DEATH AT BETHESDA FALLS - Press Release

 

DEATH AT BETHESDA FALLS

[Bethesda Falls: 1 of 4]

“… is it open season on women all of a sudden?” 

Jim Thorp had killed plenty of men. They deserved to die. Thorp was a hard man, made so by a bloody Civil War. But he didn’t relish this visit to Bethesda Falls. His old sweetheart Anna worked there as a school-teacher and he was hunting her brother, Clyde, for armed robbery and other more terrible crimes. He didn’t want to hurt Anna but it looked like he would anyway. Clyde, the foreman of the M-bar-W ranch, is due to wed Ellen, the rancher’s daughter. He’s also poisoning the old man to hasten the inheritance. Thorp’s presence in town starts the downward slide to violence, when not only is Ellen’s life in danger, but also that of Anna and Thorp himself. It is destined to end in bloodshed and death.

Amazon UK: https://tinyurl.com/4h7pw7em 

Amazon US: https://tinyurl.com/mv5t7dcc

***

Other books in the Bethesda Falls series (all self-contained stories):

Last Chance Saloon

Blind Justice at Wedlock

Old Guns

***

She flushed again but now steel had entered her eyes and the tone in her voice chilled his bones. “I am a fool. You didn’t come to see me, did you? It’s Clyde you want, is that it?”

Again he nodded and this time he sipped at the coffee; it scalded his throat, but he ignored the sharp discomfort as he really thought that he deserved that little amount of pain at least. Because that was nothing compared to the pain he was going to inflict on Anna.

Sure, she had a right to know, but how do you tell the only woman your heart had room for that you’re here to kill her brother?

*** 

Suddenly, a lariat looped over Anna’s head and it tightened round her chest and the wind was pulled out of her as it was tautened. Roughly, the rope dragged her backwards and she almost lost her balance. She staggered, trying not to fall to the ground.

“Nice ropin’, Ed!” Abe ran up to her.

***

But the rocks beneath the sorrel’s hooves were slimy and slippery and before she could control the critter they tipped over the edge of this pool and plummeted amidst a down-soaring stream of spray that soaked her. Worse, she found it difficult to breathe, taking in chilly water that made her cough and spasm.

Their descent seemed to last an age but must have been mere seconds.

Shockingly cold and hard, the roiling base of the waterfalls engulfed them. Here, it was very deep, where the water had pounded into the rock base for aeons. Even as she kicked herself free of the stirrups, her clothing threatened to drag her down. She was short of breath and terribly frightened because no matter how hard she tried to move her arms to pull herself up to the surface and blessed fresh air, she couldn’t muster the strength. Her corset and bodice were tight, constricting, and her lungs were bursting.

Originally published by Robert Hale 2007 - my first book sale - under the pen-name Ross Morton! Now re-published as a paperback.

Writing – and readership

Most authors write to be read. The financial consideration is important, naturally, but it is rarely the main impetus. We write because we cannot not write.

So the transformation over the last decade or so has to be welcomed, whereby readers can post reviews on the Internet – whether that’s in a blog or on Amazon and the other online book sites. Considered feedback is always welcome. We’re trying to entertain – following in a long line of storytellers stretching back to that distant age in caves when the social media was verbal and illustrations were paintings on rock.

The other helpful feedback tool for the author has been around for twenty-five years – the PLR. Last year’s (July 2013-June 2014) Public Lending Rights statements have just been issued, and they make interesting reading.

Of all 20 of my books registered with PLR, only 5 titles show readers. This is because the rest are not supplied to or obtained by British libraries. The five titles reflect the hardback and the large print editions - two of each, separately registered.

Yet those 5 have clocked up almost 8,000 readers among them. That’s good to know: because that’s a minimum readership figure, based on a sample of libraries, not all of them, in UK.

