I have been invited to a senior's residence and a library to do an author reading. Both invitations were spontaneous and unexpected. I am thrilled to be asked. This got me to thinking about more possible venues that might want to have an author visit them for an afternoon or evening. Where might I find an audience?

More of the above situations came to mind, but I also thought that book clubs, or schools might also be interested. Does anyone else have any ideas?

I wouldn't expect  to be paid any fees, other than the opportunity to sell my books at the end of the presentation. Of course the event should be somewhere within the golden horseshoe area - I am from Hamilton.

So, if you, or anyone you know that might be interested in having a real live author come to talk to them, is interested, drop me a line and we'll see if we can't arrange a time convenient for everyone to attend. You can use the form on this website, or email me directly at:   writetokathrynheaney@gmail.com

I would not be adverse to talking about the writing process either - with my teaching background I could put together a writing workshop if there is interest.

Please spread the word!

I took several days off and, other than checking email, I didn't go near a computer. I figured the break would do me good and I could then go back and look at Destiny Fulfilled with fresh eyes.

And I think it has worked.

I have re-read the first four chapters of Destiny Fulfilled, and I am loving the way it reads. But, I did catch one inconsistency, and I was also able to reduce my word count even further - a good thing when it comes to setting the price point for my work.

It was lovely taking the pressure off and having a few days to myself. I took this week off from work, and despite my horrible track record for the worst weather during vacation weeks, it has been a banner week full of sunshine and decent temperatures for this time of  year. Daisy and I have been out walking a good distance every day and quite often heading out on several excursions a day.

Only one more day left to my vacation week. I'll miss not having to watch the clock - my favourite part of vacation...

This afternoon, I completed my first edit of the third book in the Anandrian Series, Destiny Fulfilled.

And, yes, I did fulfill Laura's destiny in this novel. However, I left one significant character hanging. Looks like, in the future, I will have to create another novel to sort out her situation. Oh dear...

I have had tons of fun creating my characters and developing another dimension. Now, if only I could do this full-time! How lucky other famous authors are to sit there and fantasize while paying the bills. Hopefully when retirement comes around, I'll get to fully indulge in this pleasurable activity. That is the dream... (Actually the dream is to become one of those famous authors whose work has been translated into film and becomes a box office smash, so that I can leave my paying job - SIGH)

Well, back to work. I have to start reading Destiny Fulfilled over again as if I were reading it for the very first time. I have to see if I have chopped it up so much that the flow has disappeared from the story.

I have hit the tedious part of writing.

The story is done, but now I have to go back to the start and read it with a critical eye. Is the spelling and grammar correct? Are there any inconsistencies in the story? And my word count is MASSIVE. I need to pare it down and get rid of thousands of words that only bog the story down.

After I have gone all the way through deleting, adding and changing, I have to read it again, as a reader would to see if I have the flow right. Is is readable? Hard to do and not get bogged down with technicalities that should have been looked after the first time through.

I find,quite often I start critiquing other authors that I read for pleasure, and often find it gratifying when I discover something they have overlooked! They are human, too... I'm not the only one who misses an error or an inconsistent part of the story.

It's going on for 1:00 am and I'm closing down for the night as I have to work tomorrow. That is another frustration - you get on a roll, but realize that you have other obligations and you will be toast the next day if you don't shut it down. I am looking forward to the day when I can retire and let things go at their own pace without outside constrictions dictating when I start and stop.

Now I have to stop...

First, thank you to all those who came out to my book signing event at the Ancaster Chapters Store on Friday, May 8th. I had a lovely evening talking to people (and selling books, of course).

Now, on to a great Mother's Day.

My daughter, Laura Heaney, (the cover artist and the main heroine in my stories) spent the afternoon with me on the swing in the back yard. First, she went over several selections that I chose last night when the incredibly loud deluge woke me up and I couldn't go back to sleep. These selections I have been choosing are to be used at readings. I will be visiting a senior's home in June, and Locke Street Library in October. Between the two of us, we selected 3 lovely segments that help to describe my unique characters in Destiny Calls.


1) the Prologue: Sets the scene for the whole story
2) A scene where Vaaron explains "their story" to Laura so she understands where and how she fits into Anandria, a magical dimension where the meanings of names enhance one's powers.
3) A scene where Vaaron comes to Earth and is stunned by downtown Toronto and Earth's technology.

Finally, Laura suggested one scene from my second book, Destiny Reclaimed, where Diana fights a sea serpent.

None of the scenes are "spoilers", and now I am really looking forward to doing some of these readings. I think it should be a lot of fun. Just reading the scenes to her this afternoon brought back a lot of happy memories of when I read the original young adult version of this story to my grade 8 classes. Since those early days, I can truly say that the story is richer and more interesting with the rewrite for an adult audience.

Our conversation also veered off into a discussion about a 4th book. I have left one character hanging, and the world as we know it has changed forever at the end of the third book. There are so many ways I could take the story - so many different story lines. Once the third book is published, and I have had time to promote all 3 books, I want to have a day back on that swing in the backyard with my 2 daughters and simply brainstorm possibilities! How exciting! It gives me chills just contemplating where the characters might go...

How many hours have I spent writing my novels? It's a question that arose in my mind when I was trying to price my work. It was my daughter, Laura Heaney, who made me think about it. She said, "Be careful not to undervalue your time and creative work." And she should know, as she has been dealing with this very issue for most of her adult life - artists spend hours developing their work, then they must decide what their work is worth - and will anyone buy it at that price? A daunting task!

She pointed out that I have been writing these novels for years - first as young adult stories, then I rewrote them as adult stories. When I actually think about what I have produced, I have spent hundreds, if not thousands of hours creating the Anandrian Series. WOW! What an investment...

Then I began to think about the time (investment) the reader must use to read my novels - very considerable in our hectic lives.

Tonight, I have been drawn back to the hours I have been investing as I face more hours of editing. Yes, it took about a year to write the last book in the series, but now that it is complete, I have to go back and reread it and look for errors - grammatical errors, timeline errors, errors in the magic rules that i have created, character errors (Blue eyes? Brown?), errors from one novel to the next.

OMG! When I write it out, the task almost seems overwhelming.

Then I have to reread it again, because you always miss something. And after I submit it for an evaluation read by my editor,