Writing an Outlaw Hero ~ Julie Lence

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    I began my career of writing western romance many years ago. The first book I wrote (and had published) was Luck of the Draw. The heroine in the story is Paige. Throughout the story, Paige believes her sister is dead, but has the shock of her life when Missy shows up on her doorstep. Very much alive, Missy has spent two summers searching for Paige, and as I developed Missy’s character, I realized that she needed help finding Paige, and who better to help her than an outlaw. Buck Grayson was so much fun to write, because in this story, and again when he appears in Lady Luck, unlike the hero, he is free to act and speak in the unruly and crude manner most of us depict an outlaw.  As Lady Luck came to an end, I had an inkling in the back of my mind that Buck needed his own story. It wasn’t until a few years later when I decided to create a new series that I went back to Buck, but as I honed in on the fictional town of Revolving Point that I created in Luck of the Draw, I kept wondering if Buck was hero material.
        In Luck of the Draw and Lady Luck, Buck is hard and unyielding. He’s temperamental, deadly accurate with a gun, and speaks without thinking, not caring who he offends. He trusts no one. Even worse, he likes no one… except Missy… and Suzanna, one of the girls who works for Missy.  Aha! Somewhere deep inside, Buck did have heart and soul. The all important questions I had to deduce is why did Buck abandon the good inside of him, and could Suzanna soften him enough to make readers warm up to him?  
        As in most movies, television shows, and books, there’s a reason why the villain is cold-hearted. Buck was no exception, so I sat down and slowly started to unravel him by asking him easy questions; where did you grow up? Do you have siblings? Do you dress in black because that’s your favorite color? As he answered, he began to open up more about himself, how he had sisters and adored them… how his parents were honest, hard-working people… the awful afternoon when his world shattered… how something inside took a shine to Missy, and not in a romantic way… how Suzanna wormed her way inside his heart with her outrageous flirting… how she became more important to him than his own life… And luckily, I was able to convey his goodness and weaknesses to the reader, but I wasn’t done. I had two more stories in that series to write, and again I had to sit down and dig deep in to Roth’s background and into Gage’s background, find out what made them tick, why they chose to strap on a gun, too. For some reason, Roth wanted to open right away and let me know he’d do anything for his sister. Gage took a bit of persuasion, most likely because he didn’t want to live his life in a prison cell for something he didn’t do, disappointing his family and the woman he loved.
      The more I learned about my outlaws, the more I realized that circumstances beyond their control forced each of them into a life of crime, a life they never would have chosen. But, as rough and ruthless as they were on the outside, the softer they were on the inside, and the love of a good woman didn’t necessarily change them. Rather it soothed an ache deep inside because someone actually took the time to understand the bad and accept it, to care.

Revolving Point, Texas is my 2^nd series and you can find each book on Amazon. Just follow the links below.

Zanna’s Outlaw https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006XJWW08

Lydia’s Gunslinger https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007873DIE

Debra’s Bandit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0095IG390 

The Making of a Good Villain ~ Julie Lence

courtesy Lara Williard

  In writing romance, some stories deserve a good villain. Developing such a character sometimes proves easier and more fun than creating the hero and heroine. A villain has a lot more leeway on what he can say or do. He’s the one person you enjoy hating, (think of J.R. Ewing), or even cheer for. Heroes and heroines have to be likeable and cannot commit too many dastardly deeds without good reason (think Bobby Ewing). But what drives a villain? And does a villain have to be a person?

 As I do when creating my heroes and heroines, I sit down at my computer and imagine my villain’s appearance. Does he have dark hair? Or he is blond? What color are his eyes? Does he have any visible scars? Is he tall? Is he physically strong? And more importantly, how did he arrive at the point of his life where the story begins?

