Help Marios publish his novel for his wife, Zoe

Help me FINALLY finish my novel I wrote in my spare time for my wife for the past 6 years

In June 2013, I met a beautiful girl called Zoe and on our third time meeting each other, I asked her if we could date. She said yes! At the time, I was 25 years old and working in the construction industry in South Africa. Work took precedence in the early days, and after having to spend a year apart on other sides of the country, we knew we needed to do something different or risk losing each other.

 

So in 2015, we did what was for us at the time, the unthinkable. We quit our jobs and bought a one-way ticket to India. Here, we hoped to go on an adventure together and learn a little more about each other on the way. We had very little saved as it was a last-minute decision. “But that would push us out of our comfort zone!” Zoe thought.

 

And boy, was she right.

 

Over the course of a year, we traversed 30 000kms (almost) all overland with every mode of transport conceivable, from India, through Pakistan, China, Mongolia, Laos, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia and finally Australia. Along the way, we overcame incredible challenges and had to learn to work as a team as we struggled to find our feet in this ancient and foreign world.

Somewhere between being chefs in the deserts of Rajasthan, getting detained in China for carrying a book written by the Dalai Lama, shepherding in Mongolia, sailing across the Visayan sea, and getting deported from Indonesia, I grappled with a recurring sense of purposelessness. But later realised that this was just the prelude to a long life ahead. With the help of fascinating friends we met along the way, I had a ring made and proposed to her before heading home.

 

After the journey, I was never the same again. It was difficult returning to normal life after having experienced all those things. Having kept a diary throughout the trip, I decided to write a book about the adventure. I hoped to share all the emotions I kept bottled up leading up to the proposal with Zoe and internally process all that had happened.

 

Nobody told me how much work was involved in writing a book. After 6 years on and off and having redone it three times, I have finally finished my manuscript. After many nights crippled over my laptop, I felt I needed to do the story justice and self-publish it. I was excited to hear positive feedback from an editor but then hit my final hurdle.

 

“I’ve carried out a sample edit of the first few pages of Part One, and must

admit that I think this carries the potential for a far wider readership

than only the person it is essentially written for. The writing is

colourful, lively, tight and engaging, and I think many people will relate

to this - especially those caught in cushy jobs whose hearts desire

something different - of which there are many!

 

What I am trying to say is that in my opinion the author has done a great

job here, and it would be a pleasure to quote on polishing this and bringing

it up to publishing potential. The downside however has to do with the

length of the manuscript, meaning that even at a discounted rate relative to

what I would typically charge for this level of editing (which I suspect

will also require developmental editing in places), the cost could feel

prohibitive.”

 

So I am reaching out to friends, family and strangers alike to help me with this last push to raise the money needed to edit and publish the book to finally bring the story to the world.

 

The cost of editing is done on a per word basis and is estimated at 10 000 SEK.

 

While self-publishing is quoted at 15 000 SEK and includes cover design, formatting and publishing into E-book and hardcover format.

 

If you are interested in a copy please get in touch and once published I will happily make it available! If you are sending money from inside South Africa you are also welcome to send it directly to my SA bank account by EFT if you wish. 

bank: FNB
Cheque account no. 62401634432
branch code 250655

 

Thank you for your support!