Romancing the Genres: Westerns

Showing posts with label Westerns. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 19, 2023

Saturday, August 22, 2020

A Blogversation: Western Romance with Paty Jager

I'm excited the Blog Queens asked me to carry on this blogversation about western romance. If you don't know me, I'm Paty Jager the author of 45+ books half of which are western romance the other half are mysteries with a strong western flavor (there are horses, rural areas, and the cowboy qualities I admire).

Whether you are writing historical or contemporary western romance you need to know a bit about horses, domestic animals, and rural living. Farming or ranching are a good thing as well. While you don't have to have lived that way (I do) it helps. You don't have to do as much research. But... if you do plan to write about these genres, if you haven't lived it or experienced it, you really need to connect with someone who has.

My first critique partner was a writer back east who had ridden a horse once and didn't know the difference between a fetlock and a wither. We partnered and she helped me hone my writing skills and I helped her get horse and other ranch things correct. It was a successful pairing.

I believe half of what makes a romance book work is the chemistry and the other half is environment they are in. My first contemporary western is Perfectly Good Nanny. I made my heroine a city person running away from her life and finding a job (nanny) as far from there as possible. I put her on a cattle ranch in the middle of the SE Oregon desert country. She is out of her element but fighting to stay because she doesn't want to go back. The hero didn't hire her- his twelve-year-old daughter did. Over the internet with the help of a meddling Native American neighbor. There are two scenes in the book that happened to me with cattle that I changed up a bit, but used as ways to bring the hero and heroine together.

What do you think? Do you read fiction, especially western romance, to live the western (historical or contemporary) life with the characters? If so, what part do you like the best?

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Giving Birth to a Book Cover —by Delsora Lowe

One of the most exciting things about writing a book, besides the words THE END 😊 (Okay, in full disclosure, there are many other things that are exciting too,) is designing the cover.

Now, disclaimer, I DO NOT design my own covers. But I have found an incredible cover designer who appears to be able to read my mind, across country, between California and Maine.

As I write and edit, ad nauseum, my mind is whirling with images of what the cover will look like. When I have spare moments, or can’t think creatively to write words, I search for photos that might fit my vision of the perfect cover. So, by the time I am ready to contract for my cover, I know exactly what I want.

Okay – another disclaimer. I THINK I know exactly what I want.

In my imagination, I can see the cover, but having the brain translate the vision into words, not so much. That’s where my file of photos come in. Also, I am not an artist. So, what I think might make a great cover, never does.

For example, for The Legacy of Parkers Point, book one of Serenity Harbor, I had an evening image picked out of the front of a café. Picture dark background with twinkling lights sparkling EVERYWHERE, off trees and a “loving” couple.

Enter my cover artist. She is called an artist for a reason.

I sent Karen (of Covers by Karen) my ideas through the photos I collected and book covers of authors I love that showed what I want to say in a cover. I also described the setting of my book.

She pointed out that there was no space that wasn’t too busy to add the title, series title, or author name. But she also knew the novella series was set in a seacoast town on an island connected to the mainland by a bridge and that book one was set in the fall.

Since this was my first time making a cover, we did a lot of tweaks. It was a learning process for both of us. For me, understanding what makes a good cover background. And for Karen, learning to anticipate what I really wanted.

The first try with couple we found on depositphotos. But author name didn't show up well.

I asked Karen to use my author name off my website, But too dark.

Website-branded author font, but white shadowing added to make it lighter and readable.
And we tweaked the background along the way.

For The Rancher Needs a Wife, my book to be released in October, I sent her a photo taken by my daughter while on a hike in Colorado.

When I saw the photo, I knew it was a perfect example of what I envisioned for my cover, a fence and mountains. And miraculous teal-blue skies on a fall day, that fit the setting of my story. Karen loved the picture. Plus, it had the correct resolution.

So, in this case, with that one photo the search for the cover background ended. But not the tweaking of the cover.