  One of the best villains I created was Lady Luck’s William Larsen. Driven by money and comfort, William was evil to the bone and didn’t care who he killed or hurt just as long as he was the victor in any given situation. He wasn’t a big man, appeared to be a weakling by the henchmen he kept in his employ and the bodyguards who shadowed him, and if you ask the women he kept time with, most would say he wasn’t handsome; their only reasons for being his mistress either his money or fear. As I delved deeper into William’s psyche, because, after all, what makes a man that money hungry and evil, I learned his was not a happy, or normal, childhood. He was an orphan, living along the docks on the east coast, pilfering what little food and clothes he could, taking shelter in one shack after another, fear and human instinct to survive pulsing through him. As he matured, it was the fear of losing what little he’d scrappled to gain and forever living in poverty that kept him chained to darkness; a man who was unwilling to trade his ill-found wealth for honor, friendship, and even love.  

Where William is a villain in the form of a person, can there be another form of a villain? One where the author doesn’t imagine hair color or physique but rather something below the surface that can’t be seen with the naked eye? There is and Hunter Barlow knows this villain well. The son of a madam who viewed him as nothing more than a nuisance and brothers who deserted him, one could make the assumption that Hunter’s mother and brothers are the villains in his story, but in truth, Hunter’s emotional turmoil is the antagonist to his protagonist.  Betrayal and heartache are what he has to acknowledge and defeat, not a face determined to see him penniless or dead, and sometimes it’s those battles that fester deep within that are much harder to defeat than an evil man.

Whether a person or an emotion, delve as deep as you can into your villain. Find out the reason for such evilness or for a deep-rooted fear of never being loved. I guarantee your snooping will lead you to places you never imagined, and make your story that much better. And your hero will thank you for it.     

 

 

Why the horse?????

 Some things are unique to the American Cowboy. His hat. His weapon. His horse.

Most of these are self explanatory. The hat shielded his eyes from the blinding sun as well as protected his head from the heat and kept it from boiling his brains. A weapon was used for self-protection,  to restore order, and to keep cattle and family safe. But why the horse?

It is often said that a cowboy of foot is worth little. And probably so. Ranches, at the height of the cowboy era, might have encompassed several states and started with as little as 500 acres and grow to 800,000 acres. In order to work these large tracts of land, cowboys needed a good source of transportation. Thus, the horse has become one of the trademarks of the American West and the Cowboy.

On average, a ranch would hire up to a dozen good cowboys for each of these cowboys six horses would be at their beck and call for different ranch duties. A good ranch horse was used to move the cattle, round up the cattle and calves for a yearly count and for market. Some were used just for roping, some for cutting cattle, another might have a good easy gate that didn't shake a man's insides for long distances. Some animals were none as bomb proof meaning they weren't spooked or startled by things going on around them. It would be the right horse on a storm night that wouldn't lose his head if the cattle got startled.

Cowboys rode different breeds of horses. Of course, we've all heard of the Mustang. The American Quarter horse was developed for its maneuverability and stamina on a short distance run. Appaloosas were another distinct American breed as were the Missouri Fox Trotters, American Standard Bred, Morgan, and even Arabians. Back in the heyday of the cowboy a good horse might cost 150.00 to 200.00 dollars. Considering a cowboy often made only a dollar a day, it was a big investment.

A cowboy needed his horse to work with him, not against him. If he were to do the job given to him. They needed to earn their horses trust. Being thrown in the field might be life or death for the rider. So trust and understanding on both sides must come first. Some of this starts before a saddles is even introduced. Leading  your horse, talking to your horse gains that first level of trust. A cowboy might not have time to say a command. His horse must learn to know the signals of a heel against it's side, the lifting of the reins, the touch of a hand. A trait that ensures the cowboys ability to work.

 Often it is said, that a cowboy and his horse are one.  It is this iconic image that makes the American Cowboy heroic in anyone's eyes.

Guest Author--Barbara White Daille

Cowboy Kisses blog Barbara White Daille TCTS 3-16-17

Hi, everyone! I’m Barbara, and I write romance on the sweet(er) side for both Harlequin Western Romance and Entangled Bliss. Thanks for letting me drop in to chat about my new release in the Hitching Post Hotel series.

