D.G. Kaye's Blog, page 174

Review Words We Carry

Thank you to my esteemed fellow author and friend Carol Balawyder for this lovely review on my newest book Words We Carry. I am humbled by your ongoing support of my writing and for taking the time out of your very busy schedule to read and review my book. Carol is the author of a beautiful memoir about love and loss, Mourning Has Broken and she is also writes novels. Her latest novel, Getting to Mr. Right is a great read about women seeking the perfect relationship with all it’s ups and downs and deceptions.

 

How to Boost Your Self-Esteem? Read this Book. December 8, 2014

By Carol Balawyder
Format:Kindle Edition

In her introduction D.G. Kaye says “I wrote this book to share the negative experiences and obstacles I’ve encountered in my own life. I have tracked my own insecurities and the self-esteem issues of my past in an effort to recognize and conquer the negative image I had of my youth…all so I could finally learn to love myself.” Anyone who has read her previous books knows that you can count on D.G. Kaye to be open and candid and in her own words, “baring my raw self to the world.” Her honesty and transparency makes for a book that allows the reader to relate with the yearnings in all of our hearts and souls to be our true selves. This is a book that ought to be on parents’ and educators’ to read and re-read list: “…words linger much longer than physical wounds. The damage done to our delicate egos, especially when we’re small, stays with us through the rest of our lives.” What is comforting is that D.G. offers sound advice on how to repair our damaged egos and take care of our sense of self. She provides concrete examples of her own life and how she conquered her fears. “If we don’t take responsibly for our own choices, we can become ruled by someone else’s power. This results in us giving up pieces of our own identities to satisfy the whims of someone else, leaving us with little self-esteem…Everyone has something beautiful to offer.” This time around, D.G.Kaye has this beautiful book to offer. Mourning Has Broken Getting to Mr. Right Missi’s Dating Adventures Mourning Has Broken


HEADS UP readers! Words We Carry will be on special Christmas promotion from Dec. 24th through Dec. 28th for just .99 cents! This is my own promo so everyone, globally, can take advantage of this discounted price!

 

5 Tips for Writing a Memoir « publications unltd

I am asked many times, how hard is it to write in memoir? Is it easier because you’ve already lived it?

I came across this wonderful article from Publisher’s Weekly Daily on www.publicationsunltd.wordpress.com, a post written by a successful memoir writer, Will Boast.

I particularly zeroed in on this phrase, “Many readers and writers believe that writing a memoir is easier than writing a novel.“ This big misconception is thought by many because they may think it’s easier to write in memoir because one doesn’t have to create a story. This is a huge misconception. Please read on by clicking on the link below.

 

5 Tips for Writing a Memoir « publications unltd.

Moving Anyone?

 

Moving is a stressful time for anyone. It is said that it is stressful on relationships, right up there with divorce.

One may think that I would be used to moving being that I have moved, built and renovated my homes quite a few times in the last decade and a half. Granted, with each subsequent move, I’ve learned more lessons and became more aware of awry details with each project. Things like organizing the order of the trades coming in to do work, purchasing items ahead of time to avoid several added trips to Home Depot at crucial moments, have become inbred skills.

It was handy that some of my work background helped me to learn a lot about the process of renovating, from the days when I worked for a construction company, in charge of scheduling trades and responsible for deficiency inspections. I also managed an architectural firm for a few years which afforded me the opportunity to learn how to read blue prints. This came in handy for me when scouting out homes to build or renovate, aiding me with the vision to project what it could look like on paper, or, if it was an older home in need of major repair.

In real estate these days, people hire out to have their homes staged so that potential buyers can see the space clearly and envision what their own things will look like in those homes. I consider myself lucky to have an eye for possibility in the impossible looking situations.

Two and a half years ago, my husband and I purchased such a home. We pretty much gutted most of it, except the roof, in three and a half weeks! Nobody believed it could be done in that time frame; but they didn’t comprehend our determination.

