Richard S. Wheeler's Blog, page 16
February 10, 2014
Emeritus
The Montana Board of Regents has named my wife, Sue Hart, emeritus professor. She will receive the honor at commencement in early May.
For over half a century she taught a wide variety of English courses, ranging from composition to creative writing. She also taught various literature courses, including adolescent literature and women's literature. But the one that drew many students was her Montana literature course. She knew nearly all of the authors she taught, including A. B. Guthrie Jr., Ivan Doig, and Tom McGuane, and brought her personal understanding into the classroom, helping students appreciate the work as well as the author. Indeed, she often brought the authors into her classrooms. Publishers and editors often consulted with her about which books to reprint. She has had a hand in keeping several Montana classics in print.
Even now, in retirement, a steady stream of friends and students stop in to visit her.
For over half a century she taught a wide variety of English courses, ranging from composition to creative writing. She also taught various literature courses, including adolescent literature and women's literature. But the one that drew many students was her Montana literature course. She knew nearly all of the authors she taught, including A. B. Guthrie Jr., Ivan Doig, and Tom McGuane, and brought her personal understanding into the classroom, helping students appreciate the work as well as the author. Indeed, she often brought the authors into her classrooms. Publishers and editors often consulted with her about which books to reprint. She has had a hand in keeping several Montana classics in print.
Even now, in retirement, a steady stream of friends and students stop in to visit her.
February 5, 2014
Healing
I am happy to hear that Ron Scheer has weathered successful brain tumor surgery and is recovering at home.
For years, Ron has produced the finest blog devoted to the literature and film of the American West. And surely one of the finest blogs devoted to literature of any sort.
I have come to rely on his fine evaluations of western fiction, including western classics and early works that have fallen into obscurity. He has an extraordinary gift of getting to the heart of a story, finding whether the characters are plausible, whether the story works, and whether the author achieved what he set out to do. Along the way I have learned a great deal about western fiction, its roots, its strengths, its occasional failures.
I rejoice in his recovery and look forward to reading his remarkable web log in the future.
For years, Ron has produced the finest blog devoted to the literature and film of the American West. And surely one of the finest blogs devoted to literature of any sort.
I have come to rely on his fine evaluations of western fiction, including western classics and early works that have fallen into obscurity. He has an extraordinary gift of getting to the heart of a story, finding whether the characters are plausible, whether the story works, and whether the author achieved what he set out to do. Along the way I have learned a great deal about western fiction, its roots, its strengths, its occasional failures.
I rejoice in his recovery and look forward to reading his remarkable web log in the future.
February 3, 2014
Highlight of Sue's Day
I continue to read The Serpent's Tooth to my wife, Sue Hart, in her room at the assisted living place nearby. She loves the Craig Johnson novel, and is familiar with the characters, because she has read most of the Walt Longmire series. She also enjoyed them in the television version of the series. And of course the author is a cherished friend of hers.
I'm learning to relax my voice, but I still end up gravel-voiced after completing a chapter. Johnson is a gifted Viking novelist, who fills his stories with the unexpected. A streak of humor threads his novels, bringing smiles to Sue's lips.
I've discovered that reading a good novel to someone who can no longer read is one of the most rewarding things I've done.
I'm learning to relax my voice, but I still end up gravel-voiced after completing a chapter. Johnson is a gifted Viking novelist, who fills his stories with the unexpected. A streak of humor threads his novels, bringing smiles to Sue's lips.
I've discovered that reading a good novel to someone who can no longer read is one of the most rewarding things I've done.
January 31, 2014
Died Aborning
My Cody novel is one of those that I liked a lot, but barely surfaced when it was published in 2006. It embodies a rich slice of history, tender, outrageous, and comic. Upon Buffalo Bill's death in 1917, the owners of the Denver Post decided to make his remains a tourist attraction and boost Denver's economy. They succeeded, and even now, Cody is buried outside Denver, and remains a tourist attraction.
There were all sorts of nefarious players in all that, and I've tried to catch them all in my story. The novel is largely a series of viewpoints as all the dubious players make sport of poor Buffalo Bill.
I have my fine editor and e-book technician Karyn Cheatham reviving the book. She will give it a bright new cover; the original cover was, to put it mildly, uninspired, and conveyed none of the wild and bizarre events that followed Cody's demise. Which may be why it never sold. It would take some circus type to give the reader a hint of what's in store between the covers. But if anyone can do it, she can.
