Win a free copy of 'Living with Bipolar: An Australian Resource Guide'

Another day, another giveaway!

To celebrate the launch of the Kindle edition of Memoirs of a Misfit, I'm running a competition.

Although Memoirs of a Misfit is a work of fiction, it deals with strong mental health themes.  The idea behind this was not to glorify those, but to raise awareness of them.

So in the spirit of raising awareness of mental health issues, I'm giving away 10 copies of my ebook 'Living with Bipolar: An Australian Resource Guide'.

The book is an excellent guide for people who are diagnosed with bipolar disorder, those who live with or know somebody diagnosed with bipolar disorder, or simply for those who wish to know more about the disorder.

To enter the competition, all you have to do is:

1) Like my facebook page
2) Comment on the giveaway post and tell me one symptom of depression

That's all there is to it!


Winners will be randomly drawn once the competition has enough interest.

Using links to generate more traffic to your blog or website

The above image is a screenshot from the stats page of this blog.

Why is this of interest?

Because the second top traffic source, bucketlistingblog.com is another blog of mine.

Why is this interesting? 

Because, as you can probably tell by the URL, my blog about completing my bucket list has absolutely nothing to do with freelance writing, and yet it's now one of my top traffic sources, and as you may be able to just see on the image, it is now the reason this blog is actually starting to get traffic to it.

Using links is one of the easiest and most effective ways to generate page views and direct traffic where you want it to go. For the sake of this blog post, I'm going to assume that you write on more than one platform.  If you write exclusively for one website, I'll cover how you can back link in another post.

So how can you use your writing to direct traffic to where you want it?

Like this:

That is a screenshot from a post I have on bucketlistingblog.com.  You'll notice at the bottom of it is a signature which includes a link to my twitter account, and three links to sites I write on, including this one.

You've probably also noticed that in the tags, I've included my own name and pen name.  The reason for this is simple; it's to improve my search engine ranking, and to give people who do search my name the opportunity to stumble across my writing.  When they do, they see those links at the bottom of my posts, which directs them to other writing I've done.

I could go on for ages about why this is awesome, but to be honest with you, I don't need to.  The screenshots speak for themselves.  If you include links where ever you can (I am in the process of adding them to every blog post I have), it will direct traffic where you want it, and it's as simple as that.

Also, it's worth remembering that you're not limited in only linking to your blogs.  If you write on hubpages or squidoo, you can include links to hubs or lenses you've written.

Like this:

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Rebecca Millar is a freelance science writer, clinical innovation specialist, partner at SCG Innovation Institute, caffeine addicted serial blogger, self confessed geek and mother. Follow her on twitter here.

If you want to read more from Rebecca, why not check out:

Genetics of Huntington's Disease

Introduction to Counter Terrorism 

Forensic Handwriting Analysis

Win a free copy of Kindle edition Memoirs of a Misfit!

To celebrate the launch of the Kindle edition of Memoirs of a Misfit, I'm giving five people the chance to win a free copy! 

To enter the draw all you need to do is:

1) Like my facebook page

2) Comment on the page with "WYFD sent me"

3) Keep an eye on the page to see if you've won!

And as an added bonus:

Refer your friends for an extra chance to win!

To gain an extra entry to the competition all you need to do is:

1) Refer a friend to the facebook page

2) Have them comment with who sent them (ie: your name)

3) Keep an eye on the page to see if you've won

There is no limit to the number of friends you can refer, and each friend gives you an additional chance to win a copy of the book.

Winners will be randomly selected on January 17th.  Five copies of Memoirs of a Misfit (ebook version) will be awarded as prizes, one for each of the five competition winners.

Memoirs of a Misfit: new novel coming soon!

I'm proud to announce that I have just finished writing my first fiction novel, which will be released later in the year.  

Memoirs of a Misfit is the story of fifteen year old Giselle, set out in the form of a diary.  Giselle is given the diary to write in after she begins to see the school counsellor, and while she is reluctant at first, she soon begins to confide in the diary about her troubles at school, the difficult relationship with her mother, and the school bully who won't leave her alone and who seems determined to push Giselle to the edge.

"Even though I was reluctant to do this whole diary thing, I’m actually finding it quite enjoyable now.  I love writing in here, it’s kind of like having a friend I can talk to; one who won’t be nasty to me, or judge me, or tell me that I need to change."  

As the school year progresses, Giselle struggles to make sense of the bullying and why her own mother seems to hate her.

"Who knows?  And who cares really?  I’m so tired of all the energy I put into caring about all this crap, I just want a break from it."

As things get worse for Giselle she begins to withdraw from everybody and becomes more depressed.  The only way she can deal with the feelings her depression and self loathing evoke in her, is by finding a self destructive, and dangerous outlet for her emotions. 

"I try to be strong though.  It’s just such a fight, and I’m tired of fighting.  I’m tired of fighting with them (or them fighting with me, to be more accurate), and I’m tired of fighting with myself.  What they don’t know, is that I hate myself just as much as they hate me.  So they’re wasting their time; they don’t need to destroy me, I can easily destroy myself."

Raw, emotive and at times heartbreaking, Memoirs of a Misfit explores the emotions and thoughts so many teenagers deal with, but rarely want to admit to.  

Will Giselle ever be able to overcome her issues and find happiness?

More information coming soon!