I’m devoting this next year to my health and my eyesight and will be sharing my journey on my new blog: www.determinedtosee.com.  

Maybe it’s because I’m finally doing EVERYTHING in my power to help my eyesight. But already, I feel like I’m seeing better. And I’m hopeful that my experiences will help others struggling with Retinitis Pigmentosa to find some light amid the darkness of this vision-stealing eye disease.

Some, like me, have been dealing with vision loss for a while and appreciate reading a story that puts their emotions and experiences into words. Others are newly diagnosed and find themselves overwhelmed by the same fears that consumed me when I walked into an eye doctor’s office for the first time in my life nine years ago and was told I was already legally blind.

Not to say that there aren’t tough days. But I’ve learned that despite the incurable prognosis, there are plenty of ways to live and enjoy life with Retinitis Pigmentosa, and to slow the progression of the disease.

 Ten Tips for Living WELL with Retinitis Pigmentosa

1. Avoid Stress: Stress is one of the biggest enemies when it comes to degenerative diseases. Bottom line? Stress makes you sick and will ABSOLUTELY speed the progression of your eye disease. So steer clear of it at all costs.
2. Exercise: It’s great for stress relief, keeping weight off, staying physically fit and feeling good about yourself—which are all critical to slowing the progression of RP.
3. Don’t Smoke: Yes. In addition to killing you, smoking is HORRIBLE for your eyes and will speed up vision loss.
4. Eat Well:  What you eat matters. It’s been proven that diets rich in oily fish and leafy greens help maintain eye health.
5. Take Nutritional Supplements: Lutein, Omega 3 and Taurine are just a sampling of nutrients that are essential for good eye health. There are different philosophies on what combinations are best for RP. I recommend asking a trusted retinal specialist or naturopath—or following the guidelines listed on Foundation Fighting Blindness.
6. Explore Every Medical and Alternative Therapy Available. Don’t limit yourself to either a Western or Eastern medicine way of thinking. Because there are so many different gene mutations tied to RP, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to managing RP.  Some people benefit from acupuncture, some people are finding success with micro-current stimulation and eye exercises seem to be helpful all the way around. There are also new advancements (gene therapies, micro-chip eye implants, Valproic Acid clinical trials etc.) on the Western medical front. I say explore them ALL.
7. Get Perspective: For me, it took going to South Africa to write about AIDS orphans to realize just how great I had it. When you are feeling down, think about all you have to be grateful for in life. It helps.
8. Get Involved:  There are numerous national and regional organizations that offer resources for people dealing with vision loss from RP or other blinding diseases. There are also some great RP Facebook communities where people share resources, frustrations, fears and hopes. Connecting helps you realize you aren’t alone. And getting involved gives you something proactive you can do to help yourself and others.
9. Have Fun:  Listen to your favorite music, sing, indulge in a double chocolate mocha, catch up with old friends, make new ones and laugh. Enjoying life may be the best remedy for any disease —eye diseases included.
10. Embrace the Moment: The one thing my journey with RP has taught me is that none of us are immune to disease or death, life can change in an instant, and all we have for certain is now—so we better make NOW count.

Need an extra dose of Inspiration? Check out the poetry on Sarah Martin’s blog. Sarah was diagnosed with RP as a teenager and uses her journey with vision loss as inspiration for the beautiful poetry she writes.

But while the rest of us are making the rounds to holiday dinners and cocktail parties, Sharon will remain at home. While we’re feasting and fretting about inevitable holiday weight gain, she’ll be nursing her spinach-laced protein shakes and nibbling on rice and crackers, hoping to take in enough nourishment to keep ninety-two pounds on her five-foot-three frame. Because as much as she desperately wants it, food makes her sick. So like an alcoholic trying to steer clear of liquor, she avoids any social gathering where food will be present, even when it means missing out on the first Thanksgiving with her parents and brother since moving back to her hometown of Tampa a few months ago.

“Right now the plan is for them to stop by my house before and after their meal,” Sharon told me recently. “I know I should be able to go over there and just enjoy the time with them. But I can’t handle being in a house that has had food cooking in it all day—food that I can’t eat. The smell would drive me insane.”

