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October/November

In the Hands of a Texan placed second in the historical category of The Heart of the West contest and while that agent didn’t request it, another agent has so you never know.

Western bits: things to chew on

How lucrative was the market for Texas cattle back in the latter half of the 1800’s? George Saunders, who headed up the Trail Drivers Association, estimated that over the 28 years the range was open, 350,000 head of cattle were driven up the trails from Texas each year, resulting in 9,800,000 cattle which sold at an average of $10 per head resulting in $98,000,000—a princely sum in the late 19th century.  Col. Ike T. Pryor estimated the cost of feeding and driving the cattle at about a dollar a head per herd of 3000 resulting in a ten times return on investment.

B. Bryon Price cited an article in the Cattleman (1921) which noted that hundreds of those who went up the trail are “now millionaires” adding “but luck has not been with all of them.” Price does note that “there is ample evidence that many trail drivers achieved some degree of upward mobility and that a few enjoyed a measure of real financial success.”

August/September

Just received news that my western historical, In the Hands of a Texan, is a finalist in the Heart of the West contest. I’m so excited. It’s a great opportunity to get the manuscript before an agent.  But it will be a while before I learn how it did because winners won’t be announced until their October conference. And I’m up against some great writers. But, hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Western bits: Things to chew on

Am just finishing up A Lone Star Cowboy, a biographical piece by Charlie Siringo—Texas cowboy and one-time Pinkerton Detective. So many interesting insights. I can taste the dust in my mouth as I read about stampeding cattle, horse races and riding a thousand miles in a saddle. Cowboys were one tough lot—but then we already knew that.

February/March

I’ve received some great feedback on Return to Wayback that I wanted to share with you.

First, 5 blue ribbons from C. Dionne at Romance Junkies! Reviewing all three stories in the anthology favorably, she wrote:
 
In RETURN TO WAYBACK the authors tackle some pretty heavy issues and they do it with such style and foresight that the reader begins to feel like they’ve connected with long lost friends.
 
This is a wonderful anthology which I’m sure fans of stories involving small towns and rodeos will fully appreciate. 

And the reviewer specifically described Re-ride at the Rodeo as: Humorous and lovingly emotional… 

Thanks Romance Junkies!

Then Linda Broday, western romance author of novels Redemption and Knight of the Texas Plains and contributor to the popular anthologies Give Me a Cowboy and Give Me a Texan wrote this about Re-ride at the Rodeo:

I just finished reading RE-RIDE AT THE RODEO and loved it…. your writing voice just blew me away… Great characters too! Wow, Clay Tanner was sexy as all get-out! You drew me onto the page and kept me there. I hated for the story to end—L. Broday

Thanks Linda!

I’ve got my next manuscript out for editorial review so fingers crossed!

November/December

You can purchase Re-ride at the Rodeo at The Wild Rose Press. It is also included in the anthology, Return to Wayback, available at The Wild Rose Press and Amazon.com.

If you love rodeo, then you’re getting excited about the National Finals Rodeo, taking place in Las Vegas, NV December 3-12. If you’ve never seen a rodeo, you can see the best of the best on the televised portions of the rodeo at ESPN. The schedule is at http://prorodeo.com/NFR_page.aspx?xu=10

And if you are a fan of Rodeo, you can now play fantasy rodeo at http://www.profantasyrodeo.com.  I’m going to enter my team this week. And I’ll be blogging about my results at www.annecarrole.blogspot.com . If you join in, let me know on the blog.

Western Bits: Things to chew on

Trevor Brazile is slated to win a seventh All-around World Champion title at the National Finals Rodeo, which would tie Ty Murray’s achievement. Ty won for having competed in saddle bronc, bareback and bull riding while Trevor would win for having competed in steer roping, tie-down roping and team roping.

August-

I’m back from the national conference for Romance Writers of America, so you can check out pictures from the conference on at www.annecarrole.blogspot.com. I kept busy pitching a western historical I’ve completed and working on a new contemporary western in between workshop attendance.

