Journey to self-publication - Part 2: Why kleurvol?

As I have shared in Part 1 of my story, the book is about more than this love that found each other. A forbidden love, formed by two different colours. It stretched further and deeper than the love thought it could go. And it stretched hearts further than they thought they could be stretched. 

In case you didn't read my first blog post - here is a snippet:

"To fast-forward a bit to the reason I wrote my first book. And the rollercoaster ride I was on getting to where it is today. I fell in love and my whole world changed. This love was different to any other, it challenged me and taught me what I truly believed. Which was against what I was taught. I chose to run with this love, and sacrifice a part of me that I no longer recognise. You see, this love was unwanted as it did not 'look' like the love you would normally find in my world. And that is why I chose to change my world to the one I wanted to be part of. 

In order to understand the above, you need to know a bit more details. The love I chose consisted of two different colours, which was not accepted and lead to the loss of many relationships. It lead to very harsh conversations, hard words spoken and uncomfortable physical encounters. And in return, produced a book. But this book is not about the hardships and adversity only, no, you need to understand the circumstances in order to appreciate the outcome. The book revealed something so much stronger - hope. Years later, still with lots of rejection, but also, lots of acceptance, hope emerged from this love. And I can't share anymore as you would have to read this book."

This story is very close to my heart. It's a story where hope brings different colours to a world that wasn't quite ready for this love. A story where two unlikely worlds collided and brought disruption. This love shines light on history, identity, pain, confusion, acceptance, unconditional love and ultimately - hope. Hope that is kleurvol, with different elements of colour. 

I also wanted to share what could be hard for some to read, but is necessary to hear. This is a difficult subject around some tables, and around others, it is not welcome at all. It brings about tough emotions to deal with, also questions about how we really think. You sometimes go through life thinking everything is as it should be. Then this type of love comes over your path, and your whole world, your people and everything you thought you believed in, comes to a standstil. 

There are also parts of the book that may catch you off guard, with different stories of diverse perspectives. Things don't always look the way you see it - your opinion and experiences can be different, but it is important to know all the sides of stories in order to question the depth of your own heart. 

All our stories together bring a complicated outcome, with a simple end goal. 

Without spoiling the book, the most important thing that can come out of this, and I hope it will bring this feeling back in you, is:

The goal of the words that fall on your heart, will hopefully restore hope in you again. 

This Afrikaans poetry book will be available on various platforms soon - the excitement is getting real!