Rediscovering What We Love

A little over a year ago, I looked at my life and realized I wasn't really sure which elements of it made me happy or unhappy. Work? Meh. Not really. Shopping? It's fun, but a sort of transitory happiness. Cooking? Nope. Never! I was just doing things, without really considering what brought me joy. Which felt very strange, because as a kid, I was happy all the time without thinking about it.

What changed?

So I went to a little coffee shop one day and mused on the subject over a nice big lunch. I discovered that many of the enjoyable things I used to do as a child were forgotten or pushed aside, while obligations always took their place. Resolved to uncover my own personal formula for happiness, I came up with this list.

Things That I Love(d)

• Time with family and friends
• Reading
• Writing
• Taking purposeless walks
• Listening to music
• Freedom

I also really like making lists. But I wouldn't say that I love them, so that didn't make the list. :)

That day of musing was the precursor to Dynam. I wrote the first chapter that same afternoon, determined as I was to reclaim the things I loved, but had forgotten about.

I wonder how many of us out there in the world forget about what we did when we were kids. Summer vacation meant endless hours to spend (mostly) however you pleased. The time to figure out what you actually like doing existed.

Now, there is rarely enough time.

At the suggestion of a close friend, I added a speech bubble on this old photo. That's my brother, Justin, and me, reading a story together. At the time I was called "Sammy." NOT something I miss or love in any way. :)

There we are, reading away. Because that's what we wanted to do. It made us happy.

Acknowledgements in the Novel - Dynam

Hey all! My publishing date is moved back due to a VERY long flu that attacked me this week. But I did get a chance to achieve a small win -- acknowledgements in the novel. Here they are!

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my appreciation for those individuals who helped me take a vague idea and turn it into my first novel. I couldn’t have done it without you!

To those who suffered through my first draft, good karma will certainly find you. Julianne Brasher, Joelle Carlson, Brittany Conrad, Melissa Gangl, Raissa Johnson, Barb Peterson, Katie Ryan-Anderson, Sarah Vergara.

To those friends who helped me bring the cover art and the website to fruition, thank you so much. It’s always awesome to have friends who are more talented than I am. Julianne Brasher of Julianne Brasher Photography, Jaime Palmucci of Debutante Media, Taylor Trask of Strategic Blend.

To those people who love me so much they never let me give up. You are my family. I love you. Barb Peterson, Rick Peterson, Justin Peterson, Tania (Juarez) Peterson, Chris Depew, Julianne Brasher, Joelle Carlson, Brittany Conrad, Katie Ryan-Anderson.

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I found it easy to write the acknowledgements section.

If you've ever written acknowledgements in novels, what challenges did you encounter?

Love,

Samantha

Marketing a Novel! - I've Written Something. What now?

So you've written your novel. Someone edited it. It looks all perfect and shiny on your screen. What now?

It's time to learn about marketing a novel! If you've ever considered how to do this, you might have been completely overwhelmed by all of the opportunity for great exposure! As someone with a background in marketing, I enjoy reviewing and analyzing all of the various choices in an attempt to figure out what type of ROI you may get from each one. You would think that someone with a creative brain wouldn't be interested in the nitty-gritty of numbers-based decisions. But I'm a weirdo.

And of course, the best marketing is FREE marketing!

I set up my author profile on Goodreads last week. Why is it that when you start marketing something, it feels more "real" than it did before the marketing? Here is my new Author Profile on Goodreads! And here is Dynam's Book Listing! Yowza! Look at that! I'm a real girl (not to be confused with Lars and the Real Girl).

I absolutely adore Goodreads, though I am curious to see what happens to the site with the recent acquisition by Amazon. As an author, it is extremely easy to set up your author profile and learn to use the site for marketing purposes.

I also got Dynam's Facebook page set up this week!  Success!

I'm so excited to get the word out there! I can hardly wait to put my marketing budget to good use.

What things have you learned about marketing a novel?

