How did you
become a
Spiritist?
I was born in a
Catholic family
but at some
stage I began to
realize that I
was not happy
with some
concepts, mainly
with the idea of
heaven or hell.
After I shared
my views with a
colleague at
university, he
gave me as a
gift Allan
Kardec’s
Heaven and Hell.
When I read
that book, I
found the
coherence and
rationality I
was looking for
and began
studying
Spiritism.
What is the
impact that the
knowledge of
Spiritism has
had in your
inner self?
My life can
honestly be
divided between
before and after
Spiritism. In a
reference to the
great spiritual
benefactor,
Emmanuel, I
would say that
the knowledge of
the principles
of Spiritism has
woken up the
desire for
continuous
development,
even though we
know that that
is a very
difficult goal
to be achieved.
How has your
book been
received? How
did the planning
and writing
process began,
as it is not
clear whether it
was done by
automatic
writing (psycography)
or by
intuition?
It is not a
mediunimic book,
written through
automatic
writing. The
influence from
the Spiritual
World was
certainly there,
but I could not
feel it at a
conscious level.
The book was
born from my
desire to share
a story
involving my
mother, her
suffering with
the premature
loss of her
daughter and the
communications
from the spirit
world. That was
a story I had
the opportunity
to follow during
my life. The
book has had a
very positive
impact. I have
received
positive
feedback from
readers, sharing
their views and
experiences.
How did you
build the
structure of the
novel?
The original
plan was not to
have two
parallel stories
in alternate
chapters. This
change was
introduced when
the story, which
takes place in
the present, was
already well
advanced. I
needed then to
make a break in
the narrative
and restructure
the book to its
present format.
Once I decided
to structure the
book that way,
following my
intuition, the
writing process
flowed more
naturally and
quickly.
This is your
first book. How
did you feel
after it was
published?
Everything is
new to me. I
never imagined
that such a big
publishing house
as IDE would
embrace this
project. The
impact on the
regional
Spiritist
Movement has
been amazing.
And even the
non-Spiritist
media, including
legal
publications,
mentioned the
book. I have
realized that we
are now in the
“word of mouth”
phase, in which
people who have
read the book
recommend it to
others. The
feedback on
social media has
been very
positive.
Is there
anything else
you would like
to add?
It was very
gratifying to me
to be contacted
by someone I
didn’t know who
said that the
book demystified
his or her views
of Spiritism and
that he or she
would from then
on begin to look
into the
Teachings with
interest,
joining a local
Spiritist
Centre.
What would you
say about the
novel’s
characters, who
are so strong
and remarkable?
The book is
inspired in real
life events and
it tells real
life stories on
this world and
in the Spirit
World. I had the
opportunity to
live, albeit
briefly, with
the main
characters of
the novel. Their
stories are the
stories that
many people have
lived and that
is why they can
feel an empathy
with the
characters and
the plot.
Is there
anything else
you would like
to say?
I would like to
thank all of
those who,
directly or
indirectly, have
supported and
encouraged this
project,
especially my
wife, Ivangela.
Not only she was
very
understanding
with my absence
for prolonged
periods, when I
was writing the
book, but she
also played and
active part,
with
suggestions,
ideas and
criticism. The
book has the
humble aim of
giving some
comfort to the
families who
face the pain of
losing a dear
one. Even if I
fail to achieve
my goals, I can
share with my
readers the joy
of realizing a
dream, which was
writing the
book,
Segredos do
Tempo.