Dive into a powerful conversation about grief, storytelling, and healing after loss with Highlander Press founder Deborah Kevin. We unpack the deeply personal journey of writing the novel The Five Widows Club and the profound impact of sharing your truth. Whether you are facing a widower’s grief or seeking advice on starting life over, Deborah illuminates how embracing your voice and finding community is essential for healing after loss and finding joy amidst sorrow. Learn the secrets to author success and why the act of writing your story can be the most healing experience you ever have. I am sharing my experience of loving the same man for 32 years, a mother to two adult children, a retired military officer, a breast cancer survivor, and my connections with others.   Anyone experiencing suicidal thoughts should reach out to a suicide hotline or local emergency number in their country: Psychology Today Suicide Hotlines and Prevention Resources Around the World. — Watch the episode here     Listen to the podcast here   The Five Widows Club: Dr. Tina Fornwald & Deborah Kevin On Grief, Storytelling, And Healing After Loss Introduction Of Deborah Kevin And The Five Widows Club Welcome, Widowhood. This episode is incredibly special to me because this conversation is not just about a book. It’s about the person who helped guide me through this journey of bringing The Five Widows Club to the world. Our guest is Deborah Keven, the founder of Highlander Press, a bestselling author of Shelf Life: A Field Guide to Long-Term Author Success, a speaker, an editor, a storyteller, and someone who has become a meaningful part of my publishing journey. Deborah has dedicated her work to helping authors move beyond fear, own their voices, and understand that their story matters. Because Deborah probably knows The Five Woodles Club almost as deeply as anyone else besides me, she was the right person to have this conversation. I’ll begin interviewing Deborah, and then we’re going to flip it, and she’s going to interview me. Let’s get into this conversation now because we’re talking about The Five Widows Club. The book is released, and this conversation is for you.     Mrs. Kevin, welcome to the Widowhood. Thank you for having me, Dr. Tina. I know. When you hear “Welcome to the Widowhood,” what comes to mind for you? If the ticker tape was in the back of your mind? It is interesting. I would think my life has changed dramatically and at this point unexpectedly, and I would think this is a group of women who only they would really understand what I am going through. I love that you keyed into the woman part because I will just let you share your passion for working with women and what that means to you. I love men. I have a wonderful husband whom I would be devastated to lose, and I realized that we are in a time and space in our evolution as human beings where women really get to own their voices. It is so important that we recognize that our stories matter, that each of our lived experiences really is a foundation for families, country, and world development. I heard someone say once, and I honestly cannot remember who it was, that we do not need a seat at the table. We get to build our own table. I love that energy. That is really one of the reasons that I just feel really strongly about elevating women’s voices. Thank you for helping me elevate mine. If I have it correctly, you have a term that you use for people. Stop being waiters and start being writers. What do you think holds most people up from transitioning from being a waiter to a writer? Honestly, I think it is something that Brené Brown calls art scars. I think somewhere along the line, people feel judged about their writing because what I hear the most is, “I would love to write a book someday, but I’m not a writer.” What I want everyone to understand is that the act of writing is what makes one a writer. The act of physically putting pen to paper, fingers on the keyboard, you are a writer. We are all writers. It is a skill that can always be improved by practice. You say that with such elegance, but there is a lot of education and a lot of experience behind you to be here and say something so simple like that. Share with us your road to becoming this Highlander Press, and where you are with things, and your purpose behind that. I will give you the abbreviated version. I did life a little bit differently. I was emancipated at sixteen. I worked for eight years before I could afford to go to college. I put myself through college while working full-time. I did not graduate from my undergraduate degree until I was 30. Actually, it worked out perfectly for me because I was the oldest person in the school. I also had lived experience that others did not. That made me a pretty cool resource, and I had a different perspective. I went and got a degree, the first person in my family to go to college, in accounting. I was a CPA. I worked for a couple of the Big Six, now the Big Four accounting firms, as an auditor. People always came to me to edit what they were working on. “Can you make this email sound better? Can you edit my report? Would you write the company newsletter? Would you help my presentation sound better?” I was editing all along, but I did not have enough confidence to know that I could pursue a literary life. Flash forward, I had worked for 30 years. I have a young son who is diagnosed with autism, and I have taken a leave of absence. I swear that leave of absence actually saved my life. I