Today I’m asking Annie Pateman 5 questions about her new book!
1. What’s the name of your latest book – and how hard was it to pick a title?
The name of the book is The Strength Within – it was my second choice. My first choice just didn’t sit right (actually, I can’t remember what the title was – quite unmemorable and glad that I changed it)
The Strength Within came to me and just felt right – I think it creates a curiosity factor for the reader to discover the story and how they can build their own strength within themselves not in the physical sense, but the emotional and mental strength.
2. If you could choose anyone from any time period, who would you cast in the film of your life?
This question was asked of me recently. In my early years, Ellen Page – as a young actor I thought her performance in Juno as a pregnant teenager was stunning; how she handled the emotionally charged situation she was in, initially deciding to have an abortion and then changing her mind to go through with the pregnancy and put the baby up for adoption and how she responds to the adults around her.
For my later years, Sigrid Thornton, one of the best actors in Australia – love her in everything she does movies, TV, theatre – from The Man from Snowy River to Seachange.
3. What five words best describe your story?
Enthralling, Riveting Inspirational, Uplifting, Amazing (these are comments from my readers)
4. Who is your favourite real life team/couple?
I would have to say my daughter Jessica, and son-in-law, Sean, because they have given us two beautiful grandsons. Even though they live in NSW, they bring me joy and inspire me every day.
5. What song reflects a theme, character, relationship or scene in your book?
Well actually this decision was made for me – I have a chapter where I talk about meeting my husband and I called him my Knight in Shining armour – one of my readers reviews referred to the song “The Knight in Rusty Armour” by Peter and Gordon. Which I think is quite apt for that scene.
About The Strength Within
I am a 3 times cancer survivor, about to celebrate my 40th anniversary after diagnosis in 1st April 1980. This memoir includes my diagnosis and thereafter.
The Strength Within does not dwell on the disease ,but how I overcame it and the strategies I used. It is a story of overcoming challenges, adversity and building resilience with a dash of humour and the historical events that I lived through, understanding all the while that there is always light at the end of the tunnel, with a message of hope. It is directed not necessarily to cancer sufferers, but anyone who is facing adversity and challenges.
Buy The Strength Within
Amazon USAbout Anne Pateman
I migrated to Australia as a two and a half year old child with my parents and sister from Paris, France. The Strength Within, a memoir, is my debut book. It was a slow process taking me 11 years to write and now is available for you to enjoy.
I am now retired, and in my working life I was an executive assistant; my last workplace was at Monash University. Being a child of the 60’s and 70’s my book covers these eras to some degree with references to the political situations and times that I lived through such as the swinging 60’s and the Vietnam war. The 80’s brings to the table the trauma of being diagnosed with cancer at the age of 26 whilst pregnant and the circumstances surrounding it which changed my life as I knew it and how I dealt with these changes. I am enjoying this new chapter in my life as an author.
Social Media
So many book launches and author talks have had to be cancelled, I’ve decided to run as many Quintettes as I can to share some great upcoming work – and let you stock up on things to read while we’re all self-isolating.