To date, all but two of my books feature cowboys, my favorite type of hero. Cowboys really are what my grandpa would have called the “salt of the earth.” They’re downhome, unpretentious men who love working with livestock and the land and don’t mind getting their hands dirty. And yet they clean up so nice, don’t they! lol

When I think of a cowboy hero, he’s always someone reliable, focused, and dedicated.

Someone who knows how to mind his manners—unless he has good reason not to.

Someone who knows how to treat a lady right—except on the very rare occasion he’s done her wrong.  Luckily, my heroes are never guilty of that.

Kidding! Because of course, in one way or another, all heroes have done their heroines wrong or will do so during the story. That’s what provides the conflict and helps keep the heroine—and us—on the alert, unwilling to fall for him. Or maybe falling for him despite knowing things can never work out.

Tyler, the hero of The Cowboy’s Triple Surprise, is a footloose, ramblin’, never-gonna-be-tied-down rodeo cowboy who finds himself in a real predicament. I would like to add that situation’s not of his own making, but as you’ll see from the copy from the book cover, that’s definitely not true!

Hope you enjoy the excerpt. I’d love to hear what you love about cowboy heroes. And feel free to ask questions or chat.

From the cover:

A BIG SURPRISE—TIMES THREE!

The last time rodeo cowboy Tyler Buckham was in Cowboy Creek, he spent a steamy night with local beauty Shay O'Neill. Back in town for a quick visit, he's hoping they'll have another go-around before he heads for his next rodeo. But seeing Shay pregnant—with triplets!—leaves Tyler feeling as if his best horse has kicked him in the gut.

Shay swore she wouldn't fall for an unreliable cowboy, and Tyler's playboy past makes him even less likely to settle down. The whole town conspires to push them together, and Tyler insists he wants to do his duty by Shay and the triplets, but Shay knows she can't count on promises from a cowboy. Besides, Tyler never once mentioned the word love…

Excerpt

“I let my temper get away from me when we talked last night,” Shay admitted. “But I meant what I told you about being off the hook.”

“What if I don’t choose to be? Don’t I have a say?”

“Why would you?”

“Because those kids you’re carrying are mine, too.”

His eyes glittered in the sunshine, more from repressed anger than concern, she was sure. Again, she had to remind herself of the responses she had rehearsed. “And are you planning to be their daddy? Planning to…to be a family with us?”

“Whoa.” He raised his hands and backed up a step, as if she were a horse that had suddenly gone wild. “I never said either of those things. Neither one of them was ever in my plans.”

“I thought not.” Clearly, he had also never considered the word that wouldn’t leave her lips, either. The M word. “Well, it doesn’t matter. When it comes down to it, we barely know each other, do we? And we obviously seem to care about each other even less.”

She waited a beat, but he said nothing, which only reinforced what she had feared all along. He had never cared about her. How could she believe he would feel anything for her babies?

Unable to look at him, she began walking toward the hotel.

She had cared about him, at least in those days he’d spent in Cowboy Creek. She had just lied about that.

When he fell into step beside her, she swallowed a bitter laugh, admitting she had also failed dismally at fooling herself. She knew many things about Tyler. How he held a woman when he slow danced. How he liked to flirt. How he liked to kiss. How he went after what he wanted.

Right down to her bones, she had known he would follow her now, that he wouldn’t give up.

As if he planned to prevent her from getting away, he walked close beside her, close enough that she picked up the scents of his aftershave and his freshly washed cotton shirt. His boots were free of dust and scuff marks, as if he’d worn his Sunday best.

For her?

The thought left her swallowing another laugh. Even she couldn’t fool herself about that.

