The Forbidden Word . . .

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By Kirsten Nour Namskau

I wrote my book “Tell Me Who I Am” in 2002. I had not sent it to many Mainstream Publishers before the manuscript got banned by the Norwegian authorities.
The contains of the book was not in the favor of Norway. . .
I got the message “accidental” by someone who “talked” too much or slipped in the choice of words, may say that the manuscript was banned.

The contains of the book is authentic. You don’t have to believe it, it is the truth anyway.
Because of the ban, I had only one chance to publish the book and that was through a funded Publisher.
That means; I have to pay by myself for the 2000 first copies. About $8000,- (4600,- Sterling Pound)
I found Athena Press, UK and wrote them a letter where I sent a parcel of a chapter. I told them that the manuscript was banned at the Mainstream Publisher.

They accepted to publish the book to the price mentioned above.

Now . . . For those of you who already have read the book, you know that I had to give up everything of belongings. Material belongings as well did I loose all my money, bank accounts, properties, houses, and apartments I had around the world. Even movables, jewelleries and clothes were taken away from me.
I was deprived work-permit in Norway as well as all juridical rights. All lawyers in Norway were told not to support me in any juridical claims.
This itself is against “The Humans Rights” But when all Norwegian lawyers was told not to help me, I could not even get a lawyer to bring the case to the court of Human Rights.

Because of all this, when I left the country as refugee and found myself settling in Egypt, more and less in exile, I now live from hand to mouth. I have my small work and a close friend of mine offered me one of his flats to a decent rent in an area the Egyptian themselves look at as “the poor peoples village”. For me, it is "paradise".

My work keeps me living, but it should take 4 years before a friend from Denmark offered to sponsor the publishing of the book. Since I knew that I never actually would be able to finance it.
It takes about one year before I can expect any income of sale, and maybe it doesn’t sell that well neither.

It is not that I expect to become a best-seller, but I hoped I would sell enough to let me retire with a peace of mind.

After I came to Egypt, the Norwegian embassy and authorities have several times tried to “get to me” and several very embarrassing situations have occurred in the process. (Embarrassing for the Norwegian embassy and the Norwegian authorities. For me it has been in favor, since the situations have proofed the truth of my stories.)

My book had been on the marked only 4 weeks when I got a message from one of the biggest Russian Publisher for the sole right to translate the book to Russian.
The book is deliberately written in a way so it should be easy for whoever authority to find out if the stories is true or not.
The Russian Publisher did that investigation and got to know far more than what I had written about. Through ways, I learned to know that they even had found witnesses I never dared to count on.
But they did one mistake . . . They contacted the Norwegian Embassy.

I think it is by no coincidence that suddenly, everyone who had contact with me got fired from the Publisher and the translation process was put on freeze.

I have been asked, from several directions, to write the second book. Some with specific interest in certain events they know has happened in my life.

The book is now finish and I contacted Athena Press if they were interested in the next book too. They said that they certainly were.

But again, I meet the same problem . . . I don’t have the money to Publish it.

Therefore am I now going out in public and I ask you; “Can you help me to publish my book?”

If you can, please contact me through e-mail. You find it in my profile. Or send me an off-line message on my "giggle" on this page, with your e-mail address.

It is only one way that I can receive money, to ensure the money reach me.

Since years of torture, my days are counted. The injuries in my body do not get better by age . . . they get worse. I do not get younger and healthier.
It is only me that know and feel how the injuries are changing character.
That is why I never count on another day, another month or year.

I can wait a year and see if I have earned enough money from my first book to publish the next . . . But will I live so long???