When I chose the model for my hero in The Prince’s Son, book one of the Cowboys of Mineral Springs, I also took notes on models for the next three books and socked them away in my file. Of course, a year later, when I worked on the cover for book two, The Rancher Needs a Wife, weighed down with half a dozen links from Period Images, I had to start over. Same model, but oooh, so many pose choices. I went back and forth, forever…and narrowed it down to three, then sent them out to my critique partners. Amazingly, we all agreed.

A special thanks to my critique partners. I have run every cover by them and they always have good suggestions. The best part is when all of us say, THAT’S THE ONE!

I sent the cover model photo to Karen, and she sent out the first rendition of the cover.

Loved it!

Except…

I loved the white writing for the title, BUT it got a bit lost in the clouds, as did the hero’s white hat. I loved the red in the author name. And I loved the feathery look of the tree branches. I looked at the original photo and picked out the section of the photo she had used. BUT, I REALLY wanted the fence. And the title needed a bit of shadowing to make it pop a bit more. Luckily Karen can interpret what I’m looking for, even when I’m not sure what I really want or how to say it. So, Karen used a different portion of the background photo.

Loved it!

Except…

I did miss the feathery tree, but to get the fence, I had to sacrifice the tree. Maybe we could lower the sky a tad, so that patch of blue would make not only his hat stand out more, but make the hero stand out from the background more.

What came next was WOW! Karen worked her magic by moving the background photo over, zooming in a little, and lightening it up a bit. She changed the title from white to red. And everything popped.

Here are some other examples of the cover production progression. This is the cover for Come Dance With Me, book two of the Serenity Harbor series.

I wanted the heroine to have dark hair and a clip in her hair for the final romantic dance, before her world gets turned upside down…and not in a good way. We also tweaked the background several times, as I recall. And as I also recall, we made more than three attempts at this cover.

I really loved the cover, but the hero was all wrong from what I envisioned.

Yay - found a couple I loved. Except hair color was wrong.

Karen changed the hair color and added a barrette I found on a free clip art site.

Although I felt like a pest, tweaking here and there, that was only my second cover. And working with Karen on both the first and second covers, gave her an idea of my working style. And mine of hers, cool, calm, collected, and ready to do whatever I needed to make a great cover.

In Moonlighting, book three of Serenity Harbor, we got the cover right the first time around. Although, the following year, I had Karen update both this cover and Come Dance With Me to show they were holidays reads, by adding ribbon banners at the top.

Each author and cover artist have their own strategy for working together to make a cover. Mine is simple. I know what I want, but I really don’t. 😊 I tell Karen. She works her magic. Sometimes several times. And voila!

Finding the right cover artist is crucial and may take working with several before you hit on a good working relationship. I got lucky the first time around. Karen gets me and understands what I want. Sure, it takes some back and forth work on both our parts. That’s to be expected. After all, the process is similar to writing, editing A LOT, and finally releasing a book.

But as I mentioned, it is a fun ride.

And oh, so exciting, when that cover finally appears on the front of your “baby” on release day.

Thanks for stopping by today. When you chose a book, what stands out in a cover that convinces you to buy the book?

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet romances and contemporary westerns from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine.

Social Media Links:
Author website: www.delsoralowe.com
Author FaceBook page: fb.me/delsoraloweauthor
Amazon Author page: https://www.amazon.com/Delsora-Lowe/e/B01M61OM39/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Books2Read Author page: https://www.books2read.com/ap/8GWm98/Delsora-Lowe
BookBub Author Page: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/delsora-lowe-93c6987f-129d-483d-9f5a-abe603876518
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/16045986.Delsora_Lowe

Saturday, July 4, 2015

An Author Downunder

Happy Fourth of July to all my American friends. I hope you have a safe and happy holiday.

Our Australia Day, 26th January, is similar to your Fourth of July. We do have scattered celebrations around the country for those Americans living downunder. These are not on the scale of the US celebrations but help our American friends to feel a little less homesick.

My name, as most of you know, is Susan Horsnell and I write Western Romance under my own name. I write Erotic Romance under my pen name - Lacey Roberts.

