About Me

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Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.

Friday, June 29, 2007

Writing Update

Wow. It's been so long since I have posted on here. I have been busy. I have done 3 book signings at Celtic festivals in Phoenix, AZ and Las Vegas, NV and a faery festival in Phoenix, AZ. They were so much fun. Love all the guys in kilts. So hot! I also sold a lot of books. I had requests for audio books. These requests were from guys (of course). The really cool thing is I have been making some contacts. There is a very strong possibility that I will be attending Coppercon27 in September possibly as a guest on one of the panels. I will also probably do a reading (something I have never done and am scared to death to do). I will have to practice reading on my husband and my dogs. Lucky them!

Between all of this, I edited two books that are coming out this year--Ravenwolf (coming out September 7, 2007) and White Rose of Avalon (coming out November 16, 2007). For more info on these releases, please visit my website at http://www.kelleyheckart.com Plus, I have started researching my prequel to Of Water and Dragons and Ravenwolf, tentatively titled Goddess of the Flame, and working on the revisions to Cat's Curse, book one of my Dark Goddess trilogy set in 6th century Scotland. I have to stop and catch my breath after all of that.

Plus, I have been dealing with some health issues so it hasn't been easy, but things are getting better. That's why I neglected my blog for so long. I had to do the important stuff first.

Well, things are heating up here in Havasu. It's supposed to 120 next week for the July 4th holiday. This is the time of year when I get more writing done because I want to stay inside my air conditioned house.

Stay tuned!

Making Revisions

I have been busy revising a manuscript so I can re-submit it to a publisher. I don’t want to mention the publisher’s name because I don’t want to jinx it. I am sure every writer has encountered this at least once--an editor loves your story, but...some revisions are requested before they will accept it. Drat! You don't have to do them, but how bad do you want to to be published? Another publisher might accept it the way it is so that is the choice that needs to be made. I chose to make the revisions or at least give it a try.

Revising a manuscript is never fun, but by taking it one step at a time, it can be done pretty easily. The first thing I did was read through the ms again (on paper) to refresh my memory with the story (since I had already moved on to other writing projects) and I made notes where I could make changes requested by the editor. Then I inserted the changes into the computer and now I am re-reading it on the computer and making adjustments as I go along. After I do this, I will read the ms again on paper. It is better to print out the ms and read it that way then on the computer. If I have to make more adjustments, I will note that on the paper copy. It sounds like a lot of work (it is) but it needs to be done right. I don’t want to re-submit work that isn’t the best I can do. I may have to read the ms a few more times before the ms feels right.

Patience and tenacity are qualities that a writer needs to have. I am still working on the patience part.

Being a published writer can be boring and unglamorous. The big reward for all the hard work comes when the ms is accepted and published in a book format. That's when I can breathe a sigh of relief, rest (not!) and get to work on my next writing project.