These titles are all westerns (because Robert Hale has a high representation of books in public libraries):

Death at Bethesda Falls (2007) – 1,300+

Last Chance Saloon (2008) – 1,500+

The $300 Man (2009) – 1,600+

Blind Justice at Wedlock (2011) – 1,600+

Old Guns (2012) – 1,700+

My latest western The Magnificent Mendozas (2014) was published and registered after the cut-off date of June 2014, so won’t appear on a statement until January 2016.

This proves that there is a readership for westerns out there, no matter what the naysayers might pontificate.

 
The British Library has taken on the administration of PLR. They collect loans data from a changing sample of UK public library authorities. This year’s payments are based on loans data collected from 44 library authorities across the UK during the year July 2013 – June 2014.
 
The maximum earnings for any author amount to £6,600; 190 registered authors were paid this for 2013/2014. Interestingly, there were 22,053 authors who received PLR payment and 16,996 who were paid nil or their loans were below the minimum threshold (i.e. loans didn’t amount to £1 or more).
 
Compared to last year’s figures, there are about 300 less recipients of PLR this year; and about 1,200 more authors who fell into the nil bracket. It is not clear whether or not that’s due to a fall in library readership or the choice of libraries in the sample or some other factor, such as more authors are going independent so aren’t represented in local libraries.

So, the moral for authors is, register your book with PLR.

https://www.plr.uk.com/

 

 

 If you hanker after writing a western - or any genre fiction novel, come to that - you might like to have a look at Write a Western in 30 Days, which reviewers have said is useful for all genre writers, not only those who write westerns!

 

Amazon UK paperback here

Amazon UK e-book here

Amazon COM paperback here

Amazon COM e-book here

 

 

 

 

 



 

'Two distinct races'

Charles Lamb (1775-1834) had a few things to say about borrowing.

‘The human species, according to the best theory I can form of it, is composed of two distinct races, the men who borrow, and the men who lend.’ – The Two Races of Men

‘I mean you borrowers of books – those mutilators of collections, spoilers of the symmetry of shelves, and creators of odd volumes. – The Two Races of Men.

I believe that there are readers who buy books and readers who borrow. [We’ll ignore those people who borrow books from us but never return them…] There are plenty of reasons why readers borrow – cost and storage space being just two. I may have a collection of about 4,000 books, but in my lifetime I’ve read thousands more. Space precludes storing so many. I’ve borrowed from the public library when I couldn’t afford to buy sufficient books to read; and of course pre-Internet, I delved into the non-fiction shelves for research. Like most generalisations, I’m sure this separation into two types of book readers will fall down under close scrutiny, but I feel that it has a grain of truth in it. Until relatively recent times, authors received no payment for books borrowed from libraries.

It seems only fair that authors should benefit in some small measure from institutional borrowing of their work. Twenty-eight countries have a Public Lending Right programme. The first was implemented in Denmark in 1946; the UK’s PLR was enacted in 1979.

As a resident of the EU (UK citizen living in Spain), I am able to take advantage of the PLR system applied to libraries in the UK and Eire. It is a welcome annual event, receiving notification of the pecuniary reward (taxable) along with the number of borrowers for my registered books.

Registered authors are eligible for payment if their PLR earnings reach a minimum of £1. The rate per loan is currently 6.2 pence [and for foreign readers who may not be aware, there are 100 pence in the £]. There is an upper limit for any author, £6,600. Last month, PLR made payments totalling £6.1 million to 22,327 authors. It is funded by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport through the British Library. Writers can register online. A book has to be registered by 30 June to be eligible for assessment in the following January.

To read the rules about registration, please go to the website www.plr.uk.com

A list of the hundred most borrowed titles included James Patterson fifteen times; needless to say, he was the most borrowed fiction author (for the seventh year running); Nora Roberts dropped from fourth place last year to sixth; M.C. Beaton was seventh and tenth was David Baldacci (previously eighteenth). Lee Child had the two top most borrowed titles; J.K. Rowling’s The Casual Vacancy was the tenth most borrowed title, well beaten by Fifty Shades of Grey (third).

 

The top twenty of the 100 most-borrowed books in Scotland are all crime novels.
 
Top non-fiction author was cookery expert Mary Berry.
 
