Will try to keep this short, as I have wet hair that needs drying, late at night.
I've had to sleep a lot the past few weeks, as I've had the flu then recovered from that, then had surgery. Still recovering from that. I'm still on track though to self-publish my memoir by mid-September, even though I had a break from it.
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Doing a mockup from ideas in my head for the back cover my memoir, Bipolar Courage: Are You Sure You're Not Autistic? The colours blend well. Of course, I will fluff around to optimise the images when I do the final files.
These were the two paintings most inspired by 'Maxwell' (the 'anti-hero' in my story). They're mentioned in the story. They're cut up now but I can always ressurect them. (Tip: take pics of your paintings). Started a mockup of a book cover design for my book. It's a mockup to try out some ideas in my head before I fluff around trying to get things just right.
The final stages of a book are pretty exhausting. I had a two hour sleep crash yesterday afternoon, and again, this afternoon. I finally wrote the introduction for my memoir (I do this at the end, from some notes I'd jotted down along the way).
I self-publish as an indie author. There are no hard and fast rules about introductions. Generally, I've seen it recommended, to write an introduction in the third person. I've included one, to help the reader know a little of what to expect, without giving the story away. Plus it's a bit unusual in that I haven't stated what people look like, what their jobs are, their location etc. You know, the usual stuff that people spend a lot of time fluffing out a story with. I've included my introduction, below. Expect to publish the memoir, Bipolar Courage: Are You Sure You're Not Autistic? initially to Amazon, within 4 weeks. I did it! Yay! Nearly two years of effort and I have written my third book. Although it's not quite ready yet, to release to the world. Just some final polishing, still underway.
It's a huge milestone, at the stage where authors would send to their copyeditor. Only, as an indie author, I am the copyeditor, proof-reader etc (a friend is helping out with the proof-reading). I've already been doing some copy-editing (improving readability etc, yet I want to retain my 'voice'). I'm quietly excited. No big parties, just a quick blog post from my room, which I will follow up with a gluten-free donut and ice-cream (spotted the donuts yesterday and couldn't resist). Just a quick blog post to download some thoughts in my head. I went for a walk today and stopped to take a pic of this bloom. I think it's a magnolia blossom. The buds are fuzzy. It's really important to get some exercise in as self-care, when working on projects like writing books.
I have only two more chapters to edit/re-write out of 31 for my memoir. All going well, I'm on track to self-publish it next month. I wanted to include a little bit about why I change my name, in case I edit it out (if I have way more pages than expected when do further formatting). If you're like me, and your mind either has a gazillion linked ideas, resulting in shutdowns (unable to think, feel, do anything), plus short-term memory impairments, then there are ways to capture things, to use creatively, later. Some ways are journalling and visual arts.
I decided to crack open a journal from 2018, specifically with September in mind. To see if there were other reasons I am quite set on publishing my memoir in September 2023 (so far, that is well within reach). September 2018 was when I painted Snowball, who became the cover art for my novel, Pet Purpose: Your Unspoken Voice. The painting helped me to focus on completing my goal. I self-published Pet Purpose in 2021. Been having a few days off from working on my memoir. Mainly because I had a mood crash. I'm trying to avoid talking too much about detail about my mental health on this blog, although I still have struggles, whether I say something, or not. My primary diagnoses are bipolar disorder (type 1) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and I see them as medical conditions, not my entire identity. One of the reasons I moved away from my advocacy as Bipolar Courage, is that I wanted to focus more on my other passionate hobbies, especially to do with creative expression.
One of the great things about being an independent 'indie' author, is that I can choose my own publication date. With flexibility to move things around, if I need to.
I had therapy today (for PTSD). My clinicial psychologist asked, 'Why September?' as that's the month I'm aiming for. In this blog post, I'll give a few reasons why, with a little context. I've been working on a memoir the past 18 months or so. I'm up to the final editing and proof-reading stages. I feel a bit worried I have broken lots of rules of grammar but then I think, 'Stuff it!' There are too many grammar snobs out there, hung up on rules, yet write boring stories.
I've just had a chat to a friend who has taught English and German for years. She said that a lot of people, including American writers, are being more flexible about grammar these days. Overly formal grammar can sound stuffy and take away from the essense of the story and expression. |
Xanthe Wyse('Zan-thee Wise'). Disclaimer: the author of this blog is not an expert by profession and her opinions should not be taken as expert advice.
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