#GuestDayTuesday Featuring Author #LiesbetCollaert

/ Marcia Meara

Once again, it’s #GuestDayTuesday on The Write Stuff, and today, I have the pleasure of introducing Liesbet Collaert as our special guest. I feel sure you are going to enjoy getting to know Liesbet better, so without any further delay, I’m going to turn the floor over to her. Take it away, Liesbet! 😀

Hello everyone – and thank you, Marcia, for featuring me today on your excellent website and for giving us, indie authors, a chance to shine!

I am Liesbet Collaert from Belgium, although it’s been a long time since I lived there. Twenty years to be precise. That’s how long I have been roaming the world fulltime, with my husband Mark and – over time – three rescue dogs. We are currently overlanding in Ecuador with our 60-pound pooch Maya, as part of a multiple-year South American journey. Our home on wheels, a truck camper disguised as a cow, is called Thirsty Bella.

My two main passions have always been traveling and writing, so a book had to emerge at some point. After five years of writing and editing (life of an unretired explorer is busy!), that moment finally came in November 2020, on my 45th birthday, with Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary. A unique birthday present to myself! 😊

BLURB:

Tropical waters turn tumultuous in this travel memoir as a free-spirited woman jumps headfirst into a sailing adventure with a new man and his two dogs.

Join Liesbet as she faces a decision that sends her into a whirlwind of love, loss, and living in the moment. When she swaps life as she knows it for an uncertain future on a sailboat, she succumbs to seasickness and a growing desire to be alone.

Guided by impulsiveness and the joys of an alternative lifestyle, she must navigate personal storms, trouble with US immigration, adverse weather conditions, and doubts about her newfound love.

Does Liesbet find happiness? Will the dogs outlast the man? Or is this just another reality check on a dream to live at sea?

Have you ever wondered how life could be if you had made different choices? If you didn’t marry early, commit to a large loan for the house, focus on your career, start a family? 

Maybe you’re just curious about how a person thinking outside the box manages? A person without boundaries, striving to be flexible, happy, and free.

What you are about to read is how one such person follows her dreams, no, her intuition, and how she survives her naivety, life altering twists, and a relationship in close quarters. 

Plunge is a story of what happens when you go with the flow, when you have a bright idea – or thought you had one – and ride the waves of the unknown. 

I’d like to share some of my recent book news with all of you and hope you’ll check out my “refreshingly honest,” “compelling,” and “beautifully written” travel memoir. Feel free to follow our adventures on my ad-free blog Roaming About as well.

A recent 5-star review for my travel memoir
Plunge – One Woman’s Pursuit of a Life Less Ordinary

I could not put this book down. Beautifully written in the present tense, which confers a sense of urgency, I felt I was aboard with the author throughout her seaborne adventures.

Although living her dreams, Liesbet is very honest about the difficulties brought about by choosing an alternative lifestyle, and the strain it puts on her relationship with her new husband, Mark:

“Sailing the world was once my dream, until a first practice session in a Mirror dinghy with my then partner ended with, “I’m never sailing with you again!” to which he responded, “Good, because I’m never going to ask you to!” We realised the only way we would ever sail around the world together was if we set off in opposite directions. I have so much admiration for Liesbet and Mark, who weathered storms, both real and personal, while miles from anywhere and confined in a tiny space.”

Yet, this realistic depiction hasn’t put me off. The descriptions of familiar island destinations in the Caribbean, the enchanting wildlife in the Galapagos, and the remote and less well-known island paradises in French Polynesia are wonderful. I completely understand why Liesbet, an unlikely sailor who suffers from seasickness, felt a transit of the Panama Canal and hair-raising Pacific adventures in a vessel not quite suitable for ocean crossings, was so worthwhile!”
Source: TripFiction.com/review
Amazon reviews for Plunge

And, I’m excited to share that Plunge made the list of Ten Great Stories of Female Adventurers on TripFiction!
Read the article HERE

NOTE FROM MARCIA:

I highly recommend you also check out the  wonderful story about how Liesbet met Mark, and the adventures that followed that stroke of luck:
Chance Encounters
 Trust me. This is a story well worth reading!

Author Liesbet Collaert

Liesbet Collaert’s articles and photos have been published internationally. Born in Belgium, she has been a nomad since 2003 with no plans to settle anytime soon. Her love of travel, diversity, and animals is reflected in her lifestyle choices of sailing, RVing, and house and pet sitting. Liesbet calls herself a world citizen and currently lives “on the road” in South America with her husband and rescue dog. Follow her adventures at
Roaming About

BUY LINKS

Amazon Author Page
For general info on my blog, including free chapters, reviews, and purchase links HERE 
Buy on Amazon universal link HERE 
For eBook versions worldwide, go HERE
For paperback distributors worldwide, go HERE

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

Facebook Liesbet Collaert
Facebook Roaming About
Twitter
Goodreads
Email: lbcollaert@gmail.com

Blog URLs
Roaming About
It’s Irie

71 thoughts on “#GuestDayTuesday Featuring Author #LiesbetCollaert”

  7. I love the cover – and the content sounds just as amazing! Congratulations to Liesbet and many thanks to you, Marcia, for bringing this adventure to my notice. 😀 ❤

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  8. Liesbet, your life sounds like one big adventure. Kudos to you for taking the plunge and not being afraid to try a different lifestyle! At 60, I’m now just starting to want to travel more because I realize I’m not getting any younger and the world is a big place. You’ve inspired me. Good luck with all of your books.

