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.