Monday, January 28, 2013

RESEARCH & ROMANCE



Author Stephen Bly with cowboy hat
Stephen Bly

Stephen Bly
Copyright©2003


When a cowboy writer does research, the sight of a landmark can spark an idea for a full-fledged novel ... or just a poem.  


Southeast of Four Corners, New Mexico is Shiprock, an impressive example of a volcanic neck or a central feeder pipe formed by a long ago eruption.


Shiprock, New Mexico
Shiprock, New Mexico
In Monument Valley, west of this location, the pillars tower one after another. But Shiprock stands alone. With its spire in the shape of the rigging of an ocean bound vessel, the silhouette looks very much like a tall ship on the horizon.  


No wonder the old-timers trudging across the desert rubbed their eyes in disbelief at the view. If you ever get a chance to visit this site, we have found between March and May to be the best times. If you have already been there, what did the vision of it inspire in you? 

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Aim For Stetson&Justin&Kelley Quality



Author Stephen Bly speaking at Maranatha Camp, Michigan
Stephen Bly
Stephen Bly
Copyright©1994


Long before radio and TV, even among the cowboys and ranchers of the Old West, brand names meant something to them.

John B. Stetson made beaver hats with high crowns and wide brims like no one else. A man only had to buy one Stetson in his lifetime, unless a footpad or sneak thief stole it.

Another man named Joe Justin settled into Old Spanish Fort in 1879 on the Texas side of the Red River and began making boots. Without help from advertising agencies or basketball star endorsements he managed to gain such a reputation that a pair of Justin's still denote distinctive boots. 

Friday, January 11, 2013

Author Janet Chester Bly at home office
Janet Chester Bly in office
Janet Chester Bly
Copyright©2013


This morning I was helping gals from our small church take down the Christmas decorations and do overall cleaning of the building. While mopping the bathrooms, a memory of long ago came to mind.

Aimee Semple McPherson
Aimee Semple McPherson
Back in the early 1970s while hubby attended Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, we also served as youth workers in a northeast Los Angeles church that provided housing. We also helped with part-time church facility housekeeping.

Wednesday, January 09, 2013

Interview with Stuart Brannon

Stuart Brannon photo, Stephen Bly's series character
Stuart Brannon

Janet Chester Bly Copyright©2012

JCB: Stuart, how come you’re not too fond of Christmas time?

BRANNON: Oh, I enjoy celebrating the birth of Jesus my Savior. It’s just that Christmas also brings some tough memories … lost my wife and baby back in 1875 on Christmas Day. Then, after my cattle got wiped out with the disease, riding through a bitter blizzard to a hard winter at Broken Arrow Crossing the Christmas of ’76. Tended to a wounded prospector, an abused, pregnant Indian girl, and faced off with a band of wild outlaws. All that comes rushing back on a blustery December day.

Thursday, January 03, 2013

Recipes From Author Cheryl Wyatt's New Novel

Doctor to the Rescue, Love Inspired novel by Cheryl Wyatt
Doctor to the Rescue

 

Eagle Point Emergency Recipes: 

Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings  


Ingredients:   
2 apples sliced and cored. 
2 sticks butter. 
2 cups sugar.