Summer is breezing by. We’ve had a lot of rain in my part of the country, rain I know my Texas friends would appreciate given the soaring temperatures they’ve been experiencing.

If you are looking for some feel good summer romance reading, I hope you’ll check out Re-ride at the Rodeo in e-book format or Return to Wayback in print format at The Wild Rose Press.

Western bits: Things to chew on

Rodeo is in full swing this summer. Some favorite rodeo cowboys I’m following are saddle bronc rider Taos Muncy, the 2007 NFR champion and currently ranked number 10th in the event, Tuf Cooper, the young tie-down roper who is currently ranked 4th in his event and Ryan Gray who just set a world record in bareback riding with a mark of 94 at the Eagle County Fair and Rodeo in Colorado and is ranked 7th in the event. If everything holds, looks like I’ll be watching these boys at the NFR.

June—

It’s Cowboy Month at The Wild Rose Press so western themed titles are 10% off! That means you can download an e-copy of Re-ride at the Rodeo for a mere $2.70 or buy a print copy of the anthology, Return to Wayback, with three great stories including Re-ride at the Rodeo for $12.59. Bargains, bargains everywhere!

And if you purchase and e-copy of Re-ride at the Rodeo before June 9th,  you’ll be eligible to enter the drawing for a Sony e-reader, too.  Just go to The Wild Rose Press and see how easy it is to enter!

Western bits: Things to chew on
The rodeo will be coming to my town this month so look for new rodeo pictures on My Blog and MySpace by mid month. You’ll see what inspires me to write about the rough and tumble world of the cowboy—today’s and yesterday’s.

April/May—

May 15th is the date! And Return to Wayback is the title! So for those who like to read holding a book in your hand, you will now be able to purchase the anthology, Return to Wayback, which includes Re-ride at the Rodeo, from Amazon.com or order it through a bookstore near you! ISBN: 9781601546371.

Contests:
A TISKET A TISKET, PUT ROMANCE IN YOUR BASKET:
To enter to win prizes from the authors donating treasures to the grand prize (see each day's post for what an author is donating to the grand prize), find the four Easter eggs in the A TISKET A TISKET, PUT ROMANCE IN YOUR BASKET blog event.

Just visit all of the authors' websites, locate the 4 eggs, make a list of their locations by pasting the urls to the website pages in an e-mail, then send the entry to happyendings2007@aol.com by midnight CST on May 1st, 2009. The winner will be randomly drawn and announced May 2nd at http://blog.skhyemoncrief.com. Tip #1, subscribe to http://blog.skhyemoncrief.com to learn if you're the winner! And don't worry. If you start in on the blog event late, just head back to Silver James' blog on April 1st at www.silverjames.com/ to begin your website search for the Easter eggs. Don't miss the fun! I’ll be blogging later in April as part of this contest! So don’t forget to stop by my blog in April for the blog and to see what I’m giving away.

Win a Sony e-reader! Through June 9th, when you purchase a copy of Re-ride at the Rodeo from the Wild Rose Press through June 9th, you can enter to win a Sony e-reader! I have one and I love mine! Click here to learn more about the Sony e-reader.

Western bits: Things to chew on—
Have you seen Ty Murray, seven time all-around rodeo cowboy and PBR legend on Dancing with the Stars? IMHO his best dance so far was the fox trot but he landed in the bottom two contestants last week so better catch him soon or he may be gone. I guess knee surgery on both knees and a career as a rough stock rider doesn’t exactly prepare you to be the most graceful and limber person on the dance floor. Nonetheless, I’ve enjoyed watching him and his work ethic and gentlemanly persona!

March—

Well, I signed the contract so I guess it is official—Re-ride at the Rodeo will be part of the next Wayback Anthology in print format along with Payback in Wayback by Lynda Coker and Roped and Tied by Mallary Mitchell, two great Wayback stories. No name announced yet as to the title of the anthology. Will fill you in as I get more information.

