Originally from the former Soviet Union, Janna Yeshanova escaped in 1989 when persecution became violent during the crumbling of the Soviet state. This required getting permission to emigrate and a long dangerous train trip across central Europe with her elderly mother, her young daughter, and the $126 she was permitted to take out of the country. She did this by overcoming gridlock in Russia, animosity and graft at the border, and neglect in the west. Safely out of Soviet control, Janna and her family spent months as refugees waiting for permission to come to the United States.
Arriving in the United States knowing not a soul, Janna settled in Ohio and began to rebuild her life. She earned a second masters Degree and was invited as a speaker at the Bosnia and Herzegovina International Peace Conference in 1996. While building her business as a Leadership Trainer and consultant, she has become a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coach Federation. She offers life coaching services to individuals, conflict resolution to couples and groups, and soft skills training to organizations of all sizes.
Her book, Love Is Never Past Tense, offers a message of hope and inspiration, showing that nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself.
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A couple's quick romance and hasty marriage is torn apart by family and fate, leaving them to face the collapse of the Soviet Union separately. Years later, old memories are stirred to give their love a second chance.
Serge and Janna's chance meeting at a Black Sea beach sparks a passionate romance and a quick marriage. Serge's parents, suspicious of Janna's motives and heritage, force him to break up with her. As the Soviet Union collapses, revealing ethnic and social pressures, each faces danger separately. Serge drowns in self-doubt, his life spiraling down and in. Janna plots a dangerous exodus to America with her mother and daughter. Years pass, stirring old emotions.Then, changing circumstances give their love a second chance. Janna Yeshanova tells a story, providing a very personal view of political and social change.
Love is Never Past Tense is part romantic drama and part a look at real people responding to life-changing events, but mostly a suspense adventure about living through one of the biggest changes in living memory.
Love Is Never Past Tense is available on Amazon in hardcover, paperback and Kindle eBook formats. The newly released audiobook is available on Audible, Amazon and iTunes. The audible and Kindle versions are enabled with WhisperSync.
The audio is narrated by Daniela Acitelli, a narrator with dozens of audiobooks to her credit. Even those familiar with the story found new meaning in her presentation. It took me two years to find her.
http://www.loveisneverpasttense.com
Audiobook sample https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nBbMxrEb1g
Book Trailer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quPSNk7EnoA
Buy Links:
Audio Book at audible.com https://adbl.co/2FrEWAs
Audio Book at Amazon https://amzn.to/2Bt9s8W
Audio Book at iTunes https://apple.co/2Kvh8KX
Amazon Author Page https://amzn.to/2AhhY9j
Amazon Kindle https://amzn.to/2Ku6h3S
Describe your books in 3 words?
Realistic, romantic, inspirational!
If you could be any character from one of your books who would it be?
I’d want to be Janna!
What is your greatest fear about being an author/publishing your book(s)?
I would not call it a fear… I’d say, difficulty finding the right audience would be a great disappointment!
Would the 10-year-old version of yourself kick your butt or praise you for what you've accomplished in life?
The 10-year-old version of myself did not have a clue what would happen in the future! I just remember lilac bushes looking in the open window, blue sky, the smell of peaches and strawberries, and my parents… My Dad tried to encourage me to drink an extra glass of milk around 3 PM to keep my teeth healthy when I grew up! At that time,I could only dream of growing up only for the sake of not having that milk in my body! Sometimes, Dad succeeded!
I remember playing hopscotch with Lidka Chudina and her sisters. I was looking forward to it! There was not need to grow up for this! I remember a little rubber doll her father brought. It was the only one on the block because such treasures were so rare in the Soviet Union at that time. All the girls in the family shared it. On rare occasions, I had a turn with it. My future at that time was homework for the next school day and a trip with my family to the Black Sea. So, that 10-year-old would look at me with great surprise and admire what I’ve accomplished … and my teeth!
What do you do when you finish your book and turn it in to the editor?
I beg the editor to be very attentive! But this is not the end! I go to another editor! Then: celebration, family, friends! Trips!
What is your favorite Genre and why?
