Please state your name and location. (city and State or Province, Country)
Stella Vance, Ecuador
Tell us the title and publisher of your book:
Dancing with Duality: Confessions of a Free Spirit
Tell us about yourself:
Stella Vance is the author of Dancing with Duality: Confessions of a Free Spirit, a memoir dealing with a woman who faced eating disorders, divorce, betrayal, physical abuse, abortion, date rape, and more--but found that life is just a game and was able to move on, forgive, and celebrate life with its ups and downs.
When was the book released?:
Sept, 2011
Give us an overview of your book.
Dancing with Duality: Confessions of a Free Spirit
Betrayed at the age of 21 by the first love of her life, Stella Vance embarks on a life of fearless adventure. She travels the world, adding notches to her lipstick case with lovers from all over the world, and surviving harrowing experiences, including abuse, addiction, abortion, date rape, and cult involvement. Along the way, Stella undergoes a spiritual transformation. Once awakened to the reality of nonduality, she gradually realizes that life is just a game, that death is just another dimension, and that nothing “out there” can really hurt her.
This inspiring page-turning memoir begins in the 1970s, with Stella as a Christian zealot. Subsequently questioning all religious dogma, Stella’s mystical quests leads her to delve deeply into the realms of dreams, psychic readings, astrology, tantric yoga, reincarnation and her own past lives, the entheogen ketamine, Indian holy men and women, revolving-door relationships, the seeker culture of southern California, and finally, the ultimate path of Advaita Vedanta. At the same time, she deals with anorexia and bulimia, addictions to cigarettes, marijuana, and alcohol, unwanted pregnancies, teaching in public schools, the death of several loved ones, foreclosure, and emigrating to South America.
The life of Stella Vance embodies all the adventure, drama, romance, humor, and philosophy of a free spirit set loose in the ’70s and finding its way into the new millennium. Reading Dancing with Duality provides evidence that life is meant to provide entertainment, as well as to teach us how to be grateful, forgive, and heal from all its vagaries.
In the end, Stella’s free spirit journey takes her on the path to the ultimate freedom: freedom from the mind with all its fears, judgments, limiting beliefs, and worries.
|
|
|
What inspired you to write this book?
My mother always said I had an interesting life and should write my memoirs. When I read Eat, Pray, Love, I got inspired to do this. I like how she weaved in nonfiction and reflective essays, and I did the same to educate (not just entertain) the reader.
How is your book different from other books in this genre?
It’s my unique story which involves the confusion and excitement of being in the first generation of “sexually liberated” women, and the pain involved in making tough decisions. It also entails my spiritual quest and how I had to leave the traditional Christian dogma to go deeper spiritually. It entails world travels to Latin America, Europe and Asia, and dating men from all over the globe. It includes my experience with many women’s issues, such as abortion, date rape, sexual harassment, being in a physically abusive relationship, eating disorders, and more. Yet the tone is upbeat because I survive and thrive at the end, realizing that life is just a game, and I am able to forgive everyone—including the hardest to forgive, which is myself.
Where can people buy your book?
It can be purchased on amazon or ordered at stores, requesting
ISBN-10: 1466326654 or ISBN-13: 978-1466326651
Check it out on amazon.com here, with its Look Inside feature:
Are you working on another book? If so when do you expect it to be published?
At this point I am focused only on marketing.
If you self published, what advice can you give to fellow writers?
There has never in history been a better time to self publish! Sure, it is more prestigious to get a big name publisher backing your book. But that’s like winning the lottery, especially in today’s economy. The stigma of self-publishing is beginning to fade! Self-publishing is inexpensive with print-on-demand. And either way, you will have to do the marketing—so why not earn 30 to 70% of the profits instead of just a dollar a book? You will need to spend a few thousand dollars on getting the book edited, formatted, uploaded, as well as having a professional cover. But you will keep the copyright and the lion’s share of the profits. It is CRUCIAL, however, to get rid of the amateur look and have the book edited by a pro, and get a professionally done cover. People DO judge a book by its cover.
Can you share one of your marketing successes with us?
The first step is to get reviews, since most people will not buy a book that doesn’t have good reviews. Also no one wants to review an old book, so this needs to be done first. In two months I got 33 5-star reviews by spending three hours a day emailing sites and top amazon reviewers, offering a complimentary book in exchange for an honest review.
How did you find Allbooks Reviews and what are you hoping for in your relationship with us?
I plugged into google “book reviewers” and also used various other search engines. I am always thrilled to get a positive response. I find I may get only one or two per day after spending hours. It’s a numbers game.
Was the low cost a surprise? What other things would you like Allbooks Reviews to offer writers?The low price was a very big surprise and it is excellent value.
Thank you for this interview and best of luck with your book.
No comments:
Post a Comment