It’s time to share our wins and losses in the humbling game of WRITING. I appreciate Alex Cavanaugh for starting the Insecure Writers Support Group.
Thank you to the co-hosts for the October 7 posting of the IWSG: Ronel Janse van Vuuren, Liza at Middle Passages, JH Moncrieff, and Jemima Pett!
Instead of answering this month’s optional question, I want to share a writing update. Just as I was kicking around the idea of nonfiction writing, a friend / colleague approached me about co-authoring a psychology textbook!
The publisher asked us to submit a proposal, which received positivity and excitement from faculty reviewers. Their feedback helped us restructure the table of contents to be more integrative and interesting (we hope.) We signed a contract and plan to deliver the manuscript by March of 2028.
We will each write eight chapters. My sections include anxiety, mood disorders, trauma, substance use disorders, and ADHD in a special population. I’ll start each chapter with a made-up case vignette, so I’ll still get to flex my fiction-writing skills.
Even though the deadline is way out there, I had a moment of, “Yikes, what did I just get myself into?” Suddenly I have a long-term project looming over me, chiding me as I’m watching TV or indulging in my new obsession: mahjong. I’ve written psychology book chapters before, but never half a textbook, and I haven’t pushed myself to meet a writing deadline in a while.
But I’m also intrigued by collating current research and 25+ years of experience as a psychologist into a textbook for undergraduate and graduate students. We’re striving for an international audience, and I’m hopeful this book will help educate the next generation of professionals in my small specialty area.
Happy Halloween to those who celebrate! I’m dressing up as Cat in the Hat, inspired by my cat, Tuxedo.
How exciting, Jennifer! I think it will be a great experience for you to collaborate on this project and write in your field. I have confidence that you’ll meet your deadlines and may even learn something that helps your fiction writing or leads you down another path.
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What an interesting thought, Natalie. Hopefully this non-fiction venture could help my fiction writing and vice-versa.
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What an impressive schedule. Great to have a near but not too near deadline too. Co-authoring too.. Working in a medical research team, co-authorship was a privilege, and a constant reminder that we were colleagues, not rivals.
Co-authorship on our crime series is an interesting experience, so far, no sign that we need divorce lawyers…
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Glad to hear your collaboration hasn’t turned litigious!
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Definitely not ! Can’t part with my IT department.
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That’s awesome! You can do it.
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Thanks for the encouragement, Alex. 🙂
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You’ve got this! I’m excited for you. It’s going to be a joy of a project and who knows what doors it will open in the future?
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The possibilities are many, Crystal! Thank you. 😀
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This sounds like an amazing opportunity! Challenging, yes, but you can do it. I can’t wait to hear how it goes. And I love that you’re dressing like Cat in the Hat!
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Thank you, Jenni! I am excited about the opportunity.
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Your cat is so cute! The book project sounds interesting. Best of luck! Remember that taking breaks is part of the writing process 🙂
Ronel the Mythmaker
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He certainly thinks so! Thank you for the reminder. I might be taking too many breaks already, hehe.
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