D.G. Kaye's Blog, page 51

#WATWB Stray Dog Steals Stuffed Unicorn from a Store

It’s that time of the month again, the last Friday of the month where a group of writers share an article about something good going on around the world to deflect from negativity for the We are the World Blogfest, #WATWB.   Well, it seems this little stray dog had an attraction to a stuffed unicorn that he was determined not to leave behind – no matter if legal or not!   Stray dog kept stealing a stuffed unicorn from a store, so animal control bought it for him   Thieves are usually apprehended by the police. But for this four-legged shoplifter, the authorities had to make an exception. A big stray dog couldn’t keep his mouth and paws away from a stuffed purple unicorn at the Dollar General store in Kenansville, North Carolina. And since he had no owner to buy it for him, the pup had to resort to “illegal” methods. Every time a customer exited, the dog would dart into the store and go straight into the toy aisle to grab it. The Lab mix kept going back inside to steal the same stuffed purple unicorn, doing it on five different occasions!   It was evident that he really wanted that unicorn. But business is business, so a Dollar General store employee was forced to lock their door and ask help from the Duplin County Animal Control to take the thieving dog away. But the pup ended up getting what he wanted after all. Samantha Lane—the officer who responded to the store’s call—purchased the $10 stuffed toy for him! Please read the full article over at MyPositiveOutlooks.com   A simple thing to make someone happy. I’m glad that officer had the compassion to give the stray, lonely dog something to be happy about!   If you’d like to join our #WATWB group and submit something good on your own, please do so at our WATWB Facebook Group.   Sylvia McGrath (https://www.professorowlsbookcorner.com ) and Belinda Witzehausen (https://www.BelindaWitzenhausen.com/) will be co-hosting this month. We ask those on Facebook and Twitter to like visit, comment and share posts and please reciprocate to those who promote your post. Source: Stray dog kept stealing a stuffed unicorn from a store, so animal control bought it for him   ©DGKaye2021  

