Featured Interview With Kay Douglas
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in New Zealand and have lived there all my life. I live in Auckland in a home in a bush setting which I love. I consider myself blessed to living in New Zealand.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
Looking back I can see that my writing career began when I was about 8 years old. I was living in an alcoholic home where there was a lot of abuse happening. I can still remember deciding I was going to write a book about it. I wanted to tell parents how much abuse hurt so they would stop. After hurtful instances I would comfort myself by writing my book in my mind (because it didn’t feel safe to put it on paper). This is no doubt why I have gone on to write 6 books, 5 of them on the subject of abuse and recovery.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I tend to read non-fiction, mostly about issues relating to my work as a psychotherapist who specializes in anger change, and abuse and trauma recovery. There is a lot of new information coming out about trauma and the brain at the moment and I find this a very interesting area.
I have recently enjoyed Dr Bruce Fisher and Oprah Winfrey’s book “What Happened to You?”
Tell us a little about your latest book?
My latest book is Invisible Wounds. This book was first published in New Zealand by Penguin Books in 1994. It has been continually in print since it was published. I have always wanted to publish Invisible Wounds in United States but somehow life kept getting in the way. Last year I got the rights back from Penguin Books so I could self-publish an updated edition. I did this last year in New Zealand and I am excited to have finally released this 3rd edition in US. This feels like finally completing something that was started a very long time ago.
One may think that this is a very old book, but as someone who has worked in the area of abuse prevention and trauma recovery for the last 27 years I can say for sure that many women are still experiencing the same kinds of abuse by their partners as was spoken about in Invisible Wounds all those years ago. I am sad to say that this book is probably more relevant than ever.
The thing that makes Invisible Wounds unique is the direct quotes from the 50 women I interviewed for this book. Their stories are powerful; moving, informative and inspiring.
Invisible Wounds took me 1 year to write. During that time I lived alone, and I lived and breathed it. I was surrounded by transcripts of the women’s interviews, scribbled notes, and half-finished cups of tea. I had a deadline with Penguin so there was an underlying panic present. I had 50 women’s stories I felt responsible for, and a publishing contract with a top publisher so I knew I just had to keep going, no matter what. Although that deadline created pressure it also helped to move me through to the next level in my writing.
I discovered my mind was a wonderful thing, capable of so much more than I realised. I would often dream about the book and wake up with words tumbling through my brain. Half asleep I’d scramble for pen and paper to get the words down while they were there. And usually the words were perfect. The subject I couldn’t seem to write about the day before was now on the page. It was like the words were coming through me, rather than from me. That was a very powerful, humbling process to experience, and one I never forget.
Over the years so many women have told me what Invisible Wounds has meant to them; the comfort and insight they have found on the pages, and the relief they felt when they realised that other women had experienced the same confusion and distress that they were living through. The power of the shared experiences and collective wisdom of women had touched their heart and renewed their self-belief and hope for the future.
I believe that Invisible Wounds is a lifeline that will continue to touch people’s lives powerfully for many years to come. That’s why it has felt so important for me to publish this updated version of Invisible Wounds.
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