Hello Everyone! I can’t contain my excitement, today I learned that the lion’s share of the editing of my new short story collection is done! Not much more to do to get it out to anyone who would like a copy. But, out of respect for the people who have read this blog and want to continue to read about mental health, I have started a new blog on Goodreads. To view it, all you have to do is visit https://bit.ly/3dph936 Sign up for the blog and I will inform you of updates, encourage you to pre-order, and to ‘Friend’ me on Goodreads so I can invite you to the launch party where I will be giving away a bunch of books that I will mail out, including a couple of copies of my “Mental Health Memoirs”
In the new blog, I will be giving suggestions on books to read, talking about the writing craft, and just generally keeping people up to date on my work and how it is coming along. The hope is to have my book launch event on May 9/21 which is just 3 weeks away. After that, I have been given the huge honour of a scholarship to a two-week writer’s workshop, so I am hoping to bring readers and writers together after each session to talk about what I learned.
As for those who are having difficulties with their mental health, I often talk about journalling, which is something that is both beneficial for writers and for people who deal with mental illness. My mom used to keep a journal and it was a special place where she could tell her secrets, confess her sins, all without being worried what someone might think of her. She would simply write the date at the top of a page, write a number between 1 and 10 to show what her mood was, and then pour her heart out on the page. Sometimes I wonder if my mom, or even my dad could have been famous writers. Both of them read heavily, and had a great grasp of the English language. I like to think that writing is something that can be learned, it isn’t a skill that you are born with. And it doesn’t really matter much what you write. If you like alien conspiracies, fictionalize one and imagine what could happen. If you like romance, change the names and places and fictionalize a story about a true love you once had, whether it worked out or not.
I don’t want to push anyone into what they aren’t comfortable with, but this is kind of what I do for a living. Seriously. I work at our local psychiatric hospital teaching creative writing to patients, and it is so amazing to teach someone how to write something, and hear them making beautiful sentences and moving descriptions, it really helps people feel better about what they were going through. Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot more to say on that. I am keeping a poorly guarded secret that I want to share with anyone who likes to read this blog, if you click on the photo to the right of the bridge with two towers, it will take you to a page where you can download a free book of mine that I wrote about a recent hospital stay. Please download it and read it, and consider signing up for my blog on Goodreads, I would love to have you! More to come, keep on tuning in!
Leif Gregersen, viking3082000@yahoo.com
Mental Health coping skills blog by leif gregersen 