I like novels that keep me on my toes! Most of the time some strong love intrigue or unexpected turns of detectivism (it’s not a word, but you know what I mean!) that make me to guess what’s there, behind the corner. If I guess, I am glad that I guessed it! If I don’t, I feel that the author tricked me big time and outsmarted me! I also like detailed descriptions when they relate to the mood of the heroes, events and actions.
What is one thing that would surprise us to know about you?
Lost 40 lbs. in half a year! I had a life coaching client I helped lose weight and thought I could be my own client as well. Keep it off! Here is the picture before and after. Welcome who needs me at https://www.life-spark.com/ Join the club! 😊
Was there an Author who inspired you to write?
Probably… probably, Hemmingway and Tolstoy!
When I look at Hemmingway’s description of the see – it seems to be so native! “The old man sat on the stern of the boat, lowering his thin, wiry legs into the water.” Does this snippet from Love Is Never Past Tense remind you of anything from Hemmingway? If not, go ahead and read him!
When I look at the descriptions of the nature or the environment were our heroes and people find themselves one can predict how they act. These moments are very detailed and descriptive.
“Into the open door of the train car comes a huge customs officer, or a frontier guard. With him is some white-headed witch with dirty hair. They check to see if everyone has left.
“What are you doing here? Do you need a special invitation?”
“I have a sick mother, an invalid of the war. She cannot leave.”
“Well then! …” opens the mouth of the white-haired witch.
“If something happens to her, the Pravda49will learn of everything. Tomorrow, in fact, there will be an article in it. She is a war hero, and a famous person. If you do not know her—that is your problem …”
I didn’t actually have any friends at Pravda, and no article would have appeared. But the small wicked creature stopped.
“Open the suitcases,” she shrieked.
“You open it. It is your job.” I told her with easy confidence, although I understood that I was asking for trouble. In this, there was power.
The “lady” stretched out her hand to the top shelf but … decided not to get involved with the suitcases.
“Well then! Open your cosmetic bag.”
“Please.” I said as I opened the bag.
She grabbed some gold earrings from the bottom of the cosmetic bag which were not identified in the customs declaration. One of my friends put them in my cosmetic bag at the station. They probably thought I could save them for a rainy day.
“And what is this? Why is it not written down?” she says.
“Well,” I’m thinking, “now she will send us back.”
“Ohhh!” I say, “It is not in the declaration? OK!” A sharp movement of my hand—and the gold earrings fly out the train window, previously left open by Boris, who always knew everything in advance.
The male customs officer demands that I lift my hands and place them on the wall above my head. He impudently digs through the pockets of my pink Finnish jacket. Then both of them exchange glances and leave the train. After a while, I hear rustling under the open car of the compartment. But to me, it was already uninteresting …”
or
“At last, he could feel his chest tightening—he knew this was the signal to return to the surface. If you wait too long, you might not resurface, since you can momentarily lose consciousness. That’s what their diving coach taught them. No one, of course, tried to prove him wrong. He released the rock and wound his way back to the boat, now a dark silhouette hanging picturesquely in the silver sky of the water—so seems the sea surface looking up from its depths.”
A person who can see the beauty of nature id such detailed is able to love, suffer experience strong emotions!
How did you come up with the characters in your books?
From life! I think all characters in all stories were influenced by different degrees by real humans.
Do you prefer to write alone or do you like to collaborate with other authors?
Absolutely alone!
Everyone uses computers, tablets, phones and no one uses handwritten form or typewriters, what do you prefer to use?
Pen and paper! Possibly, a pencil. It feels natural to me. It feels sincere!
Is there a ritual you do everything before you begin your book?
Cup of coffee, solitude! If I have a story in mind and I share it with somebody on the phone before I put it in writing, I lose the details! Then, it’ gone!
Fast Fairy Questions
Apple or Windows?
Windows
Dog or Cat?
Dog
Pepsi or Coke?
Neither
Facebook or Twitter?
Both
Summer or Winter?
Summer
Fairies or Angels?
Huh? Angels!
Dark or Light Fae?
Doesn’tmatter! – it’s one word!
Vampires or Werewolves?
