Cash Laramie, The Outlaw Marshal

I'm not sure why Cash Laramie returned, and quite frankly, I wasn't looking forward to it because I thought his story arc had been fully realized. Still, a few weeks ago, the antihero I created many moons ago tapped on my shoulder with a well formed short story. Over the course of an afternoon, I knocked out the rough draft and have been polishing it up ever since. It reminded me that stashed in my coffer was a Nik Morton* novel called Death For a Dove featuring both Cash and his fellow marshal, Gideon Miles, and I immediately began readying that dynamite for publication.  

On Twitter, I teased Cash's return and was astonished anyone had remembered, but many did with enthusiasm. To tease a bit further, my story takes place in 1902 when Cash is fifty years old and has pursued a wanted man from his home base in Cheyenne to New York. Nik's upcoming piece occurs in the 1880's on a riverboat with owlhoots, gamblers, a European princess, and a tiger! I enjoy working with Nik -- besides being a top wordsmith, he's been with me and these creations since the beginning. We've already begun plotting more Westerns for 2021. Well, time to stop yapping and get writing.

*Nik recently wrote about the previous Cash and Miles adventure, Coffin for Cash (2015): Disinterring Coffin for Cash - 1 | Disinterring Coffin for Cash - 2.

The June That Was

I'm hoping you all had a great month of June, I did. Our daughter graduated from kindergarten which, as you can imagine, was the highlight. She loves school and told us today she can't wait until summer vacation is over to go back—fingers crossed that attitude stays through 12th grade, right?

Beyond that I released Nik Morton's Continuity Girl through BEAT to a PULP books and published a final short story from the late William E. Wallace. Also, I continued to work on a Thomas Paine project (I help run The Quotable Paine on Twitter) and am nearing completion on Glenn Gray's Transgemination. That novella is "a must read for fans of retro sci-fi/horror B movies, woven with real science, as only Glenn Gray can do." 

I expanded my reach as a freelance writer with an article appearing at LitReactor. As I've mentioned before this is a big deal for me because I've respected the top tier quality that appears there, especially the work of Keith Rawson.

Okay, on to July ...

CONTINUITY GIRL

The latest release from BEAT to a PULP and Nik Morton is now available for kindle pre-order. Print to follow.

What has gone before . . .

In our future, Kyler Knightly and his uncle Damon Cole are field agents for Continuity Inc, a private organization that obtained the contract when the government Time Corps was deregulated. CI is dedicated to protecting human history.

They use the Zygma projector to travel through time and must carry a focus object from the period they’re targeting.

Kyler is also a dreamer with passive psychic talents, a precognitive.

The head of the group is an Artificial Intelligence character, Sennacherib, which possesses an organic interface, sharing the body of a two-spot octopus in an aquarium tank! Their offices are in the West End of London, a disused theater.

The third book in the series brings two more exciting time-travel adventures for Knightly and Cole of Continuity Inc.

CONTINUITY GIRL


Kyler is accompanied by the delectable yet mysterious Tertia Beynon. Their mission is to trace an academic who has traveled to Roman Britain in 192 AD. Precog suggests that an interfering event in this past will radically alter the future. Arriving at Hadrian’s Wall in the freezing winter, the pair encounter blood-thirsty argumentative locals and then obtain the aid of Governor Clodius Albinus in their trek on the northern side of the wall. Here they are confronted by Ambrosius, a druid who possesses arcane power.

Nothing seems simple. Action abounds, with brutal sacrifices, deadly swordplay, a fraught chariot chase and an attack by a pack of wolves.

With all this going on, will they be able to save their future in time?

“What an exciting zip back to the past with some really neat time travel twists! The story may be short but it’s packed with plenty of entertaining ‘what ifs’ and action near Hadrian’s Wall. And for good measure, the conclusion just might be something you don’t expect!” —Nancy Jardine, author of 'The Celtic Fervour' series

WE FELL BELOW THE EARTH

Our duo are helped by Tertia and Chief Inspector Irving. Corpses drained of blood point to a clue, a letter from Bistritz in 1897. Kyler and Cole are sent to Transylvania.

The conclusions are inescapable: it seems that the discovery of time travel—even though it’s regulated and Continuity Inc strives to protect history—heralded in a sequence of parallel time-streams. Where before these time-streams were ‘what if’ scenarios, now they’ve split into different realities. In some, fiction is fact.

The deaths, the blood and gore point to vampires being real, and they’re certainly not your idealized romantic sort. The evil blood-suckers are intent on feasting in Kyler’s present and spreading their contagion ...

The Outlaw Marshal is Returning

Nik Morton discusses writing about someone else's series character. That someone else is me and I couldn't be happier when Nik breathes continuing life into Cash Laramie.

