Hey there everyone.

I’ve managed to strike up a conversation with another wonderful artist, poet and writer tonight.

Just a quick note before the fun and games start – I link to a lot of other articles in my posts, so WordPress users please check your Spam folders in your Setting Menus and approve any links/pingbacks that you find from me to improve the visibility of your own blog posts, as well as mine, it’s a win win for us both 😉

OK, now we are good to go!

Please let me introduce to you all to Kait Moon, as she discusses her latest book release, her creative passions, her biggest influences and where she draws inspiration from.

Thanks for reading and have a great evening.

 

Hi there Kait, thank you for spending some quality time with us today, so we can get to know more about you, along with your passions for art, creative expression and writing.

Thanks so much for offering me the chance to discuss my work!

Let’s start with your book “Pain Eater: A Memoir”, which contains both poetry and prose. Please tell us more about this publication, the themes that are found in it and what kind of journey we will be taken on as we delve into it.

Pain eater was created after a twelve year journey of travel and writing. It is a complete book of text, poems, and dreams carved from my life. I like to refer to it as a book of small pieces in the shape of pain; creative and destructive.

The text takes us from mountain tops to wombs, bars to backseats to hotel rooms and into the land of dreams. Themes explore on love, childhood, motherhood, death, dreams, distance, domestic violence and recovery to name just a few.

What would you choose as your own personal mascot or spirit animal when it comes to you and your style of writing?

I would choose a Crow, an animal I have identified with since I was quite young. They are inquisitive and unconventional. Interested in the things that glint when passed over from the sky but which are often buried at eye level. They collect the shiny messes people leave behind, changing them into gifts and offerings to be cherished; and if you are kind enough they will share them with you.

You also make mixed media paintings and art too. Do you find that all of these things are interconnected when it comes to expressing yourself alongside your poetry and prose?

Yes, absolutely. Much of my works over the last two years especially have focused on the very themes I tackle in my book, and helped me to a place where I could share the words behind the images. My piece “Frida” honors the gender-fluidity, chronic pain and feelings of isolation of the great artist Frida Kahlo, my two sided mixed-media piece of Persephone explores isolation, domestic abuse and sacrifice. Kali honors the dark-goddess in all of us and the fire that burns away illusion. All of my works are pieces from my own experiences and reflect common, human themes of love, abandonment, isolation, pain, strength, connection and redemption.

What do you find the most difficult thing about writing? And what do you find the easiest?

As a mother of four…finding the time. I am a much better writer when I can devote hours to my craft, as a mother I get mere minutes to jot down a theme or thought. It’s one reason I have been doing more video work and collaborations lately as I prepare to move from the Midwest. The second question is harder to answer. I think the easiest part is knowing I have a platform to share it. That people are reading, listening, that this isn’t all just going into a file (or round file.)

Who are some of the authors, poets and historical figures that inspire you?

As I said before Frida Kahlo is my art mom…lol. As a genderfluid female in a world very suspicious and antagonistic of such a break from the “norm” she pushed herself relentlessly to express her pain and fear and joy to the outside world when her body often forced her inside, in bed, for months at a time. Mere days before her death she was in a wheelchair at a rally supporting the rights of workers in Mexico. She literally gave her to the very end of her life to help shed a light on injustice.

Other creatives include Jorge Silva Rodighiero who is a modern Chilean author, creative, and therapist who uses his talents to connect and heal others. Jorge Luis Borges was a wordsmith with no parallel. Kahlil Gibran and his work on love and pain is someone I return to often in times of suffering. Laure McClave – A modern american painter whose work explores many resonant themes, and whose skill I aspire to is a great inspiration. Vincent van Gogh – another who battled mental and physical pain – but continued to bring love and creative works into the world regardless of who saw them. He supported a woman and her child for many years out of his love for her, despite the protests of his family as the child was not his. That kind of love inspires me greatly.

What sort of research do you do to write your books?

So far, all the books and stories I have written or worked on have been inspired by my own experiences and those that have been shared through countless hours counseling breastfeeding parents and sharing my stories on all themes with friends and groups around he world.

My first published book was borne out of 60 months of breastfeeding four children over a 6 year span, the resistance I found as a breastfeeding, non-binary mother of twins and the stories of all those who shared while I was active in my advocacy work was where most of it came from. My research was my life. That said, the statistics, information and support in that book is all evidence-based and comes from a number of resources all linked in the book.