Ugh… Werewolves!
Amazon or Barnes and Noble?
Amazon
Funny or Serious?
Funny!
Print or E-book?
Print!
Eyes or Smile?
Eyes!
Dean or Sam (Supernatural)?
No-idea!
Dream spot to visit?
Kilimanjaro! (My Hemmingway!)
Serge didn't try to catch up to the shuffling, thin, leather skirt. He hadn't a clue what he would do if he actually caught up with her. So he continued following her along the high embankment for a fairly long time, until they crossed the whole of Lanzheron Park. But, reaching the beach, the girl quickly descended to the sea. Serge even began to jog a bit to keep her in sight. His head was clear this morning, and soon he would try out his cunning for the first but not the last time this day. The spy set up camp at the upper solarium and watched over her. Maybe she was waiting for some company, or a young man, or a girlfriend (which would undoubtedly seem to be better), but to our spy, all were equally bad possibilities. This guessing game carried on in his head, but it seemed she wasn't looking for anyone. She ducked into the changing room, and her leather skirt momentarily hung over the edge of the stall. After a minute, she exited, and Serge, pulling his long hair away from his head with both hands in anguish, groaned something unintelligible. Her breasts exited the little room first. The spot from where Serge looked down provided such visibility that his knees began to tremble. Her face was impossible to discern through her long hair and sunglasses, but something told him it would also be in order. She laid before her a light beach towel, and laying down she took a book from her bag and began to read. Burning her “landing site” into his mind, Serge took off like a shot to the nearest cabana rental. Fast as lightning, he exchanged his clothes for a key, crammed two metal rubles in the pocket of his swimming trunks, and became Don Juan. He feared, though, that there were already a bunch of admirers slinking ever closer to the sacred beach towel, and that he would simply be too late. He'd have to crawl to his place in line, and like the others, would have a poor chance of success.
He flew down the stairs and quickly found the beach towel, but … its owner was nowhere to be found. There was a book, a beach bag, and sunglasses, but their owner had disappeared. Oh, yes! This would be the second time that a smart thought visited Serge’s head today. People come to the sea to swim, after all! This interpretation of her disappearance comforted and delighted Serge. He became bolder and impudently tossed his glasses onto the same towel and cheerfully marched to the water. With his half-blind eyes, he surely could not see her. And where, among dozens of bathers? He dove into a wave, and swam away from the shore. First, he couldn't stand to watch bathers jumping around like frogs in the shallow water. Secondly, at this moment, his exceptionally quick-witted head told him he couldn't be the first to return to her beach towel. Then he'd have to take his glasses and fiddle around a bit in front of the beach towel to buy time as he came up with a new plan. Perhaps he'd cover himself with the towel, or maybe … no, he needed to work on his initial scenario.
He even came up with a sophisticated opening: "Excuse me, young lady, but I left my glasses here on your towel. I simply didn't have anywhere to put them, or myself for that matter." With this, his stockpile of ideas was depleted …
At last he climbed out of the water and headed along the well-trodden route to her beach towel. The towel was in place, and on this towel lay the magnificent body of its hostess, but Serge's glasses were lying a little bit farther on the edge of the towel. Serge squatted down and mumbled his introduction. He was counting on her to respond with typical beach chit-chat: "Where are you from? How long ago did you arrive in Odessa?" or other such nonsense.
"Your glasses are fine," she responded. "I figured someone just confused their beach towel with mine, but have a seat anyway."
She scooted over, freeing up half the beach towel. He got scared. If he lay down, then he wouldn't be able to resist the urge to nuzzle up to her. Then he'd certainly look like a pervert, a youth brought up with no manners, or a pest—in a word, he would give the exact opposite impression than he wanted. He mumbled something like a "thank you" and lay down beside her on the sand. She motioned towards him with a little bag of sunflower seeds, "Help yourself."
” Oh God, what's this?” resounded in Serge's mind. “Are you kidding me … sunflower seeds?” And his hand with a subsequent "thank you" reached in the bag.
"Do you like Ilf and Petrov?”2
” Lord, who is she talking about? I've only heard of them in passing, but I don't know the slightest thing about them …” Serge thought to himself.