Let me tell you why an Australian gal writes stories set in Texas USA in the 19th Century:

I grew up incredibly close to my Dad who was a Cowboy and Indians fan. I remember fondly how we would watch every John Wayne, Audie Murphy, Gregory Peck, and any other Western actors movies, together. We would 'discuss' - insert argue, the stupid things the outlaws did and how the Cowboys, Marshalls and Sheriffs always won. The Indians, apart from Custer's Last Stand, were always on the receiving end of a loss no matter what they did. I was young and idealistic so I always barracked for the Indians, hoping against hope, they would win at least one fight. My love of the Wild West was instilled in me at a very young age and Dad nurtured it.

My fascination led me to begin writing fictional stories while still in high school. I was an excellent English student, loved to read and wanted to create tales that people just might enjoy. After I left school, Nursing was my priority quickly followed by marriage and children. Writing was shelved.

Five years ago I retired and the scripts again saw the light of day. Our sons were grown up and married with families of their own, we moved to sunny Queensland and I finally had the time to develop my ideas. I thought about writing about Rural Australia but she didn't have the Cowboys,

Indians and Marshalls the Wild West had. These were the topics close to my heart and which I loved so - The Glenmore's Series was born: a family of four siblings, 3 sons and 1 daughter, facing numerous obstacles to survive and thrive. The series has Cowboys, Indians (friendly), the cruellest of outlaws and love - lots of love. Although I write fiction, I do include some facts and I have also drawn on some of my own experiences such as the care of a newly blinded child as in Blind Acceptance.

I have been humbled by being awarded two Crowned Heart Awards for Excellence, a Rone nomination in 2014 and a Rone Finalist in 2015, a Finalist in the Laramie Awards for Western Fiction in 2015. Not bad for an Aussie writing Westerns. I have been mildly successful in the US but have yet to crack the UK and Australian markets. I did know when I began writing this genre, it would be for a specific audience. I am thrilled that people actually read and enjoy my stories.

My Erotic Romance has been more widely received and Taming Gemma was Runner-Up in the Predators and Editors Readers Choice Awards earlier this year.
If you would like to discover more of my books please visit:

Western Romance:

Website -

http://horsnells.wix.com/susan--1

Blog-

http://susanhorsnell.com

Erotic Romance:

Website -

http://robertslacey1955.wix.com/lacey-roberts

Blog:

http://laceyvixen.wordpress.com

Saturday, September 15, 2012

The World of Western Author, Josie Malone

Josie Malone

Every romance needs authentic world-building and for my books, it meant researching Western Washington State in the 19^th century. Actually, for my purposes, it was Washington Territory since my books are set in 1887 and 1888. I grew up on a pony farm outside of Everett and at least once a week, my single mother took my sisters and me to see my grandparents who lived in Seattle.

On those visits, my grandfather introduced me to Louis L’Amour westerns and I absolutely adored the cowboys who rode through those pages. They fascinated me nearly as much as John Wayne did in his movies. So, when I began writing, it seemed like horses would gallop, trot and walk into my books. Today, those books are considered “westerns,” and I still love my cowboys and the women who claim them. Oh, and you can’t go wrong with a great horse!

While we read westerns and watched John Wayne, my grandfather told stories of growing up in Sequim, Washington shortly after the turn of the century. His widowed mother used to cook for various farmers and logging outfits around the area. She’d put him in his little red wagon before dawn. Then, she’d pull him over trails, muddy tracks and gravel roads to the farm kitchens to start a long work day. At nightfall, when the kitchen was clean, she’d pack the leftover food and my grandfather in the wagon and take them back home.

Meanwhile, my grandmother taught me to cook from her 1908 edition of the Fannie Farmer cookbook – a history lesson in itself. Some recipes still referred to a “fire” meaning a wood cook-stove. She also taught me to love romance – we used to walk from her house in Ballard to the nearest branch of the King County Library and we checked out as many books as we could carry home. I use a derivative of her name for my own romances – I know she’d love it. Josie Malone still rides or should it be writes on!

Between listening to my grandparents and their peers, I discovered how much I loved the real stories of what happened in the past. Eventually when I attended Washington State University in Pullman, I also learned that my grandmother who worked side by side with my grandfather in motels, taverns, hotels and on farms wasn’t an aberration. Women have always stepped outside the norm. To my amazement, I found even more stories about women like Charley Parkhurst who drove a stagecoach through the Sierra Nevadas or Little Jo Monaghan who mined in Idaho or even those who fought in the Civil War.

