What's Fresh with Jenny Peterson's Creature Discomforts

Best friends Rachel and Kendra are well past ready for things to go back to normal … or as normal as it can get for a demon hunter and a half-mermaid. College is supposed to be about study sessions and sneaking beer, not fighting monsters, right? But when girls on campus start disappearing, Rachel, Kendra and cute fellow demon hunter/annoyance extraordinaire Sid begin investigating. The closer they get to the truth, the more they realize there’s something hiding in the Georgia mountains that is much older and deadlier than your everyday demon. Forget studying for finals, these three will need to fight just to survive.

The first in the digital novella Descendants trilogy following Rachel and Kendra's adventures in college, romance, and kicking monster butt. Peterson first started the storyline in PROM DATES TO DIE FOR and SOMETHING WICKED anthologies and readers begged for more. Look for EAT YOUR HEART OUT in Spring 2014.

Thanks for visiting us on YA Fresh, Jenny! Could you please tell us a little about your writing background and how you made your first publication?

Jenny: I’ve always been a writer—from the NEVER-ENDING STORY rip-off I wrote in fourth grade to the fairly elaborate stories I told my sister to freak her out. (Example: A man-eating sea bass named Murray lived in our lake.) My degree is in journalism, and I really enjoyed working at a paper as my creative outlet. But then! I had this idea for a novel hit me out of the blue one day in my mid-20s. Just bam! And I knew I had to write it. But writing fiction and telling people I was writing fiction are two very different beasts. I wrote that novel in absolute secrecy, and it was seriously years before I admitted to people I was trying to become an author. Obviously, I’m over that now. (That first novel went nowhere and was a bit of a mess, but we have to start somewhere, right?)

Readers often like to get a behind the scenes peek of an author's writing routine. It would be great if you could please share your typical writing day schedule.

Jenny: So I moved to Denver a couple years ago and decided to try the author/editor thing full time. I split my time between writing fiction and editing for Month9Books, a YA publisher. One thing about working freelance is being crazy organized. I have lists and calendars and precise time-management goals. But I kind of love being so organized. (Yay for Type As!) In a normal day, I juggle editing for half the day with fiction projects the other half: my novella trilogy for Buzz Books, a steampunk novel that’s in its third draft, and a reality-hopping sci-fi serial called THE INBETWEEN being released in installments through JukePop Serials. So I’m not just staring at a wall and holding elaborate conversations with my two cats, I often decamp to local coffee shops. This also has the added bonus of keeping me from reading gossip blogs (my weakness) all day.

Please tell us about CREATURE DISCOMFORTS and what we can expect from your characters.

Jenny: In CREATURE DISCOMFORTS, I continue the story I started in two shorts for Buzz Books. Best friends and college freshman Rachel and Kendra are well past ready for things to go back to normal … or as normal as it can get for a demon hunter and a half-mermaid. But when girls on campus start disappearing, Rachel, Kendra and fellow demon hunter/annoyance extraordinaire Sid begin investigating. The closer they get to the truth, the more they realize there’s something hiding in the Georgia mountains that is much older and deadlier than your everyday demon. Forget studying for finals, these three will need to fight just to survive.

So great! What's up next? Do you have another project in the works? If so, please tell us about it.

Jenny: The Descendants trilogy continues in EAT YOUR HEART OUT, slated to release in spring 2014. In it, Rachel, Kendra and Sid are facing a big bad that’s got some creepy talents and gross eating habits. You can read more about the next novella and the Descendants on the series website.

Jenny is a writer and editor based in Denver, CO. Reading and writing YA and new adult is her first love, and she spends an inordinate amount of time dreaming up fantastical worlds for kick-ass heroines. She also splits her time as an assistant editor for a YA publisher. The Descendants Series, her e-novella trilogy, is being released by indie publisher Buzz Books USA. When not writing or editing, she enjoys exploring the mountains and lakes of Colorado, shopping local, dominating at trivia and traveling. She lives in an old Victorian house with her husband and two lazy tabbies named after Harry Potter characters. Learn more about Jenny, her writing and travels at www.jennycoonpeterson.com. Or, you can follow her on Twitter @JenC_P, Facebook, Goodreads, or even Pinterest. Happy reading!