A book about intergenerational trauma, guilt, love and heritage

Where The Shadows End is the new book by British-Nigerian novelist Louisa Bello who lives in Brighton – a book about intergenerational trauma, guilt, love and heritage.

It has been published by Epoque Press at £10.99.

Louisa, aged 49, said: “Where the Shadows End is Sam’s story, his journey, using his own beautiful, sometimes terrifying mind to guide him towards forgiving himself for the long-held, misplaced guilt over the death of his mother, a mind that also happens to hear and see voices which others can’t.

“And those voices can be friends or foes or even a nemesis.

“It’s a book about intergenerational trauma, guilt, love, heritage, identity, isolation, community, and, more importantly, finding empathy for our fellow humans. Hopefully, readers will enjoy it for its thoughtfulness, its humour, and ultimately its central message that there is more to us all than we know, and if we stopped and just listened to one another more, we could give kindness and love a chance to rule instead of hate.”

Louisa added: “I’ve been surrounded by voice hearers throughout my life – within my family, my friendships and past relationships. I’ve also met many people who have experienced forms of auditory and visual hallucinations at different moments in their lives, whether through grief, illness or even chemical experimentation in their youth.

“What struck me most was that no two experiences were ever the same, though everyone agrees there’s more to the mind than we know and there’s more to this universe than we know.

“Every person’s relationship with their voices was unique. People who live with voices –

whether clinically diagnosed or not, and many are neither diagnosed nor wish to be – can experience auditory and visual hallucinations that are sometimes frightening and deeply disruptive, but I have always been very aware of how heavily voice hearers are demonised in the media.

“Through research and conversation, I discovered a far broader reality. Voices can be supportive, kind, humorous, challenging or complex – as individual as the people who hear them.

“During a writing exercise, I wrote a short piece off the cuff, and the character of Sam simply appeared on the page. Around the same time, I'd watched the documentary Crazywise which explores how voice hearing is understood very differently across cultures around the world.

“I think Sam emerged as my mind’s way of asking questions about how we define, interpret and respond to voice hearing in our world. It begins with Sam on his way to meet his girlfriend, Boat Woman. He wants to ask her to marry him, but Boat Woman has other plans for him, as you’ll find out!

“I escaped into Sam’s world happily over the years. Writing was quite cathartic for me at certain points; it was also a good excuse to stay in, hide and hibernate. If I couldn’t sleep, I would grab my laptop and edit, redraft, or write anew. If I couldn’t think straight, I did the same. Sam helped me through a great deal of significant trauma. He never gave up on me. I actually feel quite bereft now I’ve released Sam into the world!

Louisa is a first-time author: “This novel has been ten years in the writing.

“I’ve always written in one form or another. I have a BA (Hons) in creative writing (1:1) and an MA in creative and life writing (distinction). Writing allows me to make sense of my own feelings and my thoughts. It allows me to express emotions I might otherwise bury. It’s incredibly cathartic and fun!”