Welcome to my all-things-books page.

 

At first, this was page only for my book work. Then I decided that it doesn’t make sense to have a page dedicated to my book alone since there is not much going on with my writing. Yet. Yes, I am still working on it, and I will keep posting updates but when there is something worth mentioning, which hasn’t happened in a while. In the meantime, I thought I’d still use this space for books but in a broader sense.

I am making this page about my love for books. I’ll write about what I read, what’s on my TBR list, what I review and I’ll share it all with you.

If you like any of it, please share your love too. I would also like to hear your thoughts, comments and ideas about what you read, write or just love.

So, make yourself comfortable, grab yourself a snack, coffee or wine and let’s read and share the love!

Book Reviews

 

Just recently, I started to review books for Online Book Club, and I opted for nonfiction. My interests are now more focused on personal development, social media marketing, blogging and writing and publishing, so I thought that reviewing books with similar subjects would be a practical way for me to combine business and pleasure. Also, I saw it as a right way for me to learn and an opportunity to dive into these areas and expand my online presence.

Publishing this review was another way for me to open a new door and extend my comfort zone to a new space. A space that I want to own but was nervous to step in and start conquering. The time was perfect and I use it. Yay me!

 

And Then I Met Margaret by Rob White Book Review

 

Rob White’s book was the first book I reviewed in it’s-going-public way, and I was soooo excited to post it. It’s not perfect, you’ll see, but I will be kind to myself and say that all I wanted to do is get it out there. It was a way for me to pass the threshold between talking about doing something and doing it.

And Then I Met Margaret is a quick and entertaining read that will make you reflect on the lessons we learn on our path of life and people that teach us those lessons. It got me thinking about unexpected gurus in my life and in what light I see people around me.

You can check out my full review at Online Book Club website.

If you like quick, motivational read with a self-help tone, where you can relate to myths Rob believed in and lessons he learnt, you can check it out here.

If you already read it, please share your thoughts with me.

 

Book Update #3

 

I failed. I failed miserably. The book was not out as planned by Christmas 2016.

No apologies, no excuses. I haven’t delivered and that’s it.

I have been setting up my own business since October and I will share more about it in the upcoming days. It is taking up a lot of my time and I am very happy I came across this opportunity but it gave me a chance to work with amazingly creative Ivana Radmanovac again. Yay!

I will not promise anything this time and will not schedule any timeline but will say only that I will keep posting updates on where I am with the book.

Thank you though for not being strict with me.

 

Book Update #2

 

 

For those of you who follow, you know that the working title of the book was In Extremis. A close friend of mine who worked with me on the book from the beginning which was almost three years ago came up with the title, I loved it and we were even contemplating on keeping it for publishing.

Then, I stopped writing for different reasons for about two years. Earlier this year, in March, when I decided to finish the book and thus wrap up the last six years of my life, I googled the title and a list of eight (?!), not one, not two but eight different books with the same title opened up before me.

At the time, Ivana was already working on the book cover and she came up with that beautiful first one, that is still my favourite, the white one with poppies that resemble blood stains around the gunshot wounds.

‘I have to change the title’, I said to Ivana and so the email exchange started. Ivana understood and was able to easily translate everything that I gave her into that beautiful cover that you can see now with the new title.

At the moment, there are 30 000 words in the manuscript and there will be about or up to 20 000 more. Updates on the writing to continue as writing continues…

How do you like the cover? Share your thoughts with me.

 

Book Update #1

 

It took a while, but it is finally here! The book update #1.

I was struggling with writing the update, but also the book, so I ended up more thinking than writing both. Then, on last Sunday morning, I decided to restructure the book and take some of the material out as it just didn’t fit in what I thought the book should be. I will keep it simpler and more focused on the trauma and post-trauma healing and thrive instead of spreading it to other subjects that, I think, are not as relevant to where I am now.

Plus, my concentration and focus are not even half of what they used to be, so I’d end up not writing for days. I took notes, I jotted down a thought or two, but I struggled with motivation too. I managed to gather myself around and with the part of the material that is taken out, I feel better and somehow mentally lighter and capable of continuing.

I don’t understand why it held me back and why I haven’t had the guts to just take out the parts that I thought shouldn’t be in, but now that I have, I feel more motivated to continue.

Maybe, the material that I left out can be used for some other story…

Next Update will be on September 29. It will contain the status of the draft, the final title and the final book cover. Woohoo!

 

 Book Update #0

It is my first, the book and the update, and it is a memoir about the trauma I went through back in 2010, that I mentioned in the posts Sharing the Scar, On Time Measuring, and about my road to healing to the point where I am today.

And it is hard to write it…

The first time I started to work on it was two years ago but now I know that I was not ready for it. I couldn’t tell how I wanted to structure it or what would the chapters be or not even how many of them will I have. My notes were not organised, I had them here and there, in two languages, some emailed to a friend of mine that was helping me – I was all over the place and it was a mess. I had a working title that is still my favourite and is still in use – and that was it.

This time, I have it all: the structure, the chapters, the whys and hows, but I am struggling with writing itself. I am working on more than one chapter at the time – a sentence that would probably make experienced writers cringe – because I cannot always write about the event itself or the immediate aftermath. It bothers me, it puts me in the mood that I don’t want to be in, especially with my kids around, so I choose the time or sometimes days to write on certain parts of the story.

Status: 28000 words, first draft

Timeline: Christmas 2016.

Working title: In Extremis.

Book cover by Ivana Radmanovac

Phew! I am very nervous about this sharing but Let’s see…