Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic & romance.
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Kelley-Heckart/e/B002BMOQ3C
About Me
- Kelley Heckart
- Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, January 16, 2017
Monday Musings: Arizona sunset photos
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Weird Word Wednesday
Diakinesis
noun dia·ki·ne·sis
: the
final stage of the meiotic prophase marked by contraction of the bivalents
New Latin
First Known Use: circa 1902
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, January 09, 2017
Monday Musings: New Release by Kelley Heckart--The Crow Maiden (Greek myths, shapeshifters, romance)
New book release! The Crow Maiden, Greek myths/fantasy/shapeshifters/romance
In Print and Kindle on amazon.com
Book Title: The Crow Maiden
Author: Kelley Heckart
Author website: http://www.kelleyheckart.com
Genre: Greek myths/fantasy/paranormal/shapeshifters/romance
Release date: 1/6/17
Page Count: 180
ISBN- 13:978-1541140615
ISBN- 10:1541140613
ASIN: B01N1ZBAF1
Kindle Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N1ZBAF1
Trade Paperback Buy Link on amazon.com: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1541140613/
Blurb
The Crow Maiden
Book 3: The Arcadia Series
(The Crow Maiden is a standalone story in the Arcadia
Series)
She betrayed her goddess for him…
He betrayed her.
Plotting her revenge is her only
solace. Until now.
Nahla is the Crow Maiden, an
Arcadian, and once a priestess of Artemis. Now she is a captive, a being who
lives in the shadows until her vile master the sorcerer-king Aramon summons
her. Another releases her from the Shadowlands, and while he might be the
champion she has waited for, the gods must be playing a cruel joke. Her
champion is crippled.
An Achaean lord who once ruled a
great city, Balin is a broken man. He has lost everything—his kingdom and his
family. Revenge consumes him. Although wary of the mysterious, cold-eyed female
who appears and claims he summoned her, she may be his only hope to exact
vengeance on the king who ruined him, the same man Nahla seeks to destroy.
They are bound by revenge, and
soon, both learn they are bound by much more, but the secrets she hides might
tear them apart and ruin their only opportunity for vengeance—and their chance
to love again.
“Ms. Heckart draws the reader
into the pages and enchants them with her words.”
Karen McGill, Coffee Time Romance
Excerpt
(PG):
Summoned from the
Shadowlands, Nahla landed in a place of encircling darkness. Rays of light too
weak to pierce the black shield glowed in the distance. Cold, damp air embraced
her, penetrating her clothing and draping her body like a heavy winter cloak.
Footsteps
echoed all around. She struggled to come to her senses, fighting
disorientation. Seized by a wave of dizziness, she steadied herself on the
hard, rough ground beneath her feet. The footsteps grew louder. They approached
from the direction of the faint light.
He was
coming.
She
staggered backward and banged into a hard wall. Her arms extended, she moved to
her right. Cold rock scraped her knuckles. She lunged left and grimaced as
another firm, unforgiving surface stopped her other hand. Bound there by more
than the walls, she waited in the stygian blackness.
Brandishing
a torch, her summoner appeared and came toward her at a forceful pace. The fire
blinded her, and she barely saw the glint of metal flashing in front of her.
Before
she could evade the thrusting weapon, a cold, heavy blade touched her neck. The
unfamiliar feel of a sharp blade against her skin made her freeze out of
instinct, not because she was afraid of death. Nahla had already died once.
She
waited for the weapon to slice through her flesh. A foreboding prickle raised the
fine hairs of her nape. Something was different about this summoning. Her
master would never kill her. He would never be that kind to her and set her
free.
The
one who wielded the blade dropped the torch in order to hold the weapon with
both hands. The flaming light burned low and sputtered behind him or her,
though she sensed whoever had brought her here was male by his leather,
un-flowery scent and by the strength he possessed holding the heavy, brutal
blade. Shadows concealing her summoner remained, and his deep, ragged breaths
spoke of anger and despair.
“Who
are you? How did you get in here?” he asked, his voice gruff.
“You
summoned me.” She remained guarded, the cold metal still caressing her neck,
but excitement fluttered in her stomach at the significance of this unusual
summoning.
