Writing |

I wrote a book.

And now…I’m writing another one.

Details:

I’m in the sixteenth revision of Scriptures and Tattoos, A Most Improved Life. As of right now, the book has been reviewed by a few people in the literary world and it seems after this final revision it will sent off to a few publishers.

From there…we wait.

How I’m Feeling About People Reading This Book:

In my bio on this blog, I write that I’m not Mormon enough for most Mormons and not non-Mormon enough for non-Mormons. This will not be a book you will find being promoted by Deseret or probably any other Mormon.There are ~~curse~~ naughty words. There are some situations in which I write about that are not ::ahem:: Mormonlly. This is a book about mental illness, alcoholism, addictions and dealing with being a Mormon convert when life isn’t so kind. It isn’t a sweet story or even a pleasant one. But it is real.

In one of the first drafts of the book, one person commented by saying it sounded as if I was venting. In the later revisions, I was told the story is compelling and haunting. A few weeks ago, I was told it was not only compelling, but inspiring. I hope it will remain inspiring. Being mentally ill with all the other ‘stuff’ isn’t beautiful or fun. It’s ugly and cruel. However, I’m this little woman with a southern accent with a husband, kids, a dog and work a real job and studying for a real education. I’m your sister. Your daughter. Your next door neighbor. Your fellow soccer Mom. I want to shatter the stigma attached to mental illness and alcoholism. I want to blow the sucker up, because it shouldn’t apply. l

That lady next to you at church…what’s her name…Molly Mormon? Always at church and never turns down an assignment. Yet, she holds a secret. She’s depressed and sleeps eighteen hours a day. No one knows this because she’s afraid to tell people because …::gasp:: what would people think? Would they tell her she needs to only pray a little harder and all that yucky sadness will go away? Will she even be taken seriously? Or will she be judged and stigmatized?

If you find yourself wondering why I wrote Scriptures and Tattoos think about the questions above. You’ll have your answer.

What I’ve Learned:

This process has given me endless opportunities to work on patience and keeping still so I can listen to my conscience. There are many times in which I had sat down to write Scripts and Tatts and think of it as a complete waste of time. I didn’t want anyone to know how crazy being crazy is and here I am writing about it?! And I want it published? Not only that, I’m talking about addictions and alcoholism and then I’m throwing marital and family stuff in there along with being a Mormon.

Yeah, well, in my defense…I did say I was crazy.

Joining the Church for me was a huge blessing and I’ll never regret my decision. However, by converting, my life did not magically become like the days depicted in a Summer’s Eve commercial. (Yeah, I wrote Summer’s Eve and I know what it is. I’m only trying to keep you focused. It worked, right?)

Writing a Book is Harder Than Blogging:

I don’t view blogging as work. It energizes and relaxes me. Here I am on my own soapbox and there are people seeking this blog out to read what is on my mind. How could that be work? It’s not. It’s pretty darn awesome.

Writing a book is a conveyance of information and has to be (in my opinion) perfect. It’s going to be read by people who probably would never read this blog and people who do read this site and will expect the book to be the same tone of writing as I write here. It won’t be. And that may make some a little irritated with me.

What You Can Expect in Regards to Having Your Own Copy:

I feel strongly the book will be published in 2012. You heard it here first. However, I still have a lot left to do:

Add in those pesky mundane details that require a lot of research.
Read it with fresh and clear eyes in a few weeks as if I’ve never read it before…which I’m dreading… then make the necessary edits and rewrites.
Send it to my editor with the hope that all will be golden and we can proceed.

In other words…

Stay Tuned. 😉