Some time ago I sat down and decided to write a novella – a western novella - because aren’t they just the best novellas that there are?

I wrote one chapter. You know the one. The stranger rides into town - “Man and horse looked tired – dog tired. Both their heads hung, and the hooves moved slowly along the dusty path …”. Chapter 2 might yet get written. I am more of a short story writer.

I mentioned it to Erin in passing, and I sent it to her. In response she sent me the title page for a story that she had considered writing. “All Her Misfortune" – “a street kid in 1900's Chicago has to run for his life after almost accidentally stealing a huge fortune takes a train ride and conceals himself among a group of mail order brides on their way to weddings in the Wyoming mines.”

That mock up cover is the title page to the book that has just been published by Doppler Press on Amazon “All her Misfortune and Other Romances”. Erin added her own stuff to several chapters to the original story and the whole thing was done within about 10 days for Erin sending the thread of an idea.

It was a torrid creative process. I learned that we both stand on our principles no matter how unreasonable, and we can both get bitchy, but that people will agree that fine porcelain art comes from a fiery furnace.

“This could be book,” she said, or something like that. Maybe if I had more stories? I had two - "Indian Red" and "Frontier Bride" could fit, but that was not enough. We needed more stories - more material. The ghost town of Calico is near her home. “What about a girl with the name “Trouble” and somebody goes looking for her?” Somehow these ideas that I might initially scoff at, turn into real stories.

She said: “I had another idea that started - "Maybe it was a bear, maybe it was a wendigo like the old Indian said. Whatever the beast had been, it left Ansel Georges more dead than alive”. About a week later I had written the story, but somehow missed out that name! The story is “Wendigo”

She was not keen to stop there and basically, she has been bombarding me with ideas ever since – usually ideas that I cannot refuse spinning into a story.

What was going to be one book is already three, and at last count I have another 22 books lined up for a total of 1.3 million words!

Genres or themes include “Hiding and Disguise”, “Crimes”, “Art”, “War Stories”, “Isolated Places”, “Sports and Games”, “Getting Ahead” as well as anthologies of Science Fiction stories, tales of voluntary change and a collection of my stories based on obscure historical facts. There should be something there for every TG fiction reader.

But start with "Misfortune and Other Romances of the Old West". Here is the link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B097S4TB9Y

Maryanne