The full list can be found on the website.
 
Last year my books (penname Ross Morton) were borrowed 5,464 times from the UK libraries. That’s a great feeling, to know that that number of people have read my novels.
 
Since its publication in 2007, my first novel Death at Bethesda Falls has been borrowed 8,709 times.
 
My most-borrowed title is The $300 Man.

If you can't borrow it, please purchased post-free world-wide from here

So, I must go against the advice of Shakespeare, in Hamlet: ‘… neither a borrower, nor a lender be…’ (I know, he was talking about money, rather than books!)

‘I don’t read westerns’

How many times have I heard that? Too many to count. And of course along with that statement is many a publisher’s comment, ‘Westerns don’t sell well these days.’ Thankfully, besides old faithful Robert Hale, a crop of new publishers are embracing tales of the Old West.
 
Today, I’ve viewed my Public Lending Rights statement and it suggests that there are still plenty of readers out there for the western genre.

My oldest western, Death at Bethesda Falls, published in 2007, clocked up 1,400 borrowings last year. Since its publication it has been borrowed 8,709 times, apparently. True, it’s possible that the same reader has taken it out of the library more than once; though he or she has a choice of four other titles from my penname Ross Morton…

Anyway, those figures tend to tell me that the western genre is still popular. So, thank you Robert Hale and all your readers and borrowers!

 

None of the following titles follow any formula western storyline. They're about the human condition, set in the Old West.

Death at Bethesda Falls

 

Jim Thorp had killed plenty of men. They deserved to die. Thorp was a hard man, made so by a bloody Civil War. But he didn’t relish this visit to Bethesda Falls. His old sweetheart Anna worked there as a school-teacher and he was hunting her brother, Clyde, for armed robbery and other more terrible crimes. He didn’t want to hurt Anna but it looked like he would anyway.

Clyde, the foreman of the M-bar-W ranch, is due to wed Ellen, the rancher’s daughter. He’s also poisoning the old man to hasten the inheritance. Thorp’s presence in town starts the downward slide to violence, when not only is Ellen’s life in danger, but also that of Anna and Thorp himself. It is destined to end in violence and death.

Last Chance Saloon

 

The Bethesda Falls stage is robbed and Ruth Monroe, the stage depot owner, is being coerced into selling up by local tycoon, Zachary Smith. Meanwhile, Daniel McAlister returns from gold prospecting to wed Virginia, the saloon’s wheel of fortune operator. Daniel hits a winning streak but is bushwhacked, his winnings stolen.

Virginia sees this romance with Daniel as her last chance of happiness and no matter what, she’s determined to stand by her man, ducking flying bullets if need be. Daniel and Virginia side with Ruth against Smith and his hired gunslingers. Only a deadly showdown will end it, one way or another.

The $300 Man

 

What’s a life worth? $300, maybe. Half-Mexican Corbin Molina lost a hand during the Civil War but he has adapted. Now he’s on a mission to Walkerville. On the way, he prevents a train robbery and finds an old friend. Corbin always carries $300, which is significant, since that’s what he was a paid as substitute soldier for the Union.

When Corbin starts asking questions about Walkerville’s law and administration, he discovers that the Walker family, who seem to have bought and paid for loyalty and position, dominates the townspeople. Inevitably, Corbin’s questions attract plenty of trouble. And his past emerges to confront him during a tense showdown that threatens not only him but also his newfound love.

Blind Justice at Wedlock

 

Clint Brennan interrupts two men kidnapping his wife Belle and he’s shot and left for dead. When he recovers his senses, his wife has gone and he discovers he is blind. Most men would give up there and then, but not Clint. Astride his donkey, he sets out with his faithful dog Mutt on the trail of his wife’s abductors.

Belle believes her husband is dead. She’s rescued, but not by Clint. Her saviour is protective and takes her to his grand home in Wedlock where she meets the charming housekeeper, Mrs Kilbride. Maybe here, they say, she can forget her husband and start a new life…

On the trail, Clint is waylaid by robbers but soon learns to combat enemies at night, when darkness is his ally. Distracted and delayed, he’s still determined to locate his missing wife. A tale of betrayal and lies, it will all end at Wedlock, amidst flames and bullets.

