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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, March 07, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite bands is Evanescence. I can’t get enough of this band and listen to the entire cds. It’s one of the few bands that I like all of their music. With crunchy guitars, moving melodies and ethereal vocals, this is the type of music I like to listen to when I write.

 

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, March 05, 2014

Weird Word Wednesday

Acoelomate

acoe·lo·mate

noun \(ˌ)ā-ˈsē-lə-ˌmāt\

Definition of ACOELOMATE

:  an invertebrate lacking a coelom; especially :  one belonging to the group comprising the flatworms and nemerteans and characterized by bilateral symmetry and a digestive cavity that is the only internal cavity

acoelomate adjective

First Known Use of ACOELOMATE

circa 1889

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Monday, March 03, 2014

Writing meaningful sex scenes

Sex scenes are the most difficult scenes for me to write. Or, I should say, it’s difficult to write meaningful sex scenes. I dread when it comes times in a story to add a sex scene. Sure, it’s easy to say that he put his ‘you know what’ in her ‘you know where.’ But why even have a sex scene if that’s all you are going to write?

A better approach is to get inside the heads of your characters and make the sex scene about emotions rather than too many repetitive actions. Also, a little goes a long way in these intimate scenes. Some description is necessary to show and not tell, but too much description and you risk losing the reader. I’ve read some sex scenes where every little detail of the man’s do-hickie was described. Ick. I really didn’t need to read that. I would rather leave the details for the reader to imagine how they want to imagine them. What may turn on one reader turns another one way off.

So, it’s best to go easy on the details and focus more on the characters’ feelings and show their feelings through their actions in the bed. If the heroine is a virgin, is she scared or nervous? If the hero is used to dominating in the bedroom, how will he react if his partner takes charge? Are they tentative lovers or passionate? This is where really knowing your characters pays off.

Sample sex scene from Winter’s Requiem:

Domelch pulled out her long knife, drawing the cold metal against her naked skin. Her nipples rose, hardening in response to the coldness of the blade. Being so close to death made her toy with the idea of sliding the knife’s sharp edge against her skin and drawing some blood. Her body tingled with pleasure at the thought. She spread her legs wide, beckoning him with an enticing smile. Her hand stroked her own inner thigh, the sight of his naked, strapping body exciting her.

In the lamplight his wolf-like eyes flickered with mounting desire for her, his erection rising and thickening with the might to conquer her. “God’s teeth, lass,” he whispered, his voice raspy with longing.

Aedan pounced on the bed and the makeshift bed crashed under their forceful weight. He claimed her with his warrior’s strength, his muscular arms enfolding her in a passionate embrace. Caressing her with hungry kisses, he filled her with life again, the terrible memories of the battlefield fading away. Domelch’s body tingled with the urgency to have him overpower her, to chase her demons away.

She recalled instead a thrilling memory of how Aedan commanded his men with confidence and courage, wielding his sword, the Widowmaker, and sending the enemy to the Underworld like a mighty war god. Now he commanded her, his forceful spear plunging into her, drawing from her body and soul the wild throes of love. She forgot all about death, embracing the power of life and all the sensations of two people enjoined in coupling. After all these years, the power he wielded over her was great, her body quivering beneath him. His musky male scent quickened her heartbeat, their slick bodies entwined like greedy vines searching for warmth and sunlight. Fisting his long hair in a desperate attempt to cling to the edge, pleasure overpowered her, pulsating and lifting her in its blissful grasp.

AS_HeckartKelley_WintersRequiem_EB_Final-189x298

http://www.kelleyheckart.com/winters_requiem.html

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Friday, February 28, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite shows is Supernatural. With two hot brothers that hunt demons and other supernatural creatures, plus a classic rock soundtrack—what’s not to love? What I really like is what they did with angels. These aren’t sweet, winged angels wearing halos. No, they are real soldiers just like in the Bible. Great stuff.

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Weird Word Wednesday

Acock

acock

adjective or adverb \ə-ˈkäk\

Definition of ACOCK

:  being in a cocked position

First Known Use of ACOCK

1846

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Monday, February 24, 2014

Does a having a creative mind come at a price?

