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

 

 

 

Back to Work

I may be back, or at least I hope I’m back. With a little luck, a fast horse, the grace of God, and lots of fair weather and sunshine, I am going to attempt, again, a five or six times a month blog post.

It’s been a long year. I have dealt with things I never wanted to, none of us do. Family, health, finances, aging, the same things all of us have, or will have to deal with at some point in our lives. I didn't handle any of them well and wrote only a handful of blog posts and little of anything else in an entire year. I have several books in various states, one a finished rough draft, one 80% complete and another off to a good start. Goal - I will finish something before the year's end.

Did I learn anything from my time off? Yes. The less I did, the more my sales fell – I know, shocking. I also kind of missed the three or four thousand words a week I was writing.

Thank you to all my patient readers who keep asking when the next book or blog is coming. Looks like there will be more.

Wanna take a look? Find all my books, available in softcover, and eBook here. 

Today’s photos are from an enjoyable drive and hike last weekend into Wyoming's Laramie Range west of where we live.

Now back to work on the third in the series of my Blade Holme’s Western Mysteries, this one, tentatively titled after a completed rough draft - Wendover

Taking it Easy

Still on my, self-imposed, hiatus from writing. Lots of other things going on that are taking up my time. I am not done yet, for those who asked, and thanks. I still have two nearly completed projects and will, someday, get back to them. I will keep you posted, today I am taking it easy watching the Masters and later Rockies baseball on TV. 

I have slowed down with my photography also but did get out a couple of times in the last week or so - today's photos from those outings. 

Enjoy the day! 

Writing Westerns and a Trip to the Laramie Range

The garden is planted, the flowers are blooming and summer is here. I remember watching so many old (maybe as old as me), characters in TV westerns when I was a kid. They often talked about the sun making it easy on their old bones, now it’s my old bones enjoying the warm weather. Think I must have reached that point in my life. I spend time every day in the sun, and more in the shade, but still outside on these terrific summer days.

Writing – Blazing away on my third Blade Holmes western mystery, or at least working along on it. I have also taken some time to polish my second book of Christmas short stories this week. Kind of fun sitting in the sun and writing about cold and snow.

Reading – Much of my reading is centered around research for the books I’m working on, but I always take time to read for relaxation also. Right now I am enjoying, William Kent Krueger’s, Minnesota adventure, Iron Lake.

Selling Books – As is to be expected this time of year, sales are slow, glad my writing income is only part, and presently, a small part of our income. I have had a few weeks with only a handful of sales and darn few KDP pages read, but in the end, it will all work out when fall arrives.

Writing tip – Start with a character, preferably your protagonist, and put them in a mess – yep, create conflict, keeps readers turning pages. Here is how I started my second Blade Holmes novel, The Ghost Dance.

The man riding alone on his horse should have heard the shot, but he was already dead. The huge .52 caliber slug had torn through his shirt an instant before the sound reached his lifeless body. The noise from the big gun reverberated through the canyon, but only the shooter heard it.

Less than an hour later U.S. Marshal Blade Holmes found the body, vultures looked to have arrived shortly after Jimmy Spear had been blown from his saddle. The young, smallish Appaloosa he’d been riding was grazing oblivious a hundred yards away.

Todays Photos – From west of town on our Sunday drive and from our backyard.

It’s hot outside, super time to get in some extra reading and writing. 

Writing and Social Media - Spring Photos Too

Lots of May showers here in Wyoming hope that leads to an abundance of good pasture and many wildflowers.

My writing has taken a backslide as we had guests here the past two weeks. We did get to do much in the way of catching up, and, of course, took some time to see the local sites.

Words - I did get a thousand words, or so, on my nonfiction, but nothing else written in the last 10 days. Meanwhile, my third in the Blade Holmes, western mysteries, sat by waiting for more words, but it didn’t happen. Did have time to edit the 6,000 words I have completed, I like the story so far.

Cutting Back – I have cut back some on my social media, I just don’t have, or do not make, the time I need to use everything I was trying to do. I have several sites on Blogger along with this one, an active presence on Google Plus, and I try to keep going strong on Twitter. I recently created an author site on Facebook, and hope that will make up for giving up, mostly, on Word Press, and other sites that I just could not keep up with. (Please feel free to click the link and follow me on my Facebook author site). I am also posting less often, which I find may not be good, sales are down.

Speaking of Sales – Sales of my soft cover books and eBooks are trending down. May has also started with a downturn in my KDP pages read. At times I think maybe everyone that wants to read my stuff has already done so – then miraculously, everything takes off again. Waiting for my next uptick, but not waiting patiently.  

Reading- Much like my writing, my reading has suffered lately. I am re-reading a favorite, Absaroka Ambush, from  William Johnstone’s Mountain Man series. I have also started, (just), David Dary’s, Cowboy Culture – A Saga of Five Centuries. Looks to be a fine reference for those who write about the old west.

Todays Photos – From a drive this week up to the tiny mountain village of Esterbrook, 50 miles away.