We took possession of that house while still carrying our old home for just short of a month. I hired the trades to come in on tight schedules, one after the other, so as not to be on top of one another, leaving no room for error—even though there were plenty of mishaps and headaches.  My husband and I did a lot of work ourselves, particularly the demo, after firing two sloppy crews and losing two days in between as I scoured to find replacements and my husband went to town himself with a sledge hammer. We renovated walls, floors, bathrooms, kitchen, windows, gas/heating, electrical and plumbing.

Kitchen at it’s best

1,000,000 staples on floor I removed because tiler refused

 

We worked 7 days a week, often twelve hours a day. We didn’t take time to eat properly, or sometimes at all, and by the time we dragged our azzes to bed sometimes after midnight, we woke at 5am to begin the procedures all over again. By the time we moved in we had both lost a lot of weight (most of which was unnecessarily needed to lose) and our bones ached terribly. But it got finished, in our allotted time frame.

Ahhh

Now that we are moving again, people ask us why we would want to move after everything we went through in our current home. I have answered this question in a former post here, explaining our reasons for wanting to move. My husband wants to slow down, travel more, not have to maintain the outside duties that come with a home, so we are readjusting our priorities.

In the meantime, I feel as though I’m living between two worlds. Boxes are invading many pathways in my home. Many of them left open for me to access the things I need until we move—but of course, that is only if I can find them. I have learned to improvise a lot. There is no Christmas tree this year, and certainly no room for one as the boxes occupy most of my floor space. Although, I did manage to hang our stockings over the fireplace to serve as some reminder of Christmas.

I keep telling myself, “This is it. No more moving after this.” I’m getting too old for this shit. Even though I’ve become a seasoned mover, it doesn’t change the fact that there’s a lot of work involved. Sometimes it just feels good to vent.

I like to think of myself as a pretty organized and methodical person, so I live with lists to make sure I don’t forget anything. My sister laughs at me when I tell her how long it takes me to pack a box and she always retorts with, “I can pack a box in ten minutes.”

But my strategy is different. I go through everything before it goes in a box so I know exactly what’s in it and where it’s going to be placed when I reopen that box after the move. Packing a room with everything thrown in a box with no planning as to where the stuff will be going gives me anxiety when unpacking, while trying to guesstimate where to put things and finding out all the places where they don’t fit. This eliminates a lot of work unpacking, thus my homes are usually unpacked within 2-3 days and people coming to visit or help always seem to marvel at the state of organization so soon after moving. It’s just so much easier if you can plan your space ahead of time so you don’t have to think about where everything is going to go in the new place.

I’m going to share a few of my handy, helpful packing tips to help transition a move a little easier:

1. Make lists of services to cancel and reconnect, go to the post office to put in change of address.

2. Hire movers ahead of time.

3. Have a list ready for after the move to call to inform change of address for companies like, credit cards, memberships, subscriptions, etc.

4. Make a things to get list such as: hooks, nails, towel bars, etc. for whatever rooms in the new home that you can think of that you will need to save extra trips to the hardware store.

5. When you purchase a home, you are usually given 1 or 2 visits to see the property again. Use this time wisely. In the past I have booked some trades to meet me at those visits for measuring things such as: granite counters, kitchen cupboards, window coverings, etc. This allows for you to get the ball rolling and a good head start to have things already in production to get ready for your move in.

Moving is never fun, but if you can at least organize some law in order for the process, it will help immensely to take away a lot of the anxiety.

Top Ten Authors Recognition

          

 

I have been advertising with Goodebooks this past year and have been quite pleased with this site and it’s owner/manager Riley Geddings. He is always so kind and helpful and keeps his authors abreast of upcoming and new ad spots available that he thinks they may be seeking. This site is wonderful for authors and readers alike as there are a plethora of books for readers to choose from at free or discounted rates.

I was pleasantly surprised to find a new webpage added to this site when it came to my attention in an email that Riley was putting together a Top Ten author list for his site to recognize authors for their work, not in particular because they have produced a best seller. Needless to say, I was elated to find my own name and book Words We Carry chosen in his top ten. Below is a copy of his introduction page:

Goodebooks.net

 

Welcome To The Top 10 Authors Page !