In light of the latest actor or creative talent to die from a drug overdose, I started thinking about the high number of creative people that die young from an overdose or suffer from depression or other mental condition.
In my own experience writing songs and now stories, I have always felt that I have one foot in another world when in the creative process. I don’t know if this is some kind of magic or if I am drawing on a higher power when writing a song or story, but there is something that can’t be fully explained that is present during the creation process. I wonder if creative people straddle that line between the living and the dead and if they don’t have something to anchor them to the land of the living, they can slip away.
If you think about it anyone who acts or writes has to be a little bit different from a normal person. I always feel a little disconnected from everything around me as if my thoughts are stuck in another place. This happens more often when I am deep into a story. I hear dialog in my head. I visualize scenes. Some people would call this madness. Maybe some creative minds have to rely on drugs and alcohol to cope with this.
The Irish myth of the Leanan Sidhe comes to mind. She is usually depicted as a beautiful muse, offering inspiration in exchange for love and devotion. Unfortunately, according to the legend, the artist goes mad and dies young.
I’m lucky to have anchors to this world; otherwise I would probably lose my grip on reality because my fantasy worlds are much more interesting and compelling. It’s easy to get lost in my story worlds, and that’s okay, as long as I can keep that one foot in this world—the one that really matters.

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author
Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly
http://www.kelleyheckart.com
http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/CelticChick
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Friday, February 21, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite books is Druids by Morgan Llywelyn. This was the first book I read by this author and this book started my fascination with the ancient Celts. Druids is set before and during Julius Caesar’s invasion of what used to be called Gaul. The story is told from the point of view of a young druid, his life and his dealings with Caesar. What I liked most about this story is that the author gives the readers a look into the life of druids. They were real people, after all—mysterious, intelligent, imposing—people. Ms. Llywelyn brings us into the world of the Celts, how they lived, their rituals and how they had close ties to nature.

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Weird Word Wednesday

Acephalous

aceph·a·lous

adjective \(ˌ)ā-ˈse-fə-ləs, ə-ˈse-\

Definition of ACEPHALOUS

1

:  lacking a head or having the head reduced

2

:  lacking a governing head or chief

Origin of ACEPHALOUS

Greek akephalos, from a- + kephalē head — more at cephalic

First Known Use: circa 1731

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Monday, February 17, 2014

Balance is the key to a great story

Balance is the key to life and it is also the key to writing a great story. When I refer to balance in a story, I’m referring to things like varying sentences—long sentences followed by short ones, not starting every sentence with the same words. I’m also referring to not repeating words and phrases, creating descriptions that add to the story without overpowering it and adding body language tags to sections of dialog so you don’t have “talking heads syndrome.”
To help me remember to balance out my stories, I compare writing stories to writing songs. A song has different parts and instruments; all the layers have to be balanced to work. Writing is also like baking. When baking something, you have to have all the right balance of ingredients—too much of an ingredient or not enough ingredients will have an effect on whatever you are baking. Some writers also compare writing to weaving.
The easy way to remember to balance out your story is to remind yourself that too much of anything in a story will throw the story out of balance.

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author
Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly
http://www.kelleyheckart.com
http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/CelticChick
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Friday, February 14, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite movies is Braveheart. I don’t care that this movie veered off from real history. All I care about it that Braveheart is a great story about fighting for freedom and it’s also a beautiful, tragic love story. My favorite scene is when the princess tells the dying, ruthless English king known as Longshanks that the child growing in her womb is not of his blood. You go girl!

 

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Weird Word Wednesday

Abscission

ab·scis·sion

noun \ab-ˈsi-zhən\

Definition of ABSCISSION

1

:  the act or process of cutting off : removal

2

:  the natural separation of flowers, fruit, or leaves from plants at a special separation layer

Origin of ABSCISSION

Middle English abscisioun, from Anglo-French abscission,Latin abscission-, abscissio, from abscindere

First Known Use: 15th century

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Monday, February 10, 2014

Arizona cloud formations

100_0613

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Saturday, February 08, 2014

Exquisite Quills!: Author Interview: Kelley Heckart

Exquisite Quills!: Author Interview: Kelley Heckart: EQ Welcomes Kelley Heckart! EQ: Welcome to EQ! Tell us a little bit about yourself! Kelley: Thanks for having me at EQ. I liv...

Friday, February 07, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite books is Helen’s Daughter by Laura Gill. Here is the review I posted on Amazon: Historical done right--This story was a believable interpretation of the possible life of the daughter of Helen (of Trojan War). The author mixed history with myth to bring to life a little known time when Mycenaean Greeks (Achaeans) ruled the Peloponnese. What I really appreciated was the way Ms. Gill added historical details without drowning the reader in boring description. Hermione overcame prejudices applied to her because of what happened to her mother. It seems that history chooses to portray strong women as harlots and worse. I like to see stories that draw on the strength of character that these women probably possessed. I highly recommend this story for those readers that love a compelling ancient historical.