My memoir was, obviously, also from my life. Since I haven’t released any non-fiction thus far, my greatest sources of info are my own heart and the truthful feedback from those who take the chance to read my work before it’s published and share their own stories.

Why do you write? What inspired you to become a writer?

I write because I have to. I was two-years-old the first time I asked my mother to dictate a story I had created (about a ghost that lived with us.) I had first drawn her a picture on a yellow legal notepad she had around the house, then brought it to her to write the story down. I’ve never been able to stop. It’s just what I am. I am a story teller. My stories just happen to be (mostly) true.

What keeps you motivated during creative slumps? How do you deal with Writers Block?

My best friend! lol. Honestly, I more often in a slump than not. My best friend reminds me constantly about how it might look to keep going even when the Muse is on vacation. Remixing or re-imagining the work I have done or wish to do so it fits into the small spaces my life affords for creativity. My patrons too. My tribe. They remind me my voice has value. It matters deeply that they do.

To stay focused, I usually try to come at my work from a different angle while I’m waiting for my Muse to return; just to keep that spirit open so when inspiration strikes I’m ready. I do this by re-imagining old pieces, participating in collaborations with other artists, taking time to read or invest time in exploring other’s art so I can step outside my own head. Read things new to me, whether it’s history or philosophy or psychology or poetry. There is so much inspiring work out right now. So much from the past I have yet to discover.

You have access to a time machine. What advice would you give to your younger self?

Don’t give up. There is so much beauty ahead, you have no idea.

How do you spend your free time when you are not writing?

I have no free time! LOL. All my free time is spent writing or creating. The rest of my waking hours are devoted to my family and the business side of my creative work. Sadly my team is tiny and most of the hard work of being an independent artist is on my shoulders. My life is a series of simultaneous full-time jobs.

Tell us more about your upcoming projects. Are you working on anything specific or have plans in the pipeline?

I am revamping both my website and Patreon for a more interactive experience with my followers, producing more videos and art for my patrons and the world at large, and I am currently preparing for three more book projects; a children’s series on living with chronic pain and PTSD. A short, near-future fiction novel, and a collaboration with Jorge Silva Rodighiero on Trauma.

Finally, are there any nuggets of wisdom that you can impart to other aspiring writers or poets?

Your way is different than everyone else’s way. That is how it should be. It’s OK not to follow “the rules.” Speak openly. Speak your heart. Just SPEAK, whatever way that takes shape for you. Your voice is singular and so very, very important.

And that’s a wrap! A pleasure to have found out more about you and we look forward to exploring more of your work very soon 🙂

Thank you again for asking about my work and process. I appreciate your time and that of your readers!

Bio:-

Kait Moon hails from Cascadia (The Pacific Northwest) where her blood was born and which is always home.

She has been blessed to have seen a good chunk of the world outside of the States and after leaving Seattle for The Netherlands in 2005 (where she began creating humans in Fryslân), they somehow all settled down in Milwaukee, USA and have been there now for 10 years.

Kait is a disabled parent, raising four kids, and a very sweet dog, with as much love and hugs as possible in a world full of pain.

You can connect with and support Kait via the following Social Media channels:-

Facebook:- Kait Moon Arts (FB)
Instagram:- @kaitmoonarts (Instagram)
Patreon:- Kait Moon is creating Art & Videos on Patreon
Twitter:- @LunarMamaCraft (Twitter)
Website:- The Website of Artist and Writer Kait Moon
YouTube:- Kait Moon – YouTube

You can buy her books here:-

Buy Kait Moon books in Canada

Buy Kait Moon books in the UK/Europe

Buy Kait Moon books in the US/Rest of the World

If you too would like to be interviewed on my blog at TooFullToWrite and you have a book or a series of books that you would like us to chat about then fill out the Contact Me form here with your details and we can arrange a future interview slot.