The Clearing – Updates – Moving, Grief and Loss

It’s been awhile since I popped into my own blog to chat. But, holy crap, it’s the middle of June and I feel like I’ve been living within a cyclone since last Christmas, without stopping to take a breath. First, late last fall my worries about my husband’s health, in and out of hospitals for various things, yet nobody realizing the real culprit – cancer. Then the diagnosis, then my husband lives, barely, another 5 weeks. Heck, I didn’t even have the official diagnosis back before a doctor introduced herself during one of my hospital visits, alerting me she’s a ‘palliative’ doctor. Palliative??? Right in that moment was when the numbness struck me. I’m still numb in many ways.   I knew my husband had something bad happening to him before the edict was read, but I wouldn’t even let my mind visit the thought that he was going to die. I couldn’t. The minute I’d allow myself to go ‘there’, I knew I could never pull myself out of that black hole of fear. I had to stay strong for him, give him hope – even when he knew there wasn’t any, I thought I would keep the positive thoughts and chat going. I never shed a tear because I knew if I did I may never stop. And I certainly wasn’t showing any fear to my husband. I ate it up. I didn’t even feel, and still don’t, that I was living in my own body. Like some invisible hydraulic system is towing me along to keep going and keep doing. Don’t stop. I haven’t stopped all year. In his final week, bedridden, my beloved husband could no longer walk or talk. The reality of what was to come was top of my mind, yet, I kept pushing it away and kept doing. I knew I was on limited time and I didn’t want to spend one minute away from my husband, but I had to go buy a plot for him. For us. I also didn’t want him to know where I was going, even though he knew I never left his side unless he was asleep. He knew where I was going. I witnessed my husband living between two worlds in his last days. Before he lost his voice, he’d wake at night several times to tell me he loved me. Other nights I’d wake to him calling out, raising his arms, eyes closed, to his dead sister Grace and his dead daughter Sue. Unfortunately, I’ve had enough experience with being around death to know all the steps that lead to the finality. The on call palliative doc had come around the day before George died and told me ‘the most he had left was a week’, I looked him in the eye and told him my husband won’t live another 24 hours. There’s no glory in being right. I lay beside him when his eyes opened that next morning and held his hand for dear life as I listened to his own life fade within. From silence to gurgling. I just lay there telling him I loved him as I do 100 times a day, still. And then I cried. And quite honestly, I haven’t really stopped. In the deepest moments of unbearable grief, I had to make funeral arrangements. A funeral in Covid where we were restricted to 15 in the funeral home service, where there would have been hundreds. All I wanted and still want to do is bury my head in my pillow and stay in bed for an undetermined amount of time. There is where I feel closest to him. The banner from over his coffin ‘Beloved Puppy’, rests now upon his pillow, as does the stuffed puppy he bought me one Valentine’s Day, who holds a stuffed heart from its mouth saying, ‘Puppy Love’. There is my solace. His slippers remain at his side of the bed. But solace is in short supply as my marathon of life and death continues. There were weeks of paperwork, lawyers, banks, investment advisor, insurance, and the government papers I had to contend with to close off a life. And just for something else to add to the mix, I had to do the income taxes. Yes, who in the world with a broken heart continues to go, go, go, carrying overwhelming grief, while having to use their brain, then adds a move into the mix? The move. Last fall before we knew of my husband’s demise, we were talking about moving, downsizing, somewhere else, getting ready for us to purchase a place in Mexico next winter (so was the plan). But God had other plans and moving was put on the back burner. And in my sane brain, I knew someday I’d have to move on my own because I don’t need a huge condo, nor do I want to pay that huge rent. But I also knew with my grieving and adjusting to a different life, that moving was not prime on my mind at this stage. All I want to do is exhale from what I’ve been living all year. So, I went down to the management office to ask the girls if my husband’s name needs to be taken off the lease. Before I could stop myself, the words seemed to pop out of my mouth – because they weren’t in my head, “Do you have any one bedrooms available?” That was in April, one week after my husband passed. The agent told me that as a matter of fact, she had one coming up in July. A few days later, she took me for a looksee and told me all they’re going to do to it. I made a great bargain with her regarding me keeping my SS appliances and them having to move them, among a few other goodies, and suddenly, I was signing a new lease. That’s how the moving thing happened. I wasn’t looking, but I’m pretty sure my husband had some divine intervention in it. It’s safe here, lovely grounds, nice people and tons of amenities and close to every highway. I’m pretty sure my husband wanted me to stay in familiar territory. And July seemed ideal, enough time to get ready. NOT! We have moved several times in our wonderful life together, yet, somehow, we still had too much stuff. If I had had time, I would have taken proper time to sell things for the value they’re worth, I would have set up an Ebay page, along with some others. But let’s be real, that left me two months to first clear the clutter that isn’t going to fit, before packing can begin. It’s insane here. I have some good friends and only one family member who pop by a few times a week to lend a hand. I have access to my new place so I had a bit of work done in there (besides what the management has done). I have many things on ads, and I get pinged lots, which of course is distracting when I’m in the packing zone. I’m moving a week earlier than planned, and my BFF who lives in England has been waiting to get here before I move so she can at least help with the transition. But that’s looking like she won’t get here til first week July, as we’re crossing fingers my province drops the 14 day quarantine in a hotel rule if one has been double vaxed on July 5th. Oye! So much going on! So now you are updated. I know my posts have been far and few between since my husband became terminal, but I’m doing my best. This Friday I will have my monthly contribution for WATWB, and if I squeeze out any spare time, I may have a Sunday Book Review. As moving begins Thursday, with official movers on Saturday, and the fallout of unpacking to deal with after, don’t expect much from me next week. But hopefullly, once I move and catch my breath then exhale, I hope to be back in blogland more regularly.     ©DGKaye2021          

