A COWBOY CHRISTMAS--THE RODEO by Marisa Masterson

It's Christmas in July and the gate opens. Out comes a wildly bucking horse with the man determined to stay in the saddle. Six seconds, seven, eight! He stayed on the required eight seconds.







That's a common enough scene at a rodeo. Consider, though, how did we get our modern rodeo?

Small communities in Texas would come together to celebrate the Fourth of July. Bronc riding and showing off roping skills became a part of those celebrations. Cowboys from different ranches could compete to see who was the best.

In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Wild west shows were very popular and featured some of what became a part of any rodeo. Cowboys signed on to show off their riding and roping skills. The public loved it.




The first rodeo recorded as awarding prizes was held in Pecos, Texas in 1883. The first one to charge admission is thought to be in Prescott, Arizona. Regardless of where these things happened, by the 1890, rodeos became annual events in many places.

With their popularity, a huge problem rose. Many of the large rodeos billed themselves as "World Championship Rodeo". Just imagine how many world champions there were in one year alone! This is one of the reasons that several rodeo committees formed the Rodeo Association of America in 1929. It was the start at trying to regulate the celebration and change the rodeo from a spectacle into the sport that it is today.

But why Christmas in July or Cowboy Christmas? I'm not sure. I do know that ten days in early July are packed with more rodeos than a person could hope to attend. It's definitely an exciting time. The contestants have the chance to win some serious money, though most spend more to be there than they win. Still, maybe the chance of winning the payout is why it's like Christmas to them.


Sadly, people couldn't head out to rodeos this year. Long standing traditions gave way to health and safety concerns, and the annual rodeo became one more victim in this terrible pandemic.

I hope that isn't a sign that Santa plans to stay home on December 24...

(I want to direct you to a fantastic article for more information on the background of rodeos--https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/llr01#.)

Here's my own spin on Christmas in July, available at a special pre-order price. Now, it's $.99, but the price goes up to $2.99 on July 31...

Pre-order today for the special price.

A hula dancer—seriously? And blonde to boot!

Why did someone send JT Kirkwood a hula dancer ornament? This was July, not even close to December and the season for a Christmas tree. The note promised that the dancer was real and waiting for him. No matter how ridiculous this seemed, JT looked at the ornament and felt compelled to find the woman mentioned in the note. Too bad his father’s accident prevents him from looking.

A luau—seriously? With their town of Oak Grove hit by layoffs, why did Bonnie Miller’s mother insist that they throw a city-wide party at the small strip mall that housed Bonnie’s restaurant. Still, her mother had fantastic insight into what the public wanted, so Bonnie went along with it. She even danced the hula for the crowd, and saw the man of her dreams watching.

Serenaded by Elvis, this couple easily falls in love. But is love at first sight enough to overcome the distance that separates the couple when JT has to return to his job in another town far from Oak Grove? He loves his home and job, but Bonnie is fiercely loyal to hers as well.

Mrs. Claus is discovering that not even the magic of a compelling ornament or the lyrical sounds of Elvis will be enough to bring about this couple’s happily ever. Which one will compromise? Will each say Aloha--meaning goodbye?

Bill Pickett, an Extraordinary Black Cowboy by Sarah J. McNeal

Bill Pickett was born on December 5, 1870 to Thomas Jefferson Pickett, a former slave, and Mary “Janie” Gilbert near Taylor, Texas. He was the second child of 13 with an ancestry of African-American and Cherokee. He left school in the 5^th grade to become a ranch hand and married Maggie Turner, once a slave and the daughter of a white southern plantation owner. They had 9 children together.

An extraordinary cowboy, Pickett invented the technique of bulldogging, the skill of grabbing cattle by the horns and wrestling them to the ground. Pickett had witnessed cattlemen using a trained bulldog to catch a stray steer. He figured, if the bulldog could do it, he most certainly could. He practiced this feat by riding hard, leaping from his horse, and wrestling the steer to the ground. I guess he mimicked the bulldog by biting the cow on the lip and then falling backwards. Kind of gross in my opinion, but the stunt changed over time into what is called steer wrestling which is still practiced in rodeos today, but without biting the cow’s lip. Thank goodness.