So, when I started my book, A Man’s World, I played the quintessential “What if” game. What if my main character hid her gender and pretended to be the toughest man around. Now, why would she do such a thing? Well, obviously somebody was trying to kill her. And the story just kept going from there.

I wrote, rewrote, polished, revised and rewrote again. I submitted to contests, editors, agents and rewrote again. Then, BookStrand offered for A Man’s World and I accepted. In that historical western romance, Trace Burdette masqueraded as a man, fooling everyone but new neighbor, ruggedly handsome Zebadiah Prescott. With their love on the line, they had to deal with the past and the outlaw who killed her grandfather and stalked her. By the time that my newest book A Woman’s Place begins, Trace and Zeb have been married for just over six months when renegades rob the bank she owns in the town of Junction City.

A Woman’s Place BLURB:

Trailing a serial killer, Homicide Detective Beth Chambers is thrust into 1888 Washington Territory where she encounters injured Rad Morgan, a ruggedly handsome marshal who believes A Woman’s Place is behind her man. Now, Beth must save Rad’s life, apprehend the killer, and prove herself capable as a law officer.

Former soldier and survivor of Andersonville Prison Camp, Marshal Rad Morgan faces his toughest challenge in Beth Chambers, a determined woman from the future who’s never learned “her place.” But when he is shot and left for dead, he must put himself in Beth’s hands if they both want to survive.

Can these two headstrong people put their pride aside and work together to find the deadly killer and stop him before he destroys this world and their future? As they fight for justice, love helps them discover A Woman’s Place is what and where she chooses to make it.

JOSIE MALONE BIOGRAPHY:

As a child, I loved to dream away the days in an old cherry tree on my family’s pony farm. In my imagination, the tree became a beautiful Arabian stallion, a medieval castle and even a pirate ship. I got in trouble for making my little sisters walk the plank, but hey, they never broke any bones. On rainy days, I headed for my fort in the hayloft. While the rain thudded on the cedar shingled roof, I read books, eventually trading Carolyn Keene for Georgette Heyer. I used the setting of the pony farm for my second romance from BookStrand. The Daddy Spell was a finalist in the Colorado RWA Award of Excellence contest.

Today I live on the family ranch in the Cascade foothills of Washington State in what was once a summer vacation cabin. It’s been modernized and even has indoor plumbing – woo-hoo! I share the cabin with my two cats or maybe, they share it with me. I usually write at night after a long day on the ranch. Some days are longer and harder than others, but I still write from 8PM to 2AM, seven days a week. As a substitute school teacher, I love the school breaks but I’m just as busy, since there are 33 horses to look after, along with other assorted animals.

With all the critters on the ranch, I don’t have time for a husband. As for kids, I have to give back the ones who come to learn how to ride at the end of each day. Now, I’m teaching the kids and grandkids of the ones I taught way back when we started. I’ve had a lot of adventures over the years – and in my next 50 years, I plan to write all about them. I hope you enjoy reading about them!

Saturday, September 8, 2012

Western Romance---It's The Right Thing to Read!

Jacquie Rogers

The combination of drool-worthy heroes, strong women, nasty villains, all in an unforgiving setting can’t be beat for a good read. Whether humor or drama, the romance is gonna be good—you just know it. Let’s talk about the men and women unique to the American West.

Men in Chaps

Knights of the frontier? Why not. I compared the Knight’s Code of Chivalry to the Texas Rangers oath at Romancing The West in Cowboys: Knights of the Old West.

There’s nothing like a strong code of honor, no matter how the hero interprets it, to make any red-blooded woman sigh. Think Paladin, or The Man With No Name. Maverick, or Rooster Cogburn. These four characters had completely different views on life, yet they shared one thing—they stuck to their own personal code of honor no matter what.

And let’s face it, dress a macho man in cowhand garb—chaps, spurs, and a well-worn Stetson—and not only is he sexy, but his stride is purposeful, his posture is confident, and we’re ready for a ride. What woman could possibly have a chance of taming this guy?

