Western Fiction Stories

The Old West generated more novels, stories and  adventure books than just about any period of time in American history. Cowboys, outlaws, marshals, Texas Rangers, pioneers and a host of other such folk have dotted our historical landscape, giving us colorful stories about the Old West. Some tales are real, while other stories are imaginary, and many are pretty accurate fictional adaptations of historical events. The ones that usually capture our imagination, though, are those that “might have been” or “could have happened.”

I love writing about the Old West. I’ve written several fiction books about characters who might have lived in the American West.  One I did recently, entitled Bloody Wes Teague, started out as a mild, romantic novel. The main character, a former marshal, now a rancher in Wyoming, falls in love with a beautiful New York socialite while on a cattle buying trip in Colorado. Her father owns a cattle ranch in Colorado. So, Wes Teague decides to call on her in New York City.

Characters sometimes have a way of taking over a story. This was one of those times. Indeed, the story was originally planned for a certain publishing house that is decidely Christian and conservative. It would have been great, if I could have stayed with the original idea. Instead, things took a dark turn, and ultimately, the book proved to be too violent for their tastes.

The book takes a hard look at the very fine line that separates vengeance from justice and survival. In this story, Wes Teague, long a supporter of law and order, if forced to take a hard look at the issues surrounding those subjects. He learns some things about himself, in the process. The reader will come away perhaps a bit troubled by the ending, troubled in spite of affirming the way Teague handles the issues. Most will probably agree with what he did. But, it still would be somewhat discomforting to some.

Later, I’ll explore some of the interesting historical information I found about New York City, while researching the book.