This is my 9th book! I have to pinch myself at that thought and fact. I finished the book end of September and then held back until 1st November to publish it as I haven’t previously published in November before.
I am very pleased with this book especially as it is a 31-day challenge I have led through my business and the content has appeared in my courses. Some of the content is different and some is similar to the challenge and courses so is fresh for all.
The dedication came to me for the final draft I think, however it is an obvious one.
‘In gratitude to all who encourage me to be self-compassionate.
For all who need a reminder that you are also worthy of compassion, after all we are all someone.’
‘We can’t practice compassion with other people if we can’t treat ourselves kindly’.
Brené Brown
I love all Brené Brown quotes and I searched specifically for self-compassion quotes rather than having one ready as I wanted to have a fresh one for the book rather than one I use in my sessions.
Here s the link to buy the book through Amazon if you would like to see and learn more.
My 8th book and 3rd travel book entitled ‘Travel A-Z rather than just A-B: A-Z of travel stories, tips, places and more’ was compiled and self-published on Kindle on 30th August 2023. It was completed in 8 and a half hours over 2 days. There will be a separate post perhaps on that statement if the moment takes me.
I am posting this post ahead of the excerpt as it falls now within the book dedications series of posts rather than breaking it up with an excerpt post, that can come next as although Book 9 is finished, it won’t be self-published until November which is the next month I am yet to publish in.
So the dedication for this book is:
‘To all who have travelled from A- Z with me over the years and the many experiences I have had, the countries I have visited and had the pleasure of living in. In gratitude to the strangers who became friends and family and who have created many more A-Zs with me and to those who are in my future travels.’
‘The World is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.’
Augustine
I wrote it after having finished the book orI should say it naturally wrote itself as it is clear that with any travel books I write from my experience, that the people involved have to hold the dedication.
The quote just fits the book completely as the world is a book. This book brings it into being and hopefully encourages you to turn the page, both in terms of reading the book and also in encouraging you to travel.
If you wish to check the book out then please click on the link below which will take you to Kindle.
My 7th book ‘Mindful Finances: 31 day challenge to help boost your earnings, understanding and financial attitude’ came as a surprise and just like the 6th one prevented me from writing the book I had already started to write. When that happens I have learnt to accept it and keep the other one on hold until it is ready again and it still hasn’t returned to me yet.
The Mindful finance challenge is something I have delivered both as a 31 day challenge and also as a 6/8 week course and know it works well.
The dedication came as I was writing and especially during the times we are in now (2023 when it was published in March) as lots of people are struggling and sometimes we can go into self-blame, guilt or shame for our financial situation. None of those feelings help us whereas realising how much we are doing our best can encourage us along any journey.
‘To all of you who are doing your best in these difficult times and simply wanting to get ahead or stay ahead. Keep going, you’re doing a fantastic job!’
If you want to check the book out, please do using this link to Amazon. The book is priced at £9.99 which will come back to you many times over if you can follow the challenge through to the end.
My 6th book ‘Journal through life’s journey: Always leave your footprints in the sand’ jumped ahead of another book which was already being written which is always an interesting process. I’ve learnt to just go with it as it is important for whatever reason in that moment so the best thing is to write the one that is calling you the loudest.
It was self-published on Kindle in February 2023 and contains well over 500 journal prompts. I loved compiling it all, writing and publishing it and that can be seen by the fact that it didn’t take long at all. I started end of December 2022, January was spent typing it up as I had written it as it felt right to do that first for a journalling book as that is how I journal and then I was able to self-publish at the start of February 2023.
The dedication came near the end of writing as it is dedicated to my dad who I wanted to dedicate a book to. My first book was dedicated to my mum and my nan who would have loved that 1st book’s content. I asked my dad from 2020 what type of book he would like to have dedicated to him and I would write it. No answer came and as the previous books either had a dedication ready or weren’t relevant to my dad, I waited and then I thought let’s just do it for the next book. So here we are:
For my pops, Peter George Laycock who inspired and encouraged my love of reading which has turned into so much more.
‘The more that you read,
The more things you will know.
The more that you learn,
The more places you will go’
Dr Seuss
The quote speaks for itself, I have called my dad ‘pops’ or a variation on that for years now so it felt right to include it in the dedication. I love the quote and speaks to my life, I have learnt and gone places in all senses of the words.
Here is the link if you wish to check it out on Amazon. It is priced at £9.99 which for 500+ prompts is a great price and there is an introduction to journaling as well as techniques and benefits shared.
This 5th book, ‘Mindfulness for NQTs: Strategies, techniques and practices for all who work with children and young people’ was self-published in September 2022. To be fair it came as a surprise although I had worked on Mindfulness for NQTs in blogs taking into account my teaching experience in the UK and abroad for years.
The dedication came easily enough as I was writing one day and I jotted it down on a piece of paper next to me and carried on with the day’s task. When you have been a teacher, you know all the hard work which goes into planning, delivering and assessing and then reviewing your lessons not to mention the interactions with students and other staff. I don’t believe anyone else understands that and to be honest, those who don’t teach your subject don’t understand what goes into your subject planning and delivering etc as every subject is different. Teachers deserve so much more money and recognition than they get whether that be from students, parents and/or the Government. They are most definitely superheroes and all school staff are.