Still want more? Well, Kait has shown an enormous amount of strength of character, integrity and resolve in her determination to produce her art, poetry and prose. She has displayed a lot of ‘true grit’ and a dedicated passion for her work. For more articles on the theme of ‘Grit’ then check out the links below:-

1. A Diary of A Single Man: Heavens Peak – Harlem Cafe
2. Strange – I Write Stuff on a Blog
3. My Mixed Blog – Grit Plus Peace
4. Na’ama Yehuda – Grit of Will
5. Five O’clock – E. Denise Billups, Writer
6. witchlike – Punk Rock Shakespeare!
7. The Noodler 7.14.17 – Mah Butt Itches
8. A Political DJ – US Army Grit
9. What It Feels Like To Lose Someone To Disease – The Curve
10. Mainline_Matter – True Believer Grit
11. GRIT – Mick E Talbot Poems
12. Inception – MAG Stories
13. Winter Germs – Debbie Gravett
14. Swell Time – Teach me to have grit
15. Bury the Bumble Grit – damswriter
16. NeuroBead – Women in Bio Panel – “The Intersection of Art and Science”
17. A new beginning – and the journey continues
18. Notes to Women – The Dinner Invitation
19. Grit and Bury–Daily Prompts – Fearless
20. For Better or For Worse – Dirty Little Daydreams
21. The Romantic Quill – WEDNESDAY REFLECTION #24: The Americanization of Emily starring James Garner & Julie Andrews
22. Just A Kiss.. – Life After Fifty
23. A little secret … A huge treasure! – thinkinkadia
24. City of Joy – Revolving Around Life
25. Global warming of emotions.. – DeepikasRamblings
26. somehow, somewhat mine – Tiny Fawns Writings
27. negative hindsight – play the dealer
28. nerdhut – How to design your own CPU from scratch – Part 3
29. Heb een prachtig we gehad Uitstap Mondo-Verde // Kruimels in ’t Park // Bigjump – Groeten uit #Tienen
30. tuckedintoacorner – roots + wisdom + grit
31. Success Inspirers World – Your Grit is Very Vital to Your Success
32. Grit – calliemm
33. Wanderlust – CURSOR MADNESS
34. May Your Blessings Be Like a Grit – LifeBlog
35. huntprayerpoems – GRIT. You. Billows of Guilt?
36. Grit : Beach therapy – Tachispeaks
37. Day 2 – Dave’s Daily Drivel
38. The Grit – Her Snippets
39. Grit – Dance of the Soulful Words
40. A Diary of A Single Man: This Bleeding Heart – Harlem Cafe
41. Grit – Optimistic Odyssey
42. helen meikle’s scribblefest – Daily prompt: Quinoa
43. Eclectic Joy – Prompted Post – Grit
44. sonja benskin mesher – . skinned.
45. Hungry (poem) – stephentotheplate
46. Insomnia – Leigha Robbins
47. Momentum of Jo – Rise to Your Standard, Not Theirs (Day 15)
48. You Will Get There.. Eventually – The Foxy Igorota
49. Red – Inkwells & Paperdolls
50. Surviving the Heat and Humidity – The Chicken Grandma
51. Walk with God – I’ll Have a Big “Heaping” of Those Grits, Please!
52. Nonie Talks – Grand Grit
53. Remember To Forget To Regret – LiveFree & LoveOnPurpose
54. ~191 Of 365~ – ……….365 Days………..
55. All-You-Can-Eat-Buffet – Inner Whispers
56. Stretched and Snapped – Beauty Mirrors Beast
57. Zombie Flamingos – Today…tired…
58. grief, grit, and grace – What does nelkumi think?­
59. VirtuousParagon – Popping Sand
60. Daily Prompt :Grit – Tachispeaks
61. The Nitty Gritty – Life Lessons from my job – Mindflight
62. Southern Grit – jansten56
63. Sascha Darlington’s Microcosm Explored – Did I Say That I Want You? #amwriting
64. Living In Crimson – Shoulders
65. Attuned Photography – Still life – Macro Photography
66. Fluffy Pool – Dear Agony Ant: WTF
67. Laidig’s Broadway – Getting It Done #2
68. Writing Buddies – The Pooch Place
69. From Grit to Grace – BraveSmartBold
70. Life On The Skinny Branches – True Grit
71. Antwerp-WordPress-Meetup/ – Groeten uit #Tienen
72. manvsloneliness – Jerel Says, ‘Go West, Young Man, Go West’; Grit
73. Trump Admin’s Grit – A Place for my thoughts
