By Mindy Luquiana Chicot
Wanda Octave is, by her own account, an inspirational writer by default. “You name it, everything I write somehow turns out to be inspirational,” she laughed. She’s also “serenity”; the type who believes in peace and pacing oneself. “Zen”.
“I believe in being creative and daring. I balance that, because even with being creative and daring, I believe in being centred, in being love, and being in the flow of things, at all times,” she said recently when Dazzle managed to sit her down for an interview. She has been working on a new book. “I’m working on Volume two of my first book, and I’m also writing a fiction novel.”
Wanda’s been inspiring people for as long as she can remember. Something about the heartfelt nature of her thoughts transmuted onto paper, has a contagious effect.
In 2013 Wanda released her first novel, My Life Interpreted. Her mission was to share how she discovered the keys to self fulfilment within her everyday experiences. She shares her passion for life within the pages of her book, documenting her experiences and giving an enlightened perspective in an effort to inspire others.
In an exclusive interview with Dazzle Magazine, Wanda recalled climbing the corporate ladder for 11 years, after studying marketing in London. She worked in the tourism sector for a total of six years, in real estate for three, and banking for another two years. In 2009, she stood at the summit of her achievements but felt drained and uninspired more than anything, and unexpectedly bored with the view.
“So I gave it up – the corporate, stressful, high powered life,” she said nonchalantly, “and decided to focus on my writing, my creativity, and things that actually brought me joy.”
She glided back to square one, propelled by the burning desire of a closeted passion. With clarity came the realisation that she could no longer mask her dissatisfaction with the perceived illusion of success, nor could she be appeased by writing just enough to quell her recurring need for self expression. As popular as it had become, not even Meditations From Soul Sister, the weekly newsletter that she’d started on the brink of the new millennium in an attempt to motivate friends on her mailing list, seemed satisfying enough. Wanda decided it was time to write her first book.
For publication purposes, she became a one-woman show, armed with determination and the desire to share the words her heart and soul told her needed to be heard. Discouraged momentarily by the difficulties she found in getting support locally, through the channels that are ‘supposedly developed to support local talent’, she decided to self-publish. She recounts having to deal with people who tried dissuading her from putting so much of her life into print. As with many other writers, for Wanda it was all about being authentic. What’s life to a writer if not inspiration for a tell all?
So far Wanda has sold over 600 copies of My Life Interpreted. “I believe in my book,” she said. “I believe it can change lives. I have seen it change lives. People also tell me all the time. This woman saw me in the supermarket some time ago and said, ‘Wanda Octave? I need to hug you …’ And she hugged me, and kept squeezing me. She told me how much of a difference my book had made in her life over the past two months. She’d bought it over Christmas and had read it twice. Things like that really touch me.”
In her day-to-day life, Wanda still makes time for small marketing projects and hasn’t completely given up on the world of real estate.
“I’m a writer. I like to own it … But I kinda have the best of both worlds,” she smiled. “I work a few days a week, in property management so I’m not totally out of touch. The rest of the time, I totally immerse myself in my words and my family. ”
Though she’s not one to hold herself to timelines, Wanda gave Dazzle a glimpse of her future.
“I see myself as a New York Times Bestseller on Oprah,” she said. “I see myself on Ellen. I see myself reaching all the traditional forms of ‘success’, although they are not completely necessary. I already feel that I am successful. The accolades are a bonus. I have said before that ‘my value as a woman is not tied to the amount of money that I earn.’ In the future, I see myself as a writer speaking with other young writers, encouraging them to be great and to be themselves. My advice will always be to never hold yourself to timelines. Set them by all means, but if goals are not achieved within a required timeframe, press on. Never be discouraged. Live your dream. Always”
My Life Interpreted is available at most major hotels in St Lucia, M&C Drugstores, and on Amazon, Amazon Kindle, ibooks, Nook Reader and Kobo Reader. The book is also available in bookstores in Barbados and Grenada. Visit mylifeinterpreted.com!
