A Life Singular by Lorraine Pestell


"A Life Singular" is a six-part serial by Lorraine Pestell, a British Australian currently living in Melbourne, Victoria. She is a longstanding sufferer of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, with all its associated symptoms, and is hoping that her books will broaden the understanding of mental illness through the universal appeal of a love story set in the sparkling world of celebrity.

Part One, released in June 2013, tells the story of a successful showbusiness star and philanthropist who has risen above childhood abuse and his own mental scars to enjoy great fame and fortune. When the love of his life is murdered by a rogue gunman, he decides to write his autobiography.  Part One starts the journey back through his spectacular life.

Lorraine seeks to attract readers from all age-groups and walks of life. Her goals for the serial are: first, to inspire fellow sufferers of mental illness to triumph over their symptoms; and second, to encourage non-sufferers to tolerate, support and even love us in our efforts to life a 'normal' life.

A recent review illustrates this perfectly:  “There is a so much happening in what is a beautiful story about life and love. Even more appealing than your typical love story is how the author has embedded into the storyline some of the more difficult social questions that we often avoid, making it more intellectual than your typical love story.”

The original story running through all six "A Life Singular" books has been under development for over 35 years, with most of the hard graft in the last 5 years. Part Two was released in December 2013, with the aim of producing the remaining parts at six-monthly intervals. By releasing the final part at the end of 2015, the story will end in contemporary times.

Each part is inspired by a classic European novel, Part One's being "La Rabouilleuse" ("The Black Sheep") by Honoré de Balzac.  Growing up in London, with the diversity of Europe on her doorstep, Lorraine brings her love of languages and cultures into her writing, and hence when titling the serial, opted to put the adjective after the noun, as in most Latin-based languages.  The books are about a life. Everyone has a life. It's the type of life which makes it significant. A Life Singular:  one, unique, extraordinary.

Many of the author’s own experiences served to shape this novel, having struggled to persevere through depression and suicidal tendencies.  One of her greatest pleasures while writing was to set particular scenes in some of the places she has lived, especially showcasing Melbourne, Australia, for its diverse population and multitude of arts, music and sporting communities.

The whole serial spans a period of almost fifty years, which has resulted in an interesting exercise  in retrospection in terms of technology, particularly for Lorraine, who is an IT professional by day.  “A Life Singular - Part One” is set in 1996, when mobile telephones were becoming popular, text messaging was in its infancy and DVDs were in the process of replacing video cassettes.  The phenomenon of cameras in ‘phones was only just beginning to impact celebrities, who up until that point had been able to limit their exposure to the paparazzi.

Lorraine continues to derive considerable energy from the process of writing this serial.  Along with her 14-year-old dog and volunteering her time for non-profit organisations, she credits the ability to finally publish this story with keeping her alive.  It is her sincere hope that these books will help others in her position to make a success of their lives and help us all to exist more harmoniously with different kinds of people.”