Soon enough, Pickett became known for his tricks and stunts which he performed at county fairs. Along with his four brothers, Bill Pickett formed The Pickett Brothers Bronco Busters and Rough Riders Association. That’s a mouthful, for certain. His name became well known and synonymous with popular rodeos. He performed his bulldogging stunt as he traveled around Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, and Wyoming.

I’ve talked about the 101 Ranch before because of two rodeo posters dated May 1901 that I found in my grandfather McNeal’s trunk. Well, in 1905, Pickett joined the 101 Ranch Wild West Show that featured famous cowboys like Buffalo Bill, Will Rogers, Tom Mix, Bee Ho Gray, and Lucille Mulhall. It wasn’t long before Bill Pickett became a popular member of the show and toured around the world and appeared in early motion picture shows in which he was known as “the Dusky Demon”. 

His ethnic background kept him from performing in many of the rodeos until he was forced to claim he was of Comanche heritage. In 1921 he performed the movies, The Bull-Dogger and The Crimson Skull.

He retired from the Wild West Shows, but continued ranching. In 1932, a bronco kicked Bill Pickett in the head. After lying in a coma for several days, Bill Pickett passed from this earth.

A headstone for Bill Pickett was erected beside the graves of Miller brothers who owned Ranch 101 at the Cowboy Hill Cemetery, but his actual burial place is near a 14 foot stone monument in honor of the friendship of the Ponca Tribal Chief White Eagle and the Miller Brothers on Monument Hill. The monument is also known as the White Eagle Monument to the local people and is less than a quarter mile north east of Marland in Noble County, Oklahoma.

Pickett was indicted into the National Rodeo Hall of Fame in 1971.

The United States Postal Service included Bill Pickett in its Legends of the West commemorative sheet which was unveiled December 1993. Bill Pickett’s family informed the post office they has made the stamp with the wrong image which was of Bill’s brother, a fellow cowboy star. The United States Post Office corrected the image and reissued the stamp in Bill Pickett’s honor October 1994.

The Taylor City Council announced in March 2015 that the street that leads to the rodeo arena would be named in honor of Bill Pickett.

It is always exciting to me when I learn of someone from such humble beginnings makes something of themselves and becomes an honored icon for others to look up to and emulate. Bill Pickett was such an icon.

To read more about Bill Pickett:

•           Hanes, Bailey C. (1977). Bill Pickett, Bulldogger: The Biography of a Black Cowboy. Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 0-8061-1391-X. OCLC 02632780.

•           Johnson, Cecil (1994). Guts: Legendary Black Rodeo Cowboy Bill Pickett. Fort Worth, TX: Summit Group. ISBN 1-56530-162-5. OCLC 31374075.

Sarah J. McNeal is a multi-published author of several genres including time travel, paranormal, western and historical fiction. She is a retired ER and Critical Care nurse who lives in North Carolina with her four-legged children, Lily, the Golden Retriever and Liberty, the cat. Besides her devotion to writing, she also has a great love of music and plays several instruments including violin, bagpipes, guitar and harmonica. Her books and short stories may be found at Prairie Rose Publications and its imprints Painted Pony Books, and Fire Star Press. Some of her fantasy and paranormal books may also be found at Publishing by Rebecca Vickery and Victory Tales Press. She welcomes you to her website and social media:

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WHERE DO YOU GET STORY IDEAS?

By Guest Lynn Cahoon

When I started writing, I signed up for classes at my local university in the MFA, Creative Writing program.  A homework assignment for my course in creative non-fiction led me to a small mining town thirty minutes from my home.

With the Civil War raging in the east, gold was discovered the Idaho mountains. In December of 1862, Bannock, now known as Idaho City, was founded. Towns sprung up almost overnight during this rush.  (Think Paint Your Wagon.) At its heyday, Idaho City had over 250 businesses, and was the largest city in the Northwest, surpassing Portland, Oregon.

Bannock, Idaho, now known as Idaho City

 But as the gold dwindled and the wooden structures were destroyed by a series of fires, the capital moved to Boise, a town deep in what’s now the Boise National Forest.  Today, the town is a thriving tourist spot with several of the original buildings still intact, and some repurposed for other usages.

