Book deal like hitting jackpot for Sabahan writer
FOR most writers, their greatest aspiration would be to land a book contract with a reputable publishing house and publishing a book that bears their name to be preserved for posterity.
For local author, Nova Renata Piusai, 33, it felt like hitting a jackpot.
Nova, who loves writing since age 10, said: “The first book I read was by Sarawakian author, Jamilah Morshidi entitled ‘Gadis Bernama Lina’. It was my cousin’s reading homework but I ended up reading it too.”
“I also remembered the book as being quite short, and not wanting to ‘let go’ of the story, I ended up writing my version of a sequel to my father’s Buku Catatan Harian book,” she added.
However, the writing dream eventually took a backseat, as she was soon exposed to the ‘Asian parent expectation’ of only wanting their children to become either a doctor, lawyer, engineer or accountant.
“I grappled with that thought for a long time,” Nova said.
“I didn’t want to be a disappointment to my dad, but at the same time, I just didn’t think I was the right smart to become a doctor, lawyer or engineer. I have always been more linguisticallyinclined, but in those days, being good at English only meant taking up TESL and becoming an English teacher. I didn’t want to teach, I wanted to write.”
She did, somehow, end up taking a degree course in Food Science and Nutrition in UMS and proceeded to work for two years as a lab assistant before deciding to go after her dream of becoming a writer.
She was a big believer that everyone is smart in their own special ways, and that it is their job to find out what it is and pursue it as passionately as possible.
Nova admits that it wasn’t all that easy when she first started, as 10 years ago, not many people realized the importance of great content and most clients she encountered as a freelancer often tried as hard as they could to get the job done as cheaply as possible.
“I even had a client tell me that they could get someone else write a 1,000-word article with pictures for only RM15.
“I immediately got up and told them to look for that person instead of wasting my time,” she laughed as she recalled the incident.
“It is an overused phrase and everyone from cosmetic companies to body-positive bloggers have utilized it tirelessly, but you have to know your worth if you’re going to be successful at anything.
“I think a lot of writers sell themselves short. I’ve never accepted a free job my whole life. I think it’s a surefire way not to get taken seriously,” said Nova, whose food and travel articles have graced both local and international publications.
Eventually, through sheer hardwork and dedication she finally got her big break when she was ‘found’ by MPH Editorial Consultant and fellow author, Oon Yeoh last year.
“Oon dropped me a message on LinkedIn and asked if I’d like to write a book,” said Nova.
“At first I thought it was a scam, as I am aware how hard it is to get published around here, especially when your career is barely a decade-old.”
Not someone to pass up random opportunities, Nova replied, “Yes, of course!” and the publishing contract arrived in the mail a week later. It was a dream come true.
“I was lucky that Oon just happened to be a former national Judo champion and, therefore, found potential in me when he found out that I also practise Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ),” said Nova.
“Oon suggested that I write something about BJJ, seeing that it’s still a fairly new martial art in Malaysia and that there are so few women taking part in it, and I just said ‘yes’,” she added.
Apart from having her dream realized as a published author, Nova said that her biggest satisfaction came from having the platform to speak and reach out to people, especially youngsters about following their dreams - be it writing, singing, acting, pottery, or just about anything considered to be unconventional by their parents.
“I recently had a chance to speak to a group of new students during Asian Tourism International College’s (ATIC) open day and all I talked about was how to follow your dream,” she said.
Nova added that she was so happy to see Sabah flourishing ever so creatively in the past few years.
“After uni, all me and my peers ever wanted was to get a stable government job, get married and have children. Nowadays, you see food trucks, artsy cafes, makeup academies and all sorts of creative things popping up, proving that you can be unconventional and still make a living.
“I think that if everyone is willing to live passionately, take chances and work hard, great things will happen. If you’re willing to seek, you will always find,” Nova added.
She started BJJ in March 2011 and received her Blue Belt in February 2013.
At that time, there were very few female practioners. In fact, she was the third female in Sabah to get Blue Belt.
Today, there are probably 10 already.
“To me, BJJ is considered one of the hardest martial arts to master, it takes up to 10 years to get a Black Belt.
“In Sabah itself, there is no BJJ Black yet. Only two brown belts, the highest ranked in the state,” she said.
Nova shared her story when she first picked up BJJ, there were so many people who discouraged her, saying that she should take up Zumba or stay at home.
Since some of her family members are ‘heavy’ with high blood pressure, some people even told her that it is normal for her to be heavy because it runs in her blood.
“I remember at one time, someone said, ‘You only do sport when Lee Chong Wei is almost retiring’, meaning that I was too late for BJJ because I was already 27 at that time.
“But I really wanted to prove that you should not see age, genetic predispositions or societal expectations as an obstacle.
“Although I’m not competitive, BJJ has eventually given me an opportunity I would otherwise have never encountered - writing this book,” she concluded.