Starting to Write My Book – Dr. Plastic Picker
 

Starting to Write My Book

| Posted in Published: Getting My Words Out

Writing it on a word-document

October 3, 2021

by drplasticpicker

I went back to it yesterday. I have always wanted to write a book. I started a word document a few months ago, but the work with Rewild Mission Bay inspired me to go back to it. Andrew Meyer the conservation director for the San Diego Audubon Society had suggested we title our advocacy letter one of the local city councilpersons Paging Dr. XXX. For an advocacy letter, I thought it would not go over as well. Paging a physician who does not want to be paged about what they don’t see as an urgent matter, is not the best way to convince them. But it really did inspire me as I realized for non-medical people – it captures their imagination. Plus, at different presentations for the HMO Green Team, I’ve used the phrase “we are always on call for the earth.” And I do believe that.

But that’s pretty much what I’ve done. I’ve settled on a working title and acknowledgements, and thinking about it. I’m at bag #565 about, and it will probably take me two more years to get to #1000 personal bags. That works out perfectly because that is the summer I am planning on taking my well deserved sabbatical and go on my electric car tour around the country. In the craziness of medical training, I’ve never traveled cross country and that is one of the things I’ve always wanted to do. Since this blog has been about taking risks and trying new things, I figured I could do that while spreading my message about physician wellness and climate and health advocacy. Dr. Plastic Picker has always been the ultimate mulit-tasker. Getting exercise and cleaning the earth at the same time!

I have to have San Diego Pediatricians for Clean Air designated as an official non-profit with tax exempt status. I’m not even sure how much a book would make, but I just want to make enough to buy stethoscopes for all our premedical advocacy interns. We have nine interns now! They are really wonderful. I want to be able to buy them each a nice stethoscope when they matriculate to medical school from SDPCA and AAP-CA3. But it is getting expensive as I have more interns now! I figure the book sales can go to buying their stethoscopes and otherwise maybe fund a picnic for the children’s arts council, and maybe some Tshirts.

The book can’t be too long. People have very short attention spans. I think 150 pages is enough? What do you think? I’m going to stop by Barnes and Nobles and browse the Physician Wellness section and see about how long those books are. The blog has been a beautiful endeavor and I’ll try to repurpose some of my blog post, but it’s kind of all over the place. I think a book should have some kind of cohesion. I need to figure out my character arc. And I want to sprinkle in tons of local color. I’m pretty sure I can pull off a national book tour (at small independent book shops OF COURSE!) but I know for sure I can do a local tour of San Diego. The local tour would be the most important, because the entire point is to local climate and health advocacy.

That is it. I just wanted to let the blog readership know that I’m continuing to plug away at the climate work, but I’m not forgetting my dream about writing my book! Every Crimson University grad needs to write a book especially before the 25th class reunion. Especially since the idea for this all came during one of the sessions at our 20th class reunion!

Things I’m reading these days.
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