It’s Sunday, A Lovely Surprise Feature and Opportunity for Reviewers

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have no new review ready for my usual Sunday Book Review, but I came across a review feature for one of my own books that made my day.   Timothy Pike runs a blog for writers – Whatinspiresyourwriting.wordpress.com. He also runs a group for writers – ChapterBuzz. Tim has a great project on the go where he has created a Discovery List for readers. The idea of this list, Tim intends to publish once it grows to 100 entries, introducing readers to quality books with great reviews that readers may have missed in a sea of books on Amazon. The great part about adding a review to the list for a book you enjoyed and gave 4 or 5 stars for is, you don’t have to be an author to add a review for a great book you enjoyed, but authors are welcomed to share their own books with a review that shines for their books too! Read below what Tim says about this project:   Every day I’m discovering novels that are truly great. But these aren’t mainstream hits, these are self-published books that … … to the world’s detriment … … ended up buried under millions of other books in the huge “Amazon book pile.” These are thrilling, engaging, or just plain delightful stories that aren’t getting the visibility they deserve. This is because it can be very hard to stand out, especially for indie authors who may not have the budget, the know-how, or the platform to promote their books. So to help these books stand out, I created the Discovery List—it’s “every self-published book worth reading” in one big spreadsheet.   Tim’s blog is a good one to follow for writers, so naturally, I’m a subscriber. And I was pleasantly surprised when I visited his blog this week, to find a feature for my beloved book – Twenty Years: After “I do”, so I’m thrilled to reblog it here today too. Timothy Pike .. The Discovery List is off to a great start, and I’m finding solid gold already! I’ve made it my quest to find every self-published book worth reading, and to do this, I created a spreadsheet that we as a community can add to. It’s called the Discovery List, and whether you happened across a great self-published book or wrote one, we want to hear about it.   “How to keep a marriage happy and unbreakable”: This five-star memoir reveals the secrets.”   I love featuring books that got great reviews, so without further ado, here’s this week’s best self-published book: Twenty Years: After “I Do” Reflections on Love and Changes Through Aging by D.G. Kaye   Check this book out on Amazon!   Review: Lauren Scott at Baydreamer gives it 5 stars, and raves: D.G. Kaye’s memoir, Twenty Years After “I Do” piqued my interest for a couple of reasons. First, I’ve been married for thirty-one years to a man who is not only my loving husband but who is my very best friend. I wanted to read what the author had to say on the subject, and she certainly inserted many pearls of wisdom of which I agreed with. … Debby offers snippets of insight from her own experiences on how to keep a marriage happy and unbreakable. She adds how humor can lighten any heavy situation and intimately writes of how sex ultimately changes from dating to married life. Most importantly though, she conveys that love has no timeline. Couples should enjoy each moment together and unconditional love will carry them through the difficult times. I was moved by this lovely collection of stories from Debby’s marriage to Gordon, and how she met true love when she least expected. An enjoyable read and one I highly recommend! Read the whole review   ..   You can pick up a copy of Twenty Years on Amazon, and connect with the author on her blog, D.G. Kaye, Writer. With your help, together we can find every self-published book worth reading and make the Discovery List a one-stop shop for excellent indie books. If your book isn’t on the List yet, add it today!   Well, it was certainly uplifting to find my book featured on Tim’s blog, and thrilled to share it here today. I hope you writing friends and readers here will help contribute to Tim’s ‘Discovery List‘ so we can share with the world some of the books we’ve enjoyed and help readers to discover them by sharing our reviews there. We need 100 reviews to begin the publication spreadsheet! Don’t forget – you can share a review you’ve written for any book, and if you’re an author, you can share your own books there with a favorite review! See you there!   ©DGKaye2021  

Writer’s Tips – Tool Rocket, Publishing #Scams, Word Slash, #Stylesheets, #Blogging Tips