Old Guns

July, 1892. Sam Ransom, 62, learns of the death of Abner, his old partner. Abner left a warning note – the Meak twins were out to get Ransom and the rest ‘because of what happened at Bur Oak Springs’. Ransom sets out to alert his old friends, Jubal, Rory and Derby.

Bur Oak Springs happened over two decades ago. The place was a ghost town even then. Ransom’s family is put in jeopardy and they can only be saved by Ransom and his friends returning to the ghost town, to confront the Meak brothers and their gang. There’s a sense of déjà vu about this; yet, there are fresh revelations too. It’s a showdown: young guns against old guns. [Cover by Tony Masero]

The Magnificent Mendozas (due in July 2014)

Southern Colorado, 1879. The gringo town of Conejos Blancos has just hosted the Mexican circus; no sooner do they move on to their next venue when Hart and over thirty desperadoes take over the town – and the adjacent silver mine! The sheriff is slaughtered and many of the citizens are held hostage.
 
In desperation, two boys escape from the locked-down town. They recruit seven Mexican circus performers, the Magnificent Mendozas: the troupe comprises Mateo, the leader, and his wife Josefa, both expert knife-throwers; José, younger brother of Mateo, a trick rider who lusts after Josefa; Antonio Rivera, sharpshooter; Juan Suaréz, gymnast and trapeze artist with his companion Arcadia Mendoza, who is also expert with bow and arrow; and Ramon Mendoza, escapologist. In order to penetrate the cordon of sentries and free the hostages, the troupe employs their many skills.
 
Not everything runs smoothly, however. Soon, it’s a battle of wits between the Mendozas, Hart and his men and the townspeople. There’s betrayal, bravery and plenty of quick-fire action… and death on both sides. [This might make a better film than a remake of The Magnificent Seven…? I can dream.]

Write a Western in 30 Days by Nik Morton

 

Bullets for a Ballot by Nik Morton (e-book from BTAP)

 

 

Writing tips – It’s all character building

Fiction relies on memorable characters. The reader needs to visualise the character and empathise. Part of character building is in the description.  Naturally, if you’re writing first person narrative, the physical description is going to be conveyed by reflections or other people’s comments; if you’re in the third person POV, even then you can’t easily describe your character, it has to be done by someone else – unless you slyly jump into omniscient POV when the drama permits.

Here’s a character breakdown for the hero of Death at Bethesda Falls.

JAMES DEXTER THORP

DoB: 6 Oct 1839. Jim is 26. He lived in Deadfall, a neighbouring town to Hope Springs, both being small Kansas towns, and went off to war in 1861 when he was 22.  He left behind his girl, Anna Comstock, who lived in Hope Springs.  He wrote to her as often as he could but never got any answers to his letters. 

When he returned after the war (1865), he found that his mother and kid sister had been killed; also, the Comstock parents had died two years earlier and only last year both Anna and her brother Clyde had up and left for somewhere west.  Before she went, Anna had qualified as a schoolteacher. 

He felt rootless but as he is good with a gun and he wanted to find the killers of his ma and sis, he takes up bounty hunting, mainly in the Dakota Territory.  The war hadn’t really prepared him for much else, only hunting and killing.

He smokes stogies (thin cigars) usually affected by gamblers.

Clothing

Dresses entirely in black.  Flat-crowned hat. Silk neckerchief. Linen shirt, broadcloth trousers. Leather boots, no spurs.

Two six-guns, slung low and slantwise and tied down.  A bullwhip is tied to his belt. Carries a Henry repeating rifle.  Also a Bowie knife in its sheath on his belt.

Physical appearance

With a tanned and lined brow, looks older than his young years.  Tall and broad and didn’t carry an ounce of fat. Slate-grey eyes. Livid scar on left temple.  Aquiline nose.  Burnt almond hair. Cleft chin. Broad grin.

