How to Glitter a Turd

 At 22, I was unknowingly in the pursuit of finding myself. 

 I was living in the shadows of my happy and successful twin sister, and trying to break free from a dysfunctional relationship that made me feel worthless.

In short, I was totally normal. 

When I discovered a lump in my boob and was subsequently told that it was not only cancer, but also incurable, life took on a completely new meaning. I was diagnosed at an age when life wasn’t something to be grateful for, but a goddamn right. Your twenties are supposed to be the years when you become who you’re meant to be.

Little did I know it was cancer that would lead me to a life I had never considered: a Happy One.

What was having a terminal cancer diagnosis like?

Does it diminish the value of life when we know it’s so easy to live it?

What if, with the help of science, we start to lose our sense of mortality entirely?

Will that stop us from grabbing life by the proverbial horns and also make dying all the more petrifying and unexpected?

Those are some questions I want to explore and I think I have started to explore for the last eleven years. Through it, I am not ‘fighting’ or ‘battling’ the disease itself, it’s often the narrative around the disease I have to conquer. When I was diagnosed with the turd that is cancer, I found how to navigate my way through it, not really ever knowing how or why, only knowing I had to.

I want to show that when something as horrific as cancer comes knocking at your door, you might just ask it in for tea and a chat to find out why it came in the first place. Even when cancer's equally ugly mate, depression, divorce, death or any other such creatures come waltzing in, you may just, (after reading this book) have the tools to deal with them.
Let’s face it, there are thousands of books about health struggles and many have written about their experience with cancer. But this isn’t just another cancer memoir, this is a tool for those that find themselves in all kinds of life pickles. And we all have them. Whether it’s a relationship breakup or a cancer diagnosis, life can be a bit shit for us all and that is NORMAL. In those times, we look for light at the end of the tunnel, maybe some guidance, maybe some friendly advice, perhaps some hope, maybe a bottle of wine, perhaps a promise that it WILL get better. Potentially none of the above.

This will shine a new perspective on survival. I have survived the unsurvivable for 11 years and I am slowly discovering why. It’s my discoveries that can help the most ordinary of people, with the most normal life problems, learn from a normal girl with an extraordinary story. In doing so, I want to take away the very conditioned fear that has been instilled in us all from the word ‘cancer’.

I can guess what you’re thinking: Another book from someone who’s been slapped with the unlucky stick, trying to make sense of it all, coming out the other side a better person. Believe it or not, this isn't another book about how tragedy gives a life meaning. This isn’t a how-to manual about how to reach life’s spiritual epiphany. In fact, I don’t pretend to be any different from anyone else who has been told they have cancer/ something equally shit. This book is an education, a revelation, the product of a ridiculous life and whatever the hell you want it to be! It needs to be written now because time is of the essence. My luck will run out and cancer will prevent me from doing things I love. I don’t particularly love writing, but this book needs to be written. This book might give you the motivation to appreciate your own life, it might make you realise you are doing just fine, and if needed, it might give you a kick up the bum. But my hope is, when shit hits your fan, you too can grab the glitter.

_{This design is for illustrative purposes only and is subject to change after crowdfunding}

ABOUT THE BOOK

• B format [160 x 240mm] 
• Hardback book 
• ~ 280 pages
• Colour plate section; full colour images

This book is fuelled by Extract Coffee