When I walked down the dirt streets, a sense of history overwhelmed me, and the writer's mind started wondering , what if…

My wanderings took me up to the Pioneer Cemetery.  The cemetery was established in 1863, a must for this dangerous town.  Out of the first 200 graves, only 20 people died of natural causes.

It’s estimated that over 2000 graves exist in the cemetery, but as I walked through the tree-lined paths, I found Mary’s grave. Covered with a full granite grave cover, her husband had carved a poem telling her how much she would be missed and that he’d meet her in heaven.  The romance writer in me took that poem, and started researching the other Mary, as I called her.

Mary Pinney's grave

Her husband, James Pinney, went on to become a mayor of Boise (the capital city) and remarried a woman also named Mary. I always wondered if he remembered his first Mary and the lovely promise he’d put in stone on her grave.  A promise to meet her in the next life.

When I turned in that story for my professor, she said she loved the story, but she felt like there was too much fiction in the recounting of Mary’s untimely death, which I chose to focus on for the assignment. No, I didn’t know if she died in childbirth, like I’d written, but many women did. And I could see her, trying to make it to her husband’s office where he ran a small store and post office for the town. I imagined her peeking into the high windows of the Masonic Hall, trying to see what the men did when they met.  The Grand Lodge #1 was started in this small town in 1867.

Boise Grand Lodge #1, Masonic Hall

So, I learned a lot about the town of Idaho City through my research, but I learned more about my style of storytelling. I want to know the everyday stories, not only the history.  And if my truth gets surrounded by a little creative fiction, so much the better
.
My current release, The Bull Rider’s Manager is a contemporary set in my hometown of Boise, with a side trip to Vegas.

Barb Carico’s all about business.  Now that her best friend tied the knot with Barb’s new business partner, she’s busier than ever. Managing Jesse Sullivan’s career and public persona can be a handful. Add in an aging mother who goes through home health nurses like candy, Barb’s hanging on the edge.

Her one salvation?  Hunter Martin, prodigal son of Martin Family Dairy and, hopefully, Jesse’s next sponsor. After his brother’s death, Hunter becomes an instant dad to his seven-year-old niece.  For Hunter, the rodeo weekend with Barb is the perfect excuse to relax.

When their dinner turns into a quick trip to a Vegas wedding chapel, both Barb and Hunter agree their nuptials were a mistake. Barb doesn't know anything about being a wife or mother, but she needs one favor.  A favor she'll trade her lifestyle, independence, and even risk her heart to make come true.

Lynn Cahoon, Author

Lynn Cahoon is a contemporary romance author with a love of hot, sexy men, real and imagined. Her alpha heroes range from rogue witch hunters to modern cowboys. And her heroines all have one thing in common, their strong need for independence. Or at least that’s what they think they want.  She blogs at her website, A Fairy Tale Life. www.lynncahoon.wordpress.com

Buy link - http://www.amazon.com/The-Bull-Riders-Manager-ebook/dp/B009VLZHVQ

Sources:
http://www.idahocityhistoriclodge.com
http://www.idahocityevents.org

Real Life Cowboy

My book Bridled Heart is up for book of the week at The Romance Studio

This book was set among the rodeo crowd. Well the elite rodeo crowd the cowboys who make it to the National Finals Rodeo every year. I used four time and reigning bareback rider Bobby Mote as my go to cowboy to learn about the rodeo life and what a cowboy thinks about when riding a bucking horse.

I was impressed by the workout regime he keeps. But a fit body is harder to tear apart than a flimsy one. They use their arms and legs to balance and hold onto the animal. More of the cowboy's body that is in contact with the animal the easier it is to feel their movements. That means staying in the saddle and not being thrown in the air and keeping a tight grip on the rope to feel the tug and give on the animal's head.

Here's a blurb and excerpt for Bridled Heart.
A specialized placement schedule and self-imposed vow of celibacy keeps ER nurse, Gina Montgomery, from getting too close to anyone. Music is her only solace and release from a past laced with abuse. But when that music draws the attention of a handsome bareback rider, her chosen solitary life—not to mention her vow—gets tested to the limits.

