Today we talk about The waiting room, a book by Nella Papouskova published with our publishing house Europe Books.
Europe Books had the pleasure of interviewing the author Nella Papouskova to get to know her better, where she got the inspiration to write her book The waiting room and why she decided to talk about a serious matter such as mental health illnesses.
Below you can find our interview. Take a seat and enjoy your reading!!!
- Where did you find the inspiration to write this story?
I believe that every author has a different kind of inspiration to start writing their book, most of the time the inspiration comes from their personal life, something that they have experienced themselves or seen somebody else experience and that was the case for me too. I have had quite a few close people close to me struggle with mental health issues and I have seen how big of an impact it had on their life, their life choices and on the people around them, including me in this case. I have also had some family members struggle with their mental health but it was never talked about very openly, it almost seemed to me as a taboo topic in some instances. And that was why I wanted to write a book that shed some light on this to spread further awareness. Something else that also inspired me to write this book was the times we were living in during spring of 2020 and I wanted to create something that would remind me of how strange these times were.
- What message did you want to send out with your book?
The message I was trying to send out with this book was mainly spreading awareness about mental health issues. I wanted to shed some light on the different types of mental health problems and illnesses and how it affects everybody in very different ways. I also wanted to show how it affected the loved ones of the individuals who struggled with these problems and show the world that it was also incredibly hard for them to see their loved one struggling and not being able to do anything about it. I still believe that there is some sort of a stigma around mental health and many people don’t take it very seriously and frown upon it. But I believe that the more accepted it gets in our society the easier it will be for everybody – the ones struggling but also their close ones. People struggling won’t fear to reach out for health and thus get the help they need sooner which will ease their lives tremendously.
- What is your ideal audience?
When writing this book I didn’t have a very particular audience in mind, I believe that this book could be beneficial to anyone regardless of age, gender or occupation. I believe everyone should be aware and informed about this topic and be prepared to encounter it around them and be supportive. However, if I had to be specific I would probably say that it is more of a young adult novel just because I myself am in this age group so I cannot really speak for others. I have gotten a lot of feedback from people my age, women and male, as well as people from an older generation and I think that everyone can find something that speaks to them. Some people can find some of their character traits in one of the characters and even relate to them to a certain degree and some might just read it for the plot twist. But nevertheless also take the message that I was trying to convey from it. I believe that it is only up to the reader what they want to take away from it.
- How would you describe your writing style?
I believe my writing style is quite simple and straight-forward, I tried to make the writing make feel as natural as possible so it would seem as a conversation with somebody, or reading someone’s diary instead of and actual novel to make sure that the reader could really immerse himself into the story and be able to relate to the characters. I tried to make my story be a good mixture of description of the setting and characteristics and getting straight to the point of the plot. I believe that when a book includes many descriptive paragraphs the reader may sometimes get lost and confused and even forget about the plot he was reading in the first place. I tried to make my book short and sweet so that it could convey the message to as many people as possible, while still making sure to include traditional aspects of a novel. Something that I believe is very beneficial to pull in the reader and make sure he is still immersed in the story and paying attention is the frequent change of perspectives and characters, which keeps the reader hooked.
- Are you already working on a new book?
I started working on a new novel a couple months ago, but I am currently taking a break from writing, because I strongly believe that a writer’s mindset is very important when writing a new novel and that there has to be a certain harmony in one’s life to be able to produce such a thing. The creative mind has to wake up and the writer has to be completely focused on what he’s doing. Writing a book completely consumes your mind and you suddenly transport yourself into the plot and are constantly thinking about the characterisations and plot, because you are in a way creating a new world in your head, which completely consumes your creative mind. I love writing and I think that this definitely wasn’t my last boom but I want to be in the right head space and take my time to make sure that I will be happy with what I am producing.
Europe Books thanks the author Nella Papouskova once again for taking the time and answering our questions. We are really pleased to have walked alongside her on the editorial path that led to the publication of her book The waiting room. We wish her the best of luck for this novel and for her future works.
To you, my dear reader, I wish you to be moved by this mysterious and intriguing story and, at the same time, that it leaves you with useful reflections which can be of support in your everyday life.
So, my dear reader, all I have to say is to really enjoy your reading!
Your Editor!