My Journey from Miscarriage to Motherhood is the working subtitle for my book. I'm not quite ready to release the title I'm using until it is more set. As this working title suggests, this is a book that details my process of grieving, healing, pregnancy, and becoming a new mom. I will be sharing my spiritual journey during this time as well as the tools and resources I used.
Why am I Writing this Book?
When I had my miscarriage I had a very difficult time finding any resources that spoke to me as a grieving woman and a pagan. I also couldn't find very many resources when I was healing, when I became pregnant, and even fewer as a new mother who is also developing in my spirituality. Instead, each of these times in my life, my spirituality and metaphysical development always seemed separate when it came to the books I was reading, the sites I was visiting, and the groups I was part of. I thought this was strange because loss, motherhood, and creation of a new life all are part of a profound spiritual journey in and of themselves.
So, like most of the things I write and do, I was inspired by what I wanted to read and find. I am writing this book for any other woman who is going through similar trails and joys. It is my hope that more and more of these resources will become available to women and that we can grow as a tribe of spiritual mamas.
My Plan
Here is where accountability comes into play.I was working on a bunch of freelance articles and pitching and using that as an excuse not to write on my book. My day is pretty full with watching and caring for my son so when I am writing I tend to be unable to focus on multiple projects at one time.
I will be in a couple of books, having a few guest posts on blogs that I adore, I turned in an essay for a pretty awesome publication that I'm waiting to hear back from, and I am hoping for other opportunities to work for pagan and parenting publications.
That being said, I am switching writing priorities.
My plan is to write the first draft of my book by October 30th. That gives me about a month and a half if I guess days of not writing properly. I know I can do this because I have written fiction first drafts in 30 days. This book will be easier as I don't have to take time to make up what to write, it already has happened - I lived it.
Here is also where I will not be holding back. Already there are sections that I have planned or that I have written that I am wondering if they will make the final cut. I wonder if they would be better suited for a different book or a different resource all-together. For now, I will write them and leave them where they are an muddle out the puzzle pieces of chapters and sections later with the aid of beta-reader eyes.
November I am taking time off my non-fiction writing to work on a fiction piece for NaNoWriMo.
I will return to this project in December, reading my first draft with an editing eye. After making the initial edits I will need to re-write it. The re-write will then go to my lovely beta reader.
After my beta gets the manuscript back to me, I'm hoping by February, I can work on the 2nd re-write.
Then it goes to another beta reader, to get another perspective.
By April I would like to be pitching publishing companies. I have a couple in mind already but am looking for a good list to consider where my book might be best suited.
To be honest I am not sure if my plan is far-fetched or not but I feel better having that on one sheet, my outline on another, and 20k words written.
When I feel stuck I just stop for a bit, look at my outline to see if there is another section I'd prefer to write at this moment or I think about what it will feel like to be done. I also think about what women in my position are looking to read. This spurs me on.
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