This is the title of Moon Metcalf's 1st book publication…

Published by Dog Ear Publishing. c. 2017 original ISBN: 978-1-4575-5721-7

About the Book

At some level we all walk in “glass slippers”, but when mental illness strikes it can make one so vulnerable and fragile in ways most of us cannot imagine. In Glass Slippers, the author explains her struggles with mental health issues, including downfalls and triumphs, in a way that helps the reader understand internal conflicts for those afflicted with emotional and mental health challenges in a more meaningful way.

Life in her small community on an island in the State of Washington has helped to bring peace in adjusting to society, and having a fulfilled life with her husband and pets. It has also driven her to a new appreciation for faith, while establishing strong friendships. Follow along on her journey as she lays out her personal story in a blogstyle format to document days in the life of someone growing in self-awareness and coping with hardships to achieve a productive and rewarding existence .

 About the Author 

“Precious stones are made under immense pressure within the earth among much darkness. I relate, as I have gone through extreme conditions to become all that I am today. This deep synthesis has added to my creative process. I am an artist by make and design. I play music, paint colorful abs tract art, and write poetry, fiction and nonfiction.” 

Emily Metcalf lives on Lopez Island in the San Juan Islands in the State of Washington. She struggles with the diagnosis of Schizoaffective Disorder (Bipolar Disorder with psychosis), and living in these islands has helped greatly.

One of her goals is to expand awareness and resources for mental health consumers in her small community. Right now, she is sharing her writing and reaching out to friends in the small but important ways one can.

She resides with her husband, Steve, and their cats and dogs.

My Official Review from the Writer’s Digest 27th Annual Self-Published Book Awards :

Entry Title: Glass Slippers: A Journey of Mental Illness
Author: Emily LeClair Metcalf
Judge Number: 28
Entry Category: Inspirational

● Books are evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 meaning “needs improvement” and 5 meaning “outstanding”.

Structure, Organization, and Pacing: 5
Spelling, Punctuation, and Grammar: 5
Production Quality and Cover Design: 5
Plot and Story Appeal: 5
Character Appeal and Development: 5
Voice and Writing Style: 5

Judge’s Commentary*:

‘Don’t wear your glass slippers to the rodeo’ is an excellent way for the author to share her mantra and values as the story opens. The imagery contains plenty of sensory descriptions to bring that vision more to life, and we get so many sensations from it: the absurdity of glass slippers in that environment, the fragility, shine, sounds of each step and more. A great basket of details and realism from this one image. Well done. We also get a sense of the author’s humor.
The term ‘gifted sufferers’ is a standout! Again, we get many layers of experience from it. I love this phrase for its fresh description of a universal situation. Nicely done!
Excellent list of symptoms on page 3, providing so many connection points and relatability topics that normalize manic behavior. We find our similarities here, and us relating to this author. Well done. ‘I am gifted…I need a shield. I need protection’ deepens our empathy, and we feel for the author, as we are able to feel how overlapped her pride and despair can be. We’re getting so much depth here, and feeling so much.
Some gorgeous descriptive moments: ‘petals floating through the sky’ is just one example of the descriptively-rich world-building we encounter. ‘A smoky and shimmery veil.’ That’s beautiful. We can feel the weight of her thinking about her feelings, talking about her feelings, focused on her feelings. It’s her mental illness doing that, we realized, hoping for her peace and a break from all of this self-assessment and explanation. Her mind, when able to step clear of the assessments, is able to absorb better feelings when she is not ‘at work.’ We hope for this freedom for her, engaged as we are in our empathy toward her.
Author has structured a powerful exploration of her inner world through excellent organization, duration of scenes, pace and rhythm, and her gentle writing voice. We feel so much in this book, and we’re inspired by the author’s generous sharing of her thoughts and poetry. She has that her gifts are creative, and we’re happy to see that she knows them as gifts. Well done.

-“Judge, 27th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards.”