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It’s not how you play the game. It’s whether you win or lose. Find out Loni’s story in my contest entry on Short Fiction Break. Please vote and share.

https://shortfictionbreak.com/captive/

My apologies for being away so long.  I’ve started graduate school but vow to keep writing creatively!  This  is the link for my entry in The Write Practice Summer Contest. Please vote and share!😊

https://shortfictionbreak.com/captive/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks to all who have read and voted for my story, Peacekeeper, on Short Fiction Break.  If you haven’t, there’s still time.  The last day is Tuesday, August 7.  Link:  Short Fiction Break Summer Contest

Competition is tough.  My husband and favorite editor David Elderton has entered, also.  Check out his story, Grave Situation.  You don’t have to tell us who you voted for😉 .  There are lots of great stories.  Just vote!

With Gratitude,

Jodi

I’m excited to share that I’ve entered The Write Practice Summer Contest. Please vote for my story, Peacekeeper, for the Reader’s Choice Award.

Here’s the story’s link:https://shortfictionbreak.com/peacekeeper/

To Vote:

https://shortfictionbreak.com/summer-18/#poll

Thanks for your support!

Jodi

When you are a child you believe things will last forever.  As you grow, you discover the truth that nothing stays the same.  Last week, we traveled to Illinois to visit my parents.    This  happened to coincide with an impromptu gathering of relatives who traveled to say goodbye to the family farmhouse which is scheduled to be demolished this summer.  It’s been in my family for over a hundred year and is the last physical link with my grandparents.

During our trip last year, we went through the house thinking it was the last time we’d get to see it before they tore it down, so we treasured the family memories we shared this visit.

Here is the link to the reflection I wrote thinking I would never get to see the house again

Spaces and Places

 

 

 

 

Check out one of my most recent stories.  Please don’t worry.  I’m most healthy and happy.  This story is the product  of sleep deprivation. Mix in some sleepless days and stir thoroughly with a pinch of trauma.   Be nice to your night shift nurses!

Here’s the link: http://jodielderton.com/writing/

 

 

 

 

My apologies for not posting weekly, but this blog is a work in progress.

My latest work is an entry in The Write Practice’s Spring Writing Contest.  The theme for the contest is “best bad choice.”  The main character has two choices with equally unpleasant consequences.  My story is fiction, but some of the conversations in the story are drawn from things I have heard in the ER over the years.  My hope is this will raise awareness and empathy for victims of domestic abuse.

I would love to get your feed back.  Please vote for me if you like it.

Here is the link for the story:

To read

To vote

Thanks in advance!

Jodi

Hey,

Thanks for joining me on this journey.  Have to start somewhere, right?  Now I have a blog.  I actually have to figure out what to do with it.

If you are visiting this site, please click on the comment section and take a moment to let me know a few things.

1.  What brought you here?
2.  What would you like to see on the blog?
3.  What would bring you back?

This is a learning process.  If I waited till I thought everything was “perfect,” it would never happen.  Even if I waited until I thought I had acquired enough knowledge till I posted, life would happen and another year would pass without taking action.

So here goes.  I’m going to go for it and learn as I go.  My hope is that you travel with me and during the adventure, we will discover amazing things.

With Gratitude,

Jodi

I wrote the first draft of my first novel last month. Now I’m told I need a blog to publish, so here I go! I used to say, “Why me? Writing a book is something I just thought about and sometimes talked about. Now it’s, “Why not me?”

Joe Bunting’s “100 Day Book Challenge” made this possible. Before that, it was only a concept. Prior to this, I have only written short stories, and I struggled to do even that. This program made it doeable, if you stick with it. Before you actually start to write your first draft, you write a book plan and the premise surrounding your book, as well as your consequences for missing deadlines. Although the thought of losing chocolate, was a devistating notion, my main motivation was my father. I grew up reading my his science fiction books, so I share his love for the genre. So it’s not a surprise, I wrote my first novel in this area.

The structure of the program, the daily emails from Joe and support from Meghan our mentor was awesome. Sharing this journey with my fellow writers in the program, also made the difference. With my readership of two, I did not want to disappoint them and basked in their encouragement and critique.

Yes, there will be highs and lows and a lot of work, but YOU (why not you?) can do it. I have one and a half jobs with two grade school aged boys in my house. If I waited for perfect timing and perfect writing before I actually wrote something, it would never happen.

Here are some excerpts from my posts to my group:

Week 5
“I am learning to squeeze writing into any time frame I am gifted with.”

Week 7
“Barely made the deadline.”

Week 9
“I’m practically a stranger to my family and the dog begs on hind legs to be petted.”

Week 10
“I wanted to write Merry Christmas this week about 3000 times to get my word count but I know that’s no bueno. It was a challenge to concentrate. I wrote my first 300 words at 0700 on my way to O’Hare after cramming my Christmas shopping into one day.”

Week 12
“Hope you all are doing well. We are so close to the finish line! If this were a race, I might be on hands and knees, at this point.”

Week 14
“We made it! After the first draft is finished, the real work of editing begins. But I won’t think about that now.”

So, what are you waiting for? Life is too short for a list of what if’s. Go do it!
Check it out at
https://thewritepractice.com/members/writeabook/

Enjoy the journey,
Jodi