Welcome to June edition of Writer’s Tips. It’s an exceptionally crazy time for me right now in the middle of getting ready to moving madness. But I’ve managed to capture a few posts that stood out to me in my short travels along blogland. I hope you bloggers and authors all find something of interest here today. Hugh Roberts, Kathy Steinemann, Sally Cronin, Nicholas Rossis and Anne R Allen’s blogs are always filled with valuable information. I also came across an interesting new social platform – Clubhouse, an interesting new medium where we can be heard without being seen. Check it out!   Sally Cronin has a new series at her Smorgasbord Invitation, helping authors get the best exposure for their books and themselves in her Public Relations series for authors. Visit the post to find the others in the series Smorgasbord Public Relations for Authors – Part Three – Hitting the Red Carpet by Sally Cronin   Hugh Roberts the blogging guru with 7 Methods to get more Readership for your Blogs These 7 Methods Will Help Get More Readers To Your Blog   Kathy Steinemann has a new word series – How to Slash your Word Count, Part 1 https://kathysteinemann.com/Musings/w...   Nicholas Rossis shares a great tool to convert PDFs, Tool Rocket ToolRocket: a Free PDF Converter   Anne R. Allen with a great heads up on how to detect publishing scams – Friends Don’t let Friends fall for Publishing Scams Friends Don’t Let Friends Fall for Publishing Scams: Look for These Tell-Tale Signs   And, a double-header today from Anne R. Allen’s, featuring this article by Ruth Harris – Everything you want to know about Style Sheets and Guides but were afraid to ask Style Sheets, Style Guides, and Writing Style: Everything You Wanted to Know but Were Afraid to Ask   Have any of you heard of Clubhouse? This new social app offers another medium for people to connect. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/ho...   I hope you all enjoy this edition of Writer’s Tips.    ©DGKaye2021        

Smorgasbord Public Relations for Authors – Part Two – Author Biographies -Tips and Translations by Sally Cronin

