Fifteen Books and Still Writing

 December 27, 2021

Well, like most everyone else, we have finished another Christmas Season. Bring on the new year. Right now, we are back to the two of us and the dog – again. Great atmosphere for writing and watching football, but almost too quiet at times. 

On my morning walk, I realized that I was not sure, exactly, how many books I had written. Guess it is time to count them up.

Nonfiction

The Civilian Conservation Corps and the building of Guernsey State Park

Beginning Gardening & Other Entertaining Lies - With Four Bonus - Murder in the Garden Stories

On Turning 70  

Elderly – A Sensational Day Every Day

Western Fiction

Commitment  (western mystery)

The Ghost Dance (western mystery)

Ghost of the Fawn (young adult)

Under Western Skies (collection of short stories)

Under Christmas Skies (collection of short stories)

Interview with a Gunfighter (short story)

Kids Chapter Books

Melvin the E Street Ghost

The Mike Said, There's a Zombie in My Basement

Yikes – My Neighbors a Vampire

Howling at the Moon

 

Finished but Not Yet Published

Morning Walk ( the third in my series for senior citizens)

Wendover  (my third Blade Holmes western mystery)

Almost Ready

County Fair (book five in my Mike, and Moose and I kids growing up chapter books)

Essays from the golden years  (fourth in my series for senior readers)

 

Wow, that was an exhausting search, not really. Thirteen published books and one published short. Two more books are finished but not yet published. I am not sure why these two, which will be self-published, are still waiting. I figured it out and can answer my question – lazy. Soon.

That makes 15 completed books with two in the almost category and the single short.

I am not always one to write out New Years Resolutions, but I aim to have all 17 of the books I listed earlier published. I hope to continue with my senior reader's books, with at least one addition in 2022.

Photos – All taken in the past week within 15 miles of where we live in Wyoming

Happy New Year – 2022

Keep reading and keep writing

 

 

 

Writing Westerns and a Holiday Slow Down

The Holiday Slow Down – Thanksgiving and Black Friday, 2018 have passed into history, and now it is time to get back to work for most folks. I managed, at last, to not overeat and did zero shopping on Black Friday, hope that is not un-American.

Reading for Fun – I have been reading some short mysteries and cozy mysteries the last few days and enjoying the stories. I am also reading, as I am most of the time, a western. I can always tell when a story really grabs me – I stay up too late reading. I will be reporting more, with some mini-reviews soon.

Selling Books – Book sales are going well, not sure, how I got it going so well, but I am most happy for it. I never will call myself a best-selling author, hope I can, but for now, selling a few books every day is quite nice. I hope it continues. My personal best-selling books right now are the two Blade Holmes novels and my two Christmas books.

Waterfall below Guernsey Dam

From the Old West – Some men talk ‘cause they have somethin’ to say. Others talk ‘cause they got to say somethin’.

What I Am Working On – I hate to admit I have spent more time watching football than writing or editing the last few days. After coaching high school football for more than three decades, it seems to be in my blood. The good part of this is that some of the teams I was rooting for won. The bad part – I am falling behind, even without specific, word or page goals, I am getting behind. There is always next week.

 Photo of the Week –

The spectacular Gatehouse at Guernsey Dam

As always, you can find all my books here on Amazon

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Keep on Reading and Keep on Writing

&  

Enjoy the coming of a new and more normal week.

                                       

A Writers Week

Here in Wyoming, we have been blessed with the wettest May and June in the 35 years I have been in the state. Seems almost like I am back in the Nebraska farm country where I grew up. Gardens are looking terrific, now bring on the sunshine.

Writing – I have been spending more time researching people that served at Fort Laramie, for my next nonfiction offering, coming out in early 2019,  than I have spent putting words on paper. To some writers, research can be tedious, but I have run across countless wonderful stories. I am getting some work done on that book, and some on my third Blade Holmes western mystery, not a lot, the Blade Holmes book, about 1,500 words this week and the nonfiction, just over 300. Let me see, if my math is correct, I am only writing about 250 words a day. Why so little? Well, I have been playing golf about three times a week, spending time taking wildlife photos and building wooden tomato cages for what I hope will be a bumper crop.

Reading – Not sure how I missed this one but am reading and enjoying Mari Sandoz’s, Love Song to the Plains, terrific book. I am also spending more time reading about book marketing, probably won’t change the way I do anything, but it does put forth some good ideas.

Selling Books – As seems to happen this time of year, my nonfiction CCC book on the building of Guernsey State Park is selling pretty well. The rest, well, I will say they, like me, are moving along, but not as fast as they once did.

