Temporary Beauty:
A Memoir about Panic Disorder and Finding Purpose through Art and Meditation
Book Release on April 14, 2024!
If you follow me on any social media, you know that I’m planning to release my first book soon! I’ve spent the last 4 years working tirelessly to make it absolutely perfect before it’s debut into the world. Temporary Beauty is a memoir about my personal experience with Panic Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder, alongside my journey with art and spirituality. While my idea for the book technically began in 2008, it wasn’t until 2020 that I truly sat down and began forming it into a reality. Back in 2008. it was all too fresh and overwhelming - I wasn’t ready to share my experience with the world yet. But during the pandemic, I found myself with time to spare and I knew that if I didn’t sit down and write it then, I never would. I ended up taking an online writing workshop with my friend, Renee (she runs a small business called Write for Joy), and she helped me to structure my days and actually get the words onto the page. By the end of the workshop, I’d written over 160,000 words for my book. However, I quickly learned that it was just too long for the standard book-making industry. I forced myself to scale back, focus on the message and eliminate unnecessary length. The book is now right around 90,000 words and is all the better for it. I’ve learned so much while working on this project. The world of writing is entirely different than anything I’ve ever experienced and I truly respect anyone who has taken the time and energy to full understand the industry. The main takeaway for me was this:
If I wanted full creative control over my book, I’d have to self-publish it.
As a photographer and artist, the idea of someone else telling me what my cover should look like made me crazy. Not to mention, the editing that would go along with it. I wanted my message to be fully mine.
I honestly couldn’t be more proud of myself for how hard I’ve worked on this. I’ve poured every last bit of my heart and soul into it. I’ve never spent this much time or creative energy on a project in my life. Temporary Beauty represents everything about me that I’ve always been too afraid to share. It’s essentially all of my deepest, darkest secrets wrapped up in a nice little bow. I’m extremely nervous about it, if we’re being real! But I know that this book has a much larger message than just me. It’s about the reality of dealing with a mental health disorder. It’s about the expectations of society on women and artists. It’s about finding your own spiritual path. It’s about pushing yourself to your ultimate limit. It’s about being brutally honest, even when it hurts. It’s about family, love and human existence.
I hope that you’ll consider reading it.
I’ll be sure to make a blog post about it once it’s officially available for purchase on April 14th!
See you then.
<3 Myles Katherine