Holt Reynolds let his younger sister down when she needed him most. With the similarities to his sister far too evident in Gina, he can’t get the woman out of his head, or her poignant music out of his heart. But how can he find a way to free her bridled heart before the past resurfaces to destroy their one chance at happiness?

Excerpt
Reaching the bleachers, she put a hand on the bench to climb back up into her seat when the announcer boomed, “Next up is Holt Reynolds, an Oregon cowboy who is well on his way to making the top fifteen and vying for the National title.”
Her breathing stopped and her heart palpitated. He was here. Did she want to see him or keep the memory of their encounter just that—a fond memory?
The announcer kept talking, and she found herself hurrying to the fence, watching through the railing. She had to see him, if for no other reason than to dispel the hold he had over her.
A horse and rider lunged out of the chute. The crowd roared. Her gaze traveled from the large, dark muscular beast to the man, waving one arm in the air and raking his spurs on the bucking, twisting horse’s shoulders. The animal leaped, twisted, and leaped again. Muscles bulged below rolled up sleeve and mounded the upper part of Holt’s shirt. Fear clenched her chest. What if he fell? What if the animal came down on top of him?
His gaze was riveted on the horse’s ears. The concentration on his face showed a fierce competitiveness she’d not witnessed at their first encounter.
The buzzer vibrated along her nerves like a cheese grater. Gina clung to the fence watching Holt relax his position on the horse, grabbing the handhold with two hands. The animal continued bucking and kicking. Her heart pounded harder with each jolt to Holt’s body.
A man on another horse rushed alongside the bucking animal. Holt gripped the other cowboy around the waist, slipped from the bucking horse, and landed on his feet.
He walked toward the fence, keeping the animal in his sight…until his gaze latched onto hers peering through the fence. He stopped, stared, and a slow, surprised grin tipped his lips.
The warmth in his eyes rolled over her like an old friend. A flash behind him drew her gaze.
The horse circled back by Holt, its legs lashing out as it bucked and kicked. Her throat clogged with fear. Not a sound emitted when she opened her mouth. Her fear registered on Holt's face at the same time the horse bucked by him. A hoof caught Holt in the chest, flinging him against the fence.
“Holt!”


Paty
www.patyjager.net
www.patyjager.blogspot.com

Buy the book

Rodeo Cowboys

Who hasn't done a double take when a cowboy walks into a room?

The first think you see is the hat whether it's still on his head or he's holding it in his hand. Then either the t-shirt or the snap-front shirt tucked into blue jeans. And not just any blue jeans either Wranglers or Levis. Then the boots. Either lace up Ropers or the regular pull on boots. Though sometimes they might surprise you and have on athletic shoes. But there's something about the way they carry themselves and interact with other people that draws your attention and lets you know they're a cowboy.

The cowboy is still an icon or awe and mystery. They have an unspoken code of manners and right and wrong that you don't find in among other occupations. I learned this first hand when interviewing four time and reigning bareback champion Bobby Mote and his wife Kate. I'd decided to have a rodeo athlete as the hero in a contemporary I was plotting. So I contacted Bobby via his blog and asked if he would allow me to pick his brain to get into the head of a rodeo character for a book. He was very gracious and after e-mailing back and forth for a couple of months to find a time between his rodeo appearances, we finally had a date.

I drove to his ranch and met his wife and two kids. The oldest was at a friends house. Bobby was just finishing up his morning workout. It's hard to ogle a man twenty years younger than you with his wife and kids present but he finished up his crunches in a small workout area next to the living room while I tried to make small talk with his wife.

Then he went and showered and I found out what life is like when Bobby's on the road and Kate was home taking care of things. And what it was like when the whole family hit the road with him. Bobby came back wearing jeans and a big belt buckle looking hesitant. He is a humble person, and I had to really coax things out of him. Like most cowboys when not around their buddies they can be a it tongue tied.

I gathered the needed information about rodeo schedules, his emotions when getting ready for a ride and after a ride. And hopefully, I used the information well enough to bring my fictional rodeo athlete Holt Reynolds to life in my book Bridled Heart.

