Take Five With Author Kelley Heckart

 

Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to Kelley Heckart. And be still my heart, she follows a passion of mine...read the first answer.  

Welcome to An Indie Adventure, Kelley.  Tell us, what inspired you to write your book The Wolf Queen?

Thank you for having me as a guest on An Indie Adventure. The Wolf Queen is part of a series based on Greek myths and set in the wild mountains and forests of Artemis, a place called Arcadia that is filled with supernatural creatures like nymphs, satyrs, centaurs, werewolves, shapeshifters, and vampires. I have loved Greek myths since high school English. I still have the lesson book—Edith Hamilton’s Mythology, Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. The Wolf Queen is the story of Lycaon, the Arcadian king Zeus cursed to be a werewolf. My retelling of this myth also has a Beauty and the Beast theme.

Have you been a lifelong reader of fantasy and paranormal stories?  What are some the first books you remember reading?

I am an eclectic reader and like everything from horror to historical fiction, non-fiction (history), mythology, and fantasy/paranormal romances. I’ve been reading since I was four so I don’t remember my first book, but my mom told me I liked fairy tales, which makes sense to me now. Lol I also had a fascination with vampires from an early age. A couple of my favorite books are Dracula and Interview with the Vampire. Some of my favorite authors are Ann Rice, Morgan Llywelyn, Lynn Kurland, Mary Stewart, and Jack Whyte.

 I also read a lot of Indie authors. I just can’t think of all their names right now. I’m really enjoying the book series that inspired the HBO series Game of Thrones. I love the HBO series, but the books have deeper descriptions of the fictional world.

What do you do to rev your creative juices?

I listen to music. Music has a way of evoking creativity in me. My favorite bands are Evanescence, Nightwish, Sirenia, Apocalyptica, Queensryche, Iron Maiden, Wardruna, music from Game of Thrones, and Adele (lol). I would never admit it to my rocker friends, but I like Adele’s voice.

What would be your advice to people who are considering a writing career?  And/or what would you do differently in your career?

I would advise aspiring writers to make sure they love writing because trying to make a living as a writer is really hard. Also, learn the craft before publishing that first book. Don’t rush it. Having a good grasp of grammar doesn’t cut it. You have to know so many other aspects of writing like POV, show vs. tell, passive voice, setting the scene, transitions, character development, plotting, flow, etc. And always work with a good editor.

One thing I wish I could go back and do differently is to understand marketing my books better. I also should have learned more about the book publishing business when I started writing. I kind of went in blind.

You’re having a dinner party. What character from your novel do you hope doesn’t show up?     Why?

Ha ha. Good question. I’m going to say Maia, the fire nymph in The Wolf Queen. The reason why I wouldn’t want her at my dinner party is because she is a beautiful nymph and all the men would flock to her. I can’t compete with that. lol

Give us a brief summary of The Wolf Queen:

A new twist on Beauty and the Beast and the Greek myth of Lycaon the werewolf. A Bronze Age fantasy, adventure, and romance set in Arcadia, the wild forests of the goddess Artemis… Game of Thrones meets The Iliad…

A tormented wolf man… A mysterious girl with a terrible secret…

Alara, a princess from a foreign land, is forced to wed the sorcerer-king Aramon, a power-hungry warlord, who discovers her dark secret and wants to use her to create an invincible army. When she meets Lycaon, she must decide if she should trust the cursed, tormented half-man half-wolf who might be her enemy or her true mate.

Lycaon, once a great king until he was cursed by Zeus to be a werewolf, is drawn to the mysterious princess. He is torn between helping Alara escape and using her to gain power over those who despise him.

Secrets abound and old enemies are reunited to battle Aramon before his terrible plan is unleashed. Time is running out as the dark moon approaches. Soon, Arcadia will be overrun with an unstoppable, vicious army unless Aramon can be defeated. To prevent his victory, the cost is high. As Lycaon’s affection for Alara grows, it becomes more difficult for him to decide which to save: Arcadia or her.

To Buy: 

Kindle | Paperback

Bio:

Multi-published author Kelley Heckart lives in Arizona with her musician husband and Chihuahua. Inspired by the ancient Celts, her stories are steeped in myth and magic, filled with fierce warriors, bold women, otherworldly creatures, and romance. When not writing, she works as a freelance editor and practices target archery. 

