Hey, lovelies! It gives me great pleasure today to host Nino Gugunishvili and her new book, “You Will Have a Black Labrador”! For other stops on her Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.
Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $10 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!! Also, come back daily to interact with Nino and to increase your chances of winning!
This eBook is on available for FREE on Amazon Kindle Unlimited!!! See below for more details.
Thanks for stopping by! Wishing you lots of luck in this fabulous giveaway!
You Will Have a Black Labrador
by Nino Gugunishvili
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GENRE: Non-Fiction, Creative Non-Fiction, Essays, Short Stories
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BLURB:
Love, memories, family, enduring friendships, cooking, movies, dogs, travels, hairstyles, and saying Yes to many No’s in a witty, yet often sentimental, journey of self-discovery…
You Will Have a Black Labrador is a collection of semiautobiographical essays forming a narrative about a modern Georgian woman. Her stories range from the search for a perfect romantic partner to exploring food as an integral part of the Georgian culture. Many of the vignettes center on childhood memories or weird family traditions, such as the way family members stay connected no matter if they’re deceased or alive. One essay reveals how making a simple omelette can change your life; and that No can be the most powerful word in any language. She shows us, too, that a haircut can be a tribute to the movies you love as well as a path to your freedom; and how owning a dog always brings unexpected experiences. In this poignantly humourous collection, reality mixes and interferes with an imaginative world in so many surprising ways.
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EXCERPT ONE:
Whenever my mother tells me she had a dream seeing my grandmother, or my grandfather, my grandmother’s sister, my father, or my nanny, then recounts in detail what they talked about, I don’t think that she’s out of her mind.
I only become slightly more cautious. Sometimes I’m even angry, at them, for appearing in our dreams, and only just checking on us, not saying anything expectedly wise, not telling us the stories from their otherworldly experiences. Isn’t their mission to guide us through, spreading titbits of wisdom or any life-affirming messages around?
We’ve always lived together: Mom, Dad, my brother, me, my grandmother, and my nanny. There were two grandfathers I never met, because, sadly, they passed away long before I was born, but who nevertheless were always most actively present in our lives. ‘Never met in person’ would actually be more appropriate here. Their presence was strong through many photographs we had and lots of personal belongings. I remember my grandfather’s compass and a stopwatch and a cigar case my father kept in his study, and brought out from time to time.
The ‘till death do us part’ concept never worked in our case, since it seemed we were not parted by death from our relatives. Those who passed away stayed with us, talked to us, came in our dreams, and occasionally gave advice. There were no ghostly stories, ghost whisperers, or psychic readings involved...
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GUEST POST:
How to Hold Yourself Accountable:
When the first thrill and excitement of starting writing your book disappears, you come to realize that while writing is pleasurable and fun and can be exceptionally satisfying, still, most of the time, it can be very hard, demanding, and excruciating. It’s just you alone; no one is there to help you. Can you bear being alone for many days, weeks, months? Are you ready to ignore so many distractions around you and dedicate yourself to writing? Can you shield away from the social part of your life for an extended period? Can you not feel guilty for skipping writing even for a day? If yes is the answer to any of these questions, welcome aboard!
To tell you the truth, I may not be the best person to tell you how to stay focused or move forward and get to the finish line. I don’t have that superpower or a magic wand; on the contrary, I have some inner dragons and demons and self-doubts and insecurities of my own, and the battle is on the moment I start writing. What I’ve discovered, however, is that you can learn and get used to the discipline, that routine you’d prefer to follow. Just forget about what others are saying. Adjust it to your own needs. Do you write a paragraph a day? That’s great! That’s better than nothing at all. Have you written a very, very, very bad draft? That’s fantastic! You can always make it almost perfect while editing, re-editing, and polishing it again and again. In the first stages of writing, I think it’s helpful to just write, no matter how well or how badly. Send that noisy inner critic of yours to hell and beyond. Keep writing! Yes, it’s tiring, nerve-wracking, and exhausting, but remember what Maya Angelou said? – “ There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you…” And, there’s no greater joy than holding your own book in your hands. It makes you forget everything you’ve been through when writing it and makes you want to start over.
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AUTHOR BIO:
"You Will Have a Black Labrador" is Nino Gugunishvili’s recently released collection of short essays. She is also the author of a women’s fiction novel, Friday Evening, Eight O’Clock, published in English and Russian. She resides in Tbilisi, Georgia.
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CONNECT WITH NINO:
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/nino.gugunishvili
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/NinoGuguni
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/ngugunishvili
BookBub Author Page:
https://www.bookbub.com/authors/nino-gugunishvili
BookBub Book Page:
https://www.bookbub.com/books/you-will-have-a-black-labrador-by-nino-gugunishvili
Goodreads Author Page:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14276355.Nino_Gugunishvili
Goodreads Book Page:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49082288-you-will-have-a-black-labrador
Amazon Author Page:
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AMAZON BOOK BUY LINKS & BOOK SALE INFO:
**The You Will Have a Black Labrador eBook is available for FREE on Amazon Kindle Unlimited!!!**
Amazon Kindle eBook:
Amazon Paperback:
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
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