Buy Links

Harlequin: http://www.harlequin.com/storeitem.html?iid=69250

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cowboys-Triple-Surprise-Hitching-Hotel-ebook/dp/B01HB74HZ8

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-cowboys-triple-surprise-barbara-white-daille/1123951436 

Books-A-Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/Cowboys-Triple-Surprise/Barbara-White-Daille/Q232205622?id=6809026813830

IndieBound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780373757503

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-cowboy-s-triple-surprise

About the Author

Barbara White Daille lives with her husband in the sunny Southwest. Though they love the warm winters and the lizards in their front yard, they haven’t gotten used to the scorpions in the bathroom. Barbara also loves writing, reading, and chocolate. Come to think of it, she enjoys writing about those subjects, too!

Barbara wrote her first short story at the age of nine, then typed "The End" to her first novel many years later...in the eighth grade. Now she's writing contemporary romance on a daily basis, with an ongoing series from Harlequin Western Romance (The Hitching Post Hotel), a brand-new series from Entangled Bliss (Snowflake Valley), and many more books in the works. Sign up for her newsletter to keep up with the latest in her writing life:  http://barbarawhitedaille.com/newsletter.

Social Media Links

Website  http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com

Blog  http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com/blog

Newsletter  http://www.barbarawhitedaille.com/newsletter

Facebook  http://www.facebook.com/barbarawhitedaille

Twitter  https://twitter.com/BarbaraWDaille

Amazon author page  http://www.amazon.com/Barbara-White-Daille/e/B002J6B0QQ

Harlequin author page  http://www.harlequin.com/author.html?authorid=1244  

Goodreads author page
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/529361.Barbara_White_Daille

A Cowboy’s Cutter Horse

While writing Double Crossing, I had to explain why the cowboy hero Ace Diamond was without his horse. Being a man of few words, all he would say to the heroine Lily Granville was “I lost my cutter.” Hm. Wait a minute. I’m the writer. I’m supposed to know what that means, right? Well, Ace has yet to explain.

So I decided to do some research. Eventually, no matter what course Ace takes in the sequel to Double Crossing (Double or Nothing, hopefully out later this year), I had to figure out what a cutter was and why/how Ace lost it. Being a born-and-raised in Michigan, only been on a regular horse twice (and the horses sure didn’t enjoy me) greenhorn, I turned to my friend Google.

A “cutter” is an elite horse in the “remuda” which is a term for all the horses that cowboys use for a cattle drive. Every “outfit” made drives with a large remuda. And each cowboy kept their “string” of horses within the remuda – using some horses for riding drag (at the dusty, dirty end), or for patrol or for other specific jobs. A cutter has a special sensitivity to cattle. They tend to prick their ears toward cows, or follow each move of one with their eyes, and not crowd a cow by instinct. A cutter can separate cattle, which is a difficult job, far easier than most horses.

It isn’t training that makes a cutter. That horse has to be born with the instinct. I’ve seen Youtube videos now with cutters in action, and they remind me (remember I’m no expert when it comes to horses) of dogs herding sheep – only cows are a lot crazier. That horse has to turn and twist and go back again, anticipate the cow’s every move, and not be afraid of it.

Now an actual sport of cutting has evolved from the cowboys who worked cattle. Back in 1898, the first contest was held in Haskell, Texas – and advertised in the Dallas and Kansas City newspapers. 15,000 people swarmed to see it, arriving by horseback or wagons. No railroad station was close enough. Eleven cowboys competed for the prize of $150 – an astonishing amount back then. Sam Graves brought his horse Old Hub out of retirement. This horse had a reputation for cutting, and some people thought he could “work blindfolded and without a bridle” – Graves set aside half his winnings to care for Old Hub until he died.

Will Rogers once said while visiting a ranch in 1920s Texas, "It was worth the trip to brush country just to sit above Ol' Gotch and feel his shoulders roll, watch his ears work and his head drop low when he looked an old steer in the eye."

To the right is a bronze sculpture - check out the western art of Bob Stayton by clicking here.

Of course, nowadays pickup trucks and chutes have replaced horses. Even huge cattle ranches have gone the way of the open prairie and cattle drives over open range. And cutting has become a rich man’s game nowadays due to the National Cutting Horse Association. Perhaps breeding and pedigree have lessened the cowboy’s necessity for riding skills, but I’m no expert. I’d rather watch the video of the first filmed “cowpuncher” who literally did that—punched a cow while herding cattle into the pens in 1897, Texas. Click here to see it.

