To think about writing a book around my crazy life?!

Well, my mum published a book where she fictionally killed off her abusive husband in a car accident, and had to act all griefstruck whilst actually being free and happy at last.

So I can't pretend it doesn't happen... But if you want to write it, don't do it to get published, or even because some else would say they'd read it. Write it because you enjoy writing and want to write this book for you.

My book series is a little of an awkward fit for publication, plus I can't be bothered with the hoop jumping, but writing it has changed my life.

Came on to say exactly this. It’s usually in response to someone who is a bit full on regarding the “drama” in their life. I mean, why do your colleagues even know so
much about your personal life? Be honest - do you talk a lot about it at work?

Honestly?

It's been done. Look at Colleen Hoover. Do you have something new to add to an overloaded genre?

Second. You are really sharing a lot of very personal details with your coworkers. You might want to rethink that.

It’s very very hard for an unknown writer to be paid to write and publish a book. I’d suggest you do it for the pleasure and interest of the process, join a writing group or maybe a memoir course, and se how it goes. Good luck.

Sorry, that doesn't sound too enthralling. Painful and damaging yes, but not something that you could create a full book from, unless there is a phenomenal twist. If you could turn it into a novel rather than an autobiography then that would be better. Autobiographies from unknowns rarely make it to the bookshelves.

You need to post on the aspiring writers topic. If you want to write it, do so. It will be cathartic and better than scrolling through your phone. Whether it has any literary value we cannot judge - but if you like to write and you feel this story welling up then I say commit it to paper!!!!

First and foremost, well done for getting out of an abusive relationship.

From your title I expected you to have run away as a child to be a lion tamer in a travelling circus or be a serial bigamist or something, you know, crazy. I’m really not a fan of trauma porn style books and a story about a narcissistic ex and controlling in-laws sounds like a very depressing read.

Writing can be extremely therapeutic though so it might be worthwhile doing as part of your healing process.

‘Feesable’?

You’re a copywriter with an English degree?
Really?

There‘s no reason why not. It doesn’t sound very unique in that I’ve been through the same and more as have many but if you take writing as a character (for instance like Shuggie Bain, which is autobiographical but is not sold as that) then if it is well written people will buy it. Please don’t make it like A Little Life though! Avoid misery porn if you can!

X post, thank goodness! I thought I was being really weird!

Indeed! 😂

Whatever you do end up doing OP at least make sure you have spellcheck turned on! 😁

Am I the only one that interprets 'you should write a book' as changing the subject and they're not particularly interested?! On a couple of occasions people have said it to me and I've definitely thought they meant 'put it in a book if you want to tell people about this, because I'm bored of hearing about it'

Lots of people do it. If you would enjoy the process, why not try? Even if it never led to publication it might be a therapeutic exercise!

Ha!

OP I hate to break it to you but in my experience (of a quite difficult/shocking early life) when people say "you should write a book" (which they used to a lot when I was much younger/less guarded) they don't really mean they'd be interested in reading it, they mean they don't believe what you're telling them to be true because it's so far outside their own frame of reference and they don't know how else to get you to stop talking. I figured out by about age 19 that it wasn't a compliment, it was a sign that I've overshared, and I stopped doing it accordingly.
The market is absolutely oversaturated with these kind of books and they don't "raise awareness" or warn anyone about anything because they don't reach the people who need the message, they reach Take A Break readers who are the core audience.

This.

It sounds as though it might be good for you to write the book, and if you fictionalise it you will have more leeway to make it appealing to a wide readership.

You could read The Salt Path to see how someone has fictionalised personal hardship into a blockbuster. 😉

Once it's written, then think about agents etc.

and recently managed to escape a very narcissistic ex and horrendous marriage, full of control, emotional issues etc.

In order to be noticed, you re going to have to do something outside of the ordinary. Or have an extraordinary life.

As previous posters have said, everybody has a narcissistic ex these days. Just go on to the relationship forum alone and see for yourself.

I'm not a fan of controlling relationship and escape stories. I find them depressing and also distressing. To each their own, but it's not something I'd want to read and the market is saturated with this kind of thing. There are so many movies and books already about bad relationships.

I think you should write if you want to, and would enjoy doing it.

Honest opinion though, is everyone (or a lot of people at least!) thinks their life is crazy/special/out of the ordinary - it’s like main character syndrome; when in reality it’s not really the case and others wouldn’t really be interested.

I think you’d need a decent USP for it to stand out in a sea of other books covering the same topic.

FWIW, I’ve been approached several times about writing a book. My ex husband and his friend killed a man in front of me and were subsequently convicted of 2nd degree murder. We lost custody of our newborn baby and I was deported from the country. All this before I turned 23. There have been multiple documentaries made about the case, and it was headline news consistently for the best part of a year.

That’s a much better idea.