ve accomplished, I knew I just had to be one of your students.”


“Smart move,” he winked at me as he turned and escorted me up the rest of the stairs. “Brown nose the professor on the first day before class. Always works.”

----Untitled Project, copyright Joanna Peterson 2015

Sunday, May 10, 2015

Reading Challenge


Have you participated in the Goodreads Reading Challenge before? It's currently in its fifth year, and I've set my biggest goal ever.


Goodreads: Book reviews, recommendations, and discussion
 

I know, it sounds crazy. But it's totally doable.

Two weeks ago we signed our littlest one (3 years old) up for the 1000 books before Kindergarten reading program at our local library. It challenges the parents and the children to read a range of books, completing 1000 books before the child begins kindergarten.

We have roughly two years until that happens.

And so I set my goal for 2015 to read 500 books. That's half (and they get a prize when they get halfway, which is awesome and she's really excited about it!).

We're two weeks in and already at 74 books.

I know, I know, the widget says (as of May 10, 2015) that I'm only at 73.

Guess what? If your kid really likes a book and you read it more than once, it counts each time!

BONUS!!

We've only re-read 2 books. So far, so good.

The best part of it is that it's exposing me to children's books I never knew about, or reminding me of some of my favorites from childhood I'd forgotten. And the 3yo is finding some favorites of her own.
Our reading stack from the last 3 nights.

She's OBSESSED with the Curious George series.

And she LOVES Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type. She whispered "Click clack moo" as she fell asleep tonight. Cutest. Thing. Ever.

The Fancy Nancy and Madeline series are also looking to become new favorites. I grew up on the Madeline books, so it makes me happy she loves them as much as I did. Fancy Nancy is new to both of us, but darling.

Every night she asks for "Just one more book?" And every night, I oblige.

I checked 32 books out from the library on Saturday. We've already read half of them!

I think my favorite part of this whole experience - so far - is that reading has always been a big part of my life, and she is starting to love it as much as I did. I was the kid who snuck into the hall and read by the light coming from downstairs because I had to know what happened next in my Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys/Bobbsey Twins books (and ruined - RUINED!!! - my eyes in the process).

My son loves reading, but on his own terms. He hates that it's required 30 minutes daily for school. I think if he could just read whenever and whatever, he'd be happier. The library is seriously becoming one of his favorite places, and I couldn't be more proud. And now his sister is joining in the family tradition.

So, what do you read with your kids? Do you have a reading goal? It's not too late to join the challenge! Sure, we're about halfway through the year (almost) but that doesn't mean you can't still get in 1, 2, or even 10 books.

Read. Read to gain knowledge. Read for fun. Read to your kids.

Whatever you do, just READ.

(Oh, yeah, and read my books, because they are seriously great!) haha ;)

XOXO,

JP

Sunday, May 3, 2015

Goodbye Camp!


April is over.

It's sad. I didn't make it to my goal. 50,000 words is a lot to write, though, when real life is crazy busy.

Up side: I did write over 23,000 words (23.084 to be exact), so that's good. It's kind of like its own mini-win. I'm that many words closer to being finished with this sequel that has been hanging over my head, tormenting me for a few years now. And this time around, it's actually pretty good (if I do say so myself!).

Will I try again in July? 

Probably.

Will my goal be 50,000?

Probably not.

Maybe more like 25,000. I almost hit 25K. I probably could've hit it if I'd been able to write on the night of the 30th (instead, I was taking care of my sick littlest one. Not fun, people. Not fun.)

Will I do NaNoWriMo in November?

Maybe. We'll see how real life and my other "real" jobs (  <= Yes, there are multiple real jobs! I'm crazy, I know!) are going. Some years it's doable, some years it isn't. 

What about NaBloPoMo? (What is NaBloPoMo, you ask? It's National Blog Post Month. And it's in November, too.)

We'll see. I've thought about it seriously this year. Not making any commitments just yet, though. November is a long way away.

In the meantime, I appreciate all the encouragement I've been getting on my Facebook page. It's really helped!

Until next time!

XOXO,

JP