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Today I had a wonderful interview with Kelly South, author of Pay Attention to Me. Pay Attention to Me is a book about mental health, specifically borderline personality disorder (BDP). It’s fundamental message is that mental illness does not define you!
Kelly wanted readers to get a chance to join her in therapy. The book is written from the dual perspective of the patient and the provider accompanied by journal entries in patient’s notes.
Kelly lives in Idaho with her husband and two children. She hold a bachelors in psychology and a masters degree in dispute resolution. Pay Attention to Me is her very first book and she published it back in September!
Now lets get to meet Kelly more! ✨
What inspired you to become an author?
I’ve always loved the idea of writing. I took all the creative writing classes. Some thing about the craft where you can bare your soul, or become someone else always fascinated me.
Describe a typical writing day.
I would say I am a creative writer. Epistolary. I really like short stories. It has always intrigued me that you can be drawn in to another place when an author uses short descriptive words. That a simple line in a book can make you rethink everything.
What was the most challenging thing about writing Pay Attention to Me?
Time. I have been writing this book for a really long time. Once I finally had it down on paper I thought OK this is it. Then the editing process started and that took a really long time. After that I thought great I’m officially a self published author once it went live on Amazon.
The editing process is long and expensive. I didn’t realize that. Many people don’t realize the cost of an editor but their work is invaluable. I would definitely say keep the cost in mind as you move forward.
Then I realized letting people know about my book, getting in touch with the right people in the medical field , hoping somebody would be interested in a memoir that wasn’t about a celebrity took even more time. It really isn’t an easy or short process.
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How do you “keep it real” while aiming to enlighten people on challenges of BPD?
I struggled to keep it real so to speak because there’s so much stigma surrounding BPD. I was truthful while also attempting to navigate not offending anyone. It was not an easy task. I had to come to terms that it was my story and though there will be some things that intertwine with other peoples stories, I had to just speak my truth regardless of how painful it was at a times.
Which part of the book is the most relevant in your opinion?
Honestly depends on the reader. My journal entries really does enlighten someone that doesn’t understand the thought processes of a borderline personality disorder patient. The patient’s notes really do help someone struggling with the mental illness because it does contain some really amazing tools.
It’s the reason why I wrote it the way that I did. You could just read the right side and have one experience and then turn around and read the left side and have a completely different one.
Has it been more difficult writing this book because it’s more personal?
It was difficult at first. I essentially went and relived the last 5 to 6 years of my life that weren’t very easy. The way I hurt myself and hurt others was not some thing I thought I would feel so much in the aftermath. Now I see it as helpful.
Tell us more about the publishing process behind the book.
Are used the Amazon self-publishing platform. I haven’t yet been able to do a lot of interviews. The nature and sensitive subject matter has kind of held that back. My book is very specific and the audience I am looking to reach is a very private sector.
The cover didn’t really call for a cover artist as you can see. It was just really important to me to use words that people have used to define borderline in the background and the title pay attention to me.
Most people with borderline have experienced some sort of trauma or abandonment issues and I thought the title was fitting.
What are some tools you used to write this book from start to end?
I used good old fashion Google Drive.
I did have the book professionally edited. I’m not entirely sure what my editor used but I do recommend anyone considering self publishing or writing a book to use an editor.
Are there any authors that inspired you into becoming an author yourself?
I don’t have a specific favorite author or authors that inspired me. I am more of a genre, stylistic reader and there’s so many wonderful authors that I couldn’t pick just one.
What are your future plans and where can our readers find you?
At some point I’d like to pick up the pen or should I say keyboard and write a psychological thriller.
I’d like to speak publicly about BPD and share my story. I’m not entirely tech savvy so I don’t do a lot of social media but readers can find me on Goodreads and my Amazon author page.
I am in the process of creating a website.
You can also find Pay Attention to Me on Amazon UK or Amazon Canada!
Have you enjoyed this Q&A with Kelly South? Let me know in the comments below! ❤️