In October of 2008, I attempted to take my own life. This action changed my life forever. I had to resign from my new job as a style editor in California because I was so mentally ill I had to move back in with my parents in Oklahoma after ten years of living on my own. My new psychiatrist diagnosed me with Bipolar 1. I had already previously been diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Anxiety Disorder and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
I was a mentally ill mess.
The first chapter of this book was my application to the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s graduate creative nonfiction program. I had no idea it would be the beginning of a very personal memoir. I began to seriously write this book in 2011. I took Stephen King’s advice and tried to write at least 1,000 words a day. Now there are 72,000 words.
This book is for everyone – those with mental illness, those who care for someone with mental illness, psychological professionals, friends, family, and those that are just plain curious how it feels to live with a mind that is different from 97.6% of the American population.
I wrote the book. I have decided to self-publish. It is the right choice for me, but that means I don’t have an editor or a publisher. So, here is the part I need help with – raising funds. I want my manuscript professionally copy edited and that will cost more than $750. I want to purchase a six month subscription to NetGalley.com where my book will gain some buzz. That is another $399. I need to have funds to buy author copies of my book. I’d like to have books available at readings at bookstores, colleges, etc.
My first goal is to get the manuscript copy edited. I can't move forward until that happens.
This book was not easy to write. It is intensely personal. Also, during depressive episodes it would sit by the wayside. I had neither the energy nor words for such a task as this. But I finished it, am fiercely proud of it, and now want to share it with you.
Please consider donating. I am, as they say, “a starving artist.”
I was a mentally ill mess.
The first chapter of this book was my application to the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s graduate creative nonfiction program. I had no idea it would be the beginning of a very personal memoir. I began to seriously write this book in 2011. I took Stephen King’s advice and tried to write at least 1,000 words a day. Now there are 72,000 words.
This book is for everyone – those with mental illness, those who care for someone with mental illness, psychological professionals, friends, family, and those that are just plain curious how it feels to live with a mind that is different from 97.6% of the American population.
I wrote the book. I have decided to self-publish. It is the right choice for me, but that means I don’t have an editor or a publisher. So, here is the part I need help with – raising funds. I want my manuscript professionally copy edited and that will cost more than $750. I want to purchase a six month subscription to NetGalley.com where my book will gain some buzz. That is another $399. I need to have funds to buy author copies of my book. I’d like to have books available at readings at bookstores, colleges, etc.
My first goal is to get the manuscript copy edited. I can't move forward until that happens.
This book was not easy to write. It is intensely personal. Also, during depressive episodes it would sit by the wayside. I had neither the energy nor words for such a task as this. But I finished it, am fiercely proud of it, and now want to share it with you.
Please consider donating. I am, as they say, “a starving artist.”
Organizer
Elaina Martin
Organizer
Nashville, TN