So what about Ace and his cutter? I still haven’t been “informed” by my hero about how he “lost” his horse. Come on, Ace! Tell me what happened. I know it was a traumatic experience, since you ended up horseless in Omaha – but perhaps fate arranged for you to meet Lily.

Ducking under a low hanging tree branch, we crept through the stable’s open doorway. I had to stifle a sneeze at the musty scent of hay and dust. Sunlight streamed into the stalls where several horses nickered. In an empty one, we found Ace Diamond sleeping on his stomach. When I prodded him with my foot, he rolled over with a loud pig’s grunt and squinted up at us both. A glass bottle lay in the dirty hay.

“Uh, wh-what time is it? Who the devil—ouch,” he said and touched the crusty stitches on his forehead. “Dagnabbit. My head feels like a squished melon.”

“Do you remember our meeting yesterday, Mr. Diamond?” I asked. Kate peered over my shoulder. “I see you found a doctor as well as some whiskey.”

“Needed it to cut the pain.” Ace sat up and scratched his soiled shirt. “Thought you was headin’ to California.”

“I am leaving in a few hours, yes. This is Miss Kimball, she’s also traveling on the Union Pacific.” I brushed sawdust off my split skirt and jacket. “I spoke to Mrs. Burkett, your landlady, who sounded quite unhappy with you.”

“That dried-up prune?” Scrambling to his feet, he weaved sideways until grabbing the half wall. A horse nuzzled his arm. “Never satisfied, no matter what I do.”

“Not if you’re prone to drink.”

Ace rubbed his eyes with the back of one hand. “I don’t suppose this is a social call, miss. Or that you’d lend me two bits. I got a powerful headache.”

I eyed him from head to foot. A beggar would look more presentable. “You wished to go to California. Miss Kimball and I need protection on the Union Pacific. Perhaps we can come to an agreement, Mr. Diamond. Is that your real name?”

He dodged the question. “What are your terms, miss? Sorry, I forgot your name.”

“Miss Granville. I’ll provide you with a ticket now and twenty dollars when we arrive safe in Sacramento. Provided no harm comes to us, that is.”

He stared with bleary eyes. “Why would two pretty fillies need me to ride shotgun? It’s a far sight safer on a train than travelin’ by stagecoach.”

“I’m tracking a murderer—”

“Whoa,” Ace cut in, fully alert now. “Who was murdered?”

Letting out a deep breath, I folded my hands together over the pocketbook’s strap. “My father was shot on Saturday in Evanston, north of Chicago. I believe someone’s following me, too. Perhaps the killer or his colleague…”

“You realize we’ll be stuck on a train for near five days,” Ace said. “With nowhere to run if there is trouble.”

“‘Man is born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward,’” I quoted but he rubbed his mismatched eyes. I retrieved the Pullman ticket from my pocketbook. “Are we agreed on the terms? My uncle may reward you extra when we arrive in California.”

“Is that right.” Ace Diamond lurched toward the doorway and then staggered outside. At the trough, he dunked his head and came up spluttering, tossing water droplets everywhere. He coughed and then slapped his hat into place. “How about this? Fifty dollars now, and a hundred when we get there. Plus meals on the train and the ticket.”

“Twenty now, plus meals and the ticket.”

“Thirty-five.”

“Twenty-five, take it or leave it.”

“Thirty. You don’t have a choice,” Ace said, grinning again, “unless that preacher man you were with last night has a wicked left hook.”

Ignoring that, I rummaged for a slip of paper and a pencil from my pocketbook, plus extracted the coins from my money belt. Thirty dollars—it reminded me of the thirty pieces of silver paid to Judas.

 Western Writers of America Spur Award for Best First Novel!
Check out Double Crossing at Amazon - click here