In this month’s cross-post with Christian Writers Downunder, prolific author Roger Norris-Green discusses Westerns. Welcome, Roger!
About 55 years ago I picked up a ‘Cleveland Western’ for 2 shillings in my local newsagent. I thought I could write one so I had a go. At that time I couldn’t even type so I wrote 40,000 words in longhand in an exercise book. My dear wife Elaine typed it on a portable typewriter and I posted it off to the publisher.
The editor at Cleveland Westerns accepted it for publication.
I was paid 60 pound. Since then I have written 140 westerns for the company under the pen names Cole Shelton, Ben Taggart and Sundown McCabe and two under my own name, ‘Last Stage to Sundown’ and ‘A Stranger comes to Town.’
These last two titles are available direct from me for $10 each if you message me on Facebook.
I write traditional westerns with ‘old time values’. The hero is a good man or at least one who was formerly living a troublesome life but who is coming good. He treats women in a civil manner, respectful and of course, ‘always gets the girl’.
He might be tempted by the ‘baddies’ but he never gives in.
The hero isn’t perfect but the reader can always identify with him because he is a decent human being.
I have just had two westerns accepted for publication by Black Horse Westerns. One has just been released. It’s titled LAST CHANCE SALOON.
The story concerns a gunfighter who hangs up his guns for the peaceful life but then receives a letter from a beautiful young widow pleading for his help. The exciting finale takes place in the Last Chance Saloon where the hero stands alone against the forces of evil—and wins, of course. I don’t have copies for sale but some libraries may have copies. Or you can buy online.
Simply google bhwesterns.com. Last Chance Saloon is on the right hand side of the front page. Also available in e-book.
Oh, although my wife typed my first few stories, I since learned to type and have a computer!
More About Westerns
Westerns are mostly set in the later half 19th century (1860-1900) in the American Old West.
They usually focus a nomadic cowboy or gunfighter sporting revolvers, rifles and horses, in quest of justice in an unfair world. There may be an emphasis on the arid desert setting of the ‘wild west’ and common themes or plots can revolve around building the railway, conflict with cattlemen or Native Americans, outlaws and lawmen, protecting family and/or revenge stories.
General market Westerns include such classics as Louis L’Amor, Zane Grey’s Riders of the Purple Sage or TV series such as The Lone Ranger, Bonanza, or the John Wayne movies.
Westerns are also popular in Christian fiction, especially in Christian romance.
Most are written by US-based authors (e.g. Mary Conneally, Karen Witemeyer, and Melissa Jagears), but you can also check out Mail Order Surprise by Australian author Lucy Thompson, and the Escape from the West series by British author Nerys Leigh.
And no discussion of Christian Westerns is complete without a mention of Canadian author Janette Oke and her Love Comes Softly series and Canadian West series, both of which have been turned into TV series.
The main difference between traditional Westerns and Christian Westerns is the point of view: Christian Westerns focus more on the heroine. This reflects the fact that women comprise the bulk of Christian fiction readers, and women want the girl to get the good guy.
Thank you for your refreshing post, Roger. Although Riders of the Purple Sage is the only western to date I have read and enjoyed, I will be sure to look out for your name.
I grew up watching westerns as Dad loved them. (Cisco Kid) I also remember Dad reading Zane Grey. I love reading Mary Connealy, Susan Page Davis and so many more. I had never thought of Janette Oke’s books as westerns.
I do enjoy reading westerns and watching them.
Thank you for sharing your story, inspiring stuff.
I love stories that emphasize good values so I like how you convey that.
I absolutely love watching Janette Oke’s series “When Calls the Heart”. The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful, the clothing is stunning and the story touches my heart.