We have currently certified the authors on this page as “The Top Ten Authors on GOOD EBOOKS”. From time to time, we, at GOOD EBOOKS run across exceptional authors and we believe they should be recognized ! That is why we have created this webpage. Normally authors get recognized for being “Best Sellers”, or perhaps because their book is made into a movie, or maybe they are celebrities. That’s great, they certainly do deserve a lot of credit and a few of our author friends fit into one or more of those categories. We, at GOOD EBOOKS, have our own criteria to determine if we believe an author has what it takes to be in the Top Ten ! We hope you, as a reader, will review these authors, check out their writings, and see if you agree with us. However, we have the advantage of a close relationship with most of them ! We are proud of all our author friends who we have helped, and 10 of these currently fit into our Top Ten ! To be fair, as time goes by, we will exchange authors in the Top Ten. Feel free to post any part of this webpage content, and any image as well ! Contact us with questions, comments, and suggestions ! Thank you, and I wish you “pleasant reading” from all of us at GOOD EBOOKS.

 

 

Please do click on the link below to see the top ten books and many more below that Riley has picked.

   http://www.goodebooks.net/toptenge.html.

Christmas Remembrance

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Christmas in the air,

A time of year when everything we’ve observed throughout prior months take on a deeper prevalence,

A time to care.

 

We hear about people dying, starving, homeless or sick,

Yet in this season, we become so much more aware of the world’s woes and the clock’s tick.

 

Is it because of the requests for donations, for the causes flooding in?

Is it the sentiments of the human heart ignited by the watching of a heartfelt Christmas movie?

Or is it the nearing of yet another year, when we take stock of our lives and reminisce over all we’ve endured?

 

Many people feel sad at Christmas, and I too have stepped into those moments of melancholy reverberations,

At family gatherings while my thoughts diverted to the loved ones no longer here on earth to partake in family celebrations.

 

Some of us place at the table, an extra chair,

Or a place card in remembrance of one who is no longer there.

 

Feeling joyful at Christmas gatherings, still affords me a tear,

A mere guest, bringing with her, her own memories of loved ones lost through the years.

 

I don’t pull up an extra chair to bridge the sense of feeling apart,

My feelings of loss are kept on those place cards,  buried deep in my heart.

 

D.G. Kaye ©2014

Book Review

 

I am so honoured to have befriended Diane from OnethingIknowforsure, a talented writer getting ready to launch her first book, long overdue. Diane was one of the first bloggers I made friends with when I began my first WordPress blog. We are kindred spirits so to speak. Diane has read all of my books and has written lovely reviews on them as well.

I wanted to share this latest review from Diane on my latest book Words We Carry, as I was so happy that she caught the essence of my stories about how relatable this book is for younger girls who may be going through or have gone through the teasing and feelings of low self-worth as I did.

 

By Di Amazon Customer
Format:Kindle Edition|Verified Purchase

I just now finished “Words We Carry” and wanted to come here and write a review while it was still fresh on my mind. But it is actually the kind of book that you will draw from as needed in different circumstances as the occassion may arise.

It is a journey through this author’s life, describing the effect that words have had on her. And it really makes you think twice. It helps you kind of re-evaluate your own life and agree with a lot of the points she brings up and has you feeling not so alone in your own journey.

D.G. Kaye makes you feel as if you are sitting at her kitchen table, just having a friendly conversation about “life” and experiences we have as women. I wish I’d read “Words We Carry” in my twenties! She makes you think that other people think and feel and have had the same experiences as you. She talks about abuse and red flags, jealousy and lonliness. It is empowering and real and was timely for me, since I just quit a job of ten years and am beginning a new one next week! A great gift for young girls just moving away or someone like me who has already lived a half a century, and am starting a new job! Thumbs up on this one!I am becoming an avid fan of D.G. Kaye books!Can’t wait for the next one.


  Another great book by D.G. Kaye….I’m a fan! November 1, 2014

Accepting the Red Heart: One Lovely Blog Award | Plain and Fancy

 

I would like to thank Marian Beaman for kindly choosing to honour me with the Lovely Blogger Award. I am truly touched to be chosen on her list as one of the writers she enjoys reading. At this busy time for me I won’t be doing all the traditional trimmings that are protocol when receiving this award. So just know that I am truly touched and I would be nominating all of my fellow bloggers, for we all have our own unique methods of expressing our thoughts and wisdoms.