‘This book is dedicated to all the teachers out there who are helping, encouraging, and supporting all students in reaching their full potential in education and in life.
Thank you for your service and all that you do!
Not all superheroes wear capes!’
If you are interested in checking this book out, it is very reasonably priced at £1.99 which will remain it’s price as I know that NQTs and teachers in general aren’t paid anywhere near enough! Here is the link for Amazon.
Buses, Trains but no planes: 23 countries and 45 places in 7 months took me a couple of years to write and self-publish which is partly due to COVID-19 which brought my travel to an end and also took my creativity.
It is my 2nd travel book with more having already followed and more lined up to write. In my mind, it was always going to be my 1st travel book, however another book jumped the queue and that was ‘We all walk our own Camino’ about my Camino de Santiago pilgrimage.
The dedication came much quicker than writing the book did and maybe I always knew who this one would be dedicated to. I think it speaks for itself and shows the impact Peter has had on my travel experiences in all stages. I have shared my travels with many people and they warrant the thanks I offer here too as although I travel solo for a lot of travels, the people I have met along the way have been a big part of those experiences.
‘For my good friend, Peter Coleman who for the past 30+ years has listened to my travel ideas, my travel stories, and my plans for more travel in an encouraging and supportive manner. He has throughout those years also inspired me with his travel stories and for his encouragement, support, and inspiration I will always be grateful.
Being able to talk about a huge part of who we are, is essential as it is what helps us belong more to ourselves and then to others. Thanks go to all who I have met along my journeys and shared moments with.’
‘You are only free when you realize you belong no place-
You belong every place –
No place at all.
The price is high.
The reward is great.’
Maya Angelou
For me, this Maya Angelou speaks of travel and all it offers. I certainly belong no place and therefore every place as I am always willing to adapt to what is needed and to immerse myself in all on offer. I belong to me and therefore I can go and be anywhere in this wonderful world.
If you are interested in taking a look at this book, here is the link to Amazon. It is very reasonably priced at £5.99.
My third book ‘Mindful walks to be in the present moment’ was self-published in April 2020. My business ‘Being the Best You Can Be’ officially started by delivering Mindful walks in Penzance, Cornwall, UK and other parts of Cornwall and Devon around October 2019. Mindful walks were in my mind and I was actively doing them and had been for years during my travels and work abroad. The idea of a book came more to me whilst I was staying in a lovely hotel with beautiful gardens in Guildford, Surrey, UK at the start of March 2020 whilst visiting my Godson and his family. I would walk the grounds every day and one day I was pulled to sit and write about the walks that kept coming to my mind and I also recorded some You Tube clips for my business channel ‘Being the Best You Can Be’ which I have continued to share on Facebook through and since the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown.
I originally called the book ‘Let’s take a walk’ or something similar and when I submitted it to Amazon Kindle, they rejected the title as they found it misleading. Somewhere in the book I use the expression ‘let’s take a walk’ and it is in reference to the previous title. This is so far the only time that has happened and I did find it difficult to find another title I liked ad the one I finally chose was probably a quick decision which hopefully still works well.
The dedication is important to me and I believe the content also reflects the pilgrimage I had walked and the book I had literally just self-published in January 2020 about my Camino de Santiago pilgrimage ‘ We all walk our own Camino’. As I have walked with lots of people in my life so far, on walks and in life in general, I love the dedication I came up with. During my stay in Guildford, I had walked around the grounds with my Godson and his family so he and his brothers are clearly included in the children part as well as those I have shared time with during my living and working abroad as well as in the UK. It is important who we choose to walk with in life as well as physical walks as they can make all the difference to how we feel and how we do.
‘With gratitude and in acknowledgement of all those who have walked with me, those who always walk with me and also to those who will find themselves walking beside me at some point in the future.
For all the children I am blessed to have in my life and my heart, I hope you will also know the wonder of walking through your journey and may you always find those who will brighten and lighten those walks.’
‘It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see’
Henry David Thoreau
‘Take my hand.
We will walk.
We will only walk.
We will enjoy our walk without
thinking of arriving anywhere’
Thich Nhat Hanh
Those poems and quotes are also chosen specifically for this dedication and again sum up how I feel about life as well as walks. As a Buddhist, that Thich Nhat Hanh poem speaks to my soul because let’s face it, it is never about arriving anywhere but the journey and that covers all aspects of my life as well as my travels.
If you are interested in reading more about Mindful walks then please check out the book on the link below. It is reasonably priced at £4.99 and contains a variety of walks you can take on your own and/ or with others.
My second book and first travel book ‘We all walk our own Camino: My pilgrimage from St Jean Pied de Port to Finisterre via Santiago’ was self-published January 2020. It came as a bit of a shock as my first travel book was meant to be the one about my European travels which I ended up publishing as my 4th book and 2nd travel book in the end.