Love,

Samantha

Cover Art Photo Shoot for Dynam Novel

Thank goodness for talented friends! A few weeks ago some close buddies of mine helped me out with the cover art photo shoot for my novel, Dynam. Julianne Brasher is a fashion and wedding photographer in the Denver metro area. Her use of light and shadowing has always impressed me, and since she's also one of the most creative people I know it was easy to decide who I wanted photographing my cover art. Julianne's wedding photography business has blown up in the past year, and has rapidly become one of the most desirable photographers in the Denver-metro area. She has also recently expanded her business to the west coast, particularly in the Los Angeles area.

Another friend, Jaime Palmucci, is one of those girls that you can easily see could make it big in the modeling industry. She is also the founder of an extremely popular blog , proving she's got more than enough brains behind that pretty face of hers. She is an extremely talented digital marketer and communications expert.

With talented friends like these, it's no wonder my cover art came out looking amazing!  Here's a picture I took...of Julianne taking a picture. :)

Love, Samantha Peterson

Writing a Novel! From Childhood Poems to a Novel

For as long as I can remember, I've loved reading and writing. As a girl, I used to stretch out like a cat in front of our wood burning stove on a rug and read for hours on end. My dad commanded the remote control at all times, so rather than watch sports or documentaries-which I was not particularly interested in-I would consume books. We lived just one mile outside of our small town in Nebraska, and I would often ride my bike into town and pick out some books from the library. The librarian always looked upon me kindly as I nervously asked if I could take home more and more books at a time. Why was I nervous to ask to take MORE books home than was usual? No idea. But at the time, it seemed pretty damn scary.

We had writing classes in elementary school, which meant even more exercise in stories and creativity. I loved making up stories and poems. The exhilarating freedom of creating a world or person from thin air and writing it down as truth was tantalizing. But I never dreamed of writing a novel.

One day last year, I found a poem I wrote in fourth or fifth grade I thought I would share. It’s pretty weird.  But hey, most creative people are a little strange.

Right?

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The Thing

By Samantha Peterson (Year: 1995)

 

The Thing came from beneath the sink, It was slimy and oily and boy, did it stink. I’ve always tried to avoid that place, With that slimy green thing and it’s purplish face.

 

But one day Mom said, “I really should think,” “That’ you’d notice what a mess is that porcelain sink,” “Please help me clean it I don’t have the time,” “If you clean it well I will give you a dime.”

 

“And now,” said my mom, “I am off to my job,” “Don’t spend all day playing with your friend Bob,” So I picked up the phone and called Bob, my friend, “I can’t play till two,” he said, “I have clothes I must mend.”

 

“Well bye,” I said and hung up the phone, And that is when I heard the loud groan. I walked to the sink and thought it must be the thing, It gave out noises and grunts and even a ping.

 

Then all was quiet and I knew that I must, Clean the sink well before it started to rust. So I got out the scrubbers and started to scrub, And then on my leg, I felt a strange rub.

 

It was tiny at first, and ever so small. I refused to go, and I reached for the wall. But the thing pulled me into the sink’s dark place, I saw that slimy green thing with its purplish face.

 

I shrieked and I screamed, I raised quite a fuss. But I was no match for that slimy muss. And then that green thing, just pulled off my face. And smoothed it on him with his own embrace.

 

Then he took all my clothes and got all dressedup. He looked at my things, even my plate and cup. Then he called my friend Bob, and said, “Come and play,” And that thing and Bob played all the rest of the day.

 

Then Mom came home and said, “Here is your dime,” “Thanks for cleaning the sink, I did not have the time,” And so now I’m the thing beneath the sink. I am slimy and oily and boy, do I stink.

 

Everyone tries to avoid this place, Cause I’m a slimy green thing with a purplish face. And OH! How I’m looking for a child to take, too. Are you absolutely sure that it is not you?

 

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Like I said, I was a creepy little kid. But hey, my mom liked it. And that's good enough for me.

In any case, reading through poems and short stories I constructed as a child helped me gain the courage to begin writing a novel, my first! After all, if I was that unabashedly weird at such a tender age, why should I change now?

And so, in late November 2012 I sent out on a journey to write my first novel.

Love,

Samantha