A quick hello as I surface from chaos and grieving status quo. I’m in the midst of packing, donating, and trying to sell stuff online that requires frequent attention – just what I don’t feel like doing. I’m moving in two weeks and trying to figure out the puzzle, deciding how to keep as much as will fit in the smaller unit, which isn’t really small, but compared to now, well, let’s just say it’s A LOT of stuff. I probably won’t have a Sunday review ready this week, but I’ll have a new edition of Writer’s Tips next week. In the meantime, I’m sharing Sally Cronin’s recent article in her new fabulous, Author Series, where she offers valuable PR tips on how to best present ourselves, from bios to pictures.   Smorgasbord Public Relations for Authors – Part Two – Author Biographies -Tips and Translations by Sally Cronin     The definition of Public Relations in business is “Public relations is a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between businesses and the public” In the past my focus has been on book marketing, which did include how to reach potential readers with blogs, social media and as part of the writing community. Whilst this series will revisit those platforms along the way it is an opportunity to focus on some key areas of our public profiles that might influence the public to buy our books. The focus this time is on you.. the author. Last week I looked at the impact our Profile Photo – First contact with reader might have on potential readers. This week it is the turn of the biography that we put on selling sites such as Amazon, Bookbub and Goodreads.   Author Biography – Tips and Translations With approximately 150 authors across the Cafe and Bookstore and the Children’s Reading Room, I am in Amazon and Goodreads daily checking for new releases and reviews to share in the updates. In the current series of Meet the Authors I am also updating biographies to include and I am afraid that I have had to update quite a few myself with new books, or the numbers of books that have been written. My suggestions today are not carved in stone, and how you write your biography is entirely your decision. The one area that is key and seems to be echoed around the writing sites is the fact that a biography that is overlong will be overlooked. The biography is your advertisement that combined with your photograph is going to grab the attention of the potential reader who has landed on your author page. Last week I shared the fact that there are 20,000 new ebooks uploaded each week on Amazon that are in direct competition with your books. Provided you have listed your books with the genre or sub-genre, when searching for books a reader will be offered a selection to choose from. Hopefully that will land them on your book page or your Amazon Author Page. Having got them there.. and smiled at them from your author photograph they will look at the first line of your biography and with any luck will decide to read the rest. However, they are not going to stay their long! Which is why the recommended length of an author biography is under 1000 characters (Amazon recommendation) or 300 words. The primary aim of your biography is to establish your credentials as a writer and to give a quick resume of your work with a dash of personality that makes them think they might enjoy your books. It is recommended to write the biography in the third person. I have played around with both first and third person and I have just revamped mine with the latter. (I am still playing around with it) Not all of us have degrees in literature or are award winning or USA Today Bestselling authors. However, those that do should lead with that. Failing academic credentials, then get creative on how to hook a reader into trusting you know what you are doing. One of the ways to do that is use third party endorsement by using snippets from your reviews. For example you could select one of your top reviews for a book and start your biography. James Smith is a writer whose readers consider ‘is a master storyteller who brings characters alive’ Samantha Johnson’s first novel Desperate Authors received five star reviews ‘Johnson’s creative world building left me breathless’ If you have awards for other books mention you have several including two or three stand out commendations. Following this, and if you have more than one book, it it a good idea mention your most current book with a brief synopsis. It is not necessary to list the titles of all the books you have written within the biography as the covers are featured on the page. However, after the main biography you can add further information on series of books for example, so that the reader has a better idea of which book to begin with. Many of the sample biographies of best-selling authors that I have read over the last couple of weeks have been written with a certain amount of humour which made them stand out. It is a good idea to put the link to your website with a note – For more information about the author and their work etc. Amazon new look Author Central   Amazon have made it easier for you to share your biography, not only on other sites but in other languages. Potential readership around the world. The other key element to think about is your visibility on an international platform such as Amazon which sells our books on 17 sites (maybe more as growing fast) with a reach of approximately 58 countries. This means that you need to make sure your biography is on as many sites as possible. . . Please continue reading at Sally’s blog.   Have a look at the first part in this informative series by Sally – People Buy People First, Profile Photo About Sally Cronin I have been a storyteller most of my life (my mother called them fibs!). Poetry, song lyrics and short stories were left behind when work and life intruded, but that all changed in 1996. My first book Size Matters was a health and weight loss book based on my own experiences of losing 70kilo. I have written another thirteen books since then on health and also fiction including three collections of short stories. My latest collection is Life is Like A Bowl of Cherries: Sometimes Bitter, Sometimes Sweet. I am an Indie author and proud to be one. My greatest pleasure comes from those readers who enjoy my take on health, characters and twisted endings… and of course come back for more. As a writer I know how important it is to have help in marketing books.. as important as my own promotion is, I believe it is important to support others. I offer a number of FREE promotional opportunities on my blog and linked to my social media. If you are an author who would like to be promoted to a new audience of dedicated readers, please contact me via my blog. All it will cost you is a few minutes of your time. Look forward to hearing from you.     Original Source: Smorgasbord Public Relations for Authors – Part Two – Author Biographies -Tips and Translations by Sally Cronin | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine   ©DGKaye2021  

Sunday Book Review – Poetry Treasures – Anthology

Welcome to my Sunday Book Review. Today I’m reviewing Poetry Treasures, a colloboration of entries from some talented poets in our writing community. This is a short and sweet read with a delicious sampling of various poems written in various forms, and an in-depth introduction to the poets.     Blurb: A collection of poetry from the poet/author guests of Robbie Cheadle on the “Treasuring Poetry” blog series on Writing to be Read in 2020. Open the book and discover the poetry treasures of Sue Vincent, Geoff Le Pard, Frank Prem, Victoria (Tori) Zigler, Colleen M. Chesebro, K. Morris, Annette Rochelle Aben, Jude Kitya Itakali, and Roberta Eaton Cheadle.   My 4 Star Review: A sweet short read and a collaboration of a variety of poems written in various forms of poetry by some talented poets. I feel like this book was an introduction to the poets as well as a sampling of their creativity in poetry. I especially enjoyed the poetry of Colleen Chesebro and a delicious sampling of intrinsic poetry by the talented and missed, the late, Sue Vincent. @DGKaye2021    

