History
After many years of writing my thoughts on tablets, post-it notes and scraps of paper in the night it was clear that I needed to become "more mature" about my "journaling". I bought baskets and organized them into categories of thought... for instance: I have a basket for everything Porphyria, one for everything International Adoption & Reactive Attachment Disorder, one for everything related to Developing & Preserving One's Sense of Self... Your "Spirit"... the "Essence" of You.
I use these baskets as "safety lockers" to hold, to protect my thoughts and my ideas until I can put them together in a complete legible format. I store all my tablets, post-its and scraps in these baskets. I also keep relevant books and research studies that I have read stored with my notes.
Over time the baskets began to overflow.
What I was saving all this information for?
I gave it a great deal of thought. I weeded through and organized what I could into notebooks. I kept the resource books and research. I thought some more about what I should do with it all... and why I had decided to: collect, keep and organize it all in the first place.
I have been drawn by my heart to write ever since high school. Words are like brushstrokes, painting pictures... adding depth, meaning and color to a blank canvas. I was blessed with high school teachers that identified potential in me that I remained blind to for many years.
Today I am now aware of my gift for adding depth, meaning and color to life by using words to paint the pictures of my experiences, my desire to help others, my insight, my understanding.
So, what to write first and how to do it? I learned about free on-line web logging and decided that this format afforded me an organized place to share my experiences and insights. I also learned that it is becoming increasingly easier to transform one's blog into book format. Perfect! Considering my topics Porphyria became my first priority. There are very few books written by people with Acute Intermittent Porphyria (AIP), even fewer books written for people with AIP. As a Registered Nurse with AIP I felt sharing my story touched on both categories.
Concept: Nostalgic Nursing
Nostalgic Nursing is not just the name of my independent nursing practice, it is an entire way of thinking for me. I value, respect and even long to revive many aspects of nursing's past (therapeutic nightly back rubs, hand holding, the white cap, etc.). I also appreciate the treatment abilities of modern medicine. I just prefer a combination of past and present with a gentler, more invested, connected, humane nature that nurtures patients' mind, body and spirit.
Genre: Memoir
Of all literary formats, I feel most drawn toward the Memoir.
A Memoir to me is like an "Old Patchwork Quilt"...
Bits of history stitched together to create a, "Bigger Picture".
I wrote that way before I knew there was a real name for it... scrap paper, post-it-notes, and tablet pages.
When I write, when I share myself... I require the flexibility to be me.
Life is filled with so many limitations... when I write, I want... no... I need to do it from my heart!
You will notice I do not strictly follow any "standard format"... no "APA"... no "MLA"... just me sharing my life, thoughts and experienced situations. As a child raised in Northern Appalachia many hours of my cultural youth were spent engaged in: listening to and re listening to, family stories... I feel attached to that piece of my upbringing. As a memoir writer I aim to continue that particular cultural legacy.
After Edits
When my story is complete I hope to edit, modify and mold it to be a story worth sharing, worth passing down from generation to generation. I plan to include some artistic flare, some freelance photojournalism and make it a true extension of myself. I hope to self publish with the assistance of a hired professional and to make the book available in multiple formats... down-loadable PDF (Digital), E-book for E-Readers and if possible, "old school" printed and bound format.
