Check Out Kiesa Kay’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kiesa Kay

Hi Kiesa, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Our stories can heal our lives and create bridges among us. Last night, I stood on stage at the International Center for Storytelling and shared how I started traveling. When my children went with their father for his parenting time, I could not stand to be in the same country without being with them — so I started traveling. I went all over France and England, with brief forays in Beijing, China; Edinburgh, Scotland; and later, Machu Picchu and Cuzco, Peru. Traveling became a delight and a distraction. I wrote my memoir in France, and I edited two educational anthologies in the Rockies. Earlier, I’d been an activist, a manager for a domestic violence shelter and a crisis counselor. When my strong desire to use my past as a source of sustenance and change awoke anew, I began work as a forensic interviewer and a recovery coordinator. I found strength in the waterfalls and wonder of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and started a series of interviews of survivors, titled Transforming Trauma. Writing vibrated as the throughline across all this time. I’ve written thousands of articles and poems, and my plays have been presented in six states. Thunder is the Mountain’s Voice was chosen for a city celebration in Estes Park, and Love Makes A Home became a convocation for Berea College. One of my works became part of a production at La Mama Theater in New York City for Storytellers for Collective Healing. I elevate others’ voices, through book coaching of ten authors and through the creation of the first Blue Ridge Storytelling Summit.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Last month, I interviewed a Yemeni child soldier activist who had been tortured in prison. He found a way to freedom, to a refugee camp and out of the country, which has been war-torn since 2014. He told me how much he missed his family, his mother, and how it hurt to be the only person he knows in his area who speaks the language of his homeland. Listening to him, I wanted to be able to stop all the terror and trouble in this world, and create places of peace for everyone, where we can love each other and get along with kindness. We never know how someone we meet may have struggled for survival. I’ve had a few challenges, in a small way. As the poet Elizabeth Bishop wrote, “The art of losing isn’t hard to master,” and my losses have been the predictable ones of an American life: childhood abuse, deaths of close friends, unwanted divorce. These struggles, while mighty to me, required garden variety resilience, which I nurture in abundance.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My memoir, Tornado Alley, written when I owned a writing retreat in the South of France, became a source of strength and deep healing. Writing that book meant releasing the pain of the past, so I could move into the present with grace and gladness. One of my plays, Love Makes a Home, has traveled to Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway, and beyond. Whatever happens in this life becomes a source for writing, bridging differences, and building resilience in myself and my readers. I also help others find and feed their own core creative strength. I also ignited a great deal of activism for twice exceptional students with my first educational anthology. I also encourage others, and have helped ten people bring their books from conception to completion.

We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
When we speak our truth, we risk losing cherished relationships with others who rely on our silence to maintain their illusions. My greatest risks have been emotional ones — loving deeply, living fully, riding the waves of wonder. Jonathan Larson wrote, “Release regret, or life is yours to miss,” and taking risks generates the energy and adrenalin essential for catalyzing change.

Pricing:

• Writing Consultations
• Book Coaching
• Weekend Writing Retreats
• Writing Workshops
• Creativity Consultations

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kiesakay.wixsite.com/courage

Image Credits
pontoon photo, Terry Webb; fiddle and psaltery photos, G. Quinlan; Cicada Year cover photo, Brian Schmiel; all others, Kiesa Kay