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    • I’m happy to know that Liesbet’s post has inspired you, Wendy! I love her story and can’t wait to read her book! Thanks so much for stopping by to share your thoughts, and here’s to happy travels, should you decide to go for it! 😀 ❤

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    • Hi Wendy,

      Thank you for your sweet and encouraging comment. And, I’m psyched that you are traveling more these days as well. The world is a big place indeed! I truly enjoy our slow way of travel to really immerse ourselves into the cultures and countries as all these adventures can be quite exhausting! 🙂

      If you are a healthy 60-year-old, which I hope and count on, this is the best time to poke your nose out there and soak up the world’s flavors, without the financial worry or need to work we face every day. Enjoy! Be inspired and keep inspiring!

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  9. NOTE TO ALL: Liesbet’s fabulous lifestyle doesn’t always lead to great internet connectivity. I’ve emailed her that her post is live, and I’m sure she’ll respond to comments as soon as she can. Thanks for your understanding! 😀 ❤

    Liked by 2 people

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  10. Thanks a lot for featuring me today, Marcia! And for leaving all those thoughtful comments, too. I hope you are feeling your healthy self again!

    I enjoy meeting your readers and answering all the questions they might have. I’m a woman of no taboos. 🙂

    Here in northern Peru, we are in a different time zone than Florida, but I’ll be around most of the day – and the rest of the week.

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  11. I admire your spunk, Liesbet. If the contents of your book is as good as it’s title, then it’s fabulous! Your travel memoir is now included on my books to read list. Thanks for featuring Liesbet and her book, Marcia! 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

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    • Hi Nancy,

      Thanks for adding Plunge to your TBR list. I don’t think it will disappoint. Especially if you’re curious about a “behind-the-scenes” look of a so-called dream life, warts and all, and if you like a spunky, captivating, and transparant writing style. 🙂

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  18. Like many of the other folks here, Marcia, I’m a big fan of Plunge. Liesbet is one of those people who it’s easy to admire and root for because the idea of living on the road or the sea seems glamorous at times, but how many of us would actually pull the trigger and do it? I’ve followed her blog and travels for quite some time and look forward to the time she pens another book about her South American adventures.

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    • Nice to see how much you enjoy Liesbet’s adventures, Pete, via blog or book. I don’t know that I would have ever had the nerve to embark on such an adventure, myself, and my travel days are definitely winding down. I’m sure I’m going to enjoy reading about it all, though.

      Thanks so much for stopping by today and taking a minute to share your thoughts! Hope you have a great Wodin’s Day! 😀 ❤

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    • Thank you so much for your positive and enthusiastic comment, Pete. It’s a wonderful testimony to wake up to on this gloomy day along the ugly Peruvian North coast. Nothing glamorous about this area, especially since we haven’t slept much in this loud party town either.

      I hope you keep following our adventures!

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  20. Okay. First, I LOVE the cow trailer. Second, WOW! Traveling for so long at a time. I start getting weirded out when we’re gone from the house for more than a few days. LOL. It really sounds incredible – so much to see! 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

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  21. Hi there!

    I’m glad you like our “cowmobile”. It’s called Thirsty Bella and we attract a lot of curious people. The (local) kids love it! 🙂

    There are homebodies in this world and people like us, who take their home with them. I bet we are often closer to home than you are, haha.

    This afternoon was actually a great example: camped/parked by a park in a new-to-us-city (Trujillo, Peru), walk to the historic town, explore a bit there, and back home within two hours.

    Then, working from home for a couple of hours, chatting with a security guard, taking our drinks into the park to a bench behind our camper, going out for a Peruvian dinner across the street, talking to a local family back in the park, picking up our laundry (dropped off before the afternoon walk) across the street, chatting with the owner and her daughter, making the bed and storing the clothes, and now, at 10pm, we are exhausted and ready for bed. (It’s still noisy outside, though.)

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  22. Not the first time I have read about Liesbet’s book so this time I downloaded it last night. I am fascinated by the turns people take in life. If you go down a certain path, education, secure job, mortgage and children… each stage you are narrowing possibilities, though of course you might sell your house and take your children round the world on a yacht, but most of us don’t! Then there are those who perhaps cause elderly relatives to wonder when they will ‘settle down’ and set off on all sorts of adventures.

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    • So glad you enjoyed Liesbet’s post, Janet, and that you downloaded her book. She’ll be happy to read that, I’m sure. And yep, so many possible paths to go down, it’s a wonder more of us don’t head out on adventures like Liesbet’s. Sure sounds exciting, with never a dull moment, doesn’t it?

      Thanks for stopping by and taking a moment to share your thoughts! 😀 ❤

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  23. Hi Janet!

    Thanks for bumping into me “everywhere” and for downloading Plunge! 🙂

    Your comment is so on the ball! All these twists and turns on our road map called life, cause new directions, decisions, meetings, experiences, and consequences. I’d rather not think about those missed turns or those what ifs, but one sometimes wonders about it all.

    My oma (grandma) – who has since passed and whom I loved dearly and really connected with – always wondered when I’d settle down, but often said about my travels that I’d “have to do it when I’m young and healthy”.

    I remember during my first years of traveling fulltime, telling her that I’d probably settle down when I was thirty. That became forty, and, well… at this point, who knows if, when, and where this “settling down” will happen. 🙂

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