Unlike fiction, a memoir requires a different writing tone that is both honest and compelling. Not everything that is true can be interesting, so a writer who wishes to pen an autobiography needs to tell the truth in a way that will tug at readers’ imagination.
Xlibris author Sejla Grahovic has made a bold attempt at writing her life story narrating how at a young age she witnessed the horrors of the Bosnian war in the early 90s. The Bosnian author, along with her parents, moved to the US after the war, in hopes of living a better life. Her book While You Played I Ran comes out almost two decades after the post-World War II conflict.
Recognizing the creative hard work of our Xlibris talents and helping them spread the word, the Xlibris Blog welcomes Sejla and her debut book.
About Xlibris Author Sejla Grahovic
My name is Sejla Grahovic. I was born in Bosnia, in a small town called Velika Kladuša, on November 19, 1984. I immigrated with my family from Bosnia to America in 1998 due to the Bosnian war. I had written a manuscript about my experience and put it aside for a long time.
As years went by, more and more American citizens were becoming my close friends and many Bosnians immigrated to the states. My friends were then curious about the influx of Bosnians in a number of US cities. With that thought, I wrote a story that could answer all those questions. I then started my search for a publisher and came across Xlibris. The Xlibris team welcomed me so well that I felt I already achieved my dream.
People write for many reasons, and some take the next step and publish. I decided to publish my book “While You Played I Ran” for many reasons. I wrote this book for me and my family. Life takes you so far and some things get left out and forgotten. I wanted my children to know where I am from and the reason why I immigrated to the US. Although the war only had a little impact on my journey, it changed me significantly. Sometimes life isn’t fair, but we go on living. What else can we do?
All authors have the desire that readers will like and buy their books. My book should be a good and easy read. It talks about one family who survived a war. I’ve lived through extraordinary times. I’ve witnessed the torture of people—of wounded people and children among dead bodies. I’ve watched people get killed in front of me. I’ve been with innocent people when very important events were taking place, so I’ve chosen to write about these issues that confronted my life. For many years, I had only kept them inside my head and dealt with them the best way I could, and now it’s all up to you to read my book. My hope is that the society change with regard to how we treat one another and how we judge people without even getting to know them first.
What she learned from publishing with Xlibris
Xlibris’ supported self-publishing services come to the rescue of writers who want to share their works to the world. Xlibris promises to publish your book in a few months and this sounds realistic and believable. When I sent them the manual script, the Xlibris team had always been in contact with me via email. I have read bad reviews and was scared at first, but then I gave it another thought and accepted that life will always have positive and negative things, so I went ahead with Xlibris. Got to start somewhere. As this was my first time to publish, I was a little frightened. I had so many questions about the whole process. I’ve never considered myself a complainer nor a quitter. I researched about self-publishing companies and finally singled out Xlibris. Their representative Gina Vasquez, who was a very good salesperson, convinced me to give it a go. Everything she said sounded promising, and after more research, I agreed and submitted my manuscript.
More of Sejla, her book, and her publishing journey are revealed on the second part of her Xlibris blog.
Draw inspiration in writing your first book from our featured Xlibris authors here on the Xlibris Blog and the Xlibris Indie Authors Roundup.
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