Today’s Photo’s – Backyard garden, and from the Civilian Conservation Corps, (CCC), built Guernsey State Park.

Summer Reads – Want something lighthearted and quick? I have two books that will fill the bill – my latest, On Turning 70, and my book of garden tips and short stories - Beginning Gardening & Other Entertaining Lies, which Includes - 4 Garden Murder Mysteries. Give one or both a try, click the link and read the free first chapter or more.

Enjoy the summer and keep on reading and writing.

Writing, Walking, Laughing, and Selling Books

The sun is shining, and maybe, just maybe, some of the snow will melt this afternoon. One thing about an extended cold snap – lots of time to write, and I have been taking advantage of it. I am working mostly on my non-fiction Fort Laramie book, but thinking about digging out one of my work in progress fiction books to change it up a little bit. Maybe fiction in the morning and nonfiction in the afternoon?

On Turning 70 - My Newest book, a look at turning 70, a combination of tongue in cheek humor and reminisces is available and has started to sell a few copies – only .99 as an ebook. Click to see.

A Smile on a Cool February Day

Have you heard that Wrangler and Levi Strauss started manufacturing electric jeans!

We had to chop up the piano for firewood - but we only got two chords. (Sorry for that one)

Two old cowboys, wearing every stitch of warm clothes they could find, walked toward the barn attempting to talk about the weather. It was not working, their words were freezing in the air. At last, exasperated, the two each grabbed a handful of the frozen sentences and took them back to the bunkhouse, sat by the fire and waited for the words to thaw by the fire before they knew what they were talking about.

Watched these two young ladies Tuesday afternoon

Book Sales – Not as strong as last month but still doing fine – thank you, it is rewarding to see books sold online every day. If it has been a while since you checked my author site on Amazon – click here and take a look at my ten books, and one short story. Each book has a click to read a free sample – pretty cool!

 

Super Sunset last week

Exercise in Expectation of Warm Days to Come - Once we have a few nice days I will start thinking about playing golf again. I played a few times in December, not at all in January and have got out once for nine holes this month. My wife and I are on a new quest, to walk 100 miles, exercise-extra walking, by the first of May. Should be able to make it, only an average of a mile and a half a day. Not a lot, but pretty good for an old codger like me.

Meanwhile, keep on reading and keep on writing.

Our view from a hike in the park

Writing Can Be Hard Work

I have written several posts over the past few years about how fickle the process of selling books can be. This has been emphasized by my nearly complete lack of sales in September. It doesn’t help when bloggers write about September being slow because of school starting, doesn’t console me much.

Christmas comes early in the Laramie Range

Writing - Today instead of sales I am thinking more about the writing process. Seems that every week I read or learn by writing, new things about the process. Following is a list of what I learned about writing this week.

1.  Although many writers say that all first drafts are crap, I have learned that forcing myself to write results in something so bad it cannot be fixed.

2.  Not feeling like writing most often results in no writing

3.  Maybe there really is such a thing as working on too many projects at once

4.  Tired and Dr. appointments are good excuses to not write, but nothing more – still not many words on paper.

5.  Writing is hard when lacking enthusiasm and goals

6.  Maybe what I’m writing is boring me – Should I follow Elmore Leonard’s advice and leave out the boring stuff, in this case maybe an entire project or two?

7.  On the good side of writing – I am reading a couple of good books at the present and enjoying what others have to say about writing. Guess I am in the school of, when I don’t feel like writing I enjoy what writers have to say about the process.

New growth Aspen - in a burn area, looking wonderful

Fall is here - In other news, It’s fall, and here in Wyoming the weather is turning and it is officially my favorite time of year. I am hoping for a long and beautiful autumn, full of good writing, photographs, and friends.

Almost harvest time

My wish for you - Write on, and read on and get out and enjoy fall.

Photo’s today from our time out and about in beautiful Wyoming this week.

See all my books here  Free sample pages 

It's All About the Plot

Sometime along the way in most of our education travels we learn that there are but seven topics for stories. The list put together by Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (1863-1944) has been taught for years and seem as appropriate today as they did many years ago.

Quiller-Couch’s list

1.  Man against man

2.  Man against nature

3.  Man against himself

4.  Man against God

5.  Man against society

6.  Man caught in the middle

7.  Man and woman

Interesting to note that Quiller-Couch wrote under the pen name of Q. I like it. Quiller-Couch also is credited with this, something every writer has heard.

If you here require a practical rule of me, I will present you with this: ‘Whenever you feel an impulse to perpetrate a piece of exceptionally fine writing, obey it—whole-heartedly—and delete it before sending your manuscript to press. Murder your darlings.