I’m also going to be blogging at Petticoats and Pistols on the rodeo on Saturday, March 7th so I hope you all can stop in and chat a bit. If you haven’t checked out this blog hosted by a group of very talented (and nice) western authors (historical and contemporary), be sure to mosey on over. Someone is always talking about some interesting aspect of the western experience—and you’ll also find some great books!

Western Bits: Things to chew on—
Ocean Spray—yes the cranberry people—and McCormick have done something really unique this year, and much appreciated by the rodeo riders competing at the San Antonio Rodeo this past month. In addition to sizeable prize money from the Rodeo sponsors, these two sponsors have given the grand winner of each event an $8000 gas card!  For riders who travel by car, covering thousands upon thousands of miles between events, sometime in a single day, you can bet that award means a lot! Particularly as gas prices are climbing back up—and for no apparent reason.  Congratulations to all the winners too! You can check out the current world pro rodeo standings for each event at Pro Rodeo.com

Feburary—

Just found out that Re-ride at the Rodeo is going to print! It is slated for the next Wayback Anthology from The Wild Rose Press.  When I get more information you’ll read it here first!

Valentine’s Day will soon be upon us and besides being a holiday for sweethearts, my husband and I also received the very best gift ever on Valentine’s day, fourteen years ago, when our wonderful daughter was born, so this is a very special day for our family.

Several of us authors have gotten together and we’re ROMANCING FEBRUARY. Here’s the scoop:

• 28 romance authors invite you to participate in a month-long event of love and laughter. Each day starting Feb. 1, 2009 an author will throw a romance party at her blog and host a contest with a prize. The link to the next day's blog location will also be provided at each location. Just drop by and enter the contest. And get ready to heat up the cold wintery days of February. You could win a prize a day! 
• On February 28th, one person will be awarded the grand prize of a $75 WRP gift certificate. All you have to do to enter the grand prize contest is make a list of each author in this blog event and name one title she has available.
• Submit your list here by midnight CST, February 27, 2009.
• The winner will be announced on February 28th--just in time to warm up that person's February. Visit Amber Leigh Williams Blog on February 1st to begin.

Amber is also a Wayback author who wrote a terrific book for the series so be sure to check her out.  At Amber’s blog you’ll get the link to the next day’s blog and so on, through all 28 authors’ blogs where you’ll pick up their title information—and you already know the one for Anne Carrole is Re-ride at the Rodeo. A $75 gift certificate to The Wild Rose Press is nothing to sneeze at in these days of thriftiness.  So please join in the fun!  When my day comes (and all I’m saying is it is in the middle of the month) I know you are going to like my prize--so head on over and you could “cash” in.

Western bits: Things to chew on..

I’ve been reading a lot about the cowboys and trail drives of Texas. The books have lots of pictures of these Texas cowboys and some of these guys were really handsome dudes—even by today’s standards.  Tall, dark and handsome—stereotypical but, it seems, true.  Some of my favorites are George Saunders, JJ Roberts and John J. Little.  And based on the adventures they had and the tales they tell, these cowboys had grit, gumption and courage—or were really foolhardy.  It’s hard to say-lol. I blogged about them last month so you can check it out on my blog where you’ll also find me during the Romancing February contest.  I hope you’ll check in regularly.

January—

Happy New Year! Lots more reviews for Re-ride at the Rodeo and they all are, thankfully, good ones!:)  Here’s a sampling of what the critics are saying:

“Anne Carrole has written such a down-to-earth love story with tall, sexy cowboys…This is my first Anne Carrole book and it definitely would not be the last one.”—Writers and Readers of Distinctive Fiction.