Find Kelley:

Website | Blog | Twitter| Facebook | 

Goodreads

Air: Merlin's' Chalice ~ Excerpt from Meredith Bond

As promised, today I bring you Meredith Bond's excerpt from Air: Merlin's Chalice.  Got to tell you, I love the title.  This is book one in the Children of Avalon Series. Book two will be released shortly. Read on. 

Blurb:

In one day Scai has gone from being considered just unusual by the people of her little Welsh village to an outcast fleeing for her life. Left on the church steps as a baby, she knows nothing of her history—or her abilities. Did she really stop the rain just by wishing it to stop? But she is determined to learn all she can. Travelling alone to find her family seems to be the only way she’s going to find the answers she seeks.

Her journey leads her to the comical old knight Sir Dagonet, who tells her that she is one of a magical people called the Vallen. Together they continue on, joined by the handsome Dylan and the fiery Bridget on a new quest—to find the fabled Merlin’s Chalice, said to hold all the power of the entrapped wizard. Together, Scai, Dylan and Bridget discover that they are the long awaited Children of Avalon, destined to save the world from power-hungry Lady Nimuë—unless she kills them first. 

Along the way, Scai finds magic—both in the wind and air that she can control at will, and in the sweet ache of a first love that she cannot.

Excerpt: 

“Hiyah!” Galloping hooves raced toward me from behind. “Hiyah!”

I turned and stood frozen with shock. I knew I should get out of the way. I was about to get run down, but my legs wouldn’t move. My mind refused to believe that what I saw was real.

A knight in full, gleaming armor was bearing down on me, his horse coming at me at a full gallop.

I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out. I couldn’t breathe.

The knight continued to race toward me, his hand raised above his head clutching an enormous sword. He came closer, faster, raising his sword even higher, ready to strike me down.

I was dead. There was no point in moving because I was dead.

I just stood in the middle of the path as my death came closer and closer. At the last second, I closed my eyes and clutched my arms against my body.

The heat and the smell of horse invaded all of my senses. Galloping hooves came within inches of me. My hair flew in the gust of air. And then he was behind me.

He had gone straight past!

I spun around and watched as, with a great war cry, the knight struck his sword into the side of an oak tree. The sword wobbled up and down with the force of the blow as the knight let it go. He continued past until his horse slowed down enough to safely turn about and return.

Ignoring his sword, the knight rode straight up to me. “You all right? Tell me you aren’t hurt, wot?”

“What?”

“What, wot?” replied the knight.

“I…I’m sorry?” I looked past the knight at the tree where his sword was still waving gently.

“I’ve just saved your life; have you nothing to say?” the knight said, puffing out his chest.

“You have?”

The knight pulled up the visor on his helmet to stare at me.

Behind the shining metal were pale brown eyes crinkled with the lines of one who had spent a great deal of time smiling.

“I…I’m sorry. I didn’t…I mean, I hadn’t…er, thank you,” I said. Remembering my manners, I dipped into a deep curtsey. “Thank you, good knight, for saving my life.”

The knight gave me a small bow from atop his horse.

“Er…” I began, glancing back at the sword. “May I ask exactly what you saved me from?”

“What?”

“What was it that you saved me from?”

“Oh. Er, that, er…” The knight gestured randomly toward the tree. “That, er, oak.”

“The oak?”

“Yes. It was reaching out toward you and, er, oh, hobnobbit!”

A laugh burst out of me, releasing all the fear I’d pent up just a moment ago. For a minute there, I hadn’t been entirely certain that the knight was in his right mind, but clearly even he couldn’t keep up the pretense.

There had been nothing attacking me. 

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Bio: 
Meredith Bond is an award-winning author of a series of traditionally published Regency romances and indie-published paranormal romances. Known for her characters “who slip readily into one’s heart,” Meredith’s heart belongs to her husband and two children. She loves knitting and traveling, but isn’t too sure she’d like to actually travel back in time to the eras she writes about. She enjoys her creature comforts much too much.