Sharon suffers from Gastroparesis (GP), a debilitating condition in which her stomach muscles have stopped producing the contractions necessary to digest food. On top of that, she has extreme corn allergies that render her intolerant to any corn additives, making an already miserable condition nearly impossible to manage.

Now thirty-seven, Sharon’s nightmare with food started three years ago when an injection at a dermatologist’s office triggered a severe allergic reaction that caused her body to break out into hives. The hives turned into sores that Sharon says made her look like a leper. Doctors didn’t have an answer. One even suggested she do better job moisturizing. Desperate to figure out what was wrong with her, she and her husband, Dave, began keeping a food journal and examining every ingredient that she took into her body. They eventually discovered that corn additives—found in virtually every processed food as well as cosmetics and medications—were to blame. For whatever reason, the injection, which contained a corn byproduct, tipped the balance in Sharon’s body and caused an adult onset of the allergy.

Sharon took the challenge head on, revamping her diet, starting a live corn-free blog—even petitioning the FDA to include corn in food allergen labeling. She and Dave eliminated corn products from their kitchen, began eating whole foods and were back on track.

Then, in January of 2011, Sharon contracted a severe flu that wouldn’t go away. Eating even small amounts of food made her nauseous and she watched in horror as her weight plummeted from a healthy 110 pounds to a frightening 84 pounds.

“Along with feeling miserable, I looked like a prisoner of war and became scared of going out in public,” Sharon remembers. ”I didn’t want people to judge me and think I was doing this to myself—when all I wanted to do was eat.”

Sharon thought she was dealing with a lingering flu bug. So when the doctor who diagnosed her told her that the flu virus had caused nerve damage that was responsible for the condition that was now going to be a regular part of her life, it was almost more than she could bear.

Sharon says she cried when the doctor delivered the news. “She told me that I would need to prepare any food I eat by blending it first. By this point I was only able to intake about 300 calories a day and I had been craving food—all different types and flavors—for months. The thought of blended baby foods being the only thing I could eat seemed over and above what I could handle.”

Since her diagnosis, Sharon has been forced to approach life a meal at a time. Her biggest concern is keeping enough weight on her body so that she doesn’t have to resort to a hospital feeding tube. She occasionally takes Domperidone, a medication that she purchases through Canada because it’s not approved in the U.S., to jumpstart her stomach—though she says it doesn’t do much to stave off the nausea and other symptoms caused by GP. Dave has become her lifesaver, helping her to steer clear of corn products while making the blended shakes and soft, mushy meals that her stomach can eventually digest. Sharon limits her intake to a three-quarters cup of soft food at a time. But even that small amount can make her feel stuffed and bloated. Sometimes after eating she feels sleepy, a sign she has eaten too much. Other times, eating makes her cold and requires a heating pad on her stomach. She often fights intense hunger pains only an hour after eating because she’s been unable to take in enough food to sustain herself. Yet her stomach is still stuffed and bloated because it hasn’t been able to digest the small amount she’s put in it. Then there’s the severe nausea that can kick in at any given time.

Sharon is lucky in that she is self-employed and works from home. Since she never knows how she will react to food, eating has become a private affair for her—something she feels comfortable doing only in front of her husband.

“I just read a book about living with GP and the woman talks about not holing yourself up in your home. But I just haven’t figured out how to navigate a social situation. When food makes you sick, you become scared to it eat it, and dealing with it in a social setting is too much for me.”

Sharon admits that depression sometimes gets the best of her. But though it’s rare, she knows that recovery is possible for some GP patients and she’s determined to become one of them. She’s discovered that acupuncture helps her nausea and she focuses on managing her stress, which she says is crucial with GP. She has also started taking walks with Dave during the short window between when her fullness has subsided and the hunger pains haven’t yet kicked in. Her dream is to get well enough to spend a day at Disney World with Dave, a carefree day where she doesn’t have to worry about what she eats or the associated consequences.

Though the challenge of navigating her illness is heightened during the holidays, Sharon says she tries to take it in stride and has become adept at quickly skimming over the savory food images that seem to take over social networks between Halloween and New Year’s. She refuses to begrudge anyone because they get to enjoy the seasonal feasts and socialization that she currently can’t. She says the one thing her health struggle has taught her is the need for compassion, understanding and acceptance—a take away we could all use during the holiday season and throughout the year.

