#SpecialFeature :: #GuestPost - The Chandelier of the World by Ivan Sivec

*** Special Feature - April 2016 ***

The Chandelier of the World

Naturally, in order to be a good writer you have to keep your mind busy by reading, thinking and planning out drafts in order to merge all your ideas together into one organic whole – your work of art! However, I am a firm believer that not only your mind has to be nourished; your body has to be challenged too! Physical activity is an important prerequisite for writing. I spend a lot of time in nature, by myself, as solitude is the ultimate inspiration for a writer. 

I find peace in my soul in the mountains like nowhere else. I am very lucky to be able to call the foothills of the Slovenian Alps my home. I hike almost every day. I have hiked up the highest Slovenian peaks. I climbed Mt. Triglav – our highest mountain (2.864 m / 9,396 ft) nine times. That was the source for my poems and songs about my love for nature and the mountains, a world you can only connect with on a purely intuitive level. 

Mt. Triglav

As a teenager I loved the novels by Jules Verne. They were probably one of the most important reasons why I started writing in the first place. His novels have shown me a new dimension – travelling without moving! 

A few years ago, inspired by Verne’s science fantasy novel From the Earth to the Moon, I climbed the ‘White Mountain’ – Mont Blanc (4.810 m / 15,777 ft). This is the closest I ever felt connected to the mighty Universe. As I reached the peak exactly at sunrise, after hours of a challenging climb, I felt like I was the only person left in this world and I could speak to the nature using a universal language. 

I had Verne’s novel in my backpack. And in that moment I felt like I could really touch the Lunar craters. I shed tears of exhaustion hiking up and tears of joy hiking down. It was a truly magical experience. I think that day I touched The Chandelier of the World.

Touching the Chandelier of the World

About the Book

It takes three mistakes to be swallowed up and spat out by the fashion industry. You trust the wrong people. You think you know everything there is to know about life. You take drugs. Maja started off as a regular 17-year-old high-school kid, fighting her inner insecurities while dreaming to become an actress like Marilyn Monroe. At a party her boyfriend Klemen introduces her to a renowned modelling agent. He sees a special X Factor hidden insight her. And a great business opportunity for himself... Fast forward a few weeks later. Maja's charm and talent land her a modelling contract in the trendy and exciting fashion capital of Milan. She's completely enchanted and determined to make it in the fashion world. But things don't turn out the way she had planned. Exhausting long photo shoots, stressful fashion shows, strict dieting and wild parties start taking their toll on her soon enough. In desperate search for help Maja reaches out to her agent and other false friends from the fashion industry that emotionally and physically exploit her to the point where 'Maja the Great' is merely a shadow of her former self. She starts battling drug addiction that ends up in a tragic event. Maja has been finally swallowed up and spit out by the fashion industry with its endless traps. What price will the girl with the X Factor have to pay for her naivety?

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About the Author

Ivan Sivec is a writer, poet and publicist from Slovenia, Europe. People say he is ‘a man with a hundred stories’ and he has been sharing them with his audience, both young and mature, for over four decades now. He is listed under the top five Slovenian bestselling authors.

In his rich and thriving career he has written in many genres. As a poet he has written more than 2,500 lyrics for ethnic and entertaining music for which he received several awards. His broad prosaic ‘repertoire’ includes biographies, historical, psychological and adventure novels, travelogues, youth book series, picture books as well as humorous stories. To this date he published over 130 books and is considered to be one of the most popular Slovenian authors.

His particular interest goes to psychological novels on issues teenagers face today, especially topics like suicide, drug addiction, adoption, AIDS...  He shares true stories to let the young reader know they’re not alone.

Sivec devotes his free time to his wife of 44 years, their two children and three grandchildren. Since his retirement a decade ago he enjoys his days hiking the Alpine peaks (he is especially proud to have conquered the tallest mountain in Europe, the French Mont Blanc (4,810 m/ 15,771 ft), together with his daughter-in-law Tina). When he is not gathering inspiration from the mountains he is soaking in the tranquility of the Mediterranean Sea with his wife.  Nature is his source of creativity. It allows Ivan to gather his thoughts and pour them onto paper.

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