On Turning 70 - See my latest book here, a tongue in cheek look at aging, at least up to my age. 

Here is that 70-year-old taking a break on Horseshoe Creek

Have a great week, enjoy the beginning of spring, and keep on reading and writing.

Writing Snacks and Other Nonsense

 

It's Warming Up and I Am, Once Again, Up and At Um

So much has been written about the habits of writers, so much, that I decided to make a list of some of my writing habits. Seems since most who write do it differently than others, we all might be a bit odd – but here we go.

1.  Most of my writing is on my laptop, (touchscreen, no mouse) sitting in my favorite recliner with the television on. (Seldom could I tell anyone details of what was on, I like the noise I guess)

2.  When writing in my office, about 10% of my writing, I also turn on a television

3.  Writing snacks – Salted peanuts, black licorice, dried cherries, hot or iced tea

4.  I always have both fiction, and a nonfiction project going on

5.  My best writing time – afternoon, evening and late – too late

6.  Mornings I use for news, and social media, and new research

7.  I try to walk a mile or more or play golf, usually 9 holes, every day. (When playing golf I ride, I figure I get plenty of steps along with twisting and turning in the 90 minutes I am on the course)

8.  I spend time in my gardens, or out with my cameras, whenever possible

9.  I spend an hour or two each morning reading, outside in the sun when possible

10.              I sign books with a black rollerball pen, I sometimes use fountain pens when I write personal notes from home.

11.              Last, I check my online sales twice a day – morning and evening

12.              Another last, my wife and I take lots of day trips when we do I take one of my cameras, but no writing when we are out enjoying the day.

There you have it,  as Frank Sinatra put it, My Way.

So how do you write? Anything that seems a bit far left or right of the norm?

Feeling Better – Writing More - I am spending more time writing, the past two weeks, than I have for several months. At last, I feel well enough to think and write. Seems the older I get the tougher it is to get through the winters without various health problems. Nothing serious, just the same old, cold and flu stuff, to which I added an ongoing problem with my left foot.

Writing – Still spending most of my time on the third book in my Blade Holmes western mystery series. I changed the tentative title yesterday and also a bit of the focus of the book. Now working on an updated character list and outline of events for my famous marshal.

Reading – Still reading Sioux Dawn, by Terry C. Johnston, also taking my time reading, A Guide to Photographing Rocky Mountain Wildlife, interesting and with so many terrific photos.

Today’s Photo’s – From the mountains 20-30 or so, miles west of town

Keep on reading, and keep on writing, see all of my books on my Amazon author site – here.

Western Writers or Writing Westerns

I write about the West, some of it old, some new. All five of my adult books are set mostly or partly in Wyoming, my three kids books are set where I grew up in Nebraska. There is an old writer adage that says, write what you know. I like the idea of writing what you know, but also about where you have been. I still spend as much time as possible outside, observing and listening to nature, and anything else that flows in or out. Some of what I take in with my senses finds a way into my stories.

I love watching all sorts of wildlife and listening to anything that breaks the silence. I have found that the smell of a campfire can travel for a mile or more under the correct conditions. That made it into one of my books. A river and lake sound different and both sound wonderful in the rain. Describing the sound can be both challenging and rewarding.

Three Mule Deer - Rare Albino 2-year-old in Front

I call this site, Confessions of a Writer of Westerns, but I really don’t write westerns. Some are in that time period, but they are Historical Fiction, some I classify as Historical Mysteries. Everything I write is out west. Thus I am a western writer. I had a reader email me that read my book of Christmas stories. She had this to say, “The stories are so warm and true to life, I couldn’t put it down.” I thought well, that’s great.

Our Local View

Then she went on to say, “They sure don’t seem like westerns to me.”

In my reply I let her know that I appreciated how much she liked the stories and added, “They may not seem like westerns because they are not.”

 Most people, or maybe I should say many people, confuse the real west with the fictional wild west, where gunfights at high noon and barroom brawls were an everyday occurrence. The wild west of television series fame was a creation of Hollywood and made a good living for many pulp writers for decades. My books tell stories of the west, some old, and some modern, but they are set in a real west.

I enjoy writing about people in the west, some real and many products of my imagination all tied together. I am in the read through the proof stage now on my third kid's book, and my second historical mystery, with my legendary protagonist, Blade Holmes.

Bluebird

For the last few days, I am stepping a bit away from my usual stuff, but still set in the west. The book I am working on is about gardening in the West, gardening takes up much of my time when the weather cooperates. I also have a cozy mystery in the works about a Wyoming Golf Pro/amateur detective. But I will never get away from writing stories involving cowboys, ranchers, Native Indians, townspeople, soldiers and shopkeepers, all out west.

Taking a break - out with nature

Now it’s time to get back to writing and reading. 

Used this Golden Eagle for a scene in my newest novel - available next week

Reading - Writing - and Wintering

Seems I am suffering through the writing blues of late. Not stuck, just don’t feel like writing much. Oh, I do some, but not many words, not sure why. Guess I will blame it on the weather, seems as good as anything. Wait maybe I could blame it on politics, naw, just not feeling it.