“I try not to judge anyone because the one thing I’ve learned from all of this is that every person you come into contact with during the day either has something tough they are dealing with in their lives or has someone close to them who is—even if you can’t tell by looking at them.

“When I think about it, I realize I have it quite good,” Sharon adds. “I CAN eat. Not always what I want, when I want, or even where—but I can. And not everyone can say that. I am very grateful for that.”

To Learn More, Connect with Sharon Rosen on Facebook.

I was scared that people would discriminate against me if they knew I was losing my eyesight.  And I was petrified of showing the world that I was vulnerable.  But after six years of living in the closet, I finally realized that talking openly about my degenerative eye disease was empowering and educational.  I realized that if I was okay with who I was, other people would be too. And if not, so what?

FOCUS, which just launched as a eBook on Amazon (KOBO and BN.com coming in the next few days – paperback mid-November), is about my journey with RP.  It’s about my shock of walking into the eye doctor’s office for the first time in my life at age 37 expecting to walk out with a cute pair of red cat-eye frames–only to learn I suffered from an incurable degenerative eye disease and are already legally blind.

FOCUS delves into my crippling fear of not being able to see my two young daughters grow up, of becoming a burden to my husband, of losing the career I love, and of being robbed of the independence that defines me.

Ultimately, FOCUS is about my quest to fix my eyes that ends up fixing my life. Through an eight-year journey marked by a trip to South Africa to write about AIDS orphans, a four-day visit with a doctor who focuses on whole-body health, a relationship-changing confrontation with my husband and a life-changing lesson from my daughters, I learn to embrace the moment and see what counts in life–something no amount of vision loss can take from me.

More than anything, my journey has taught me that I’m not alone. Though you may not know it by looking at them, so many people are facing serious issues in their life. What I’ve learned is that none of us are immune to disease and death, that life can change in an instant, and that all we have for sure is NOW. So we better make now count.

..And earlier in the week, Readers Digest Recommends spotlighted the Student Story Project I’ve been involved with at Scriber Lake High School.  Here’s a link to that story: Where Hope Begins: Teenagers Find Strength Through Writing

It’s all a reminder to keep going after dreams — even if it’s only an inch at a time!

About a month ago, I discovered that Hippie Boy had been nominated and chosen as a finalist for the eFestival of Wordsl Best of Independent Book Awards. Authors were not allowed to submit their own work. Instead, the staff of the festival solicited peer-nominations from authors, editors, book reviewers, and publishers. After narrowing the nominations down a list of finalists in each book category, winners were selected via popular vote by attendees at the eFestival of Words.

It’s a huge honor to know that book reviewers, editors and other authors chose Hippie Boy for this award. Thank you eFestival of Words staff and everyone who cast your vote for Hippie Boy and other great indie books!!!

For a text overview of my interview with Laura, or access to other great indie author interviews and author marketing resources that Laura offers, click here.

My daughter teamed with a friend, Kayla Moore, to make a book trailer of my memoir Hippie Boy in her 7th grade TV production class.  It stars Syd and my husband as my dad and I at that age.  (Kayla’s dad plays my evil Mormon stepdad and her mother plays my mom).  It’s pretty funny…but I have to say, they can act!  Thank you Kayla, Syd, Mary, Greg and John!!!

It’s hard for me to put into words how inspired I am by these students. They have dealt with the kind of heartache and tragedy that most of us can’t even fathom. They’ve experienced gang life and drug addiction, and had lost loved ones to prison.  They’ve battled depression and self harm. Some have been abused and neglected by those who were supposed to protect them.

But rather than being angry and hardened, they have reclaimed their power by finding their voice, writing their stories and sharing them with the world.  Now they are committed to using their personal experiences to help other teens know that they are not alone and that they have the power within themselves to make life better.

The book, which launched officially at a huge student book signing event on June 6th, is already connecting with teens and making a difference in their lives. And I know this is only the beginning of the amazing journey for these student authors. I am honored to have been involved with this amazing project.

“It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.” — Alan Cohen

I needed these words today and wanted to share them here in case anyone else can use them. Happy Friday!

The Soulless sleeps.

In that emptiness, a breeze barges in
Like the first chill of winter
Awakening the dead…

And promising Solace.