"My name's Janna," she came to his rescue.
"Sergey," he stammered in reply, "but at the institute everyone actually calls me Serge, or Seriy …”3
She chuckled.
"Grey. You're actually black as tar. Where did you get such a tan?" she asked, spitting out sunflower seed shells. Not even awaiting a response, she exclaimed: "Here is an interesting moment”—and she began to read her book aloud, something about Ptiburdukov and his Varvara, who was leaving her first husband for him but couldn't make up her mind. Janna read for a while, probably about five pages, and then thrust the book towards Serge and said, "You read from here," marking the place with her fingernail. Serge began to read, but he didn't understand a word. He was too busy worrying about his diction, trying not to miss any letters or words. He fought through two pages, but his audience was clearly not impressed.
"Would you like a cigarette?"
"If he has a smoke, then he'll stop reading.” Serge could almost hear her thinking. He pulled a cigarette from a mashed-up pack of Javas, the best tobacco the Soviet Union could offer at that time. She handed him the matches. He brought the flame close to her face. She took a drag and rolled over on her back. Serge absolutely didn’t know what to do: read, blow sand from her, ask her about something. But she was not waiting for any questions and didn’t ask any questions. It was as if he simply was present. And that was that. The only thing that remained was for Serge to stare dumbfounded into the sand and observe the ants. Having smoked half the cigarette, she jammed the other half into the sand and turned back over on her stomach, brushing her leg up against Serge's. But she did not hasten to remove it. Silent Serge, who really didn't look the part of a reasonable person, turned into an animal. His uncontrollable desire sprang to life, pulling his swimming trunks down into the sand with such force that it became painful. Serge secretly burrowed a hole in the sand, easing the pressure. He became obsessed with a craving to climb on top of her. But this was out of the question, which made his desire even stronger …
"It's hot. Let's go for a swim," she said, lifting herself up on her elbows. For the first time he could see her breasts up close, causing his heart to leap through his ribs like a bird in a cage. He muttered he'd catch up to her, and when she left, his desire ever so slowly began to hide itself away, until he was finally able to get up and head towards the sea.
She splashed around in the waves, which towards midday became quite sizable. He flopped about next to her, often brushing up against her body. Then he suggested tossing her in the waves. He cradled her head and shoulders, gathered her hands into his, and finally lifted her up and tossed her into the waves. Janna liked it, and so did he, but for a different reason: every time she hit the waves, her bathing suit slid down slightly, and when her breasts finally became exposed, he was ready to splash to his very death. Suddenly, she ended up cradled in his arms. With one arm, she grasped his neck, and he now understood that everything will happen, he just needed to patiently wait.
Once something starts, eventually, it ends. The delightful swim as well: they returned from the water and again lay down on the beach towel.
“I want to get tanned like you.” (She had already switched to the informal you4 in the water. He liked this, as it made him feel less uneasy around her). She placed her arm next to his for comparison, and her brown skin seemed much paler than his almost blackened arm. Guiltily, he informed her that he just returned yesterday from his apprenticeship in Baku, and so it was not surprising that he was so dark.
“You have beautiful hands,” she pensively remarked. Then, determined, she added, “No, you just wait. I’ll catch up with you in two days. Just wait and see.” These words poured over his body like oil. For Serge, this meant that he would spend at least two more days with her.
“Get some ice cream. Do you need some money?”
“I have it,” answered Serge, but before he could get up and leave, he had to turn and crawl to hide his “desire” …
***
During their first three days together, Serge (as they called our hero at the time) was the quieter of the two, once in a while muttering some insignificant phrases. The first time he saw her, he silently followed her for a long time. She walked along easily, shifting her long, rather well-proportioned legs. Her thin leather skirt swung from side to side, barely hiding her shapely hips. A green blouse tightly covered her beautifully straight back. All the while, Serge followed her like she was a vision, lacking the courage to come closer or to back away. He knew that making her acquaintance was a long shot; she was simply out of his league. How could he possibly know that she, a complete stranger, would inexplicably impact his life and be with him forever, whether she was at his side or not?
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