Update Sesh!

Hey Everyone! It's been a minute and I figured I would update you on what's happening over here.

THANK YOU:

For everyone that piped in and voted on my last posts little Pitch Fest mini, much appreciation.

I love seeing which pitch spoke to you.

And if you didn't vote, go ahead and do so. I left it open. Hugs!!

SUMMER and my book writing progress:

First, It is in fact summer. While our summer break from school doesn't traditionally mimic the regular world due to year-round school calendars, this year we are leaning towards that and frankly it threw off my plans.

I was under the impression that we were going back to "normal" year round calendar and that one of my kids would be starting school moments after July 4th. I found out the first day of class that he was, in fact, not scheduled to start until early August. Ooops!! That threw a wrench in my book finishing plans. I have set up a cozy new office space in the corner of my bedroom that has an actual door that can be shut at will when the noise volume impedes on my creative process. I was so excited about getting back to it that I completely missed a school email with the correct start date. Yes, I could absolutely still write and sometimes I do bits but having both kids available allows for time to be spent making memories.

So in between board games and outdoor activities I am getting in research, jotting notes, maintaining my social media platforms and the like.

If you haven't already, you can follow me on your favorite platform: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Good Reads. Just check the contact page on my website here for the links.

PUBLISHING CONTEST RESULTS:

The contest results are in and it looks like I will be going the traditional route of trying to find an agent.

I have gotten rave reviews and positive feedback from my beta readers, which is always a relief for a writer.

So, Why didn't I win?

I'll be honest when I tell you that I knew there was a fairly large possibility that I would not be the right fit for the publishing house. I love Hay House and they produce amazing quality products and books however, they tend to skew towards more natural, enlightened, angelic material. I know that my book is needed and that it I was intuitively guided to physically move which in turn saved my life but that slim portion of my story isn't quite enough for them on a whole, or so I think. I was actually hoping to be chosen for feedback on my proposal, at minimum because who wouldn't love a professional tip or opinion but, alas, that wasn't the case.

If I compare the winners of the contest I can see without a doubt that I was not quite their niche as the main winners were a book with a companion tarot deck and a how-to daily guidance on becoming a divine goddess.

You can see how my memoir of an unknown extreme health issue and the uncovering of years of gross neglect may not quite fit.

I am thrilled for the winners as they have been given an amazing once in a lifetime opportunity.

And I think the contest in itself was a fantastic way for me to understand a process in the publishing world that I need regardless. My proposal is now complete which allows me to move forward in querying agents.

I have already begun the search and started a list of agents that are looking specifically for books like mine.

Onward and upward, as they say!

MY HEALTH:

As I continue to fight the good fight it appears I may actually be making some headway.

After firing my last endocrinologist, I have given the reigns to my amazing NP. She has been with me now through several functional doctors as well as handfuls of specialists, all of whom could not seem to muster up enough concern for my failing health. I found it fascinating that there are that many doctors willing to look only at a piece of paper (lab results) and base my care on that without considering the fact that each time they met with me that I was worse then the time before. My body has been / had been slowly self destructing and yet no one seemed to care why.

Here's a little tip I have figured out throughout this experience: Most people aren't textbook cases. Many medical practitioners have taken their learning so literal that they opt for what the book says over how the actual patient feels or is presenting live in front of them.

I won't delve into our healthcare system here, just yet. There are far too many pieces to this puzzle and lack of care, insufficient and short appointment lengths, refusal of tests and the money that surrounds all of it you know is a much longer discussion.

Until the next blog Happy Summer to everyone.

I hope you are enjoying the sunshine and warmer weather wherever you are.

Xx Melissa

Pick a Pitch!

I have slowly been sharing information about my upcoming memoir.

If you have been following me, most likely you have some idea about the subject matter.

If not, this may come as a surprise.

None the less, there was a Pitch fest on twitter a few weeks ago called #PitMad.

This event allows authors of every genre to post pitches about their book in order to attract agents.

While I did not get a "heart" from an agent, the group I was working with noticed amongst us, a group of over 600 writers, that only fiction seemed to get agent attention. This was not a scientific collection of data, just an observation.