Sunday Book Review – Talking to Heaven by James Van Praagh

Welcome to my Sunday Book Review. As many of you already know, my reading interest since my husband’s passing is solely being hungry for books about getting through the grieving journey, as well as books about the hereafter. Talking to Heaven was a beautiful book, giving a deeper understanding to what goes on with the transition of death to the next realm.     Blurb: James Van Praagh is a spiritual medium—someone who is able to bridge the physical and spiritual worlds. Though unaware of his gifts until his twenties, he slowly came to terms with his unique abilities. Talking to Heaven explores his most revealing sessions with grieving people seeking to contact the spirits of loved ones. From a devastated mother receiving a message of hope from her deceased little girl, to communicating with a young man, killed in Vietnam, who doesn’t realize he’s dead, Van Praagh affirms his belief in the existence of a peaceful afterlife. Talking to Heaven also offers those who are grieving methods to recognize and positively deal with the pain of grief in a healthy, honest manner. Part spiritual memoir, part case study, part instrumental guide, Talking to Heaven will change the way you perceive death and life.   My 5 Star Review: Medium James Van Praagh is a well-known psychic medium who writes in this book about his live experiences doing readings for people wanting to connect with lost loved ones. He shares how he introduces himself to each client by sharing incidence in the client’s life that nobody else would never even know. Using examples of stories of his encounters with spirit, he shares how he receives his information and how he feels what the deceased experienced as their death. For anyone curious to learn what happens to spirit on the other side after life, this book is a calming and informing about how our loved ones who’ve passed may be gone from their earthly life, but remain around us for the rest of ours. Praagh also tells us the same about our loved and lost pets and how they still come round and hang out in their favorite spots from their earthly life. Praagh goes into the chakras and meditations that help to open us up and allow us to go deeper into ourselves, teaching us with guided meditations how we can connect on another realm with a lost loved one, something I certainly hope I will eventually be able to do. In this book, the author shares a lot about himself, detailing how he came to be a psychic medium through his own experiences, as well as sharing many experiences others have encountered with lost love ones from the other side with his assistance. Stories of hope for others to learn how to connect and understand better, the hereafter.   ©DGKaye2021  

#WATWB – We are the World Blogfest – Giant rock snake started by a 7-year-old at a Toronto beach is melting hearts

Welcome to May edition of #WATWB – We are the World Blogfest, where writers share an inspiring article they’ve come across, to share some of the goodness in the world and to deflect from negativity.   Today I’m sharing a heart-warming article I first saw on our local TV news, then searched for the article. Because of the never-ending lockdowns in our city, it’s especially important to keep up the good spirits in children who are sorely missing out on social interaction. This little boy, Lucas Walker, has started a ‘snake chain’ of Kindness Rocks he hand-painted then started the chain of rocks at one of our Toronto beaches, and invited others to join in and add rocks. Now, people of all ages are visiting and enjoying reading the rocks and so many others are adding their own.     Giant Rock Snake is melting hearts in Toronto: “Something as simple as a rock snake is getting plenty of smiles from the community after seven-year-old Lucas Walker started it last week. Since the Beaches kid placed the first four painted rocks next to the Kew Beach boardwalk and set up a painted sign encouraging others to join in, it has grown to about 15m. “He was just looking for an activity to do and wanted to get others involved,” Walker’s mom, Sema Sali, told blogTO. “We were heading to the beach one day, and were like, ‘Hey, why don’t we do something fun and creative’ and he was like, ‘Let’s paint some rocks!'” Please visit the original post at BlogTo.com to see some of the wonderful rocks and how many more that have been added since Lucas began with four rocks.   Source: This now giant rock snake started by a 7-year-old at a Toronto beach is melting hearts   If you’d like to join in with a post about something good going on in the world, please join us with your post by sharing it in our WATWB Facebook group.    ©DGKaye2021  