As a writer have you gone the extra mile to learn an occupation for a character in your book? AS a reader can you tell when an author has found out all they can about an occupation?

blurb and excerpt for Bridled Heart
A specialized placement schedule and self-imposed vow of celibacy keeps ER nurse, Gina Montgomery, from getting too close to anyone. Music is her only solace and release from a past laced with abuse. But when that music draws the attention of a handsome bareback rider, her chosen solitary life—not to mention her vow—gets tested to the limits.

Holt Reynolds let his younger sister down when she needed him most. With the similarities to his sister far too evident in Gina, he can’t get the woman out of his head, or her poignant music out of his heart. But how can he find a way to free her bridled heart before the past resurfaces to destroy their one chance at happiness?

Excerpt

“Why do you help with this event?” He laced his fingers together resting his hands on the table in front of him. His coffee-colored gaze held admiration.
She dropped her gaze and picked at her napkin. His interest was flattering, and he hadn’t attended the event just to inflate his image. If that had been his agenda, he would have stayed to be photographed with the person who purchased his art. She peered into his smiling face. He waited so patiently for her to answer. By this time most men would have given up on her and moved on to someone else. She searched his eyes. He seemed genuinely interested.
She took a deep breath and hoped she wasn’t going to regret divulging more. “I see so many children in the ER rooms who…” she turned her head and chewed on her cuticle. When they arrived needing her care, she put aside her emotions and did the job, but afterward, she always broke down. How could a parent do that to a child? She knew how it felt to grow up feeling different.
He placed a hand over the one on the table. “It’s okay, you don’t have to tell me. I can see their plight affects you.” He squeezed her hand. “I could tell when you were playing the piano your heart is filled with sorrow.”
She stared into his eyes. The sincerity of his words and the acceptance of her pain, even though he thought it was all for others made her want to weep. She hadn’t had anyone care about her in so long, she didn’t know how to act.
Jerking her hand out from under his, she stood. “I have to go.”
“Wait.” He snagged her hand as she grabbed her coat from the back of her chair. “Do you have a phone number?”
He held her firm but gentle. Warmth spiraled up her arm and settled in her chest. Why didn’t she feel frightened or invaded by this man? She shook her head. She didn’t want to see him again. If she did, it would be hard to remain faithful to her vow. He’d started to seep into the empty cracks created over the years.

www.patyjager.net
www.patyjager.blogspot.com
www.thewilderosepress.com

The Contemporary West & The Rodeo

Hi Sweetheart readers! I'm thrilled to be a part of this new group blog - mostly because its main focus is one of my all-time favorite subjects: the American West! The western genre has come a long way from the dime novels that made it famous. Before I began writing western romance, whenever I pictured the West it usually featured gunfights between cowboys and Indians, treasure hunting, and folklore heroes.

What surprises a lot of people - and, I admit, me once, too - is that contemporary westerns are as hot a commodity as historical westerns. For example, the Wayback, TX series created by the western editors of The Wild Rose Press. These novellas take place in a fictional western small town and are each, yes, contemporary western romances. As a testiment to the popularity of the contemporary western sub-genre, almost all of them hit the publisher's bestseller's list. So what makes contemporary westerns so special? A lot of what readers love about the contemporary West hasn't changed much from the ways of the old West. Cowboys still wear their Stetsons proudly. A lot of sheriffs still wear silver stars and cowboy boots. And cattle ranching is still done from the back of a horse. Lots of cowboys, in the ranching world especially, occassionally still sleep under the stars.

A key ingredient that make the books of the Wayback, TX series so desirable and something we don't see a lot of in historical westerns that is still quintessentially western is the rodeo. Though this ranching-based sporting event developed in Spain and Mexico, it has become a large part of our western culture. In fact, if you've ever been to a rodeo, you know that there's something about the whole spectacle that harkens back to dusty days of old. Not too many people know how far this western tradition has spread. After it grew popular in the United States, it traveled to Canada, South America, and Australia where it is still wildly popular in country areas. Rodeo is the official state sport of South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming. It is also a sport in which women have most always been welcome to compete. And though the rodeo has created controversy with animal rights' activists from its inception, the competitions are now much more animal-friendly. Great news for people like me who believe strongly in the rights of animals!

