The making of "Steel Goddesses"

Over the summer, I saw a lifelong dream come true when I became a published author. The road to publication was not as traditional as most authors', but the result turned out the same way. "Steel Goddesses" is available for sale on Amazon.com and I'm working to get it into bookshops around the Seattle area.

"Steel Goddesses" focuses primarily on three women and the paths they took to achieve their dreams during the early 80's, when heavy metal was in full swing and L'Amour was THE preeminent rock club for up and coming metal bands to play in the New York City area, and possibly, the US. White Lion was a fixture on the stage at the time. So was a little band called Metallica. Raven, Anthrax, TALAS (Billy Sheehan's first band), Exciter, Anvil, Yngwie Malmsteen, Loudness, Blue Oyster Cult (as "Soft White Underbelly"), Stryper. The list goes on and on. Bands that were big at the time (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Motley Crue) didn't play at L'Amour, but bandmembers sure hung out there.

I was lucky to be part of the scene during that time and took in my share of bands, some more than others (I've seen Metallica so many times, I've lost count). I also met my fair share of "interesting" people, including some of the most hardcore groupies I've ever seen. I've taken all of those experiences and rolled them into a novel that is aimed at being both nostalgic and entertaining.

"Toni" is kind of like a Queen of the Groupies. I introduce a pimp-like character called Marius Man, who runs a sort of "heavy metal harem". As their leader, Toni pretty much gets her choice of any guy who plays at L'Amour. Business being what it is, Marius orders Toni to recruit more groupies, in order to spend one night with a man who has been out of her reach - a hunky guitarist named "Don". This is where the fun begins.

Toni begins grooming "Rusty", whose sole dream is to land a rich rock star as a boyfriend. Naive and extremely stacked, Rusty makes it a point to follow Toni's every instruction to a "T", with bittersweet results. Toni also tries to groom "Kris", a legal secretary trying to pursue a dream to be a rock journalist. But Kris has no intention of becoming a groupie, even as she harbors a secret crush on "Marty", singer for one of the biggest metal bands around.

Toni schemes desperately to get both girls on board, but seems to hit obstacles everywhere and each girl ends up taking a life-changing detour.

If you want to read more, here is the link to "Steel Goddesses" on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Steel-Goddesses-Ann-Brandt/dp/1434858553/ref=pd_rhf_p_t_2

Enjoy.

Su