-By Yamilet Reyes

I love this poem.  It was written by my amazingly talented friend, Yamilet Reyes, who was kind enough to let me share it with the world.  Thank you, Y.

Ten Key Ways to Drive Exposure for Your Indie Book

1. Put out a Quality Product. Don’t rush it! Make sure your book is the best it can be BEFORE you publish it.

• Seek out the necessary instruction to write a great book
•  Work with a developmental editor to identify weaknesses and take your manuscript to the next level
• Hire a DETAILED proofreader to make sure your book is as error-free as possible
• People DO judge books by their cover – so make sure your cover is professionally designed, compelling and catchy – even as a thumbnail since that’s the size most people will see
• Make sure your eBook (and paperback if you go the paperback route) is professionally formatted

2. Establish an Online Presence and Stay Active. This is so critical in today’s online world. Here’s a laundry list to consider:

• Launch an author Web site and blogging platform (I highly recommend WordPress, it’s very cost-effective and very social media friendly. I also recommend that you have a web site under your author name (you can also purchase vanity URLs with your book name) Example: My web site is www.ingridricks.com. I also have a book URL: www.hippieboybook.com that drives traffic directly to my book page
• Get involved with as many social media platforms as you can manage: Facebook, Twitter, Google+.
• Get involved with open submission writing platforms such as Scribd.com and Open.Salon.com. Along with connecting other writers and readers, both platforms offer a great way to build exposure for your writing
• GoodReads: Once your book is out, you should get involved with Goodreads, a social media platform dedicated to reading and rating books. Warning: the reviewers in Goodreads can be harsh, and I’ve heard stories about people who will purposely give poor ratings to indie books. However, the viral nature of Goodreads is powerful and can really drive some great cross-exposure for your book

3. Seek Out Reviews. Reviews are CRITICAL to your book’s success. As soon as your book is launched, seek out reviews from as many friends and readers in your social networks as you can. But along with reader reviews, reviews from credible reviewers ARE really important to your book’s success. Some of the big reviewers still won’t touch indie books, but the tide is changing and you need to seek them out. My new goal? Pitch at least two book blog sites EVERY day. Here are a few review sites to get you started:

• IndieReader.com
• The Kindle Book Review
• eNovelReview
• Manic Readers
• LibraryThings (see ebook giveaway in #4)
• Note: If you have a paperback, send a copy (as early as possible) to Booklist (the official review publication of the American Library Association) and Midwest Review. Both of these publications are VERY reputable and are willing to review indie books.

4. Offer Paperback/eBook Giveaways. Lots of blogs offer book giveaways that can help drive exposure. But there are two key sites where you can give away books with the specific purpose of requesting a review.

• Goodreads: If you have a paperback book, launch a book giveaway in Goodreads (note: This is only good if your book has been out for less than six months).
• LibraryThings: I just discovered LibraryThings Member giveaways and I’m very excited about it. You can give away as many eBooks as you desire and request that people who win the ebooks post a review for you. What I love about this? It costs me NOTHING to give away an eBook and the upside is huge.

5. Get involved with Pixel of Ink and EReader News Today. Pixel of Ink and eReader News Today are online web sites/eNewsletters that focus on quality bargain and free eBooks. Both sites have more than 200,000 followers (growing daily). If you are lucky enough to have your eBook featured in either publication, the upside is huge (I know…I’ve been lucky enough). The key to getting featured in these publications is to have a quality book that people want to read, and have great ratings/reviews on Amazon– the more the better.

6. Sign up for Amazon’s KDP Select Program. In December, Amazon launched its KDP Select program, a new library-lending program that enables people with Amazon prime memberships to loan one eBook each month. To entice authors to participate in the program, Amazon puts up a minimum of $500,000 each month – to be divvied out based on the number of loans a books has. As further enticement, authors who participate in the KDP Select Program can give away their eBook for free on the Amazon platform for up to five days during each 90-day lock-in period. The downside? The KDP Select Program requires exclusivity for each 90 day period, which means you can’t sell your eBook anywhere else during that three month period. I jumped at the opportunity to give away my eBook and drive exposure, and thanks to spotlights in both Pixel of Ink and eReader News Today, my promotions were a HUGE success.