The
silence was palpable, broken only by his now heavy and uneasy breathing. After
a few moments, he growled, “If that is so, then you are not what I asked for.”
Desperation,
frustration, and anguish filled his voice. She was in the true place. All she
knew was death and misery and sorrow.
“I
came because I was summoned.”
“Just
go away.” He removed the blade from her neck, picked up the fallen, smoking
torch, and retreated through the low, narrow opening toward the beckoning
glimmers of light from a far away chamber.
She
followed him and stepped forward toward the opening. Another dim chamber filled
with dust and cobwebs greeted her. Glancing back at the black, unpleasantly
cold space she’d landed in, she suppressed a shudder and then ducked into the
other brighter, small chamber. Piles of dusty blankets, a war shield, and dull-looking
bronze plate armor filled one corner. Nothing about the solemn room looked
familiar to her. She walked past uneven rock walls like the ones found in
caves. An earthy scent like that of dark, damp places permeated the air. Caves
were for creatures like her that roamed in the shadows, the unseen realm
between life and death, the place she called the Land of Sorrows, not for
humans that had no need of darkness.
This
summoning wasn’t true. Only one man could call her forth from the Shadowlands.
Was she finally free of her tormentor? No, the bond to her master remained,
lingering like a loose tether, but she also sensed she couldn’t travel too far
from this stranger. Did this unusual event have anything to do with her
constant yearning for the life that had been stolen from her? She could reclaim
all she’d lost if she found a champion to kill her creator and master. It had
seemed impossible.
Until
now…
****
Multi-published author Kelley Heckart lives in Arizona with
her musician husband, dog and a number of backyard “pets.” Her stories reflect
her passion for ancient and medieval time periods, storytelling and the
supernatural. Inspired by the ancient Celts, her tales are filled with fierce
warriors, bold women, otherworldly creatures, magic, and romance. When not
writing, she works as a freelance editor and practices target archery. She can
be found online at http://www.kelleyheckart.com/
To sign up for my
newsletter and receive special notices like new book releases and giveaways
only for my subscribers: http://kelleyheckart.com/Contact_Kelley_Page.html
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Kelley-Heckart/e/B002BMOQ3C
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, January 04, 2017
Weird Word Wednesday
Diaeresis
noun di·aer·e·sis
Definition of diaeresis
plural
diaereses
\-ˌsēz\
- 1: a mark ¨ placed over a vowel to
indicate that the vowel is pronounced in a separate syllable (as in naïve or Brontë)
— compare umlaut
- 2: the break in a verse caused by
the coincidence of the end of a foot with the end of a word
Late Latin diaeresis, from
Greek diairesis,literally, division, from diairein to
divide, from dia- + hairein to take
First Known Use: circa 1611
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, January 02, 2017
Monday Musings: Arizona Sunset Photos
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, December 28, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
Diadelphous
adjective di·adel·phous
: united
by filaments into two fascicles —used of stamens
First Known Use: 1807
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, December 26, 2016
Monday Musings: The allure of Christmas movies
The Hallmark Channel has been
playing Christmas movies since just after Halloween. I used to make fun of
Christmas movies. They were always too sappy for me. I’m more of a National
Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation kind of girl—making fun of the whole holiday
festivities.
However, lately I’ve been getting
sucked into these Christmas movies. Have I finally softened on the holiday
spirit of Christmas? Maybe. Just a little.
There is something about Christmas,
how this time of year affects people, bringing them closer, and the Christmas
movies add a touch of magic that is already in the air. I think I understand
now why I keep watching them. Christmas movies make us feel better in a world
where every day there is some disaster in the news.
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, December 21, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
Diachronic
adjective dia·chron·ic
: of,
relating to, or dealing with phenomena (as of language or culture) as they
occur or change over a period of time
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, December 19, 2016
Monday Musings: The frustrations of formatting a book in Microsoft Word
I've been pulling my hair out trying to remember how to format my new book for publishing. The hardest part is putting the headers and page numbers on the right pages in Microsoft Word. None of the tutorials I found were helpful because my problem seemed to be unique. Most of them showed instructions on how to add headers and page numbers. I know how to add them. That's easy. I don't know how to add them to the right pages, how to skip the front matter and first page of a chapter. LOL
I think this tutorial was the most helpful because it focused on the importance of using section breaks correctly to get your headers and page numbers on the right pages.