Aloof, analytical.  Savvy.

Verbal mannerisms

Deep, husky voice. 
 
When angry, spoke with grave deliberation; tone becoming cool, icy. Eyes narrowing, fix with a level stare; mouth tightened into a stubborn line.
 
You can see that already Thorp is linked to Clyde and Anna with their previous history. Don’t neglect backstory, as no character comes into the world fully formed but is made by his experiences and the people he deals with in life.

Character breakdown list

Try to produce a breakdown for each main character; shorter versions for bit-part players. This can be as little or as much as you like, depending on the length of the work (short story, novella or novel). Every item doesn’t have to be allocated, of course. This also helps for consistency and avoids mistakes! Obviously, career choice or experience will influence behaviour. Some options won’t be appropriate if you’re writing a historical story!

Name – try to avoid using names beginning with the same letter; avoid similar sounding names; be imaginative and don’t always settle for the easy option. Check a directory for names. Dickens was good at this. In Death is Another Life, my American magus is called Spellman – just seemed right! Count Zondadari was the name of a Maltese knight and a triq (or street) was named after him, so I used this name for the vampire…

Age (Date of birth may be relevant, helps keep track, too, if the story covers a long period)

Height

Weight

Body type

Eye colour

Hair colour and style

Distinguishing features

Physical imperfections

Characteristic gestures

Race/ethnic group

Religion

Family background

Schooling

Studies/degree

Skills, abilities and talents

Occupation

Previous jobs

Military or other experience

Short term goals

Long term goals

Quirks/eccentricities

Temperament

Method of handling stress/anger/rage

Admirable traits

Negative traits

Bad habits/vices

Prejudices

Opinions on politics/other current issues

Fears

Hobbies/interests/sports

Favourite pastime

Favourite TV/films

Pets – animals should only be used if they’re going to have relevance to the plot or for character development

Favourite meal

Favourite alcoholic drink

Favourite book

Traumas/psychological scars from the past

Clothing/styles

Pet sayings/verbal mannerisms

Speaking style

Best friend

Past experience that has moulded personality

Home

Car type, colour etc

Character growth/change by the end of story

General character physical description guide

Even for short fiction, it’s useful to apply some of the following to your characters. It will depend on the story and its length as to how much description you can use. This list is by no means exhaustive but gives a taste of variety that can be applied to your characters to make them stand out from each other. Bear in mind family resemblances, though. Ring the changes so there’s no confusion of characters in the visual sense.

Hair: Black, brown, fair, auburn, grey. Turning grey, bald, waved, bobbed, close-cropped, dyed.

Eyes: Blue, brown, hazel, grey, green, squint, monocle, spectacles, blind, left or right eye missing, patch. Open, upper lid dropped, distinctly narrowed, drooping lower lid.

Complexion: Dark, fair, fresh, pale, ruddy, sallow, freckles, pock-marked, moles; warts, scars, beard, moustache.

Mouth: Full lips, thin upper and full lower lip, narrow lips, wide lips, hare lip.

Ears: Small, large, long lobed, short, thick, round; angular flat ears; right or left ear deformed or missing.

Teeth: Healthy, broken, decayed, false, gold-filled, missing.

Nose: Large, small, long, broad, snub, bulbous, pointed, hooked, straight, crooked.

Chin: Slight, heavy, dimpled.

 
Back: Straight, broad, humped, round-shouldered.

Legs: Slim, fat, bandy, right or left limp; right or left leg missing.

Physique: Corpulent, thin, short, tall, strong, weak.

Speech: Slow, rapid, impediment, thin, harsh, dumb.

As a rule, the nose decides ‘looks’; also where the nose is full and round, so are the lips, chin and brow. If the nose is sharp, so are the other features too.

The mouth indicates character while feelings are generally shown most rapidly in the eyes.

Character is also revealed by behaviour, but that’s another post at a later date.

For all writers of genre fiction, character creation is dealt with in Chapter 8 (p87) in Write a Western in 30 Days.

 

Amazon.co.uk

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