Alex Fan Moniz - Journey of a Poet

London,England, February 25, 2016 (Newswire.com) - The author says: "I always thought that one day I'd like to publish a book and wrote bits and pieces of fiction, many poems, short-stories which almost invariably ended up in a drawer.

That thought never went away and after years of leaving it for "later", I felt something was missing in my life. It was one day, alone; whilst taking photographs and trekking the amazing Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve, in South Africa that a book idea defined itself in my mind. It wasn't an epiphany of sorts, more like a clear idea of how the book should look like. It took me a couple of years to find the time, and in 2013 my first book "Colours of South Africa" was launched.

The ocean and water in general often feature in Alex Fan Moniz writings be it poems, stories, song-lyrics. It tends to be a healing, soothing element.

Naomi Meyer, Lidnet

That was the beginning I think, as after that first ambition was achieved; I was ready to discover and explore my "writing world". It is a process of self-discovery, growth, liberation, enormous personal fulfillment. If I never get huge recognition as a poet it doesn't really matter. The exhilaration of creating books and being able to share them with others is the best feeling in the world".

Alex Fan Moniz books can be found on Amazon and other outlets, particularly in English-speaking and European countries.

He adds: "I am aware that poetry and short-stories are niche genres in literature and nowadays people don't buy from bookshops so much. The Internet opened countless possibilities for independent writers for instance, but it also made competition even more tremendous. I think unless you become really accomplished and famous, you won't be able to make a living as a writer."

His themes tend to be quite existential, philosophical, a lot of questions are asked in metaphors, other times his words and ideas are very precise, put in a very raw way; others in a mystical and sometimes dark style, like in the first book of his series "Journeys on the Underground and Beyond" where the author uses his personal lens to capture other travellers on London's public transport or writes about his own journeys.

When asked about his attraction to the sea: "The sea is a living, fascinating world. We are so focused on discovering the Universe, yet we know little about what lies beneath the water in our planet. I need water, swimming in it, listening to it. Maybe I was a fish in a previous life?" He says with a laughter.

His books are mainly in English. From his first publication "Colours of South Africa", the author incorporates other languages in his works. He spent months trying to find native Khoekhoe, Zulu and other poets who could translate some of his poems.

"The book already showed South Africa in images and text- he says, but I had to give a voice to my perception of such amazing places and peoples in some of their unique tongues. I couldn't have done that without local people who understood the message I was trying to convey".

Apart from English, he has written German, French, Italian and Latin songs also.
More recently, "Journeys on the Underground and Beyond" volume 2, is a bilingual English and Portuguese publication.                                                         His latest book "Die Skree van Stilte" is solely in Afrikaans. 

All books by Alex Fan Moniz can be found via AMAZON​

Additional Reviews can be found at:

http://www.lgbt.co.uk/leisure/journeys-on-theunderground-and-beyond-alex-fan-moniz.htm

http://www.litnet.co.za/die-skree-van-stilte-n-tweetalige-onderhoud/