The Overlife Is A Best-Seller And What My Next Novel Says About Schizophrenia

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What if a person’s greatest insights came during their darkest hours? Join me, Diana Dirkby, as I celebrate a major milestone—my book "The Overlife: A Tale of Schizophrenia" has become a bestseller on Amazon Kindle! I'll share exclusive details on where you can purchase this powerful story and highlight the unique experience offered by the audiobook version, narrated by the talented Wendy Moman. Plus, get an exciting sneak peek at my upcoming novel, "Three Kidnapped, Three Siblings, Three Furies," featuring Isabel Morse, a brilliant scholar of Greek myths who is also living with schizophrenia. Dive into the complex world of sibling abuse and uncover how Isabel’s expertise becomes instrumental in solving a series of kidnappings in the town of Vraboro.
But that’s not all—this episode goes beyond fiction to address real-world challenges of engaging with severe mental illness. By sharing Isabel’s story, we explore the importance of empathy and understanding when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis. I open up about my personal frustrations and the struggles of separating one’s identity from their illness. We emphasize that contributions made during a relapse can still be meaningful, highlighting the critical need for patience and compassion. Tune in to gain deeper insights into the lives of those living with mental health conditions and learn how we can all foster a more empathetic world.
#DianaDirkby #TheOverlife #A TaleofSchizophrenia #Schizophrenia #MentalIllness #FamilyDynamics #CaregiverBurden #Resilience #Hope #MentalHealthAwareness #MentalHealthStigma #Strength #Love #Compassion #SecondChance #Transformation #Fiction #MentalHealthPortrayal #FamilyStruggles #EmotionalTurmoil #PoignantStory #GrippingNarrative #UnforgettableCharacters #MustReadBook

Pastime With Good Company by King Henry VIII, played by The Chestnut Brass Company 

Pastime With Good Company, composed by King Henry VIII, played by The Chestnut Brass Company

Episode Transcript

Diana Dirkby (00:00):
Hello, my name is Diana Dirkby and I live with
paranoid schizophrenia.
You are listening to my podcast, Schizophrenia as I Live it.
Last week, my book, theOverlife A Tale of Schizophrenia
, by Diana Dirkby achievedbestseller status for a Kindle

(00:21):
book on amazon.
com and was named best inFiction about People with
Disabilities.
You can see more about it on myInstagram at
diana_dirkby_writings, andTwitter account at DianaDirkby.
This is a milestone for thebook.
The book is available on KindleUnlimited, which offers free

(00:44):
access to those with an account.
The Kindle version is a stealfor those without an account at
only $9.99.
The paperback version is alsoreasonably priced, at $34.99 on
Amazon and a discounted $29.50on my website at
overliveschizophrenia.

(01:04):
com.
It's processed there throughIngramSpark.
The Audible audiobook costs$19.95.
However, the Audible app offersa free trial, so you can enjoy
it for free, even if you havethe Kindle or paperback version.
The audiobook is a uniqueexperience.

(01:27):
The narrator, Wendy Mo man,brings the book to life with her
deep understanding of it.
She is Australian and narrateswith an Australian accent,
adding a touch of authenticityto the setting.
Whether you multitask or preferto sit back and listen, the
audiobook is a great addition toyour reading experience.

(01:50):
Meanwhile, work on myforthcoming novel, Three
Kidnapped, Three Siblings, ThreeFuries, continues.
The book is near publicationand I'm reviewing the final
draft.
Although the main subject ofthe book is sibling abuse, one
of the central characters isIsabel Morse, a classics scholar
whose speciality is the GreekMyths and who lives with

(02:13):
schizophrenia.
Therefore, even though the bookis very different from the
Overlife, I intend to discuss itin this podcast, since I, the
author, live with schizophreniaand so does Isabel.
We will devote some otherepisodes to the problematic
topic of sibling abuse, which isrelevant to this novel.

