The enchanted moment when I saw my book for the very first time… with a touch of Twilight Zone due to having multiple copies of myself staring right back at me in high resolution 😉
An Over-The-Moon Author
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Monthly Archives: March 2016
Postal Marathon
This last week was a high-speed marathon involving serious family team work (and a pinch of drama):
The first 100 copies of Paralian arrived at my dad’s place in Germany beginning of the week.
Dad managed to organize stamps and boxes after battling rigid German postal authorities.
I spent hours (days really) soothing my slightly panicked and overstrained parent over Skype.
Then Hanna and I arrived yesterday to a perfect postal workshop set-up in Dad’s living room.
Turns out he even made a gadget out of a sponge and a butter tray to help us wet stamps.
Hanna and I rolled up those proverbial sleeves and proceeded to spend hours on the living room floor, postal paraphernalia spread out all around us.
Bocelli, Dad’s cat, watched over the boxes and made sure we packed them correctly.
Seven hours later all books were inscribed and packaged, ready to be sent out to the 100 amazing people who together donated over 10’000 USD towards Paralian.
At 1am we loaded the packages into Dad’s car to be mailed to every corner of the world after Easter.
2am saw Hanna and I driving back to Zurich… with me spending an hour slapping myself to avoid falling asleep at the wheel.
While Bocelli is most likely still guarding the odd box or two today, I’m home, feeling the aftermath of our postal marathon. I am flat on the couch, hardly moving a muscle, just breathing in and out… catching my breath and snuggling under several warm blankets. I’m a lucky guy.
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Don’t Wait…
Arrival in Paradise
A little taste of ‘Paralian’ from my time in the Maldives… Arrival in paradise…
“The staff accommodation set up was very amusing. I was reminded of Alcatraz as Judith showed me A-Block, B-Block, and C-Block as each small accumulation of staff rooms was called. My solitary confinement dwelling was located in C-Block, a long L-shaped building with many small doors, leading to very small rooms. Judith and her partner Rowan had secured an air conditioning unit for my little sanctuary. Some other people were bound to leave soon. I hoped to scrounge a few pieces of furniture and decorations from them. As I stood in the doorway of C-7 I realized that there wasn’t much need for decorations since there was hardly any space for them. Each of our rooms was about six square meters, with barely enough room to squeeze between the queen-sized bed, night table and wardrobe to reach the bathroom door.”
Launching on May 28, 2016! You can already preorder from Troubador, Amazon, Waterstones, WHSmith, and the Apple ibooks store.
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Paralian Finished Printing!
*** EXCITING NEWS *** Just heard from my publisher TODAY that Paralian has finished printing and a few copies are on their way to me!!! In about 2 weeks I’ll hold the real-life copy of my very first book in my hands. What a fabulous adventure!
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Pirouetting Dolphins
Here I am, drawing an island while working on the island. One of my many passions in turquoise paradise was guiding boats. On our way to wherever we were heading that day, I would draw each dive site briefing on a little chalk board while the fellow ocean enthusiasts I was guiding would watch my drawing progress with sparkling eyes and eager anticipation…
Happiness in a puff of chalk and a splash of water.
However, life on the island wasn’t all pirouetting dolphins, sunshine and margaritas. Even in the most magnificent of places, life can be tough when you are confined to a tiny pile of sand with a whole bunch of individuals, all of them (including you) experiencing bouts of island fever on a regular basis…
I wouldn’t want to miss any of it. It is so worth it (at least for me) to go out there, take risks, leave materialistic values and a safe existence behind. It’s invaluable to meet a whole bunch of people from all over the world and all kinds of backgrounds; to live and work with them, laugh with them, be annoyed by them, and experience cultures from the inside (not just as a visiting tourist in two-week-wonderland).
Throwing myself into all kinds of challenging life and work experiences abroad was one of the best things I ever did. I can’t even count how many times I was ready to rip my hair out or hijack a plane to get the hell out of there… but, I always persevered and never regretted it.
When I wrote my book, my four years as a diving instructor and hyperbaric chamber operator in the Maldives spanned four chapters. The life lessons I took away from these adventures were infinite. On the other hand, the very secure, comfortable job I held in Switzerland before heading out into the unknown barely added up to half a chapter in ‘Paralian’.
So I wonder about the wisdom of amassing materialistic wealth and security. I’d rather let go and explore the world together with my soul mate with wide-eyed curiosity and an open mind.
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Another Quote…
… this one a bit cheesy I know 😉 but true nonetheless 😀 Here some more words of wisdom by yours truly, “hot off the tweet” from my publisher:
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Come visit me on Goodreads!
Come visit my author profile on Goodreads! Maybe put Paralian on your virtual “want to read” shelf (only 2 1/2 more months and you’ll be able to put it on the physical one in your living room). Goodreads also has a designated space where you can ask questions (you can always ask me anything, here or there). And you can follow me there as well. I’d be honoured. As always thanks so much for your support. It means a lot!
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1st Quote
Ha! Got to post what my publisher just tweeted. First time ever I get to share a meaningful picture quote by……… myself. And in case you’re wondering, I’m chuckling happily while I’m hitting “enter”.
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Nothing Held Back
How I loved this job! Coaching performers, keeping them safe during the show, being a stage hand and stage manager underwater in one of the most visionary projects of all time. The best times were when I could prepare performers for their aquatic environment. I loved seeing them work during our training sessions. Their focus, dedication and support for each other were second to none.
My four years of being part of the “The House of Dancing Water” show family in Macau were life lived to the fullest. All in. Nothing held back. Steep learning curves. It was heaven and hell, Jekyll and Hyde, utter happiness and despair. I looked into the abyss and at the same time was mesmerised by the beauty, passion, and creativity all around me. Blood and tears, utter commitment, corporate politics, friendship, integrity, growth, dreams coming true (sometimes shattered), an abundance of hugs and kisses, standing ovations, and the overall emotional intensity of an earthquake magnitude 8 on the Richter Scale.
Liam Klenk 