I remember when I had an appointment at another large publishing house, I did my best to tell them that I would do it differently, much more personal, with real stories, no studio photos but at my house ... But the director was ostentatiously looking at his watch. His way of making it clear to me that they were not interested.

But indeed I didn't get discouraged, strange really. I was confident that things would work out. In the end, I started at a small publishing house. But when my first book became an instant success, suddenly the doors of all the publishing houses opened and I was welcomed with enthusiasm, 'with the red carpet,' so to speak. Needless to say, I thought that was super! The small publisher who had published my book was in bad shape and wanted to quit, so the way was open for me. In itself this did not happen without a fight, because this publisher still wanted to make the most of it financially, immediately my first financial hangover and learning experience.

In the end I chose Lannoo and after 12 years I am still enthusiastic about our collaboration. Yes, I don't mince my words and I set the bar high, especially for myself but also for the people I work with. That's why I love working with Katrien and Johan. We share the same passion and dare to say what matters. I really appreciate Katrine's business acumen and her communication skills. And I thank Johan for his creative insights and analytical thinking. Meanwhile, I have a whole team at Lannoo that I can count on: Hilde, Guus, Steven, Heidi, ... we work together like a well-oiled machine. They stimulate and inspire me without any pressure and that feels really good. They also help me with my events like 'Go Pure', their knowledge about digital events, marketing and social media is invaluable to me.

In the meantime, we have already accomplished many books and fun events together and I look forward to the sequel.