'Best selling books' - sort of

Interesting, when I search for Nik Morton in the Books category on Amazon.co.uk, it shows:

Bestselling Books:Mission: Khyber: Tana Standish psychic spy in Afghanistan, 1979, Write a Western in 30 Days: With Plenty of Bullet-Points!, Mission: Tehran: Tana Standish, psychic spy in Iran, 1978: Volume 2 (Psychic spy Tana Standish).

And when I do the same for Amazon.com, it shows:

Bestselling Books:Write a Western in 30 Days: With Plenty of Bullet-Points!, Old Guns. Ross Morton, The $300 Man. 

The common sale denominator is my non-fiction writing guide, which has sold over a 1,000... Still, it's nice to see Tana Standish up there. Btw, both Old Guns and The $300 Man are selling at bargain prices!

Interesting to me, anyway...

If you print out the image below, hey presto, you've got a bookmark!

Going for a ride!

Over in the US, it’s a special day for fans and readers of the western.  National Cowboy Day! 

One author who is promoting it is Jacquie Rogers – you can see her work here

Here are my western books that are still in print (I’m listing the UK Amazon site as the prices are better!):

The $300 Man

A review of The $300 Man: I recently read this author's book on how to write a western novel [see below]. It is great by the way and I refer to it frequently as I try to write western short stories. I was wondering if his novels were any good so I read this one. Well, it is really good and I enjoyed reading it. The characters are all interesting and compelling and the plot is great. I had to keep turning the pages which for me is the test of a good book, that it keeps my interest and this one did. I also learned some western history which was a bonus. I find that a lot of westerns have simple, worn out plots that you see over and over. But this novel had a new, complex plot that unwound slowly until the very end. I will be reading more of his western novels. –Thank you, D. Moring!

TheMagnificent Mendozas

 

 

Blind Justice atWedlock
 

 

Old Guns

This is an anthology I edited, A Fistful ofLegends
 

 

And this one is an e-book (10 reviews in Amazon UK and 45 reviews in Amazon COM),
 Bullets for a Ballot:

 

This is the best-selling Write a Western in 30Days – with plenty of bullet points referred to in the review above (8 reviews in Amazon UK, 14 in Amazon COM):

 

Part of a review: When I started Nik Morton's WRITE A WESTERN IN 30 DAYS, what struck me was that this wasn't just a book of guidelines and tid bits for someone attempting a western, this is a fantastic map to anyone who wants to dive into the world of genre fiction. What Morton lays out are some of the best, common-sense rules for writing that I've ever come across…

 PS - Two other westerns that are out of print are Death at Bethesda Falls and Last Chance Saloon, both under the penname Ross Morton.

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

 

 

 

 

 



 

‘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)

 

 

Old scores being settled

The Linford Western Library large print version of my 2012 book Old Guns is now published, with a particularly striking cover. I love the cover of the hardback by Tony Masero, however the publishers L.A. Thorpe never use the Hale covers but rather different ones.

The blurb: Sam Ransom, broadsided by the death of his old partner Abner, learns of a note left by the dead man – warning that the infamous Meak twins are after Ransom’s life because of what happened at Bur Oak Springs over two decades ago. Ransom knows he must alert the rest of his gang, who were there at the time. His family is in jeopardy and their only hope of salvation is the gang’s return to confront the Meak brothers…

The old guns find themselves up against young guns. It’s a classic situation, where the past returns to not only haunt the hero, but to threaten disaster and death. While the story is set in July 1892 and spans a period of twenty-one days, it harks back to 1859 and also 1866.

This excerpt is early on, when the twins Gideon and Justus Meak have been let out under custody of the deputy sheriff to visit their dying mother.

‘Ma, don’t go on so.’ Gideon resembled his brother in many ways, though his dark brown hair was cut short and his eyes were the colour of shadow – umber. His thin pallid lips and receding chin were inherited from her late husband, God rest his damnable soul. ‘He was only saying–’

