Jennifer is ready to tell the tale in her first book True Love, to be published Oct. 28 in both English and Spanish.

The memoir will focus on a two-year period in which, as her publisher explained, she faces “one of her life’s most defining periods.” During this time, she “confronted her greatest challenges, identified her biggest fears, and ultimately emerged a stronger person than she’s ever been.” The book will feature a collection of photographs of the star and aim to be more like a “diary,” according to Penguin’s Celebra imprint, who has taken the world rights of the book to publish it.

“What’s funny is, I didn’t start off the project wanting to bare my soul in print,” Lopez, 44, told PEOPLE backstage at the Las Vegas MGM Grand.

“It started off as a diary of the year I went on tour … and when I was on the road, it became something else,” she said. “I really surprised myself, and I realized, ‘Oh my god, I’m writing this book.’ ”

A portion of the book’s proceeds will benefit The Lopez Family Foundation, which aims to improve the health and well-being of women and children.

“Even to this day, I think, ‘Do I put this book out there?’ ” she said. “I did a lot of soul searching and praying, because I don’t ever want it to be mistaken for anything other than it was, which is sharing something I learned with people I could help.”

“I changed a lot as a person,” Lopez said in reference to the past few years, which included her 2012 split from Marc Anthony after nearly eight years of marriage.

“It was a very transformative moment in my life. I had gone through a lot of changes and then confronting fears of having never toured and being a mom on my own. It was a real shellshock time for me.”

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