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Kate's Cleavage
The Video
The Pitch
As a fiery young woman - with an actual written list of ambitions - my diagnosis of breast cancer at twenty-one and the following chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery jumbled my life into something almost unrecognisable. Now that cancer has become an integral part of my existence my dreams are endless; I want to achieve anything and everything. I have become a devoted collector of experiences and more than anything I am hungry, greedy and lustful for life. Every element of my journey so far - the psychological, the sexual, the physical and the familial have been poured into this precious chronicle. I have omitted nothing because I am unafraid of exposing the depths of my soul.
In my scuffle with death I sacrificed my right breast; something women of my age do not usually misplace. One of the many drives behind my need to compose Kate’s Cleavage was to fulfil the very human wish to make a mark, to live forever; to live far beyond the expiration dates of our meat suits. I hope that in writing down my journey that others will use it as a resource of strength, that they will learn more about themselves - and that they will ultimately understand much more about a disease which regretfully touches everyone’s lives. The first part of the book describes the actual process of what I went through in order to secure my survival, and the rest is dedicated to the many other elements of my life with cancer. I speak openly and frankly about the dilemmas of dating now I’m harbouring a hefty secret that will eventually have to be revealed to any prospective lover. I also deliver voices from other individuals who have experienced my cancer, from the men, the family members and the friends.
In investing in Kate’s Cleavage you are granting me the invaluable opportunity to express myself, to fulfil a very real lifetime ambition, and to champion a vibrant silver lining at the end of what has been the hardest year of my young life.
The Excerpt
As a sufficiently educated young woman the world was a juicy metaphorical oyster, albeit a fearsome and formidably large oyster, I was ready to take life by the reigns and begin my journey as a qualified adult. However, it appeared that my body, my right breast to be precise, had decided that stereotypical professionalism just wasn’t for me. On a beautiful spring morning on the fourth of May (pathetic fallacy fails to make a successful literary appearance at this point) at the tender age of twenty one I was diagnosed with grade three aggressive breast cancer. Yes, the two formidable words any woman of any age pleads with the big guy upstairs not to hear when gazing imploringly into the eyes of their doctor. Now I don’t wish to play the sympathy card at any point because suffering and pain appear in many forms and are always applicable to context, I merely wish to record my personal battle, both psychological and physical, against the big C. My battle doesn’t just involve the usual assault weapons against this unrelenting enemy; although I besieged my tumour with the recommended medical treatments and my precious tresses became a fatality in this scuffle, I targeted with unrelenting vigour a plan of action to retain my own unique sense of self which could so easily have been lost in the minefield that is breast cancer.
The Author
I grew up in a small town in Hertfordshire, England, where nothing much ever happened. It wasn’t until a week after my twenty-first birthday whilst I was in Reading completing the final year of an English Literature degree that my life became a little more epic. Having breast cancer at twenty-one is an extremely isolating experience so to combat this the day after my diagnosis I reached out to the world by videoing a very personal account of the beginning of my journey. Soon enough, some thirty-thousand people began viewing and following my video blogs on YouTube. Over the course of the year I received a dizzying amount of comments and emails from individuals thanking me for my videos, for the strength and courage I inspired in newly diagnosed women and from their family members who had sought and found advice. Kate’s Cleavage accompanies these videos but it delivers my journey in intense detail. Inside you will find every experience of the past year, the good the bad, the ugly and the bald.
You can find my video blogs on my YouTube channel here.
What you get when you support a book:
All supporters get their name printed in every edition of the book. All levels include the e-book and immediate access to the author's shed. Supporters of books that don't reach their target receive a FULL refund.
£10
DIGITAL
digital edition, access to the author's shed and your name in the back of the book
£20
HARDBACK
1st edition hardback (including free UK delivery)
e-book edition, access to the author's shed and your name in the back of the book
£50
SIGNED
Signed & personally dedicated 1st edition hardback (including free UK delivery)
e-book edition, access to the author's shed and your name in the back of the book
£75
LAUNCH PARTY
- 2 invites to launch party
- Signed & personally dedicated 1st edition hardback (including free UK delivery) e-book edition, access to the author's shed and your name in the back of the book
£100
TCT
- £50 donation to the Teenage Cancer Trust
- 2 invites to launch party
- Signed & personally dedicated 1st edition hardback (including free UK delivery) e-book edition, access to the author's shed and your name in the back of the book
