New Westerns at Cactus Country

 

 



 

Cactus Country is on the move again!
Over the summer we have released several books, and finally
 finished the third volume of our Cactus Country Anthology.
Look below for our new releases by some of your

favorite writers.



 

Cactus Country is proud to announce that Matt's short story collection, WesternLore, is now on the shelves. You can order your copy at your favorite bookstore, online with Amazon, on a Kindle, or directly through High Hill by going to their website.  High Hill Press  Matt has 40 million books in print, and for those who've followed his career, this collection of stories about your favorite western legends would be a great addition to your library.

A few years ago I met a writer at a Western Writers of America Convention that I knew would soon make a name for himself, and he has. Rod Miller has published several books, tons of short stories, and some poetry. He's been winning Spur Awards for his work, and recently published a book with High Hill Press titled, Cold as the Clay. If you love western writing, this book is a must read. It's available everywhere, and you might want to ask your local bookstore to keep it on their shelves. There is a lot of buzz out there about Rod and his writing.

Make sure to read Cold as the Clay.

 

 Cotton Smith is a brilliant writer and Ring of Fire is another terrific Western that should be a must for every western reader. The audio version of Ring of Fire won a Spur in June of 2013.

Cactus Country did it again with its third anthology. This book is a great collection of western voices. It also includes 40, four line westerns. That's right. In just four lines these creative authors gave us a glimpse of the old west and its characters. We see deserts and wagon trains, cowboys and Indians, horses and rattle snakes. Complete stories in just a few words so craftily written that we can see an entire story. Cactus Country III is available through High Hill Press, and will soon be issued in a hard back edition available everywhere. And do you like our new logo? Dusty always said we look for stories that will fit under a cowboy hat. It doesn't matter that the hat is on an 1800's cowboy, or a modern New York City fella, if it feels like a western, then it is. We love traditional westerns, but we're open to westerns that are written well, but may not fit into the guidelines for traditional. If you'd like to submit to one of our anthologies, click on the link to go to our Cactus Country e-mail 
Cactus Country Publishing. Please just send us a query if you have a novel, if you have a short story, or article you think we'd be interested in, just send the whole thing. Thanks.

Red Hill--A New Take on an Old Genre

Now, this isn't a Western in the traditional sense. It doesn't take place (or, in the case of Spaghetti Westerns, pretend to take place) in the American West. There are no natives, helpful or otherwise. And rather than a Western drawl, the characters speak with an Australian accent.

Despite the fact that this film takes place in Australia, it still somehow manages to capture the essence of the Western. With the exception of Shane, the characters are rough around the edges, and all of them dress fittingly for a modern Western. The Australian landscape functions well as the backdrop, becoming another character with its dirty red hills and scrubby trees.

The plot isn't the most original--a young cop with past failings moves to a new town with his beautiful, pregnant wife and is forced to prove himself when a convicted murderer breaks out of prison. However, the direction of this movie is top notch in terms of beautiful vistas and action scenes, and the no-nonsense style of acting is hauntingly reminiscent of of the Westerns of old.

If you have a couple hours this weekend and happen to have Netflix Streaming, give an Australian Western a chance.

Future Cowboy

This little fella dreamed of nothing else growing up, than to be a real cowboy. This is his picture at the age of six, and you can tell how serious he is. If you know the name of this cowboy, I'll send you a copy of our brand new anthology, Cactus Country Anthology Volume III.

We've waited a long time for this book, and we're proud to say it was worth the wait. Read Matt Braun, Dusty Richards, Jory Sherman, Brett Cogburn, Eddie Owens, John Nesbitt, Johnny Boggs, and many more authors who've written about the west their entire lives. We're especially excited about  Matt Braun's Dead Man's Hand, it's the opening story in a new collection from Matt titled WesternLore due to be launched at the Western Writers of America convention in June. Check out WWA and plan to join us this year for their 60th convention in Las Vegas. Western Writers of America And remember, send me the name of the cute cowboy and I'll send you a copy of Cactus Country III. Cactus Country 

Cactus Country Anthology Volume III

Cactus Country Anthology Volume III is in the works! It will contain works by authors such as the cowboy Dusty Richards, the prolific Matt Braun, the award-winning John Nesbitt, and the grandson of the real Rooster Cogburn, Brett Cogburn. As you can see, some of the best Western writers of the era have been chosen by Lou Turner and Dusty Richards for this anthology, including many past Spur Award winners.

Dusty Richards has published over a hundred books in addition to many short stories and articles. He's been the recipient of many awards, including two Spur Awards in 2007: His novel The Horse Creek Incident received the award for Best Original Paperback Novel, and Comanche Moon won for Best Original Short Fiction. 