“Her characters are solid, believable and consistently reliable. She told her story in such a way that I could not stop. Each page turned was a gift of more of the thrill readers search for…. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes happy endings.”--4 ½ hearts The Romance Studio

“As Dusty and Clay figure out their relationship with the help of their good friends, you can’t help but to laugh and then sigh along with their ups and downs. While you know that this story is going to have a happy ending, you still can’t wait to read how it happens.” --Night Owl Reviews

“The characters are emotionally complex which makes for a very entertaining read and the ending is absolutely wonderful. I hope she writes something else soon.”--Manic Readers

“This is a sweet read, that will having you smiling at the antics of Clay and his friend and the getting ons they get up to.  I have to admit while I love a happy ending, this happy ending was original and Dusty deserved it all.”. –4 ½  clovers CK’s Kwips and Kritiques

You can check out my blog to read more.  And here’s two dates to keep in mind:

Where I’m blogging in January—PLEASE STOP BY!

January 16th—Much Cheaper Than Therapy
January 30th-Writers and Readers of Distinct Fiction, Between the Lines
 
Western Bits: Things to chew on

Well, the National Finals Rodeo for 2008 was an exciting time.  Wish I was there but at least ESPN carried it.  Lots of good news coming out of it:  My favorite saddle bronc rider, Cody Wright, became the 2008 saddle bronc champion after being challenged by legendary great, Billy Etbauer for the title.  Lindsey Sears won the most money ever for a barrel racer and took home the buckle.  Trevor Brazile became a six time all-around champion.  And perhaps most heart-warming of all, Stan Smith finally won the gold buckle for tie-down roping—some feat considering several years ago this 6 ft. 3 granite jawed cowboy suffered from a stroke due to a genetic heart condition. And his nephew, Tuf Cooper, at eighteen, tied the arena record for tie-down roping. Hats off to all the competitors!

December—

Re-ride at the Rodeo rode the best seller list at The Wild Rose Press for the second straight month in November!  And the reviews are coming in:

5 Angels from Fallen Angel Reviews:

“Ms. Carrole writes a captivating story. I wasn’t sure what to expect since the first book was so good, but this book definitely lives up to the standards the first book put in place… The chemistry between Dusty and Clay is hot. Ms. Carrole writes an enchanting story and I will be sure to keep an eye out for Ms. Carrole’s next book! Click here for full review.”

4 ½ Books from Long and Short Reviews:

“…a fun and highly enjoyable romance. The author created characters that I could truly care about…… a wonderful contemporary western romance filled with believable characters and charm.” Click here for full review.

Happy Holidays to everyone and don’t forget, if you purchase Re-ride at the Rodeo by December 11, you’ll be eligible to enter the drawing for a Sony e-reader! Happy Holidays to everyone.

Western bits: Things to chew on

November--

Great News! Re-ride at the Rodeo made The Wild Rose Press bestseller list and landed at Number 1 the week of 10/19. And we’ve gotten feedback from readers too.  Here’s what Lupe Gonzalez, the author of Too Late for Romance? wrote about Re-Ride at the Rodeo:

 Just finished reading Re-Ride At the Rodeo. I just loved it!...I just wanted to let you know that I truly enjoyed your story. Loved the ending! Great ending! My eyes filled with tears as Clay spoke and then Dusty ran to him. Reminded me of the ending in Never Been Kissed with Drew Barrymore. Way to go!

So if you’re curious as to why people are buying Re-ride at the Rodeo, be sure to purchase your copy at The Wild Rose Press. And you’re then eligible to enter the contest for a Sony e-reader, too!

Western bits: Things to chew on

Making History: There’s a lot of controversy surrounding the history of the rodeo, particularly who held the first rodeo.  Payson, Arizona claims that they held the first continuous rodeo while Prescott, Arizona says it held the first organized rodeo and Pecos, Texas claims it has recorded eye-witness accounts to prove it hosted the first rodeo.  However, they all may have missed claiming bragging rights by up to fifteen years and, if true, the first rodeo wasn’t won by an American cowboy, either.  If you want to find out more, be sure to check out My Blog.

October--

It’s here! You can now purchase an e-copy of Re-ride at the Rodeo from The Wild Rose Press.  And to celebrate, we’ve got contests!