In 2004 Christopher Booker, an Englishman like Quiller-Couch published his – The Seven Basic Plots and has a new, maybe more modern look, at story plot possibilities. Reportedly Booker worked on his list for more than 30 years.

Booker’s List

1.  Overcoming the Monster

2.  Rags to riches

3.  The Quest

4.  Voyage and return

5.  Comedy

6.  Tragedy

7.  Rebirth

Might be easy to place everything I have written or read into one of the two lists. So what about those that write westerns or historical fiction? Famed western author and screenwriter Frank Gruber listed, again, seven plot lines for westerns.

Gruber’s List

1.  Union Pacific Story

2.  Ranch Story

3.  Empire story

4.  Revenge story

5.  Cavalry and Indian story

6.  Outlaw story

7.  Marshal story

Gruber also said that dialogue should be used to move the plot through the story.

I find it both interesting and gratifying to know that everything does not change too fast. Long live the western, after all, it follows the same plot lines as every other kind of fiction.

-Today's photos from our backyard gardens.-

Keep on reading and keep on writing and remember the weekend is not too far away.

Story Idea's

Seems to me that recently I see a post or Tweet every day that starts with something like this – “Are you stuck, can’t find anything to write about?” Odd.

Are there actually writers who cannot come up with anything to write about? My problem is the opposite. I have too many ideas, too many stories, and I have to pick and choose which ones I might have time to write. 

At times, a single photo can bring on a good story

I hope no one would be serious about buying a book with ideas to write about. Might be a better idea to read more widely, travel, work and experience life, then come up with what you like to write. If you are lucky enough to make your dreams of writing turn out, and the story falls into a classification of Children’s Fiction, or Fantasy, congratulations, they are the two best-selling fiction genres.

Westerns, the old style shoot-um-ups are, for the most part, or for all parts, dead. On the other hand, historical fiction is alive and well, selling about three percent of all books. Children’s fiction is still far above all other genres selling nearly 40% of all books. Children's fiction is still riding the wave of the Harry Potter books, and the numbers may be a bit high because of J.K. Rowling. (By the way, I have read all of the Potter books and enjoyed them).

For writers at all levels, first bookers or author’s that have written several books, the key is finding an audience. Find enough readers who like what a writer is doing and the books will sell, even westerns.

I read an interesting blog recently that suggested writing in several genres instead of only one. This advice is opposite of what has normally been preached to new writers.  I was sure that I would never sell a book as I have written in so many genres. 

So far I have dabbled in Children’s, Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Short Stories, and nonfiction-historical. And have been lucky enough to sell books in all genres, not best seller sales, but enough to take a nice trip or two.

Where else would a western writer vacation? Dodge City last October

The First Line

Great Opening Lines

Much has been written about how important the first line of a novel is. Google it, and there are several pages about famous first lines. I read through a list of well-known books and the first line from each. These were taken from a survey of some sort and titled the best first lines from 100 famous novels, or something similar to that. Most were okay, some were terrific and some, well, I didn’t get why they made the list of great lines. I scratched my head and decided to check out the first lines of my five books. I changed it to four decided to skip my nonfiction book that opens with a very nice quote from President Roosevelt (FDR). I had to check mine out who knows, maybe, some were terrific.

My Opening Lines

I came up with six using a second, first line, (hey I like the sound of that)  from my collection of Christmas Tales. I also used one from an unpublished novella with a great title. So, here they are.

  If the young cowboy had but one wish, it would be to live. 

From my western mystery, Commitment. Not bad, I like it.

.The old mountain man was starving, but not for food. 

This one is taken from a story in my Christmas book, nice hook. What was he starving from? Sorry, no spoiler here.

The street I lived on was red brick, and our house was white. 

Not sure why but I really like this one. It is from the first of my two children’s chapter books, Melvin the E Street Ghost. 

Moose and I laid in the shade of a bright summer sun under an apple tree in my backyard. 

My second chapter book, soon to be the second of three with publication hopes for late May of the third in this series. This one is titled, 

Then Mike Said, “There’s a Zombie in My Basement.

Hardy Galloway pulled up rein, placed one knurled hand over the other on top his saddle horn and pushed back in an attempt to straighten his back.

 The opening line from my book of Christmas shorts. 
Under Western Skies, 14 Tales of Christmas. At my age, I am partial to stories that have someone as old as me, so I like it. 

    The old man thought about the question then nodded yes, he shook his head no at the next. Simple but interesting. This is from my yet to be published novella of about 20,000 words. 

 There you have it my opening lines. Good luck with yours and keep writing.