• Nearly 25,000 eBooks of Hippie Boy were downloaded during my free days
• This resulted in more than 3,000 paid eBook sales, an increase in paperback sales, and more buzz and exposure for Hippie Boy – and I expect the exposure to continue in the coming months.

7. Seek Out Media Exposure. This is can be as simple as writing guest posts for blogs, or seeking out radio, TV and print interviews. The key? Find an angle for your story. Example: I did a story interview with KUOW Presents, our local NPR affiliate, about the Hippie Boy story and the moment I found my voice and claimed my power. I’m also now using Hippie Boy as a reading guide to help at-risk teens claim their power by finding their voice and sharing their stories. Finding your platform/niche market really helping in generating media exposure.

8. Explore Pay-Per-Click Advertising: I’ve explored several online advertising options to help drive exposure for Hippie Boy. I think they were all beneficial in driving awareness, but the pay-per-click ad I purchased on GoodReads was particularly worthwhile. The reason? I was only charged when people actually clicked on my ad so it was easy to track results. And even on days when I had only a few clicks, I noticed that people were adding Hippie Boy to their TO READ list, which is key. I’ve not explored Facebook or Google click ads, but I may in the future.  Other worthwhile advertising options? Kindle Nation Daily (KND), IndieReader.com and eReaderNews Today (though advertising opportunities on ENT are so popular that they are currently book up more than a year in advance, and KND is starting to fill up quickly too.)

9. Maximize Your Amazon and BN.com Pages. Amazon’s Author Central platform offers a way for authors to add editorial reviews, book extra info and other key elements to your Amazon book page that helps boost sales. Take advantage of this and make sure your Amazon page presentation is the best it can be. Also pay attention to the tags at the bottom of your Amazon page. Add the tags/words you envision people would use to get to your book and then ask friends to click on those tags. The more tag “likes” you have, the more likely your book will pop up on an Amazon book search. You can  also add editorial reviews and author bio info on your BN.com page, so make sure that page is the best it can be as well

10. Help Each Other: There are a lot of indie author Facebook groups and web sites emerging where indie authors band together to help promote each other’s books and drive awareness. Get involved and do your part to help other authors. Marketing a book is A LOT of work and the more we help each other, the more we all succeed in this new world of publishing.

About the Author
Ingrid Ricks is a Seattle-based writer and speaker who focuses on overcoming adversity, embracing life and turning dreams into reality. She is currently partnering with Scriber Lake High School in Edmonds, Washington to help at-risk teens claim their power by finding their voice and writing their stories. She is also collaborating on the development of an ongoing writing/empowerment workshop to help at-risk teens. Ingrid’s stories have been published in Salon, Ladies’ Home Journal, The Seattle Times and a variety of other publications. Ingrid also has a background as a marketing consultant and speaks regularly about how writers can leverage today’s social media and online marketing tools to reach readers and build their platform. Hippie Boy: A Girl’s Story is her first book. Find Hippie Boy at Amazon or BN.com or order from your local bookstore.

The magazine reaches 20,000 public and school librarians across the country. OK…I definitely want to sell books. But I also feel strongly about getting Hippie Boy into the hands of teenagers across the country. I had the incredible opportunity recently to use Hippie Boy as a guide to help at-risk teens claim their power by finding their voice and telling their stories. The challenges I faced during my coming-of-age years don’t hold a candle to the heartache and tragedy experienced by these students. But they could identify with so much in Hippie Boy that it helped them to share their stories, and in the process, realize they have the power within themselves to claim the life they want for themselves.

So my intention for Hippie Boy, today and in the weeks to come, is for librarians everywhere to understand its power in connecting with teens and realize that they need to carry at least three copies each in their libraries.

And it’s my intention for today’s Booklist Magazine review to get the ball rolling.

“As long as you keep on going, you never know what you can accomplish. As soon as you quit, you have your answer.”

I repeat those words to myself and keep on going!

I didn’t even realize how much of an impact my sister, Connie, had on my life until I started writing Hippie Boy and looking back on all the times she was there for me. She was usually the quiet one, but she was strong. And when it came time to sticking up for those she cared about, she didn’t hold back.

Though we now live three thousand miles apart, Connie continues to be an amazing support system and an incredible friend and protector.