Brett Cogburn is the great-grandson of the real Rooster Cogburn, who inspired True Grit. Speaking of which, if you haven’t read the book or seen either of the movies, clear your schedule and do yourself a favor. I think the Coen brothers’ rendition was particularly well done. Hailee Steinfeld might be one of my favorite up-and-coming actresses based solely on that movie. Sorry for the tangent--I just watched that movie again.

John Nesbitt, author of twenty books and winner of three Spur Awards, is also featured in this new anthology. Some of his most recent work includes a novella, Dead for the Last Time;  a novel, Poacher's Moon; and a traditional Western, Not a Rustler. 

Also included is Matt Braun, considered by some to be the best and most authentic current Western writer in the country. Born in Oklahoma to a long line of ranchers, Braun writes what he knows—the West—and his stories are often based on reality. Braun was raised among the Cherokee and Osage tribes, where he gained respect for Indians, and he learned their philosophy that each man has the right to choose his own path. Braun has spent the majority of his life wandering the West, and has won a Spur Award and the Festival of the West Cowboy Spirit Award, among others.

Braun currently has 40 million books in print and his book, Black Fox, was made into a mini-series by CBS. His short story collection, WesternLore, is set to be published by High Hill Press this June. The book’s launch, which Braun will be attending, will be at Western Writers of America Convention.

With this new anthology comes yet more proof that Western writing is far from dead—amazing, authentic stories are still being produced by those for whom the West is still the great frontier.

Old Western Movies



George Gabby Hayes



I've been watching old western movies on my computer while I work. I have a little picture in picture in the upper right hand corner, and I play the sound. What I've noticed lately is that I'm picking up the dialogue. Well, I didn't actually notice it myself.  It has been rudely pointed out to me over the past couple of weeks. When I'm shopping, when I'm at the bank, at the gym, a restaurant, everywhere. People have started asking me to repeat myself when I asked for the goll durned check, or when I say, by jiminy ya think it'll rain. Or like yesterday at the car wash when I told the kid to give it a good goin' over and I better not catch him puttin' a lazy hand out when he went to scrubbin' the dadburned foot pads I just put in. By jiminy. The topper was last night when I told my husband he'd goll durn better get his duds down them steps if'n he wanted 'em scrubbed by mornin'.  That's when he and my son sat me down to have a serious talk about my behavior.

But all this western dialogue has made me think about the old westerns, and the people who wrote them. Sure it might have been a little over the top, but compared to the language in today's movies, it's a blessing to listen to Gabby Hayes growl and durn his way through a sentence. I think I've mentioned this before, but a couple of years ago I printed the screenplay of The Searchers and sat with it on the table in front of me while I watched the movie. Not only is the dialogue wonderful, the movie followed the script down to the last word. I think there were two places in the whole film that veered away from what was written on the page, and both of those were mainly in the action, not in the actual dialogue.

There are still people who enjoy good language, and interesting banter between characters whether it be in a book or a movie. And I catch myself watching black and white films more and more. Not only do I think they're better movies, as a writer I find the dialogue much more interesting. And with that, I think I'll search for a good Glen Ford movie. I met his son Peter at a Western Writers of America convention in Albuquerque last June, where I was one of the publishers there to sit on a panel and take pitches. He gave an interesting presentation about growing up in Hollywood with a superstar like Glen Ford for a father. Visit Peter's website, and be sure and pick up a copy of his book.

There is one thing for sure, I wreckin' Glen Ford was one goll durned good lookin' cowpuncher, that's for dang gone sure.

Devil's Hoofprints

Brett Cogburn has hit the world of western writers like a steam engine coming down a mountain path. Brett has two other books out besides High Hill's, The Devil's Hoofprints. In September Rooster, by Kennsington, was released and it's doing well. In October, Brett's fiction novel, Panhandle, was released by Pinnacle and we just heard they've sold out of the first printing and are doing another print run. Yeah, Brett!.  Make sure to pick up a copy of one or all three of Brett's books. You won't be sorry you did. Although we're a little biased, we truly believe that Brett is going to be a huge name in western writing and we're excited that High Hill has been privileged to witness the beginning of his career. Be sure and pick up a copy of both Cactus Country Anthologies too. And Cactus Country Volume III will be out later this week. We should have the cover on here tomorrow. So see you then. Lou

 

Visit Brett Cogburn and say Hi!

John Wayne

I was piddling around on the web the other day and found out that if you google western movies you'll find a ton of them you can watch right on your computer. Many are on Youtube. Check them out. I watched an old 1933 movie featuring Sandy the Singing Cowboy. You know who that was? John Wayne. I have old vhs tapes of these early John Wayne movies, but hadn't watched one in probably 25 years. He wasn't a real good singer, but even in those old reels you can see the true cowboy lurking there. Thank God for John Wayne!

Riders of Destiny

And again I apologize for not posting more often. I pledge to do better. See you tomorrow.
Lou