This is how I spent the last few days and why I forgot all about a new post for today. Hopefully the above tutorial link might help another writer and keep them from being frustrated.
I guess what this taught me is that self-publishing is not easy. Unless you want to pay someone to do all the formatting, you have to learn how to do it yourself. If I did it more often, I'd remember how I did it before, but I don't, so every time I am ready to publish a new book I have to try and re-learn how to correctly add the headers and page numbers. Maybe I could take better notes for the future. LOL
I think this tutorial was the most helpful because it focused on the importance of using section breaks correctly to get your headers and page numbers on the right pages.
This is how I spent the last few days and why I forgot all about a new post for today. Hopefully the above tutorial link might help another writer and keep them from being frustrated.
I guess what this taught me is that self-publishing is not easy. Unless you want to pay someone to do all the formatting, you have to learn how to do it yourself. If I did it more often, I'd remember how I did it before, but I don't, so every time I am ready to publish a new book I have to try and re-learn how to correctly add the headers and page numbers. Maybe I could take better notes for the future. LOL
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
Diabesity
noun di·a·be·si·ty
Medical Definition of diabesity
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, December 12, 2016
Monday Musings: Disturbed - The Sound Of Silence [Official Music Video]
This is such a moving cover of this song I had to share it.
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, December 07, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
Diablerie
noun
1. 1: black
magic : sorcery
2. 2a :
a representation in words or pictures of black magic or of dealings with the
devil
3. b :
demon lore
4. 3:
mischievous conduct or manner
Origin and Etymology of diablerie
French, from Old French, from dïable devil, from Late
Latin diabolus — more at devil
First Known Use: 1751
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, December 05, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona Jet Stream Photos
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
Deucalion
noun Deu·ca·lion \d(y)ü-ˈkāl-yən\
Popularity: Bottom
20% of words
Definition of
Deucalion
: a survivor with his wife Pyrrha of a great
flood by which Zeus destroys the rest of the human race
Origin and Etymology
of deucalion
Latin, from Greek
Deukaliōn
First Known Use: 1565
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, November 28, 2016
Monday Musings: Loki photos
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, November 23, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
desacralize
verb de·sa·cral·ize \(ˌ)dē-ˈsā-krə-ˌlīz, -ˈsa-\
Popularity: Bottom
30% of words
Definition of
desacralize
Desacralized desacralizing
transitive verb
: to divest of sacred qualities or status
desacralization play
\(ˌ)dē-ˌsā-krə-lī-ˈzā-shən, -ˌsa-\ noun
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, November 21, 2016
Monday Musings: Moon and Jet Stream photos
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, November 16, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
deracinate
verb de·rac·i·nate \(ˌ)dē-ˈra-sə-ˌnāt\
Popularity: Top 40%
of words
Definition of
deracinate
Deracinated deracinating
transitive verb
1
: uproot
2
: to remove or separate from a native environment
or culture; especially : to remove the
racial or ethnic characteristics or influences from
deracination play
\(ˌ)dē-ˌra-sə-ˈnā-shən\ noun
Origin and Etymology
of deracinate
Middle French
desraciner, from des- de- + racine root, from Late Latin radicina, from Latin
radic-, radix — more at root
First Known Use: 1599
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, November 14, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona Cloud Formation photographs
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, November 09, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
deodar
noun de·o·dar \ˈdē-ə-ˌdär\
Popularity: Bottom
20% of words
Definition of deodar
: an East Indian cedar (Cedrus deodara)
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, November 07, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona Cloud Formation photographs
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, October 31, 2016
Monday Musings: Halloween
Halloween used to be about the ancient Celts and the thinning of the barriers between the realm of the dead and the land of the living. People wore masks to hide their identities from wicked spirits intending them harm. In modern times wearing a costume is more about the chance to be something or someone you normally wouldn't be. If you want to be sexy, it's okay to do that on Halloween. No repercussions. Or you can be a something scary or funny. Today Halloween is all about fun.