I share this award with all of you, so please, copy and paste it and add this badge proudly to your own pages. You can read Marian’s post on this award on the link below. Marian is a wonderful memoir writer who writes about her beautiful growing up years coming from a Mennonite background, transformed into a fancy girl living in Florida.

 

Accepting the Red Heart: One Lovely Blog Award | Plain and Fancy.

D.G. Kaye on the Power of Memoir Writing | When Women Inspire

 

I was very honoured to be interviewed last week by the talented poet and women’s advocate for empowering women, Christy Birmingham. Christy invited me to her blog WhenWomenInspire, as a guest for her series about women who overcome adversity. In the interview, I talk about the issue of abuse and how it is sometimes disguised in many forms. You can also check out Christy’s other blog full of her wonderful poetry on the Poetic Parfait.

For a more in-depth glimpse, click on the link to Christy’s page below:

 

D.G. Kaye on the Power of Memoir Writing | When Women Inspire.

Random People We Meet

 

“Hold the elevator please,” a feeble voice with a Polish accent I could barely hear beckoned as the heavy door had almost shut. As he shuffled in slowly with a wobbly grip on his cane, the man and I exchanged pleasantries and discussed how bitterly cold the weather had suddenly become compared to yesterday’s balmy 10 degrees Celsius.

We both got off on the lower lobby level. I was en route to the management office of the building I am moving into after checking on the latest renos that were done to my new apartment.

Morris introduced himself to me when I discovered that he was going in the same direction as me. He wasn’t able to keep pace with my hurried steps so I slowed to walk along side him as we continued to converse. He began to tell me that it had been two years since he hadn’t gone down south for the winter because he could no longer afford the enormous $20,000 insurance cost to cover out of town medical coverage for five months a year, even though he’s been fine for the past few years after surgery.

“I have a place down in Miami,” Morris told me with his still Yiddish/Polish accent. “I rent it out now and can’t bring myself to sell it.”

He then asked me to guess his age. I could tell by his posture and weakness and the worn look on his face that he was well into his eighties, but I told him he looks seventy-eight. His eyes twinkled with pride as he announced that he was ninety-one years old.

The walk was long through the corridor to the adjoining building where the management office was, so we continued to chat. I told Morris that I was also concerned about when the day would come that my own husband wouldn’t be able to get health coverage for travel with all its stipulations. He asked me with gleaming curiosity how old my husband was because he couldn’t fathom that someone my age would have those concerns yet. I told him my husband is seventy-six.

When I told him how good he looks, he began to tell me bits about his long life and about how much he has seen of the world. And then he told me that he was a holocaust survivor.

I had already acquired a soft spot for this gentle man, but when he told me that he had survived the camps, it struck a deep chord within me. I had studied many books on WWII and the dehumanization of the Jews and being born one myself, when I speak with people who have survived such atrocities, it always boggles my mind how miraculous it is for any Jew to survive that reign of terror.

Morris told me a few stories about where he used to work before he retired, quickly abandoning the brief mentioning of the holocaust. I found him to be meek and humble. I told him that perhaps he should write a book about his eventful life. He retorted, “I don’t think I have the patience to write my whole life, besides, there’s lots that I forget.” I didn’t ask him, but wondered if he really forgot things because of his age, or if he just chose not to remember.

When we reached the management office, I told him it was lovely  to meet him and and hoped to see him again when I moved in. He smiled with his aged eyes again and thanked me for the chat and said he looked forward to seeing me around soon.

The 10 Biggest Mistakes New Authors Make | Nicholas C. Rossis

Today I’m sharing a very informative post I came across on my friend and author Nicholas Rossis’ blog. He reposted this post from Cindy Bates’ website. Cindy is a freelance writer and blogger who has written this post identifying issues new writers might come across. She covers the top ten mistakes writers make from writing, to proofreading to publishing.

 

The 10 Biggest Mistakes New Authors Make | Nicholas C. Rossis.