D. G. Kaye Explores the Realms of Relationships – May 2021 – The #Grief Process | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

Well it’s been a very long year for me, and my thanks to Sally Cronin for keeping my spirit alive while I’ve been living the very recent loss of my husband. Sally has been generous with her resharing of past articles while I’ve been mostly absent from blogland and not fulfilling my monthly contributions to her Smorgasbord Blog Magazine. So in staying with the current theme of my life this year, my recent article is about Grief and touching on what one can expect on this journey, through my experience.   Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – D. G. Kaye Explores the Realms of Relationships – May 2021 – The #Grief Process Hello to my wonderful Smorgasbord family. I’d like to first say thank you to the so many of you who’ve been sending light, love and condolences with messages, emails, cards, and even some unexpected gifts. And a huge thank you to Sally for keeping my spirit alive here and beyond. Undoubtedly, I have a lifetime of stories to write about, and I’m not here today to write specifically about the 180 my life took not even two whole months ago, when my husband seemed to be getting sicker by the day and a palliative doctor came into the hospital room to talk to me about his ongoing care, before we’d even had confirmed results back from an oncologist. This was the beginning of the end.     But today’s article isn’t about all that what went down with my husband’s end of his life, but more geared toward the topic about what this series represents – Realms of Relationships, not just about relationships, but also about situations and emotions that we endure and or encounter in life in relationships, and how they affect us and how we deal with them. So, for today, I’d like to share a bit about what I’m learning about how this grief process works, and since I’m currently living the nightmare, who better than me to share with you my experiences, straight from this proverbial horse’s mouth. And always remember, everybody’s own grief is unique, but one thing is for certain, there are definitely the same steps and stages involved in the grief process, and possibly a bit overly cliché sounding, but it is the old standard – the five stages of grief – Denial · Anger · Bargaining · Depression · Acceptance, which are, and will be components of the journey, no matter how one grieves. Yup, they’re real. There are variations for sure, which I’ll get into later. But suffice it to say, there are no shortcuts with grief.     Books on grief are typically not our first ‘go to’ genre. Let’s face it, how many people want to read about end of life? But ahh, how many who’ve lived through a heart wrenching loss wish they had someone to help them understand the inner torment grief brings to the table, wishing they knew more about what to expect? As I grew myself up by reading self-help books about growing self-esteem, reading true stories and situations about people and how they handled their hardships, it paid off helping me to learn what I needed to better myself. In the same circumstance, wanting to reach out and look for some way of relief from the grieving process, books and gatherings with people who’ve walked in the shoes, really can help too. Now I’m not saying reading books about grieving will help us get out of our grief, but they can do several other things such as, allow us to feel with another who has walked in the same devastating shoes of unbearable grief; it’s almost like a feeling of camaraderie, like when we shake our heads as we read something that resonates, as if to affirm every single emotion and stage we’re going through as we read. It’s a natural instinct for us to want to connect with others who are familiar with all the new emotions we will go through. Truly, I believe that only someone who has lived the journey can write these kinds of books, and you can be sure, somewhere down the road, I’ll be writing one of my own – one day, when the stinging rawness of my unacceptance at willing to face all the music I keep locked up in a compartment in my head so that at present, I can function and get on with the grueling things that demand attending to during my hours of grief, like, arranging funerals, Covid restrictions, two religions dilemma, and fulfilling my husband’s wishes, all in the same moments while my very own hell in my heart resides within. I will write a book. I’ve read books all my life to try to better myself and learn, so naturally, and despite the fact that I haven’t been able to read for pleasure at present, a single page of any book since my husband began deteriorating, Only after he passed I had a hunger to devour books that could make me feel I wasn’t alone. I felt compelled to read a few books about grieving. I needed to know how people got through it all. I needed to learn about all the other goodies (sarcasm) I had to look forward to.     I was immediately drawn to Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross’s work as a psychologist and her own experience with grief, and her work with people who’ve had near death experiences and came back to tell, which I’ve recently read – On Life After Death. . . .Please continue reading at Sally’s Smorgasbord.   Source: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – D. G. Kaye Explores the Realms of Relationships – May 2021 – The #Grief Process | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine   ©DGKaye2021  