When I get discouraged, she’s there to cheer me up and remind me that anything worth pursuing is going to have its challenges. When I have great news, she’s the person I call to share it with. And just like when we were kids, she goes to battle for me anytime she feels it’s warranted.

Connie inspires me. She hasn’t had an easy life. But a few years ago, she summoned the strength to walk away from an abusive marriage and go back to school to finish her degree. Then she kept going and recently became the first person in our extended family to earn her master’s.

I don’t say it often enough, so I wanted to say it here. Connie, thank you for being the best sister and friend a person could have. I love you and am so lucky to have you in my life.

P.S. For anyone in need of an incredible addition to their IT department, Connie is now actively in pursuit of her new career and I would be thrilled to connect you with her.

I wasn’t sure what form it would take. I just knew that this was the overall message of Hippie Boy, and a message I am passionate about getting out into the universe.

Then, in early December, I was contacted by Marjie Bowker, an English teacher at an alternative high school in a suburb outside of Seattle.  She told me our mutual friend, Pam Perry (thank you, PAM!!!), had given her my book to read.  Her next words were an early Christmas gift to me.

“Hippie Boy is the book I’ve always wanted for my students,” she said. “Do you want to form an author partnership?”

Neither of us understood what an author partnership even meant. But we both knew we wanted to figure it out. So on a whim, we started brainstorming and Marjie was soon crafting a still-evolving curriculum that focuses on using Hippie Boy as a guide to help her students share their own stories in a narrative format.

Our month-long curriculum kicked off January 4th. And magic has been happening ever since.

These juniors and seniors, more than fifty in all, have experienced the kind of heart ache and tragedy that most of us can’t even fathom. They’ve experienced gang life and drug overdoses, and have lost loved ones to prison, suicide and cancer. Some have been shuffled from house to house without ever having a safe place to call home. Some have been battered and abused and neglected. A few have resorted to stealing food because they didn’t have enough to eat.

These students have every right to be angry and hardened. Instead, they are some of the most compassionate people I’ve ever met. And they are STRONG. I felt a connection with them the first day I met them. They are me when I was their age and thanks to the power of story, we share a common understanding. Using Hippie Boy and the writing exercises Marjie has crafted for them as their guide, they are now working on bringing their own stories to life and in the process, they are finding their voice and taking back their power.

On February 1st, we’ll be holding a reading so they can share the life scenes they are now working on in class. From there, I hope they shout their stories to the world.  And I’ll do everything in my power to help them find an audience. Because these students have something to say and are ready to be heard.

Ok…I have lots of favorite parts of this review, including when Hanson calls Hippie Boy a “triumph of spirit” and “one of the most successful bildungsromans” she’s ever read. (I wasn’t sure what “bildungsromans” meant so I  looked it up. It means coming of age stories about the moral and psychological growth of the main character).

Here’s the opening of the review.

“Dad was a master salesman who could talk anyone into anything, and life on the road with him was the wildest adventure any kid could possibly imagine. Unfortunately, since he was often unreliable and occasionally violent, it wasn’t always the good kind of adventure — but it was a great escape from a home run by a crazy (and also occasionally violent) control-freak of a step-dad, who reeked of the meat that made up his entire food pyramid. That’s the world of teenaged Ingrid Ricks in the story Hippie Boy: A Girl’s Story.”

 Read Entire Review A Road Trip Out of Crazy – “Hippie Boy” by Ingrid Ricks on Main Street Plaza.  And if you like it, PLEASE Share.  Thank you!

My friend, Pam, has a nightly ritual where she picks at least one thing she’s grateful for and says it out loud before going to sleep.

Both of these women have inspired me to be more conscious of all the incredible things I have to be grateful for in my life.  I wanted to put a few of mine out into the universe.

Ten Things I’m Grateful for:

• My Family: My husband, John, and daughters Sydney and Hannah, are three of the most amazing gifts I’ve been given.  I’m also grateful for my parents (the flowers shown were recently sent by my mom just because)  and siblings – and for the incredible friendship I’ve forged with my sister, Connie.

• My Friends:  I LOVE my friends. They are amazing. I can laugh with them, cry with them and count on them ALWAYS.  And I’m grateful they feel the same about me.