74. Grit – John Jr’s Blog
75. Myammy! Moving in together at 50… – The Russians are coming! Again…really?
76. Moonlight Reflections – Grit for Avian Species…. To Feed or Not to Feed?
77. 83 Unsung Heroes – Intimidation, Confidence And Ana In A White Dress
78. Afterwards – Bernard and Charles
79. Daily Post Grit – All About Writing and more
80. The day – Drop A Topic
81. The Strip – themumblr
82. recovery to wellness – Speaking Out About Mental Health Part 1
83. Cross – thehouseofbailey
84. Does Grit change over time? – Crossfade
85. IT is my irrational fear… – They Once Called Her Pumpkin…
86. The Grit. The Grind. The Search… – Success Strategies
87. poor haiku – Summer Grit
88. Grit – wordsareallihavesite
89. Moving Ahead… – Wings Of Poetry
90. Flip Flops Every day – Standing on the beach
91. GOD’S CHAIR – Prayer for Daily Grit
92. Scottish Legend’s Blog – I am looking for stories. 🙂
93. Reaching out. – A Thought Process
94. My lost grit – In my world
95. Charmed Chaos – The Measure of a Man
96. That Annoying Guy in Love – Love and Life
97. Not so sure – Just me and us blog
98. thejasminegate – The nitty-gritty
99. Bridging the Communication Gap – Wind Kisses
100. The Pictures On My Bedroom Wall – Specscladeyes
101. No cereal for Samuel – Bad Writing
102. Exploring the World around us – Grit
103. When The Line Between Grit And Stupidity Becomes Blurred – christinapociask
104. Grit – The Bag Lady
105. True grit needed for this daily grind – Your Nibbled News – 2017 YNN
106. A Writer’s Voice – True Grit in Self-Care
107. Grinding – a moment teller’s
108. Yo-Yo Faith: Staying Focused in the Highs & Lows – Adventures of a Busy Mom
109. Flowers and Breezes – Grit
110. Life as it happens to be – Daily Prompt – ‘Grit’: A Word Game Today
111. Being Lydia! – The Nitty Gritty of Chronic Illness
112. Grit – The Inkwell
113. Success Inspirers World
114. Miss Determined – My First Blog – anything and everything..
115. My sons little yellow car – The Musing Monkey
116. grit – erintypes
117. Stand Tall – epiphanyofsumi
118. Back of My Neck Getting Dirty and Gritty – This, That, and The Other
119. B*_ live – True Grit
120. GRIT – Emovere
121. Piper’s Adventures – Music While Walking
122. Pure Soul – Smell The Coffee
123. True Grit – ditzy.com
124. True Grit and Determination Wins the Day – The Hockey Mom Fit Life
125. Golden words – Yuhu
126. Perseverance as your friend, and courage as your shoes, Brand New you – cries from an unkempt garden
127. Midnight Calico Farm – Smokey Ruby
128. True Grit – Left-Overs
129. Grit – Image & Word
130. Light & life – Rookies
131. Curious Hart – Perseverance
132. Try to eat something new – Don’t hold your breath
133. Piper’s Adventures – A Walk on the Beach
134. To Poetry – S. Thomas Summers
135. Sandmanjazz – A classic
136. A Diary of A Single Man: A Father’s Day After Thought – Harlem Cafe
137. Telling the Truth – gritty monuments
138. Musings of a Random Mind – The Mountain May Be High
139. Thoughts on Life – Grit
140. Lori’s Life and Other Stuff – Crap Week
141. Think About It – Rebirth
142. Too Fast (Rant) – Zeckrombryan
143. The Growth and Grit – rupalislale
144. Sabbia – Epentesi
145. You are entering my Mind – Dhyan’s smarts, laughs or experiences – #1
146. Catch A Wild Ride Canoeing the Flambeau River – Frozen Or Thawed
147. To be gritty or not – Water….simply said
148. Absence – Writing the wrongs
149. Famdamily – I’m a Writer, Yes, I Am!
150. MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO – Grit
151. Jesus,Love,Mercy & Me – Labor Required
152. The Grit of a Heart on a Rainy Day – December Rose
153. The Consulting Writer – A Camera, Parenting and True Grit
154. masihbersambung – This Ride is a Wild One
