Promoting My Novel on Bulgarian Television

My novel THE BURGAS AFFAIR made its world premiere in the Bulgarian language in May, when it was published by Ciela, the leading Bulgarian publishing house. The novel has yet to be published in its original English edition.

I traveled to Bulgaria in June to promote the novel - Бургаската афера. I was interviewed by a number of local newspapers and appeared on two television programs. And I attended the official launch of the novel at the main Ciela bookstore in Sofia.

My first television appearance was on bTV, the leading independent national television network in Bulgaria. I was a guest of the popular daytime interview show, Преди обед (Before Noon). The name of my segment was: "From Israel to Bulgaria - how the writer Ellis Shuman fell in love with our country. Shopska salad and rakia?"

Click to see the bTV television interview.

My second television appearance was not a studio visit but rather an outdoor interview conducted by Olga Uzunovo, a presenter for BIT (Bulgarian International Television). This segment was titled “Ellis Shuman: Israeli writer for whom Bulgaria is home”.

Click to see the BIT television interview.

For viewers who don’t understand Bulgarian, unfortunately it is difficult to hear me in the interviews because of the dubbing. Part of the second interview is transcribed below.

THE BURGAS AFFAIR is a fictional account of the aftermath of the terrorist attack at the airport in Burgas, Bulgaria, in July 2012. In the book, a Bulgarian policeman teams up with an Israeli woman from the Mossad to work a case involving international terrorists and local criminals in both Bulgaria and Israel while confronting the traumas of their pasts.

Bulgarian readers can find Бургаската афера in bookstores all over Bulgaria. Purchase the e-book directly from the Ciela website.



Part of the interview with Bulgarian International Television:

Because of his work in internet marketing, Ellis Shuman spent two years in our country between 2009 and 2010. He had never previously thought about traveling to Bulgaria.

During his stay here, Ellis and his wife used every spare moment to travel around the country and get acquainted with Bulgaria’s history, culture, cuisine and its people.

"We felt very well received here, very safe. We started to see Bulgaria as our home. When we returned to Israel, we started to miss Bulgaria, " he says.

One of Ellis’s articles was published in The Huffington Post – “10 Amazing Things You Didn't Know About Bulgaria”.

"The list included simple things like roses, shopska salad, rakia, and martenitsas. What was not included in the list was the beautiful scenery of Bulgaria – the mountains, beaches and the places we visited. There is so much to see and I limited the article to just 10 things. However, I made sure to include in the list the story of the rescue of Bulgarian Jews during World War 2.”

Shuman wrote two novels following his experiences in Bulgaria – Valley of Thracians and The Burgas Affair.

"In the first novel I questioned what would happen if an American disappeared in Bulgaria. I also wanted to tie this storyline to the ancient history of Bulgaria. Everybody knows about the Romans, but no one knows about Thracians who lived in the Balkans at that time," he said. Shuman explained that his book is not a historical novel.

For his second novel, Shuman said: "I wanted to describe the relationship between Bulgaria and Israel. In July 2012 a terrible terrorist attack occurred at Burgas Airport. This led to cooperation between the two countries. They worked together to track down the perpetrators of this horrible event. The Burgas Affair is a fictional account of that investigation.


Related article:

Scenes from a Book Launch