The true meaning of All Hallow's Eve/Samhain may be lost in the past, but there's nothing wrong with celebrating it the way we do now. I love going to Halloween parties and seeing the latest costumes. There's something magical when you meet someone for the first time in costume. All the barriers are down. Just like the ones between the two worlds. I've had some of those magical encounters on Halloween.
Anything is possible on a night when monsters, humans, and all manners of creatures mingle.
The true meaning of All Hallow's Eve/Samhain may be lost in the past, but there's nothing wrong with celebrating it the way we do now. I love going to Halloween parties and seeing the latest costumes. There's something magical when you meet someone for the first time in costume. All the barriers are down. Just like the ones between the two worlds. I've had some of those magical encounters on Halloween.
Anything is possible on a night when monsters, humans, and all manners of creatures mingle.
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
denarius
noun de·nar·i·us \di-ˈner-ē-əs\
Popularity: Bottom
30% of words
Definition of
denarius
plural denarii play
\-ē-ˌī, -ē-ˌē\
1
: a small silver coin of ancient Rome
2
: a gold coin of the Roman Empire equivalent to
25 denarii
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, October 24, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona Sunset Photographs
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
demagogue
noun dem·a·gogue \ˈde-mə-ˌgäg\
Popularity: Top 1% of
lookups
Simple Definition of
demagogue
: a political leader
who tries to get support by making false claims and promises and using
arguments based on emotion rather than reason
When the ancient
Greeks used dēmagōgos (from dēmos, meaning "people," and agein,
"to lead") they meant someone good-a leader who used outstanding
oratorical skills to further the interests of the common people.
Mid-17th-century writers such as Thomas Hobbes and John Dryden-and, later, Jonathan
Swift-employed the English word that way. But, at the same time, the word took
a negative turn, coming to suggest one who uses powers of persuasion to sway
and mislead.
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, October 17, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona Sunset Photographs
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
deke
verb \ˈdēk\
Popularity: Bottom
30% of words
Definition of deke
Deked dekeing
transitive verb
: to fake (an opponent) out of position (as in
ice hockey)
intransitive verb
: to deke an opponent
deke noun
Deke originated as a
shortened form of "decoy." Ernest Hemingway used "deke" as
a noun referring to hunting decoys in his 1950 novel Across the River and into
the Trees ("I offered to put the dekes out with him"). About a decade
later, "deke" began appearing in ice-hockey contexts in Canadian
print sources as both a verb and a noun ("the act of faking an opponent
out of position").
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, October 10, 2016
Monday Musings: Is it the thought of dying that really pushes us to live?
This time of year always has me reflecting on life. Maybe it’s
the dark half of the year and the shorter days that send my thoughts into deeper
places than usual. I’ve been thinking about what it means to be human and
mortal. Something that we will probably never truly understand. Here are some
things to ponder:
It’s the thought of our fragile mortality that drives us to
hurry and get something accomplished before it’s too late. If we were immortal
and had all the time in the world, then we wouldn’t be motivated to do
anything. What’s the hurry to do something great if you have forever to do it?
The greatest invention wouldn’t have been created by
immortal men.
We think death is a punishment for being human, but maybe it’s
what makes us truly human.
It tests us.
It dares us…
To feel what we normally wouldn’t. Like passion,
inspiration, and motivation. If we didn’t have that feeling of getting old and
dying, would we have the urgency to fall in love?
Without death looming, we would be nothing but unfeeling
shells. And that’s no way to live. Is it?
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Wednesday, October 05, 2016
Weird Word Wednesday
dejecta
noun plural de·jec·ta \di-ˈjek-tə, dē-\
Popularity: Bottom
20% of words
Definition of dejecta
: feces, excrement
Origin and Etymology
of dejecta
New Latin, from
Latin, neuter plural of dejectus
First Known Use:
circa 1829
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth &
magic.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
Monday, October 03, 2016
Monday Musings: Arizona double rainbow
Kelley Heckart
Otherworldly tales steeped in myth, magic
& romance.
Writing means different things to me. I'm a storyteller, a book editor, and a songwriter. For me, it's like breathing.
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