New music to write to

I was turned on to this music by Rita and Toine vanPoorten, owners of www.metalmaidens.com. By the way, my old metal band, Driven Steel, will be featured on their website soon. Anyway, back to Blackmore's Night. Ritchie Blackmore was in Deep Purple and Rainbow, and he formed a band with his girlfriend, Candice Night. Their music is what I would call Classical and Celtic flavored. Candice has a beautiful voice that is complemented by Ritchie's flawless classical guitar picking. My favorite song is "Ghost of a Rose." This song has a haunting melody that stirs my soul. In fact, the song has inspired a short story inside of me. I love to write my books to this music. Anyone who likes Loreena McKennitt, Enya or Celtic music would probably like Blackmore's Night.

Ah, the perils of re-writing and editing. I am still working to finish my second book, RavenWolf, which continues the story of Nemu and Ambiorix. The magic she conjured in Of Water and Dragons will come back to haunt them, and Nemu finds out who she was before she was Nemu. All of this will threaten their relationship. Check out my website for an excerpt for RavenWolf.
www.kelleyheckart.com. I hope to have it finished by the middle of 2006, but I am not sure about how I am going to publish it yet. Stay tuned.

More book news: I have a book signing this Saturday, December 3 at the Hastings in Lake Havasu City, AZ.

My interview and review on loveromances.com

I am very pleased with the review I received by Pam at loveromances.com. She did a wonderful job. My interview page is beautifully decorated with a faery border designed by Jessica Galbrieth. It's very cool. So if anyone is interested, just click on the above link to my interview page.

Well, I have finally finished the first draft of my second novel, which I am calling RavenWolf. It continues the story of Nemu and Ambiorix as they stuggle to stay together. They will have to deal with the consequences of the strong magic Nemu called upon at the end of the first novel, Of Water and Dragons. There will also be some secrets revealed about Nemu, and who she was before she was Nemu. I am very excited about it.

Now I have entered the first faze of editing. Editing is my least favorite part of writing so I try to make it as easy as possible. I don't try to edit everything at once because then I tend to miss things. I take it in fazes. This may take a little longer, but I feel that it is better to wait and have a better product. The first thing I did was re-write the beginning, which I felt was not compelling enough. Hey, if it doesn't grab the writer of the story then it needs to be re-written. Then I did a first pass through the entire ms checking for continuity and inconsistencies in the story. This is also where I will check facts and mark areas I want to take another look at to possibly re-write. Then I leave it alone for a few days to let the story sink in.

The next step is to check for the items on my self-editing list. Then I will have a couple of family members proofread it for me. Hopefully I will be finished by the beginning of 2006.

Happy writing!

I thought this was really cool so I have to share it. Someone liked my book a lot, and thinks it would make a great Sci-Fi Channel movie. She even has the cast picked out. I just think it's great that someone is so excited about my book.

To quote Rosie, "Well, I finished Kelley's book on Saturday. Wow! I really read it fast! It is one of those books you just can't put down! It's too interesting! I can't wait for the sequel! I can really see this as a movie! I almost have all the cast picked out. I think Liv Tyler should play Nemu. She was a great elf in Lord of the Rings. She melts my heart when she speaks elvish. She'd be great as a water faery. I think Marcus should be played by that Aussie, Russell Crowe! Yeah. And that tall girl (who played Red Sonja), Bridgit Nielson (if she's not too old) should play Rhonwyn. Haven't got it all picked out yet. I don't know who should play Ambiorix. Brad Pitt doesn't have his emotion, even though he's a good Roman soldier. I like Viggo Mortensen, but I can't see him in a blonde wig. Ambiorix is a blonde. Of course Valeria should be played by Deborah Messing. She's a fussy red-head. Perfect! Cavarinus should be played by Mel Gibson. The general...that's a tough one. A large imposing man, a skilled soldier, and yet thoughful as he's pruning roses in his garden. Sly Stallone fits the part, but you can't UNDERSTAND him! He mumbles. No, he must be intelligent, imposing, yet calm and thoughtful. I don't know.

I'd like to know what Kelley thinks about making it a movie. SciFi Channel would love this story! I've seen many dragon movies , but this story has HEART! Ya know. It's about the people and their struggles, but you could still add some cool special effects. I really haven't been this excited over a story since Lord of the Rings. This book rocks!"

Halloween, or as the ancient Celts called it, Samhain, is my favorite time of the year. There is something magical in the air when the air turns crisp, and the shadows deepen. For the Celts, it was the beginning of the new year celebrated on November 1st. Samhain was a religious celebration and also a time for the tribes to settle any issues for the coming year. It was the smothering of the summer fires, and the entry into the dark winter. It was also the one night of the year when the veil was thin between the land of the living and the land of the dead. Faeries and other spirits would roam the earth coming into contact with mere mortals. Samhain plays a big part in my Celtic stories because it was such a huge part of the ancient Celts.

So, we can thank the ancient Celts for introducing us to Halloween, which we now celebrate with candy and costume parties.

Happy Halloween & Samhain to all!