First Contest: Win a $15 Amazon Gift Card: Send an e-mail to anne@annecarrole.com and tell me—should Jesse have told the truth to Dusty about what he and Clay did? He said it was in her interest to know—but was it? You have to do it by the end of November because that’s when I’ll be drawing a winner, just in time for the holidays.  So send me a yes or no and the reason you think so.

Second Contest: Win a Sony E-reader! Between now and December 15, 2008. If you buy an e-copy of Re-ride at the Rodeo from The Wild Rose Press website, you will be eligible to enter the contest to receive a SONY E-reader!

All you have to do is e-mail a copy of the order number and the title purchased and the date you purchased it to sonyreader@thewildrosepress.com . You’ll find complete details about the contest at The Wild Rose Press.

Western Bits:  There’s a new western movie in theaters this month called Appaloosa!  With great reviews and a stellar cast I’m looking forward to seeing it! I love a good western especially when it has a little love interest to it like this one appears to.  Of course, there’s nothing like a good western romance book—contemporary or historical. Gotta love those cowboys! I’ll also be blogging about the west at Anna K. Lanier’s blog, on Monday, October 20th so stop on by!

September--

October 3rd—that’s the date for a “ticket” to a Re-ride at the Rodeo at The Wild Rose Press—cost: $3.00 for a wild ride!  I hope you’ll check it out and let me know what you think.

Here’s a question for anyone who reads the story—should Jesse have told the truth to Dusty about what he and Clay did? He said it was in her interest to know—but was it?

Send your answer—yes or no and feel free to include the reasons—to me at anne@annecarrole.com.

Contest: Anybody who sends an answer will be entered into a drawing for a $15 Amazon gift certificate!  I’ll draw the winner at the end of November, right in time for the holidays, so you all have plenty of time to get the book and read it (all 114 pagesJ). I’ll also be announcing it on My Blog and my MySpace, but you got it first!

Romantic Times:—check out the October issue of Romantic Times and their article on “How the West was Won”, pg.10.  It’s all about how western historical romances are coming back strong! Whoohoo! And if you read through the article you’ll see yours truly quoted on the growing popularity of the genre in my role as editor of Love Western Romances.com.  They urge you to TalkBack and tell Romantic Times about your favorite western authors by e-mailing Faygie@RomanticTimes.com. So go ahead and let them know.

Western Bits: Westerners have always been good at turning a phrase.  In Re-ride at the Rodeo we throw around a few colorful rodeo and western terms.  Walking in tall cotton, a gully washer and a rank bronc  are just a few you’ll find on My Blog.  See how many you know and add some of your favorites.

August--

Finished the edits on Re-ride at the Rodeo—at least I think they are done.  If you like cowboys, I know you’ll like Re-ride at the Rodeo because Clay is the quintessential cowboy.  Strong, determined and clueless as to what a woman really wants—except when it comes to the bedroom—hmmm.

If you didn’t have a chance to catch my short story contest winner, Ultimatum, on Long and Short Reviews, you can still read it at Long and Short Reviews. Just scroll down to  the archives and there it will be.

Don’t forget that August 1 I’ll be blogging at Petticoats and Pistols and if you didn’t get a chance to read the blog then, just click through the archives to see what we were up to.

Hope everyone who went to National had a great time and recruited new fans to western romances. I’ll see you next year at DC.

Western Bits: things to chew on

I just finished two books on Texas history that provide interesting perspectives on Texas during the cattle drive era.  The first book is a contemporary’s account titled Cowboys and Cattleland by H.H. Halsell and the second is a historian’s view called Hell’s Half Acre by Richard F. Selcer regarding Fort Worth’s notorious past.  A common theme that struck me was the self-reliance that was necessary to survive during the period.  I’m not talking just about taking care of yourself, but in trusting in your own sense of right and wrong and implementing your own brand of justice.  Even the lawmen kept their own counsel about what laws to enforce and what ones not to.  With everyone working out their own code, including the criminals, its no wonder people felt the need to be armed to protect what was theirs because there was not guarantee the law, such as it was, would see things the same way.  I’ll be writing about some of the fun facts I found in both these books on My Blog.

