Help Me Publish My Book!

Hi friends/family!

I have been inspired to write a book that I hope will change and impact so many lives. I am in contact with a publisher who is interested in publishing with me and I'm ready to get started on what will be an exciting, year-long process! The funds I receive from you all will go fully and completely towards the upfront cost with the publisher which includes art direction, editors, publicists, printing, and distribution.

At a crossroads in my life, I was introduced to 60 letters written by my late grandmother, Martha, to her family during a year she spent in Italy between 1963-1964 where she studied and received her Master’s in Painting. When she returned home from this joyous, idyllic, and purposeful adventure, she immediately got married, had five children, and then suffered from Alzheimer’s for over 18 years, never picking up the paintbrush again. My only question after reading these letters and learning about her self-discoveries during this time was “why did she stop?”

Why do we, as women, still seek permission to choose ourselves? Why do we believe that we only have access to the magic of self-discovery and pursuit of our passions in our prime years of being 20-something, or before “real life begins”? As a modern-day woman hoping to become a mother and wife one day, I find myself on a mission with this book to discover how all women can extend that one purposeful year of Martha’s over every year of our lives. My story of overcoming generational expectations set by the women in my life and the challenges I faced through family trauma will be intertwined with Martha’s letters, using them as an example of what women should experience throughout every phase of their lives.

This story is a commitment to self; a love letter to women who feel they have lost themselves at some point along the way. It aims to address the cycle of conformity to roles in which women can find themselves trapped, whether due to cultural norms, expectations, jobs, or personal circumstances. It is a story for women in the beginning of their adult lives who are afraid their passions and expectations to conform to certain societal roles cannot equally coexist. And, on the other hand, it is a story for women who have arrived on the other side of their youthful lives feeling as though they lost themselves by not pursuing their passions over every phase of life.

I have found a perfect match in my publisher, but it will cost me (as the best things in life do). If you feel inspired by my book, my mission, and this project, I would be more than grateful for your help to kickstart this dream of mine that is on the brink of reality (and so close to being something you can read).