I completed my pilgrimage April to May 2018 arriving at Finisterre, the end of the world on 23rd May, the 13th anniversary of my mum’s death. Along the way, I wrote blog posts for 2 of my blogs so the posts had slightly different themes. For this blog, the posts had a human, personal focus and the travel side was kept for the travel blog which at the time was the Travel Alphabet blog.
Therefore when I came to writing the book, it was a matter of compiling all the posts in the same document and making some changes and/or adding sections to make it fit a book format and also look at after the pilgrimage. I am very proud of the book.
When I wrote my first book, I did consider writing a Camino one, however it didn’t get off the ground for some reason. This all changed when I stayed in Barnstaple, Devon and went for a walk with a relatively new friend from my Mindfulness training course, Matt and his family. We ended up talking about my pilgrimage and the idea of writing a book which he completely encouraged and agreed that it could inspire/help others in life lessons as well as pilgrimage matters. Therefore the dedication is his as well as all fellow pilgrims and supporters.
The dedication is:
With gratitude to Matt who not only prompted the idea for this book through his interest in my Camino but also encouraged me in writing it. Never underestimate the power of a positive exchange of words, asking questions and listening to the answers, no matter how short that exchange is.
Thanks to all who supported me in my Camino, whether that was during my preparation, walking with me along the way, messaging and encouraging me throughout my journey and also asking me about it on my return.
‘Many people will walk in and out of your life, But only true friends will leave footprints in your heart’
Eleanor Roosevelt
‘It’s your road, and yours alone. Others may walk it with you, But no one can walk it for you.’
Rumi
I love including poems/quotes in the dedication section as often they can some up everything I am thinking or was thinking at the time of writing or doing the focus of the book. In terms of these poems/quotes, they resonated for the pilgrimage and also for me in life. I also love Rumi poems and quotes so please feel free to share your favourites with me.
If you are interested in reading about my pilgrimage whether that be as a fellow pilgrim or a fellow life-traveller then please feel free to click on the link below which will take you to the Amazon page where you can buy it from. It is very reasonably priced at £4.99 and will remain at this price now.
This page is sponsored by http://www.beingthebestyoucanbe.org encouraging and supporting all in living their authentic lives through courses, retreats and more. Check us out at the website above.
This next series will consist of 9 posts. I know this for sure as I have so far self-published 9 books at the time of writing this post which is 1st November 2023 and I have just self-published book 9 today. I have previously included excerpts of each book in blog posts and recently I was asked about the dedications and how they came about. Dedications are of course very special parts of book writing and book publishing and I have loved each one. Some dedications have been in my mind well before I’ve even started the book whereas others have come to mind during the writing process or even just before the publishing point. Some are therefore really personal and others are more general with perhaps a personal element involved.
My first book was self-published in October 2019 whilst I was in Penzance, Cornwall, UK. It is compiled of blog posts I had written or had been sent to my first blog beingthebestyoucanbeblog.wordpress.com (this blog).
When putting it all together I knew I would always keep it priced at 99p as it contains some wonderful encouragement, support, advice, tips and more which could potentially help people and I therefore wanted it to be accessible to all.
The dedication was always with me. My first book was always going to be dedicated to my mum and my nan who passed away in 2005 and 2010 respectively and therefore weren’t around to see the actual publishing of the book in 2019. They would have loved it by the way!
So the dedication was an easy one and came to me ahead of writing and then I happened to find the poem which summed up for me grief and loss and how we carry on with our lives always taking our loved ones with us.
For my nan and my mum who taught me how to live and walk through life with kindness and curiosity.
‘If there ever comes a day where we can’t be together,
Keep me in your heart,
I’ll stay there forever’
AA Milne, Winnie the Pooh
Maria Slack (1914 – 2010)
Marlene Laycock (1943 -2005)
So that’s book one covered. If you would like to check it out then here is the Amazon link to buy.
This page is sponsored by http://www.beingthebestyoucanbe.org encouraging and supporting all in living their authentic lives through courses, retreats and more. Check us out at the website above.
Choosing an excerpt from a book can often be a difficult process, however these 31 day challenges are very helpful in the sense of you have to start at the beginning so here is Day 1.
Before we start any challenge, it is always beneficial to take note of where we are starting from. A self-compassion challenge is no different in this respect as it is important to see how much you are doing already, are you doing it consistently or are you more, or less self-compassionate at certain times or during certain situations.
Let’s start with a relatively easy task. Here are some questions for you to take time to answer for yourself. You can’t answer for anyone else so if you are doing this challenge with someone else, let them come up with their own answers and don’t let them influence your responses.
What do you understand self-compassion to be?
How are you self-compassionate?
How are you not self-compassionate?
Are there areas in your life that you already know require improvement?
Imagine you are already at the end of this 31-day challenge, what do you want to feel, have learnt, experienced and anything else which springs to mind?
Take your time, you may wish to spread out the questions throughout the day or answer them all in one go. Be honest as only you will see these answers so there is no need to not be honest.
Enjoy!
If this has convinced you to check out the book more then please check out this link to buy it on Amazon Kindle.
Book lovers 