Typically in the winter, I get out and do quite a bit of hiking, this winter, not so much. I think I need the exercise to get my mind going and the old creative juices flowing. At present, I’m waiting for the review copies of my most recent kid’s book – the third in a series. Shipped on Friday, shouldn’t be long now.

Nice herd of Mule Deer with Laramie Peak in the distance

As always, I am reading several books at the same time, presently reading books by, Richard Wheeler, Elmer Kelton, and Hank Haney. The books are different enough that it is not a problem reading all three at various times of the day or week. What are they? Wheeler’s, Accidental Novelist, a story of his life from editor to writer of western novels,  Kelton’s, Ranger’s Trail, a western novel, and Hank Haney’s golf book, The Big Miss, about working with Tiger Woods.

When working I am re-editing my second Blade Holmes, Western novel, and finishing up my gardening book. I am also in the planning stages of the fourth of my kid’s books. Soon, when the inspiration strikes, I will get back to research and writing of my second nonfiction book. I have found nonfiction to be both rewarding and challenging, but, someday I will finish.

Nice setting for a Mountain Man book

Keep on reading – keep on writing, and keep on thinking SPRING!

Photos were taken yesterday on a snowy drive.

Random Thoughts About the West and Westerns

Who put the West in westerns? Sounds like a bit of an odd question, but it might be a tougher question than it first sounds. The old west, the one of so many books, is both a place and a period of time. The where is the old west is a tough question, but by most definitions it is west of the Missouri River, south to Mexico and north through Alaska. The old west as a period of time, I see as from the end of the civil war until the introduction of the automobile in America. Commonly this time period is seen as from the Gold Rush to Wounded Knee, 1849-1890.

In Wyoming, we like to say we are the last of the old west, or that we are the real west. If that is true, the west of today refers to wide open spaces. That’s the reason California and most of the highly populated Pacific coast are no longer thought of as the west. Genre westerns often were set in California, gold rush, land grabbers and city builders all made good plots. Today the west coast still makes an excellent setting for movies and books, but none are thought of as westerns. Western’s weather set in the 1800s or present day need wide open spaces.

 Today writers of westerns set in modern time seem to follow this idea. It is easier to write a western if there are wide open spaces involved, Wyoming and Montana come to mind here.  Mountains, forest, wild rivers and long lonesome highways seem to make good modern western stories.

But the real west is defined by the cowboy. If a cowboy is involved, it must be a western story. Western romance sells millions of copies each year, the book covers usually depicting a cowboy, shirt unbuttoned, hat, boots, and beautiful women. Why do they sell? Is it the western flavor, the romance element, or the wide open spaces? I would guess it is a bit of all of the above. Today the sparsely populated west is full of romance and mystery to many people, especially people from metropolitan areas.

One of the reasons we live in Wyoming is because we love the empty areas. I know, this is not for everyone. We have to drive more than an hour to the nearest Wal-Mart and nearly two hours to a Shopping Mall. For many this would be a disaster of colossal proportion. Even worse, the closest hospital is a half hour away and to find a lawyer, accountant or college we must drive at least half an hour. But we trudge on. The reason we like it here, all of the photos on this page were taken closer than the nearest Wal-Mart.

Love the west!

Lakeshore Drive and Books for Sale

Work is going well in the park. Lakeshore Drive was open today and I drove to Black Canyon Cove and back. Looks like two major areas of concern, the crumbling road on a very dangerous curve

Wonderful looking fix on a very bad curve

and a bad culvert.

The CCC would be proud of the way this was fixed in their style

I stayed until just before dark waiting for the sunset, it wasn’t spectacular but was pretty nice.

Sun turns the sky golden over Laramie Peak - looking from the boat dock

When the moon started peeking through the trees I knew it was time to head for home.

 My newest novel, Commitment, is now available as a book or eBook

Take a look here

http://www.amazon.com/Commitment-Holmes-Western-Mystery-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B00ZJ6VKLS/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Commitment is a historical mystery/western, set in and around Fort Laramie and south to Laramie City and Cheyenne. Good old fashioned story with a bit of mystery, romance, bad guys and one very special good guy – great fun.

And of course, my book on the Building of Guernsey State Park can be found almost anywhere online and at many local sellers.

Get it here from Barnes and Noble

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-civilian-conservation-corps-the-building-of-guernsey-state-park-neil-a-waring/1122073800?ean=9780692394885

Or get it here from Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/Civilian-Conservation-Corps-Building-Guernsey/dp/0692394885/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Hey, talk about the perfect Christmas gift for everyone that loves the park.

Need a book for the kids or grandkids? My two kids chapter books are good clean fun.  

Fast moving adventures of growing up in the 1950s, with a ghost and Zombie just for the heck of it. Find them along with all my books here.  

http://www.amazon.com/Neil-Waring/e/B00XV26KLC