Enterprising Women

Western women, especially those born in the West, were not clones of Eastern women. They faced different obstacles and many times they faced them alone. For those who think that the only career choices for women were teaching school and whoring, think again. Women owned stores, farms, and ranches in their own right. Some panned for gold, others drove freight wagons, and yes, some did teach school.

Suffragists didn’t have to work too hard in the West. Wyoming granted suffrage in 1869 and many other states and territories gave women the right to vote before the turn of the 20^th Century, unlike the Eastern states. Whether they had the right to vote or not, property ownership was never in question. Women in the West had property rights. The best book I’ve read on what a woman could do if she put her mind to it is Gambler's Wife: The Life of Malinda Jenkins.

In my latest book, Much Ado About Mavericks (♥ Hearts of Owyhee ♥ #3) we have an enterprising woman and just the man to tame her. Ben Lawrence isn’t just drool-worthy, he also has brains and is a successful Boston attorney. Once we put him in chaps, there’s nothing not to like. LOL. And the heroine is definitely a firecracker. Named Janelle Kathryn O’Keefe, everyone calls her Jake (from J.K.) and she’s the foreman of the Bar EL Ranch, which Ben inherits. She doesn’t think much of a man who doesn’t “work” for a living, and he can’t quite wrap his mind around a woman who does a man’s job.

Think love is in the air? Here’s an excerpt where Ben (who’s 6’6” but his family nicknamed him Skeeter when he was a boy) and Jake first meet. For a visual, think Gregory Peck and Maureen O’Hara.

Excerpt from Much Ado About Mavericks, By Jacquie Rogers

“I think we should reintroduce ourselves.” He placed the mug on the boardwalk and offered his hand. “How do you do? I’m Benjamin Lawrence, visiting from Boston.”

“Janelle Kathryn.” She grabbed his hand and shook it vigorously. “I’m surely pleased to meet you.”

He tested his shoulder to see if it still functioned after her hearty handshake. Then, just to knock her off guard, he took her hand and kissed the back of it with grandiose gallantry.

“My pleasure, Miss Janelle.”~^~

Jumpin’ juniper berries! Jake snatched her scorching hand away from Skeeter’s lips. His well-placed little smacker burned hotter than a branding iron in August. Only better, but she sure as shootin’ wouldn’t admit it to a soul. Ever. Of course, she had no intention of washing her hand for a month either. That hot kiss sent goosebumps clean down to her toes.

She sucked in a deep breath and cleared her throat. “Let’s go.” She hopped onto the wagon and picked up the reins.

Ben leapt onto the seat and took the reins from her. “I’ll drive.”

His thigh rubbed hers. She didn’t know how he could think right if he tingled anything like she did. But, he probably didn’t. She inched away from him as the buckboard moved out of town. She focused on the sagebrush—at least it didn’t knock her plumb senseless. He was too damned good-looking in a dandified sort of way. Taller than she was, too, by a few inches. Few men were. She stood even with Whip, who, although bent with years of hard work, was taller than the rest of the men.

It ate at her that Skeeter muddled her mind so, and she had no idea what got into her to tell him her real name. She’d better set him straight.

“Just so’s you know, I ain’t no simpering female. Folks around here call me Jake. Jake O’Keefe. I expect you ought to call me that, too.”

“Jake O’Keefe?” He smirked. “My foreman?”

Just what she needed—a greenhorn who didn’t think she could do a man’s work.

~~^~~

Free book! Comment on this article and win a free Kindle copy of the first book in the ♥ Hearts of Owyhee ♥ series, Much Ado About Marshals. Be sure to leave your email address with your comment or we’ll have to draw another name.

Thanks so much to Romancing the Genres and Judith Ashley for asking me to be one of the highlighted western authors. I’m in talented company here!

Jacquie Rogers

Website * Twitter * Facebook * Romancing The West * Blog

♥ Hearts of Owyhee ♥ series:

Much Ado About Marshals

Much Ado About Madams

Much Ado About Mavericks

A western fantasy short story: Willow, Wish For Me (Merlin’s Destiny #1)