155. “Chock Full of That, Man.” – Resting Bitch Personality
156. Don’t be afraid to sparkle… – Mum’s the Word Blog
157. A Drinking Tanka – Urban Poetry By Linda J. Wolff
158. True Grit! – Bad Dad Cartoons 101
159. Grit And Determination – emotionsoflife2016
160. Grit & dirt – THEGIRLVERSUSWORLD
161. Tanka: Call Of The Wild – whippetwisdom.com
162. Serviceberries are Ready! – The Zombies Ate My Brains
163. grit – Matt’s Thoughts On
164. Leg Braces – A Unique Title For Me
165. Covert Novelist – Grit
166. Living Out Loud – Fandom? But I’m Not a Fan of Sports…
167. Finances Managed? – Haiku Abound
168. DCMontreal: Blowing the Whistle on Society – Humira Ad, Warranties and CYA
169. The Miller’s Daughter – indisputably inconclusive
170. Warm paws on the scolding pavement – Sarahs Crazy Mind
171. Secret of Strong Bones!
172. mylocalweb – the real income
173. Grit – Living, Learning and Letting Go
174. Entangled Beauty – TyroCharm
175. The frustration of training – Right of Legions
176. The Cat Chronicles – Daily Feline Prompt: Gritty Feline
177. a reason to love – Love it Now
178. Magenta Moxie – surrealspectre
179. parallax – Grit
180. lifelessons – a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown – True Grit
181. Life As Adult Bianca – Blissfully Bianca
182. Against All Odds – Around the World
183. To Grit – Charron’s Chatter
184. See it Through – Full-Time
185. Purposive Writer – True Grit of A Seeker
186. Courage – My little storybook
187. Lucky or Unlucky? – XDrive
188. Grace, Gratitude & Grit – Fallen Rose’s Blog
189. Voices – Journey
190. Just Brittany Moments – Strength In Her Weakness
191. Inner Demons – The Diary of a Weird Teen Boy
192. Wade Through Work – Live life; make meaning.
193. Symptoms Of Religious Extremism – Islamic Methodologies Made Easy
194. For Starters – This, That, and The Other
195. Dronstad – Death from above
196. Muse of the Day – Everyday Strange
197. SAXIFRAGE, OF GRIT – IDLE BRAIN
198. Accepting Truth – The Diary of a Weird Teen Boy
199. Chronicles of an Anglo Swiss – Daily Grit
200. Sangti valley – Don’t hold your breath
201. The Outdoors Life – Melinda J. Irvine
202. A Matter of Perspective – Marcus Lopes
203. The Ultimate Test. – The Diary of a Weird Teen Boy
204. { Miraculous Marathon } – My Word Soup
205. Relax – Or, “True Determination”
206. the15thday – bob deep enough in the water so as to sneakily remove costume to rinse self off
207. Shootin’ Sunshine – CD-W, Author Flawed to Perfection
208. Kitchen/4 haiku – 25more
209. Hot White Snow – The grit of a bulldog
210. Pencil Color Portrait #3 – The Diary of a Weird Teen Boy
211. KO Rural Mad As Hell Blog – Great Falls
212. #MondayMotivation – Wells Baum
213. How to use ‘temptation building’ to get things done – Wells Baum
214. Still Finding My Grit – GreenWorldGlimpse
215. Filter bubbles – Wells Baum
216. Self-destructive habits performed by threesome – Bird Flight
217. Rock Hard: Dianne Goes For a Drink – Redux Of Rex
218. A Little History, a Little Rant – Just Writing!
219. Salt – Live life; make meaning.
220. ….on pets and prisoners….. – daily prompt: grit
221. Occupandi Temporis: Capturing Fleeting Moments… – Chronicles of an Orange-Haired Woman!
222. Individual expressions of a naive mind. – Watching the world without eyes can still be beautiful.
223. Madelyn’s Laugh – The Jittery Goat
224. True Grit – aroused
225. The Wandering Poet – Memory
226. I wrote a book. Now what? – Who Would Do What?
227. Grit – All About Writing and more
228. Frank Prem – Yellow Walls and Greying Curtains
229. Lantern Words – Not By My Grit
230. Cimmerian Sentiment – #40 Car Trouble (Waking Up Jayla)
231. Frank Prem – Picture on a Wall
232. Frank Prem – In Blue