 

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, February 05, 2014

Weird word Wednesday

abu·lia

noun \ā-ˈbü-lē-ə, -ˈbyü-, ə-\

Definition of ABULIA

:  abnormal lack of ability to act or to make decisions

abu·lic adjective

Origin of ABULIA

New Latin, from 2a- + Greek boulē will

First Known Use: circa 1864

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Monday, February 03, 2014

Why I don’t like to have teenage girl heroines in my stories

I can say this because I was one—a teenage girl. They are borderline psycho, overly dramatic and make terrible decisions. This is why I don’t like to have teenage girls as heroines in my novels and why I probably won’t write YA.

I couldn’t write a teenage girl heroine without rolling my eyes and wanting to kill her off. A heroine is supposed to be liked by readers. Now maybe if the heroine grew up in a different environment from the spoiled kind of life most teenagers have in the U.S., she might make a good heroine. I’m thinking of Katnis from Hunger Games. She grew up in a dangerous environment where survival was more important than the latest fashion. She had to be levelheaded in order to make sure she survived and to take care of her family.

I wonder if it’s the role models teenagers have that makes most of them so stupid. Especially today with reality shows like the Kardashians and pop stars that flaunt their bodies and their dramatic love lives. And it’s even worse with Facebook and Twitter where people try to out do each other and post every little thought and deed.

Growing up I didn’t have the Internet to tempt me into doing stupid things, but I still did them. I don’t know if it’s just a part of growing up and learning life’s lessons or if I was just rebellious. I’m sure not all teenage girls act crazy like I did, but those memories are stuck in my head and whenever I try to write about teenage heroine, I can’t get past how stupid I was.

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Friday, January 31, 2014

Favorite Friday

One of my favorite movies is Gladiator with Russell Crowe. The opening battle scene does a great job of showing the might of the Roman Empire and I think it is the best battle scene. Very powerful imagery. My favorite quote is, “At my signal, unleash Hell.”

 

 

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Weird word Wednesday

1abe·ce·dar·i·an

noun \ˌā-bē-(ˌ)sē-ˈder-ē-ən\

Definition of ABECEDARIAN

:  one learning the rudiments of something (as the alphabet)

Examples of ABECEDARIAN

1. <abecedarians soon learn that martial arts have a spiritual as well as physical side>

Origin of ABECEDARIAN

Middle English abecedary, from Medieval Latin abecedariumalphabet, from Late Latin, neuter of abecedarius of the alphabet, from the letters a + b + c + d

First Known Use: 1603

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Supernatural—Sam or Dean?

Tabby's Nocturnal Nights: Supernatural—Sam or Dean?: I love the show Supernatural about the two brothers that hunt demons and other dangerous supernatural beings. The brothers, Sam and Dean, co...

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604

Daughter_of_Night

Two mortals are caught in the midst of the battle between the Titans and Olympian gods.

http://kelleyheckart.com/daughter_of_night.html

Monday, January 27, 2014

The power of an emotional scene

Emotional scenes can add special moments that resonate with readers, drawing the readers further into the story. Emotional scenes are especially effective in romance novels where emotions are a huge part of the plot.

Before using an emotional scene to grab the audience, it’s best to make the audience care about the characters first. Otherwise, an emotional scene can fall flat. It’s also important to time the emotional scene correctly. Some scenes don’t have the same power to move an audience if the scene happens at the wrong time in the story.

For example, I saw the latest Star Trek movie, Into the Darkness. I loved the first one with the young cast and how the timeline was altered. I thought this was a great way to write some new storylines. Into the Darkness altered the first meeting with Khan, the genetically engineered human that became an enemy of Captain Kirk in the original TV

show and movies. I thought this was okay until the scene where the young Captain Kirk dies the same way Spock died in Star Trek II, The Wrath of Khan. When Spock died in The Wrath of Khan, it was a very emotional, powerful scene between Captain Kirk and Spock, two characters that had known each other and had been close friends for about forty years. But when the young Kirk dies in Into the Darkness, the scene didn’t have the same emotional power because these younger characters hardly knew each other and didn’t really like each other. The characters didn’t have time to grow into the close friends they became later. The scene made me uncomfortable because I felt it was forced on the audience.

An emotional scene can do a lot for a story, but it shouldn’t be rushed or forced.

 

Kelley Heckart, Historical fantasy romance author

Captivating...Sensual...Otherworldly

http://www.kelleyheckart.com

http://kelleysrealm.blogspot.com/

http://twitter.com/CelticChick

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Kelley-Heckart/111838455604