Bipolar Support Group

Good Morning Everyone!

I hope everyone slept good last night. I am writing a book about what it's like to live with Bipolar Disorder and I am asking for some suggestions in what to include. I have already mentioned how it disrupts your life might cause you to lose sleep and you usually have mood swings that can go from happiness or 'highs' to anger to sadness to feelings of doom in a matter of minutes. I am asking for some really good ideas on things I could or need to include that I may not have touched on. I have a publisher that has read what I have so far and they have told me I've done a good job but it's not long enough to be a novel [12 pages].

I don't want it to be a 'short story' I am aiming to write a novel with at least a couple hundred pages. I'm just starting to run out of things to say or talk about. Any advice or suggestions will be taken into advisory.

Thank you.

Whatdid, Are you writing an autobiography or is it an info book? That would change what answer I give you....

Info book,

Affect bipolar can have on relationship

Medication

Definiions i.e. BP I, BP II, Cyclothymia

I could go on and on. What I would suggest is you look at books that you have read on bp that you have enjoyed and liked the layout and get some ideas from that (I've read over 20 books on the subject and they all have the same "meat and potatoes" what's different is the writing style).

If it's an autobiography this is your story and it depends what you want to include. My fav autobiography book on BP is: "Madness a Bipolar Life" by Marya Hornbacher. Least favorite is "The Lily Pond" by Mike Barnes because it jumps around too much and is hard to follow.

You can do this! Good luck. Beth

Ha! A fellow writer. Try to do what Beth said but look for what you see 'missing' in the other books. You have to have something to hook your readers and make then say "Wow. That was something I didn't know/expect"!

My book doesn't have a surgeon or a warrior as a proantagonist (fiction). It has a guy who has been in the military, worked in the civilian world, retired young, and is doing his bet to fit in and have a life.

He's Bipolar, but it isn't screamed out all over the book. It's just there for the people who know what it is to find.

Good luck with your book.

Let me know if you need any links to Agents and Publishers and what their requirements are in the way of proposals and submissions. I have an e-mail from Danielle Steel (believe it or not) that includes those.

Good for you for writing a book. The more people are educated and understand bipolar the better! If I could suggest, I would include in the book that 1 in 4 people have a mental illness ( NAMI 2009) Also it might be helpful to include that there are many successful people with bipolar. Also, Abraham Lincoln among other people from that era suffered from manic depression.

That's great that you are writing a book. I am gathering a bunch of my poems to be published through Lulu.com. I would suggest this to you if you want to self publish it.

I would suggest having something in your book about relationships and how they suffer.

Good Luck with your book.

Yeah I would include the struggle that one must go through with all types of medications and the trial and errors that are involved as well as the numerous amount of dr's one might have to see to get help. Also how it can be hard to get a job and do what you need to do to get insurance in order to get help. It can be a vicious cycle. Maybe even the hospitalizations that can occur and the experiences that one goes through.

Also I think it would be a good idea if you included that sometimes people are misdiagnosed as having bipolar. If that happens, then they are medicated which means that they are then medicated to be bipolar and will be on meds for the rest of their life. Also bipolar is a multi billion dollar industry.

Thank you all so much! for the wonderful advice and suggestions. I have included some of the things each of you suggested. I've talked about being hospitalized, all the different medications,being in a relationship,how it can put a strain on family life. I haven't read any other books on it though because I'm dyslexic and my attention span won't allow me to get through a book. I do know about some celebrities who suffer with Bipolar like Patty Duke and the woman that played the mother in 'What's Love Got To Do With It' I think her name is Jennifer Lewis. You all have been very helpful with your suggestions.

I never really thought about writing an autobiography that is something to think about because it has started out as more of a self-help book. It has a lot of serious parts but I also threw in some really funny things just to make it not so preachy but inspirational.

I really want it to be successful and to help anyone who may feel as if they have no one out there who understands.

They do have Books On Tape (Or CDs now) that you might be able to 'read' and learn more from.

My local library has scads of them on every subject.