            ‘Now you both gang up against your poor mother, do you?’ She scowled and eyed their handcuffs. ‘What a sorry pair you’ve become. I only wish your poor father was here!’
            ‘Shucks, we know, Ma,’ said Gideon.
            She let out a harsh laugh. ‘Know? You know nothing!’
            Justus moved nearer and sat on the side of her bed. He reached out a hand for hers, but she pulled away. ‘Ma, we remember what you told us, about Pa being murdered an’ all.’
            ‘That wasn’t the half of it, son,’ she whispered bitterly.
            Leaning closer, Justus said, ‘What d’you mean, Ma?’
            ‘Where’s that lawman you brung with you?’ she whispered.
            ‘Out on the porch rolling a smoke,’ Gideon said softly. He moved to the other side of the bed. ‘Why’re we whispering?’
            ‘I don’t want that lowdown skunk of a lawman to listen in, that’s why.’
            ‘I’ll go check.’ Gideon moved to the door, cracked it open a little. He nodded, pushed the door to and silently returned to her bedside. ‘He’s dozing in the rocker.’
            ‘My chair,’ she said in a raised tone then caught herself. She looked around at the poorly furnished room and her heart lurched when she glimpsed her reflection in the dressing table mirror. Her once auburn hair was now grey and thin, while her hazel eyes seemed dull, as if diluted pigment. Her thin lips pursed. The family nose was prominent, however, and both her sons took after her there. She tore her eyes away as flames of anger and frustration burned afresh in her breast. Now she must tell her boys and set them on their road of vengeance. ‘There were six men in your father’s gang,’ she said, clearing her throat. She closed her eyes and recited, ‘Carter, Ransom, Tylor, Baines and Nolan.’
            ‘That’s five,’ Justus said.
            Her eyes sprang open and impaled him. ‘Your pa made up the six, idiot!’
            ‘Oh, right.’
            ‘What happened?’ asked Gideon.
            Her lower lip trembled. ‘They decided to share their loot between five, that’s what, and so your pa was shot in the back.’ Tears blurred her vision. She glanced down at her hands, thin and worn like an old woman’s and here she was only fifty-five. Going before her time. ‘Those no-goods not only killed your pa, they ruined my life and yours as well.’
            ‘We know that, Ma,’ said Gideon. ‘You’ve said it often enough, we could’ve ridden a straighter trail if we’d had pa to guide us.’
            ‘Well, it bears retelling.’
            ‘Sure, Ma.’
            Justus said, ‘This is the first time you told us their names – the killers’ names.’
            ‘Well, I tried to bring you up right, but you still went down a crooked path. I didn’t want you going out after them, claiming justice – though the Lord knows, your pa deserves it!’
            ‘So why are you telling us now?’ Gideon asked.
            ‘Yeah, after all these years. We were about six when pa was killed, right, Gideon?’
            ‘So Ma says.’
            ‘I had to bring you up, fend for you and feed and clothe you.’
            ‘We know, and we’re grateful…’
            ‘Grateful!’
            ‘You still haven’t answered my question,’ Gideon said. ‘Why tell us now?’
            She nodded and glanced down at her trembling thin hands. ‘My conscience, I suppose. They left your pa for dead but he managed to get home and told me everything, how he’d been double-crossed and dry-gulched. They ran off with his share of the loot. A lot of money, it was. Money that should’ve been ours – now it could be yours.’ She wiped tears away with the heel of her hand. ‘I nursed him till he died.’
            ‘But why now, Ma?’ Gideon persisted.
            She raised her head and eyed her sons. ‘Because now you’re men and you’ll soon be free – free to exact revenge.’
            ‘We still have four years left to serve,’ said Gideon.
            ‘Maybe two, if we get parole,’ added Justus.
            ‘Is that so? Well, the doctor tells me I have maybe two weeks left to serve in this life, so I needed to speak to you both before my time was up.’ Her hands reached out to each side, fingers interlacing with theirs. ‘Don’t fail me, boys. Do it for your father.’
            Gideon looked across his mother at Justus.
            She watched them, warm contentment in her chest, and smiled as Gideon said, ‘We’ve got to get rid of Deputy Stone.’
            Justus pursed his lips then nodded.
            Gideon was the strong one, she knew. He’d do her bidding. And Justus, the weaker one, would follow.
            She let go of their hands and twisted her thin right arm behind her, under the pillow and pulled out a Colt Model P .45. She was surprised how heavy it felt; when she’d put it there, its weight had barely signified. ‘I thought you might need this,’ she said. ‘It’s loaded.’
            Blood drained from Justus’s face.
            Gideon nodded then took the weapon, hefted it, his handcuffs chinking.
            As Gideon moved towards the door, she wanted to call to him, but that might alert the deputy. She’d dearly love to watch blood being spilled but consoled herself that she’d listen instead.

Hardback version still available:

Cover my Tony Masero

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Old-Guns-Black-Horse-Western/dp/0709093802/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1383661764&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=old+guns+morton

http://www.amazon.com/Old-Guns-Ross-Morton/dp/0709093802/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1383661816&sr=8-3&keywords=old+guns+morton

Old Guns

Just sold my fifth Black Horse Western to Robert Hale, Old Guns. A tale with a difference, as it moves from 1892 to 1859 to 1866 as the past catches up with a number of ageing ex-lawmen...

July, 1892.
Sam Ransom’s looking forward to his 62nd birthday with his wife and two children. Then he gets a telegram from the Bethesda Falls sheriff. His old partner Abner was mortally wounded, but before he died Abner left a note – the Meak twins were out to get Ransom and the others ‘because of what happened at Bur Oak Springs’. Their families weren’t safe, either. Ransom sets out to warn his old friends, Jubal, Rory and Derby. But he’s too late to prevent another brutal death.

Bur Oak Springs happened over two decades ago. The place was a ghost town even then. The Meak twins seem set on a crusade of vengeance, but why?

Ransom’s family is put in jeopardy and the ultimatum is clear. He and his friends must return to the ghost town again, 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. The young guns against the old guns.