CELTIC MYTHOLOGY & GODDESS ON THE RUN - A GUEST BLOG WITH GIVEAWAY

A Curiosity for the Holy Water Warriors

by Marne Ann Kirk

              One of my most fascinating little discovering I've come across, while researching Celtic mythology for Goddess on the Run, was a place in Halstatt, Austria called the Halstatt Beinhaus—the House of Bones. Never been? Me neither, but it’s definitely going on my bucket list. I’m a bit of a weird duck, as you might have guessed by now. It goes with the territory of being a writer, I think, being a little odd, thinking about things from a different angle than most people might.

              For example, just today I’m walking through a hotel we’re staying in ( we’re still in Las Vegas, and the Mr. and Mrs. Olympia is going on Right Now. It’s kinda cool, I won’t lie… ), and there is this obviously famous man with a line of fans wanting pictures with him. Now, this man is B-U-I-L-T. We are talking huge, with all of these muscles bulging out of his body like they’re trying to escape. And all I can think is, wouldn't it be cool to trace all of those muscles with a hot pink magic marker and then walk away? What would he do? I made the mistake of saying it out loud, and my daughter about spewed her soda all over the poor guy. Anyway, I digress; but the point is that writers just don’t think the same way everyone else does ( and if it’s just me, please allow me my delusion ).

              And back to my story, writers are odd and I love, love, love cemeteries. I love walking through them and reading the headstones, taking pictures of them, going on tours through them. It’s the histories, the stories being told in the marble and stone, that I enjoy so much. I find ideas in these stories, inspiration. So imagine my surprise and excitement when I found this curiosity. Hallstatt is a small town ( less than 1,000 people ) in the Dachstein mountain range . It hugs the Hallstätter See ( a lake ) and the town’s main resource, salt, is from the surrounding mountains. It’s isolation and its age as a town worked well for the Holy Water Warrior tales, as I needed an origin for the Tuatha de Danaan and Danu ( you might be thinking the Celtic mythology began in Ireland, Scotland, or up in that part of the world; but it actually began on the main continent and moved into those areas as the people moved. It’s a very fascinating town, and someday I will visit it. )

              However, the House of Bones was the thing that cinched the deal for me on my decision on where to begin. It might not be obvious in Goddess on the Run ( I don’t mention the name of the village in Teagan’s story ), but Halstatt is going to play a bigger role as the Tales come out. It’s where the Goddess Danu finds the most solace, considers her true home of her chosen people. The House of Bones is going to come into play, as well. In at least one of the Tales, it’s going to play a huge role, because things this fascinating deserve notice.

              What is it, exactly? Well, here’s a picture of the things that I find amazing, then…

               Halstatt is so small because it physically cannot grow, due to where it is between the lake and the mountain. However, the town’s been around since before Christ’s time. So, how do you make room for the dead? Every ten to fifteen years, the bodies in the cemetery are exhumed, the bones are bleached by the sun to clean them. Then, the survivors are able to paint the skulls, personalize them so the loved one isn't forgotten, before the skull is placed in its new home. How romantic is that? I think it’s amazing. Anyway, that’s the House of Bones in Halstatt, and a little insight into the background for Goddess on the Run and the Holy Water Warriors’ series.

              Thank you so much for having me today. I hope you find this type of thing as crazy-cool as I do.

"All Fomorian Hells are about to break loose on earth, making human souls the daily special, if the Tuatha de Danaan can’t stop it.

Teagan, a Celtic demi-goddess hiding from her destiny in small-town Colorado, wants nothing to do with her mother’s forgotten realm or the drama of a battle of the gods. And Merric is forbidden fruit she’s too smart to taste.

Merric, leader of the Tuatha de Danaan warriors, has other plans. Teagan holds the key to salvation, for both him and their worlds, whether she wants to or not. He’ll do whatever it takes to convince her of her duty.

But can he find the key to her heart?"

5 signed copies of Goddess on the Run (US Shipping)

$20 Gift to Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Marne Ann Kirk grew up wild, exploring the vast high deserts and mountains of the West with her family as a child. Marne Ann loved making up stories and, well, lied about just about everything. Thankfully, she grew out of the lying stage...now she calls it story-telling.

Her debut novel, “Love Chosen: Book One of The Fae Dragon Chronicles,” is available now. “Love Dared: Book Two of The Fae Dragon Chronicles,” is coming soon. “Goddess on the Run,” a paranormal romance, will be available September 17, 2012. You can find out more about Marne Ann through her publisher, Crescent Moon Press, or visit her at: www.marneannkirk.com  or www.cowboysndragonscafe.blogspot.com

Web: http://www.marneannkirk.com
Blog: http://www.cowboysndragonscafe.blogspot.com
Twitter: MarneAnn
Facebook: www.facebook.com/marneannkirk
Goodreads: Marne Ann Kirk or http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5822484.Marne_Ann_Kirk