July--

As you saw on the homepage, my short story, all one thousand words of it, Ultimatum, tied for First Prize in the first annual short story contest of Long and the Short Reviews. I entered this contest to challenge myself because such condensed story telling does not come naturally to chatty me.  And I’m happy I did! You can read it on July 24th at the website here.

More good news! Edits have started with Re-ride at the Rodeo! My editor, Spencer Glenn, has been just super. Once I’m through edits, the release date follows and I’ll post it here first.

Be sure to check out my blog if you haven’t already because there are some great rodeo cowboy pictures there that I know you’ll like. Lots of inspiration.

Don’t forget I’ll be blogging at Petticoats and Pistols on August 1st about why we love western romances—contemporary and historical—so be sure to drop by.

You also have to check out the contest at The Wild Rose Press where they are giving away a Sony e-reader to some lucky person(s).  I have a Sony e-reader and I’ve come to like it more than the traditional book format.  I know to some of you that’s unthinkable (it was initially to me, too), but wait until you try one.  I’ve blogged about what I love about my e-reader on MySpace and I bet you’ll be surprised by the list.

Western Bits: things to chew on

Making a living: Rodeo cowboys have a lot of expenses to contend with that come right out of their winnings.  Since most rodeo cowboys don’t make it to the big money, they have to do it for the love of it (much like most authors write books for the love of writing since few make the New York Time bestseller list or the money that comes with that exposure).  Here’s some of the expenses a rough stock rider incurs:  entrance fees, gas money and other transportation fees to get from rodeo to rodeo, boots, chaps, saddles if you’re a saddle bronc rider like Clay Tanner from Re-ride at the Rodeo, and rigging if you’re a bareback or bull rider, motel room if you can’t find someone to stay with, truck if you can’t buddy up with someone, food while you’re on the road and the list goes on.  If you don’t stay on for those eight seconds, you get nothing and you had to pay for the privilege, no less. So what do you think the tab is for doing something you love?  Check out My Blog for the answer.  Bet it’s a lot more than you think.

June--Well, I still haven't started edits for Re-Ride at the Rodeo but we should this month. I'm anxious to do so because I won't get my release date until we finish edits and I'm hoping I won't miss the opportunity to promote during the height of rodeo season which, of course, is the summer. Our local rodeo is next weekend and I'll be taking lots of pictures and videos so check out www.myspace.com/annecarrole for some new pics of hunky cowboys.

Some other wonderful news is that the lovely ladies over at Petticoats and Pistols have asked Karyna DaRosa and me to blog about Love Western Romances and our own books. It looks like the dates are going to be August 1st and 2nd (Friday and Saturday) and we are just thrilled to be in the company of so many fabulous western romance writers. If you haven't checked out their site yet, be sure to do so. You'll find most of your favorite western romance authors talking about everything from cattle drives to western sayings to sexy heroes. It's always a lot of fun.

Western Bits: things to chew on

We have heard all the legends about Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Wild Bill Hickcock, Billy the Kid and a slew of other famous men who claimed the West. But what about the women who left the comfort of hearth and home and ventured west with nothing but a dream and a whole lot of hard work ahead of them. I've started blogging about little known women of the West; women such as Mary Low Sinclair who, at the age of nine, was one of the first settlers of what is now Seattle in Washington Territory, was a pioneer in education and had to put up with hardship and depravation for most of her life. And then there is Sarah Bowman, known as The Great Western. At six foot two inches and weighing in at 200 pounds, Sarah fought alongside the men of Zachary Taylor's regiment in Texas and earned herself a lifetime Army pension and a burial with full military honors. Sarah was also married four times and wasn't exactly the proper Victorian lady in any sense of the term. Read more about these courageous women of the West on my blog.