(02:36):
Let's say a few words about thecharacter Isabel Morse in Three
Kidnapped, Three Siblings, ThreeFuries.
The book is set in Vrayboro, afictional place in East Texas
with about 5,000 inhabitants.
It opens with the kidnapping ofthree teens from three separate
families under eerie conditions.
The ransom notes and amputatedbody parts of the teens that

(02:59):
show up at their parents' doordrive the story to horror and
suspense.
Isabel is 35, single, and worksfrom home for an online
university.
She writes material for theirclasses on the classics and
grades exams.
Her specialty and passion arethe Greek myths, but she is

(03:25):
interested in all beliefs.
For about five years she hashad a firm friendship with the
55-year-old Catholic priest,Father Louis.
Her friendship with FatherLouis began when Isabel attended
one of his sermons in theCatholic Church.
Isabel is not religious, butword had spread about how
excellent Father Lewis's sermonswere, so she went to one out of

(03:49):
curiosity.
After the sermon, father Lewisand Isabel struck up a
conversation in which Isabelconfided that she lived with
schizophrenia.
Even though her schizophreniahad been well managed for some
time with therapy and medicationusing gifted local doctors, she
was still the victim of stigmafrom some of the residents of

(04:11):
Vrayboro.
She was, in fact, quite lonely.
Father Lewis assured her hewould be her friend, even though
she wasn't Catholic.
He was still there if sheneeded to talk, and the
conversation need not be aboutmental health.
That began a friendship thatlasted a lifetime.
Stigma against Isabel from othercharacters in the book does

(04:34):
arise, but that doesn't drivethe plot.
Isabel Morse and Father Lewisare the two characters who have
the most influence on the actionin the novel.
Rather than write, as I did forSarah in The Overlife, about
Isabel's path from untreatedschizophrenia to managed
schizophrenia with the help ofgood doctors in Vrayboro, we

(04:58):
take up Isabel's story when herschizophrenia symptoms are well
under control.
She still has to avoid stresstriggering her schizophrenia,
and faces stigma because shelives with this brain disorder.
However, there is a great dealto her life that has nothing to
do with mental illness and thatfeatures prominently in the

(05:19):
novel.
Isabel herself feels thatliving with schizophrenia and
studying Greek myths and otherbelief systems has given her the
ability to entertainassumptions that many people
would dismiss because they don'tsound like everyday reality.
The problem is that, due tostigma, others often reject her

(05:41):
good ideas.
Father Lewis always takes themseriously, and this friendship
with Isabel is one of the keysto unlocking the origin of the
horror and suspense in the story.
When Isabel and Father Lewismeet to talk about the
kidnapping of the teens, Isabelimpresses on Father Lewis that
aspects of the kidnappings thathave come to light are a

(06:05):
horrific mystery when viewedstraight on.
She suggests that viewing theevents in another context may be
necessary to understand what isgoing on and thereby help to
recover the kidnapped teens.
She points out that thekidnapping's emerging details
echo some Greek myths, so thatcontext may be relevant.

(06:26):
Father Lewis is initiallyskeptical.
There are several ways to viewwhat is transpiring in the
horror in Vrayboro, but he wouldnot think that any Greek myth
was relevant.
As the book unfolds, a ransomnote left on the parents'
doorsteps reveals that thekidnappers identify themselves

(06:48):
as the Three Furies, or ThreeErynes from the Greek myths.
Considering the alternatereality of the Greek myths then
becomes a must, and the bestperson to help is Isabel Morse,
who, as always, has the backingof Father Lewis, despite his
reservations about alternatereality.

(07:09):
The Three Furies punishwrongdoing, and it turns out
that the wrongdoing is siblingabuse.
But by whom, to whom?
There is a message here forpeople engaging with someone
fighting a severe mental illness, like schizophrenia.
As alarming as the symptoms canbe for the consumer of mental

(07:32):
health, i.
e.
the person living with a mentalillness, and the witnesses of a
mental health crisis, noteverything is rubbish in the
mind of a mentally ill personwho is struggling.
In Isabel's case, hercontributions to the horror of
Vrayboro could also have beenmade while she was undergoing a
relapse of her mental illness.

(07:52):
They are part of how she is -sick or well.
I know how frustrating it canbe to try to convey to others
what is my mental illness andwhat about me and what I say has
nothing to do with it.
Please remember that a mentalhealth crisis needs to be met

(08:13):
with patience, sympathy and roomfor what is not the mental
illness.
Thank you for listening.