Texas was your home for a few years. Do you miss your subsequent visits to states throughout the West?
I could happily live in the West again were it not so far from family and responsibilities that keep me in the Southeast. I do enjoy visiting the West every time I get the chance. Just this morning, my son-in-law and I were just discussing plans for spending some time in Wyoming or Nevada next summer.
Do you remember the first short story or the first poem you wrote? Did any of your friends or cousins read it?
When I was in sixth grade, I wrote a play that was performed by my class and attended by parents and families. Warm memories.
What made you fall in love with the Old West decades ago? What are some of your best experiences being a graduate of Louisiana State University and Dallas Theological Seminary?
I grew up in an era when Westerns were a mainstay of popular American entertainment. My first trip to the West (Arizona) fanned the flames of my enthusiasm for tales of cowboys, lawmen, and gunfighters. As for my education, some people don’t consider Dallas to be a very Western town, but at the time, lifelong Texans still constituted the majority there. Five years among dyed-in-the-wool Texans will either leave you loving the West or ready to dash for a latte in Boston. They had me wishing I’d been born a Texan.
How did you come upon the idea for "Strong Ambitions"? What kind of people did you meet while doing the research for this book?
“Strong Ambitions” is the third book in my Emmett Strong Western series and was actually the most difficult of the Emmett Strong Westerns for me to write. The story probably went through four completely different iterations before I landed on the Western murder mystery tale that I ended up publishing. One reason it was so difficult to write is that I was working a new day job (teaching again) which required a good deal of research and preparation of its own. Colleagues were tremendously encouraging throughout the process, and I met a number of new author friends, as well.
Share your experience of publishing your first Western novel "Strong Convictions." What was your reaction on winning the Western Fictioneers Peacemaker Award for Best First Western of that year?
Wow. While I’m deeply appreciative of every book award, I consider the Western Fictioneers’ Peacemaker Award for Best First Western to be the most significant of the awards my books have won. That’s because it’s an award bestowed by men and woman whose lives have been fully invested in reading and writing Western fiction. They know Western fiction, from the old classics to the newest contemporary Westerns. So, it’s quite an honor to be singled out by such a knowledgeable group.
As for publishing “Strong Convictions,” I had been working on a second novel set in East Asia and having a bear of a time with it. I decided to set that novel aside and engage in some creative play, writing random scenes from a wide variety of genres—dystopian, thriller/suspense, sci-fi, and Western. Ideas for the Western flowed like a dam had burst, and “Strong Convictions” came together very quickly. Shortly after publishing the book, I hired Nick Wale of Novel Ideas to help me with promotion. Nick and I have enjoyed a great working partnership for nearly four years now.
Do you have a specific routine for writing that you follow? Or do you prefer to like whenever and wherever?
Now that I’m writing full-time, I have a very businesslike approach to my writing time. Once I’ve got my morning routine out of the way, I go straight to my desk and put in an eight- to twelve-hour day, writing, editing, and maintaining contact with readers. It’s very, very enjoyable.
What are some books that have really impacted you and your writing? What are some struggles of being a historical author?
Marg McAlister, Jodie Renner, James Scott Bell, and K.M. Weyland have had tremendous influence on me in terms of the craft of writing. Each has written a number of highly informative and insightful books on various aspects creating compelling fiction. Meanwhile, Elmore Leonard, Elmer Kelton, Gordon L. Rottman, and Erin Bowman have helped shaped my style as a writer of Westerns. Any of their Westerns are exemplary models of what makes a story enjoyable.
Who inspired the character of Tom Hedgepeth in "Just Shy of Mexico?" What is the significance of the title?
Tom Hedgepeth was inspired by a vintage photo of a cowboy wearing eyeglasses—not something we find every day when perusing photos from the American West of the late 1800s. I figured it would be interesting to tell the tale of someone who might be perceived of as weak but who, in reality, was anything but that. The title “Just Shy of Mexico” comes from the climactic scene of the story, which takes place in El Paso, only yards from the Mexican border.
When writing a historical fiction, how do you balance facts with fiction so that it doesn't become boring or like you're just reading a history book?
The author is going to find out a great deal more about the history involved than he or she can or should include in the story. Only those historical facts that have direct bearing on the characters’ lives and struggles should be included. On top of that, those historical facts must always be revealed through the thoughts, words, and actions of the characters themselves—never through the voice of an omniscient narrator. Writers need to remember that many of the facts that strike them as peculiar or interesting while they’re doing research would not have been peculiar at all to the people living in a prior historical setting. Facts are best presented as they would have been understood and dealt with by the story’s characters. The novelty of the historical situation will then strike the reader as interesting, based on how the characters react to them.
How often do you spend time in the mountains or go horseback riding? What is one thing you wish you could do more often?
I live only an hour from the mountains, so I get up there fairly frequently. I try to get myself into the saddle a few times a year, both for enjoyment and so I don’t forget what travel would have felt like to the characters of my books. I would like to spend more time riding in the West—Monument Valley, Palo Duro Canyon, the Bighorn Mountains.
Would you like meeting Reno Carrigan from "The Reckoning" in real life? What do you love the most about his character?
Reno Carrigan is one of those people whose actions are better known than his motives, dreams, and aspirations. Who knows? Perhaps in future Reno Carrigan stories like “A Dead Amigo” and “Blood on the Border,” we’ll get to know more about what makes Reno tick. What I do know about Reno (and what I like about him) is that he’s a man who takes the bull by the horns and goes full-steam-ahead after whatever needs to be done. He doesn’t let his own pain deter him from making things right.
Are there any stories you're working on that you want to share with the world in the near future? When can we expect your next book?
“A Dead Amigo: Reno Carrigan Western #2” is due for release in early December. It’s a fast read with loads of action. Readers will enjoy trying to get a step ahead of Reno Carrigan in solving the curious murder that’s got the whole town of Alameda on edge.
At the same time, I’m busy writing the third book in my Cimarron Jack’s Wild West series. I’m extremely enthusiastic about this series. “Cimarron Jack’s Real Wild West” and “A Bullet for the Bronc Buster” are both already out and available. Both were tremendously fun to write. In “Cimarron Jack’s Real Wild West,” a bushwhacked Wild-West-show star must prove he's no mere dime-novel hero. Either that or he'll lose everything he holds dear. In “A Bullet for the Bronc Buster,” an injured bronc rider makes a spur-of-the-moment decision to help a young woman out of desperate trouble. Now, the girl must determine what she’ll do to stop the bounty on his head from becoming a noose around his neck.
What is your best award-winning moment and why? Is there anything you wish you could have done differently?
I count each award my novels have won as an immense honor—the Western Fictioneers Peacemaker Award, the National Indie Excellence Award, and the two Readers’ Favorite Awards.
When is writing hardest for you? What do you do to pick yourself up during those moments?
Every writer faces times when they question whether they’re doing the right thing. In times like those, prayer, a chat with another author, or perusing positive reader reviews can help get the writer back on track. I’m particularly blessed with a wonderfully supportive wife who believes in what I’m doing every bit as much as I do.