May--Re-Ride at the Rodeo should go to edits this month. No word yet on a release date. Of course, out here we are in the midst of a beautiful spring, so I’m having a hard time ignoring my garden’s call. The mulch will keep but I’m not sure my perennials and annuals are going to be so patient.

I’m also working hard to get my other manuscripts out there.  They are both western historical romances and you can read excerpts here on the site. They say western historical romances are coming back and I hope so (actually some publishers like Harlequin and Dorchester never let them get away!).  After all, that was the reason we started www.lovewesternromances.com, to let publishers know there is an audience waiting for them.

One manuscript is a sweeping single-title romance set in 1875 about a scandalized debutante who meets a Texas rancher looking for a wife. Marriage would solve both their problems.  Trouble is, even in Texas secrets don’t stay buried—and everyone has them.
The second story explores how far an independent-minded farmer’s daughter will go to save her family from devastation in 1881. Swallowing her pride and accepting help from a reckless rancher’s son is one thing. Marrying someone who doesn’t love her is quite another. But protecting her heart she will surely do—if she has a choice.

Western Bits: things to chew on

Cowboy gear: Some people may think chaps, those leather leg aprons worn over jeans, as just for show but they actually serve a purpose.  From the Spanish name, chaparajos, they’re designed to protect the cowboy’s legs from getting cut-up in thorny bushes and underbrush like you would find on the chaparral. And different regions had different types like shotguns for Texas cowboys of the old west and woolies for those in the Rocky Mountains states.  Batwings are popular today and the kind of chaps Clay wears as a rodeo cowboy. Southwestern cowboys also like them because they allow air to circulate and are cooler.  Check out my blog for pics and more information.

April--Just signed my contract with The Wild Rose Press for publication of my story, Re-Ride at the Rodeo, as part of their Wayback, Texas Series! No release date yet but you’ll read it here first—so check back.

I’ve always wanted to write a rodeo story. I mean, where else can you find so many courageous, capable and handsome cowboys all gathered in one place but at the rodeo?

Dusty and Clay’s story is every bit a romance though. They both need to come to terms—Dusty with her past, Clay with his future—before they can take a re-ride on love.

Read below for some Western Bits and check out My Blog for more on romance, writing and the west—old and new!

Western Bits: things to chew on

Does height matter? Do you know that most rough stock riders are under six feet? Dusty’s surprised Clay is a saddle bronc rider because he’s tall for riding broncs. (When she notes that this has something to do with the law of gravity, she’s not far off.) There are exceptions, but most successful bronc and bull riders are built low to the ground. For instance, consider the 2007 NFR rough stock winners. Saddle bronc rider Taos Muncy is listed at 5’10”, bareback bronc rider Wesley Silcox is listed at 5’8” and bull rider, Will Lowe is listed at 5’5”. Cowboys who do the tamer events such as roping and steer wrestling tend to be the taller, muscular ones. Go figure. Check out my blog for more on rodeo cowboys.

What’s that mean? The Blue Bug Saloon in the Wayback, Texas series is a honky tonk. Called honkatonk, honk-a-tonk as well as honky tonk, no one seems to know exactly how the term came to mean a saloon but there are some fascinating theories. According to a citing on Wikpedia, the New York Sun in 1900 reported that the term honkatonk "came from the sound of geese which led an unsuspecting group of cowboys to the flock instead of the variety show they expected." Hmmm—doesn’t say much for the cowboys back then does it? Others say it came from the brand of piano (Tonks) used. That makes more sense but considering the honky tonks were in Texas and Indian Territory and that brand of piano had just started being manufactured in Chicago and New York, it’s a bit of a stretch too. What do you think? I’ll be blogging on this in the future.

Keep an eye out for my contemporary western, Re-ride at the Rodeo, this summer from The Wild Rose Press.

She wants the happily ever after, he just wants a good time. She would never hook up with his type; he’d never looked at her type. But when they come together at the rodeo, it’s anyone’s bet if they’ll take a re-ride on love.