• My Health/Eyesight:  I’ve been battling the degenerative eye disease Retinitis Pigmentosa for years, and I’m so grateful that I can still see – and that medical advances are being made every day toward a cure or viable treatment. I’m also grateful that I’m healthy all around.

•  My Warm, Leak-Free House:  It’s been so cold and rainy in Seattle and I think about all of those people who don’t have a place to get warm and dry. I feel so fortunate to a house and heat.

•  Food:  Not only do I have access to all the food I need, I can actually go to a grocery store and choose the food I’m in the mood for that day.

•  Work: My husband and I are both self-employed and I’m so grateful that we have clients who trust us with their projects, and we are able to bring in enough money to cover our expenses while pursuing the work we love and maintaining a flexible schedule.

• Soy Mochas at Aster:  I know it’s a huge indulgence, but I love settling into an afternoon of writing with eight-ounce soy mocha at Aster Coffee Lounge – my favorite coffee shop.  I also like heading there with my daughters and playing a game of Sorry while enjoying my mocha.

•  My Local Gym:  I’m particularly grateful for the Elliptical machine, the women’s-only weight room and the steam room (my favorite part).

• My Community:  I love my neighborhood.  Everything I need (coffee shop, gym, grocery store, office, movie theater, indie video store, restaurants) is in walking distance – including the beach.  My neighbors are great and can always be counted on for an impromptu glass of wine.

• The Generosity of Others:  I’ve been so amazed and humbled by the generosity of others.  I’ve experienced it in spades lately – both the generosity of people who have posted reviews and shared their thoughts about my newly published book, and people who have reached out to me to share resources regarding my eye condition and ways preserve my remaining eyesight. An example? Recently I posted a blog about wanting my eyesight.  Out of the blue I received a call from a woman who works for the Foundation for Fighting Blindness.  Her voice message made me cry.  “You don’t know me,” she said, “But I had to call you and offer my support.  I read your blog and if you are putting your intention out into the universe, then I’m answering your call. I want to help you and be the resource you need.”

Disclaimer: I don’t pretend to have all the answers and I’m not suggesting that the resources and information I share here are the only way to go. This is just how I did it and what worked for me.

The Indie Author Resource Guide Covers:

• Platform building
• Turning Manuscript into a Book
• Publishing eBook
• Publishing Paperback
• After Book Launch: Book Marketing

Download Indie Author Resource Guide

Nearly eight years ago I walked into an optometrist’s office for the first time in my life expecting to walk out with a cute pair of red cat-eye frames and instead learned I was going blind from a devastating degenerative eye disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa.

When I asked how to solve the problem, the eye doctor went silent. “I’m sorry, there is no cure,” he said finally. “There’s nothing that can be done for you right now.”

Since that time, I’ve been on my own determined quest to halt the progression of the disease. After a devastating follow-up appointment with a retinal specialist who repeated the “no cure” bit then scrawled down the phone number to The Center for the Blind and shoved it into my hand, I decided I was through with Western Medicine.

I’ve since researched every alternative therapy I could find and have tried everything from microcurrent stimulation to acupuncture to color therapy lamps, and still, my vision is fading.

A couple of weeks ago, after a four-year hiatus, I had an appointment with a new, kinder Retinal Specialist who at least had empathy for my situation-–but still no answers.

There has got to be a solution. Thanks to incredible medical advances, people who are HIV-positive can now look forward to long, fulfilling lives and animals of all sorts can be cloned. There has got to be a way to halt the loss of vision in those of us suffering from Retinitis Pigmentosa and other serious degenerative eye diseases.

I’ve got two young daughters and I want to see them grow up. I want to watch them score goals at their soccer and ice hockey games and I want to see them all dressed up as they head off to their first dances and dates. I want to enjoy candlelight dinners with my husband and I want to take in the beauty of the ocean inlets and mountains around me. I want to see myself when I look in the mirror each day and be lucky enough to watch wrinkles and grays take over as I grow old. I want to continue to see the words as I write them on my computer screen, and I want to walk through my neighborhood without aid.

I would love to drive again, a passion I had to give up several years ago. But I l can live without that. I just need to see.

So again, since my girlfriends tell me it’s all about making my intentions known, I’m putting it into the universe-–asking for a cure or a miracle or whatever it takes. Please help those of us with fast-fading vision to preserve and restore our eyesight. We want and need to see.