So here in this blog today I am curious of your opinion.

If you were to choose, which pitch do you like the best?

Check out the

GOOGLE FORM HERE <------Pitchfest mini.

I appreciate your time and support.

*Now is the perfect time to sign up for email alerts and/or follow me on social media.

click here

Sidewalk Stories

For those of us who love reading and diving into a great story or being consumed by characters, places and time, I have a question for you.

Do you have a favorite book of all times?

Something you can read over and over again, share with others?

If you are on the goodreads website, as I am, often times when you put in a friend request to another reader, reviewer or author they will have a challenge question in order for them to see why you have an interest in being their friend.

Some questions are easy and normal requests like:

"Tell me a joke"

"Do we have many books in common" or "What percentage of books do we have in common?"

"Worst book you've read?" and "Give me a book recommendation"

Most common though is the question of "Your all time favorite book?"

I know that over the years I've read many books that I have truly enjoyed. Stories that prompted me to think bigger, step out of my comfort zone or entertained me so much that I've laughed out loud. Books that have taught me something new, brought awareness, broken my heart and renewed my spirit.

But if I were to pick one that was my favorite of all times I'd have to say it's Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein.

When I was in elementary school we made weekly visits to the media center. Your school may have simply called it the library, ours chose media center. Our media center sat in the center of the school not far from the front lobby and quite close to most of the younger kids classrooms. I have few memories in the lessons that were taught when we visited with the librarian. I don't recall much beyond learning the dewey decimal system and how to work the card catalog to find a book. For the younger crowd, we didn't have a computer to find a title and point us to a section. The process of thumbing through drawers of cards in order to track down the proper title and section of a book took a bit more time than a few key strokes on a key board.

As I was saying, my memory of lessons are few but I can recall this exact day in third grade when we made our way down to the media center. The librarian met us at the door and ushered us through rows of books toward the belly of the media center that had a sunken floor in a half octagon shape. The step down made for additional seats for little kids as we gathered around her chair waiting to hear whatever story and lesson was prepared for us. Today's topic was poetry. As you can imagine, most of us being 8 and 9 years old didn't have much experience with poetry. I want to say she started with Sick or Peanut Butter Sandwich but I can't recall. What I do rememeber is the gloriuos world of Ickle Me, Pickle Me, Tickle Me too, and The Crocidile's toothache, Jimmy Jet and Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout.

These stories wound around rhymes were eye opening. You can be funny and rhyme and tell a story all at the same time. I was excited with each new poem she shared, each new character and every scenario.

As she read, she also showed us the artwork which was was drawn by the author. My mind was on fire. I love drawing, my first chosen profession for when I grew up was an artist. The fact that you could a writer and an artist too? I was addicted. I needed this book.

It was no surprise that our small media center only had two copies and one was earmarked for the class lessons. The librarian sadly told me that I would have to wait until the other copy was returned before I could borrow it and suggested other books I may like just as well.

I can't tell you if I chose something else or how long it took for that day to end but as soon as I got home from school this book was all I could talk about. I remember begging my parents for a copy of my very own.

They must have given in or thought a book was a small price to pay to quiet a pestering child because in the car on the way to dinner that night we stopped at a bookstore. It was as if I had hit the lottery and a wish come true all wrapped together. I now owned what I thought was one the the best storybooks of my life and this purchase not only introduced me to book ownership but the idea that I could own my favorite books, not just borrow them from the library.

I spent most of dinner sharing these stories with my parents and when they tired of my storytelling I read this book from back to front, in no particular order and memorized a few of my favorite poems to try to impress my friends.

I carried this first copy into my late teens before I lost it to a house flood. I immediately purchased a new one to replace it. A few years later I gave that copy away to share the wonderful world of poetry to someone else and then turned around and purchased another.

I have given this book a gift over and over through the years for baby showers and children's birthday gifts. It was a pleasure to share it with my own children and see their reactions and laughter to the same stories I've grown to love.

So when I am asked what my favorite book of all times is this is always the book that comes to mind.

Do you remember when your love of books began?

What was the first book you can remember that opened you up to the world within the pages?

I'd love to hear your answers.

Happy Reading!