Kay Cooke

I live and write in Dunedin. I have had four books of poetry published and three novels. For more info. on my publications and events I have participated in, please refer to the relevant page on my website kaymckenziecooke.com


Genre:

  • Adult Fiction
  • Poetry

Skills:

  • Competition Judging
  • Novelist
  • Poetry Readings
  • Print Media Writing (magazines/newspapers)
  • Public Speaking
  • Reviews
  • Short Story Writing

Branch:

Otago/Southland

Location:

Dunedin

Publications:


Born to a Redheaded Woman

A poetry collection that is also an autobiographical record. Using titles and lines from popular songs to accentuate mood and recollection, the collection is designed to be read chronologically.

Made For Weather

Poems that reflect the landscape of the south along with authentic personal accounts of family life and everyday living.

Feeding the Dogs

Poetry book featuring poems about the southern landscape, family life and childhood memories.

Upturned

Poetry book Published by The Cuba Press 2020. Poems in this book reflect the theme of both displacement and place. Divided into sections that follow themes of memory, landscape, travel and whanau.

Craggan Dhu

Published 2020 by (KDP) 

The peace that cousins Niz and Lia McGregor had hoped to find by each coming back to live in their old home town, could well be compromised with the arrival of young Dallisse, Niz's granddaughter, for an extended stay. Ex-resident Finnbarr Reilly’s visit after decades of living in Auckland, farther unsettles the cousins.Both historical and present-day characters with links to this coastal Western Southland town of Craggan Dhu (Craggie,) struggle to come to grips with repercussions from their own spontaneous actions and held secrets. Through a host of voices from the past, the formerly hidden burbles from history’s underground stream are slowly revealed, forcing the past and the present to culminate in surprising revelations and awakenings.

Quick Blue Fire

Novel Published 2022 (KDP) 

While attending the 2019 interment of mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, Alison McGregor in the wind-blasted, southern coastal town of Craggan Dhu (Craggie), present-day tensions, along with revelations informed by the past, wend back and forth - from mid-19th century Scotland, India and Tasmania, Australia, to 20th-century New Zealand, when young Gordie McGregor lands in the deep south of the South Island. Gordie meets and marries local Craggie resident, Gladys Hogan. When their son, Sandy McGregor, marries fellow Craggie resident, Alison Wilde, a mixed-race element is introduced into this family saga. Three generations later, in the 21st century, underlying tensions are finally confronted when the McGregor grandchildren and great grandchildren, seek accountability, as well as the chance for love and new beginnings.

I, Said The Lark

Published by Kindle Direct Publishers 2024

If only a poison pen letter problem was all that the hardy residents of Craggan Dhu had to contend with. Forced to weather Covid, as well as the menacing presence of someone who wishes them harm, proves a challenge for this resilient Southland town. As the pandemic fades, the locals want to move on with their lives. In order to do so, it becomes necessary to find out once and for all the identity of the person who has been posting nasty, anonymous letters.
Newly-widowed Clarrie Fitzgerald, a recent arrival back in New Zealand after living in Ireland for many years, is hoping to find the peace of mind she is desperate for after narrowly escaping a stalker episode. After she forms a book club, she quickly strikes up a friendship with Kon Maizer, another new arrival to the town.
Kon is not sure what to do after he uncovers vital information that could lead to the solution of a cold case that has long puzzled the locals. This could also prove to be the solution to Harris Goodall's problem with ghosts. Meanwhile, for local Helena McGregor, despite betrayal and heartbreak, romance still beckons.