Happenings

A busy week that keeps getting just a little more hectic. On the work front, my interview with Court Merrigan is complete and I'll let you know when that shows up on Criminal Element—the BEAT to a PULP offices are bustling with managing promotion for THE BROKEN COUNTRY. In addition, we are finishing the cover and final formatting for Glenn Gray's TRANSGEMINATION, an out of this world ride from the author who's knack for the outlandish knows no bounds, and we are also ramping up our Thomas Paine project. I'll have more details on these very soon. Not to forget, there's a sci-fi offering on the way from Nik Morton featuring Knightly & Cole and we'll have the bloody return of The Lawyer though his vendetta trail may have to wait a few more months since I'm writing that one with a title I particularly like, The Honorable Killer.

If you are looking for a mystery and a detour from the beaten path I recommend Sebastian Fitzek's The Nightwalker that I reviewed here. The psychological thriller still has me pondering some passages months after the read. Year end best, easily.

On the personal side, I'm continuing to clear out fallen trees from our property and general landscaping to beautify. We bought a lilac that I had wanted to plant yesterday but hope to get in the ground later today with d and Ava's help.

There are also scheduled doctor's appointments and dental visits that have me a bit on edge, because one involves our little one but hopefully all will turn out ok. So, guess, I better get moving and turn a few pages. And as mom would say, "Arrivederci!"

Bullets, Drifters, Sanctuaries, And My Feminist Propaganda Agenda

Been back a day from my sojourn to the Lone Star State, and I’m already chipping away at the to-do list.

Check 1: The Drifter Detective. In this hardboiled tour-de-force by Garnett Elliott, the family line of Cash Laramie continues with his grandson. A tough-as-nails WWII vet roaming the modern West, Jack Laramie lives out of a horse trailer hitched to the back of a DeSoto in search of P.I. gigs to keep him afloat. Had this story been a 1940s flick, I could picture John Garfield playing the lead.

Check 2: Bad Sanctuary. The fourth Hawthorne Weird Western by Heath Lowrance is just around the corner, and in this book, Heath has shed some light on the mysterious 19th century righter of wrongs. Don’t know what I’m jawing ‘bout? Then here’s “That Damned Coyote Hill,” “The Long Black Train,” and “The Spider Tribe” to catch you up.

Check 3: BEAT to a PULP: Hardboiled 2. After working out some kinks with the cover, the print version of this knockout anthology should be available by next weekend. The eBook is off to a ripe, good start, and we thank everyone who’s supported it. While we’re speaking of Hardboiled 2, you’ve gotta read the one-star ‘review’ from an anathematic creature who says I’m pushing “feminist propaganda.” No kidding, this may be my favorite attack ever. Thanks to a buddy on Twitter, I found out the name of this punk (borrowing my attacker’s lingo), and I will keep an eye on ’im.

Check 4: Bullets for a Ballot. This Cash Laramie eBook by Nik Morton just got a facelift. It’s been doing ok but not quite as stellar as the others in the series. I’d been thinking that a woman’s breasts prominently displayed on the cover gave the impression that the book is a bodice-ripper, not a Western. Ballot has a lot going for it with Cash as a teenager, an appearance by Miles, and my favorite ending, thus far, to any of the books. Oh, and if that isn’t enough, a character arrives on the scene who seems very familiar to the outlaw marshal—though he can’t quite put his finger on it— and the eye-opener is pure Nik Morton genius in storytelling.

So move, old son. Move.

Give It Away, Give It Away

I've read many thoughts about giving away books for free and there are a whole host of opinions. It seems it comes down to whether it was successful or not for that particular author. Here are a few quick thoughts on my experiences.

Both volumes of my Cash & Miles Adventures have been offered for free at different times. I began with Vol. II because Vol. I was doing well and I wanted to boost sales of the second collection. During the freebie offer, there was an unexpected increase in sales of the first volume, but that makes sense, right? If you have the second installment of a series, you probably want to know how it started. After the offer closed, Vol. II entered the Top 100 sales charts. I had several readers on Twitter thank me for the free book and mention they bought my other title.

Kinda, sorta the same for MANHUNTER'S MOUNTAIN written by Wayne D. Dundee--a Cash Laramie story with a new author taking the reins. To introduce this first novel (in what I hope will be an ongoing series), I gave it away free for a few days. A couple thousand folks downloaded the book, which helped to expand its horizons through the Amazon charts and recommendations panel "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought." Both these things brought my eBook to the attention of folks who might not otherwise see it. MOUNTAIN has re-entered the best sellers charts several times, and I feel the success goes back to that free giveaway in January.

So I'm going to try again with our latest release, BULLETS FOR A BALLOT written by Nik Morton. We'll see how it works out this time but, so far, giving away books for free has been a good move for me. What has been your experience?

BULLETS FOR A BALLOT Cover (New Cash Laramie Novel)

The latest Cash Laramie novel is BULLETS FOR A BALLOT, which will be released in a few days. Care to review the new eBook? Leave a comment here with your e-mail or drop me a note at paladin-1@hotmail.com.

The Story of a Story

Nik Morton: The story of a story.

Nik Morton on BEAT to a PULP: Round One

Ex Royal Navy, Ex IT, Expat living in Spain. Editor and writer. And all around great guy Nik Morton on BEAT to a PULP: Round One.

Thanks, amigo.