Today, we're excited to interview Shay Kaleoʻoluhoʻiloliokawaipāhe Kauwe, a graduate of Your Personal Odyssey. It's an online, one-on-one intensive workshop experience, where you'll receive customized instruction based on your work and what you need.
Before we chat with Shay, here's a bit more about her:
Shay Kaleoʻoluhoʻiloliokawaipāhe Kauwe is a kanaka maoli (Native Hawaiian) author from the island of Oʻahu in Hawaiʻi. She grew up on the Homestead in Waimānalo but moved to Russia because she fell in love with a boy. Her and the boy now live in Honolulu with their poi dog, Iris.
Shay holds an M.Ed in Education and taught English, ESL, and Literacy for nearly a decade before moving to the corporate world. Her debut adult fantasy THE KILLING SPELL is forthcoming from Saga and Solaris Books.
You can find her online at: https://www.shaykauwe.com/.
--- Interview with Nicole Pyles
WOW: Thank you so much for taking the time to talk with me today! So, I learned that you are a graduate of Your Personal Odyssey from the Odyssey Writing Workshop. What was your experience like with them?
Shay: My experience with Your Personal Odyssey (YPO) was a fantastic one! I got the opportunity to dive into craft like never before. YPO has been instrumental in shaping my own unique take on storytelling. For example, I’ve learned to appreciate character far more than I had before the workshop. I used to think of character as just a list of traits and physical attributes with a dash of backstory thrown in. YPO taught me to think of characters as more complex beings with motivations that drive their decisions and thus, the plot of a piece. My stories are all the better for this realization.
Jeanne, too, is amazing. She is encouraging and helpful, but constantly pushing you to do better. It's rare to have an instructor that can provide specific and helpful feedback in a way that is always meant to improve and never hurt. It was an absolute honor to work with her!
WOW: I think that's one of the best combinations: helpful feedback that is focusing on improving, not hurting. What about the course appealed to you?
Shay: YPO appealed to me because I wanted a longer program with a sustained focus on writing improvement. However, I’m a full-time worker in Hawaiʻi, which is literally one of the most expensive places in the US, and it’s not financially feasible for me to take off for six weeks for anything. Odyssey was exactly what I was looking for! It was intensive yet flexible enough that I wouldn’t need to quit working or take a long leave of absence.
As soon as I met Jeanne, I knew that YPO was the right choice. The program allowed me to schedule meetings in accordance with my schedule, but it still required rigor. I was very busy during the program but found that this was a great way to learn how to balance my work with my writing. Since I knew I wanted to take writing seriously, I wanted to prepare for what that would look like later when the program ended. I can say confidently that the skills, and even the schedule I kept during Odyssey, have helped me set up a new and improved writing routine post-workshop.
WOW: How great that it worked with your schedule! I saw on your Instagram that you shared some wisdom you gained from the workshop! Can you recap some of that advice for us?
Shay: Absolutely! I did YPO from home and quickly understood that I needed to make some major adjustments to fit its rigorous schedule into my life. Organization was the key to everything. I realized I needed a clean desk to focus on writing, and so kept my work space tidy. To maximize on time, I picked up listening to lectures and audiobooks when walking my dog or while on a run. Experience was the second bit I learned from YPO because nothing can replace it. As a result, I’ll actively seek out new things when I have ideas for books – like I joined a mahjong club because I want to write a book about playing the game! Ironically, YPO helped push me out into the world, both living and reading more widely than ever before.
WOW: I love that! Experiences can inspire so much. So, congrats on the upcoming release of your book, The Killing Spell! How did the workshop prepare you for getting your novel ready for publication?
Shay: Mahalo nui! I had actually already sold The Killing Spell and was in the middle of the publication process when I applied to YPO, so my experience with this book was not affected by the workshop. (It’s such a bummer! If I had done Odyssey prior to edits, I’m sure I could’ve made The Killing Spell so much better!) That said, there was an amazing module at the end of YPO that focused on publication, marketing, and other things a new writer can expect. With my debut right around the corner, this was invaluable information to have.
More than that, YPO taught me how to continue to progress as a writer. Jeanne helped me to see the weak areas in my works-in-progress, and I was able to tackle heavy revisions there. I’ve got a second manuscript with my editor now, so with luck, folks will get to see that work out in the world one day!
WOW: That must have been great to have help with that book following your first novel publication! What advice would you share with writers curious about investing in themselves with this workshop?
Shay: You don’t know what you don’t know! YPO opens your eyes to all the small ways that stories are built, brick-by-brick. By completing the workshop, you’re giving yourself a sixth sense, a new way to look at books. It’s magical, and so, so worth it.
WOW: How cool is that. When did you know it was the right time to take this course?
Shay: In the interim between selling The Killing Spell and having it published, I ended up writing three additional books. I could see that there was a jump in quality from book to book, but when I finished the third and reread it, I felt like I’d hit a plateau. The book was good–not great. The bigger issue, though, was that I couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t great.
That nagging inside drove me to search for courses where I could learn more about writing and how to improve. Odyssey and Jeanne were amazing for that, but it’s not for the faint of heart. I painfully came to the realization that all three new books were, in fact, not very good. But this time, with the help of Jeanne, I could now see why, and I knew how to fix it.
WOW: It must have been so refreshing to see how you could fix these books. How did this course compare to others you've taken in the past?
Shay: Odyssey is different from other writing courses because it treats you as a capital-W-writer from the jump. That professionalism encouraged me to take myself seriously, and it completely changed the way that I approached my writing. When writing is your “job” it looks a lot different from when writing is just a hobby. I learned, annoyingly, that the best way to become a better writer, is to write a lot.
WOW: Ha, I love that sentiment. What lasting advice or thoughts would you like to share with our audience?
Shay: Consistency is your greatest asset! Write daily. Read daily. Engage in deep practice daily. Learn daily. It really makes all the difference in the world.
WOW: What wonderful lasting thoughts! Thank you again for your time.
Remember, if you think Your Personal Odyssey is right for you, apply now! They are accepting applications through April 10. You'll receive customized instruction based on your work and what you need.
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