First Read Over and Done!

I know exactly what I need. After reading through Lives Lived I know what is necessary to bring this story full circle. The first part of the book has me. I fall deep into the narrative and I can see the characters and the things that they experience. The childhood scenes was warm and well drawn but the scenes in Boston are not warm. They did not make me want to keep reading. They need more description and the interactions between the characters need to be strengthened.

There was a time when I thought that Lives Lived was too dramatic and that there was too much mood disorder lingo going on. However, now that I am wiser, I know that the way that Gaby experiences those moods is exactly what needs to be in there. I have read a good deal of books about Bipolar Illness. Fiction, memoir, whatever, they typically are written by authors who are looking back on their experiences. What people don’t get, what they fear about bipolar illness lies in those moments that make up episodes. They aren’t afraid of the stories that a calm, rational person tells once they are sedated and in a logical state. They fear the out of control, mind running, flight of ideas and rapid speech that occurs during mania or the debilitating inability to get out of bed or speak that comes with depression. This is what I need to show. Those are the moments that I want people to experience. They don’t have to understand but I want them to know as much as they can about what it is like.

So, I’ve finished reading ahead of schedule. Now my task is to bring the Boston scenes to life to fortify the interactions between Gaby and Jonah. They have more than what I am giving them credit for.