The best part of rodeos, for me, is the gathering of cowboys! From the feathers tucked in the brim of their hats to the spurs of their boots, there is something undeniably fascinating about those rodeo cowboys! If you've never experienced the rodeo yourself, here's a glimpse into bull-riding from a spectator's perspective:

The enthusiasm of the rodeo crowd was infectious. From underneath the brim of her new hat, Calli’s eyes widened as Stella’s husband rode a mean, bucking bull with impossible grace. She got to her feet with the crowd to cheer him on as the seconds stretched.

“Oh my God, he’s going to do it!” Calli squealed, clutching Stella’s shoulder and spilling popcorn everywhere as she hopped up and down.

“I know, I know, I know!” Stella shrieked, pressing a hand to her heart. There was a mixed look of pure terror and anticipation on her face.

The buzzer rang out across the corral. The audience applauded, whooped and hollered as Judd did a lithe roll off the bull’s back and retreated out of the cloud of dust the wild animal’s hind legs kicked up. As the rodeo clowns moved forward to chase the bull out of the corral, Judd raised his hat to the jubilant crowd.

Just before he turned to trot off, he sent a smile Stella’s way.

“Aw,” Teensy Griffin cooed. “Nothing like a roped cowboy.”

Stella breathed a sigh of relief and shrank back to the seat. “Glad that’s over.”

“I don’t know how you do it,” Calli said with a shake of her head. “Do you know how stupid you have to be to let the guy you love do something like that? Didn’t you see 8 Seconds?”

“He lives for this,” Stella explained. “Absolutely lives for it.”

“They all have their things,” Teensy put in, rubbing an absent hand over the considerable baby bump stretching the belly of her bright pink tank top. “Thankfully, Nick’s is model airplanes. Lucky you, Judd’s fetish is way sexier.”

Calli shook her head at the absurdity of it. Even she had to admit, though, that bull riding was kind of sexy. The to-hell-with-it man riding the untamed beast. He might as well be giving fate the bird. It took more balls than Calli had ever seen, not to mention some unique, ingrained athleticism.

As the next bull and rider charged out of the gate, she realized that these men were athletes. Her initial rodeo skepticism had melted into complete respect in less than an hour.

BET IT ON MY HEART © Amber Leigh Williams

This is a clip from Book III of the Ridge family saga, a trilogy written for TWRP's Wayback, TX series. All three books feature a rodeo cowboy. In the first book, Blackest Heart, silent cowboy Judd Black (mentioned above) is a champion bull-rider. This story placed 1st in the 2009 More Than Magic Contest's novella category and was chosen for trade paperback publication in the Wayback, TX anthology The Way Back Home! Book II, Bluest Heart (the bestselling book in the Ridge trilogy so far), features Casey Ridge, a cattle rancher and calf-roping competitor and his heroine, Josie Brusky, who holds her own at the rodeo in barrel racing. And, finally, in Book III, Bet It On My Heart, we get to know the quintessential cowboy, Keefe Ridge, who is a retiring bronc-rider. Readers voted Keefe and Bet It On My Heart Book of the Week at Long & Short Reviews.

In each book the rodeo creates a solid backdrop for some good contemporary romance and I had the time of my life researching and writing each! If my pen and I ever do go back west, whether for a historical or another contemporary trilogy, fans of the Ridges be assured, I'll definitely be dipping back into some of that rodeo ink! And since at this time I write contemporary westerns only, I'll be back next month with some more fun influences of the contemporary West! Hope you enjoyed the excerpt and, if you're interested, the Ridges of Wayback, TX just launched in audio book, too! All three books are available now at The Wild Rose Press in ebook and AudioLark in audio!

Amber Leigh Williams

"Williams has brought the romantic back to romance!" ~ Long & Short Reviews

BLACKEST HEART ~ 1st Place More Than Magic Novella

FOREVER AMORE ~ LASR Best Book of 2009 Nominee