Sunday Book Review – New Book on the Shelves and #Review – Word Craft: Prose & Poetry: The Art of Crafting Syllabic Poetry by Colleen M. Chesebro | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine

Welcome to my Sunday Book Review. If you’ve read my yesterday post, you’ll learn that I’m overwhelmed between grief and busyness – getting ready to move. Also, because I’ve been on a rip-roaring tangent of reading many books from grief to afterlife, and often, reading two books at once, I don’t have a review of my own written yet, so today’s book review is a reblog of Sally Cronin’s recent shining new review for Colleen Chesebro’s newest labor of love – Word Craft – Prose and Poetry – The Art of Crafting Syllabic Poetry. If you enjoy either reading and/or writing poetry, you may want to expand your horizons and learn about the various styles of writing syllabic poetry.   Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore – New Book on the Shelves and #Review – Word Craft: Prose & Poetry: The Art of Crafting Syllabic Poetry by Colleen M. Chesebro     As a participant in Colleen Chesebro’s weekly Tuesday Tanka Challenge, I have discovered so many different forms of syllabic poetry and come to love creating poems in these formats. I am delighted to share the news of Colleen’s new release and also my release for the guide.     Blurb: Are you ready to learn how to craft Japanese and American poetry? Consider this book the first step on your journey to learning the basics of how to craft syllabic poetry. Inside, you will discover many new forms, syllable combinations, and interpretations of the different Japanese and American forms and structures of haiku, senryu, haiga, tanka, renga/solo renga, gogyohka, haibun, tanka prose, the cinquain, and its variations, Etheree, nonet, and shadorma poetry. So… what are you waiting for? Let’s craft syllabic poetry together!   Sally Cronin’s 5 Star review for the guide and poetry collection May 19th 2021 I have enjoyed poetry from childhood and would write stories in verse from an early age. I was introduced to Japanese syllabic poetry when I began participating in Colleen Chesebro’s Weekly Tanka Challenge three years ago. At first hesitantly, but then as my confidence grew under her tutelage, I became more adventurous. Word Craft: Prose and Poetry shares an expanded guide to the various forms of syllabic verse shared on the author’s website, and includes the history and provenance of the traditional and more modern versions. It is fascinating and also humbling that we are in this day and age, creating poetry with such a lineage. This guide reminded me of how much I still have to learn about the intent of each form and their accepted applications. Nature and the self are prominent, but in some there is a freedom to express emotion, irony and humour. Most forms tell a story and the challenge is to do so with sometimes as few as seventeen syllables and within the framework of the format. I was very honoured to have some of my challenge pieces included with the talented poets who have participated, and whose poetry brings such pleasure to those who read it in the challenge recap… and that includes the author who always explains the intricacies of a particular form then shows with examples for even beginners to follow. I recommend this guide and collection for all lovers of poetry who will enjoy the poems shared throughout the book, beginners who are looking for a way to express themselves with brevity, and more experienced poets who are looking for a new challenge. For me as a writer of short stories and novels, writing syllabic poetry has been a great way to learn how to make a few words convey more.   Visit Colleen’s Amazon Author Page for a list of all her books.   Visit Sally’s blog for the full post   Original Source: Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore – New Book on the Shelves and #Review – Word Craft: Prose & Poetry: The Art of Crafting Syllabic Poetry by Colleen M. Chesebro | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine   ©DGKaye2021