Here is the Publishers Weekly review:
Wheeler good-naturedly spoofs Buffalo Bill Cody and the many myths surrounding him in this clever take on the mustachioed millionaire frontiersman who never believed his own press. After Cody dies of pneumonia in 1917, his family, friends and associates squabble over his legacy, his money and where he will be buried. Gen. Nelson Miles reminisces about Cody's days as a cavalry scout. Unscrupulous Denver Post publisher Harry Tammen gleefully manipulates and cheats Cody before (and after) his death. Maj. John M. Burke, Cody's publicist, relates the history of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and takes credit for Cody's fame. Cody's wife, Louisa, is a greedy, embittered woman who hates her husband for his boozing, womanizing and reckless spending of what she thinks is her money. Other characters add texture: a gold-digging actress sees Cody as an easy mark; a lawman recalls how Cody helped him pull off a friend's jailbreak; and a newspaper reporter is ordered to write a glowing obituary intended to squeeze even more money out of the celebrity corpse. The Cody that emerges from this wholesome compendium of fictional anecdotes is a flawed but good man, and though Wheeler never fully separates the man from the myth, Wheeler's many fans will not be disappointed.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
There were all sorts of nefarious players in all that, and I've tried to catch them all in my story. The novel is largely a series of viewpoints as all the dubious players make sport of poor Buffalo Bill.
I have my fine editor and e-book technician Karyn Cheatham reviving the book. She will give it a bright new cover; the original cover was, to put it mildly, uninspired, and conveyed none of the wild and bizarre events that followed Cody's demise. Which may be why it never sold. It would take some circus type to give the reader a hint of what's in store between the covers. But if anyone can do it, she can.
Here is the Publishers Weekly review:
Wheeler good-naturedly spoofs Buffalo Bill Cody and the many myths surrounding him in this clever take on the mustachioed millionaire frontiersman who never believed his own press. After Cody dies of pneumonia in 1917, his family, friends and associates squabble over his legacy, his money and where he will be buried. Gen. Nelson Miles reminisces about Cody's days as a cavalry scout. Unscrupulous Denver Post publisher Harry Tammen gleefully manipulates and cheats Cody before (and after) his death. Maj. John M. Burke, Cody's publicist, relates the history of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and takes credit for Cody's fame. Cody's wife, Louisa, is a greedy, embittered woman who hates her husband for his boozing, womanizing and reckless spending of what she thinks is her money. Other characters add texture: a gold-digging actress sees Cody as an easy mark; a lawman recalls how Cody helped him pull off a friend's jailbreak; and a newspaper reporter is ordered to write a glowing obituary intended to squeeze even more money out of the celebrity corpse. The Cody that emerges from this wholesome compendium of fictional anecdotes is a flawed but good man, and though Wheeler never fully separates the man from the myth, Wheeler's many fans will not be disappointed.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
January 30, 2014
The Honorable Cody
A while ago I bought back the rights to my novel about Buffalo Bill, The Honorable Cody, originally published by Sunstone. The story is based closely on history, and begins with Cody's death and a struggle between various cynical parties to turn his grave into a tourist attraction. Cody's own wish to be buried in Cody, Wyoming, is utterly ignored.
The book got good reviews but didn't sell well so I've retrieved it and am hoping to put it into electronic form.The book has a tragicomic quality, and I am hoping a new generation of readers might enjoy it.
The book got good reviews but didn't sell well so I've retrieved it and am hoping to put it into electronic form.The book has a tragicomic quality, and I am hoping a new generation of readers might enjoy it.
January 27, 2014
Off to New York
Today I printed out and made electronic copies of my historical novel dealing with early vaudeville in the Northwest. It is called The Beausoleil Brothers Follies, and follows a vaudeville company through Montana and Idaho in 1896.
I've revised it three times since finishing a draft before Christmas, snipping here, clarifying there, and always trying for consistency. I made some cuts I hope will speed the story along.
My editor at Forge (a Macmillan imprint) says he's always enjoyed vaudeville, and that is good. If there are weaknesses in the story, he will spot them and steer me toward solid ground. He is a senior, and gifted, acquiring editor there.
There were the usual last minute problems. My Brother printer began putting black blots onto the pages, which I ascribed to a cheap replacement toner cartridge I had gotten through Amazon. I hastened to Staples and got an original Brother cartridge, at breathtaking expense, but it solved the problem. (The cheap cartridge cost me a 55-mile round trip to Bozeman, and saved me nothing.) The old Brother printer wasn't grabbing the paper well, so there were a lot of pauses and red lights, but I finally got the 412-page story printed, and packaged, along with electronic copies, and off to my publishers.
I hope the editor finds it a worthwhile project.
I've revised it three times since finishing a draft before Christmas, snipping here, clarifying there, and always trying for consistency. I made some cuts I hope will speed the story along.
My editor at Forge (a Macmillan imprint) says he's always enjoyed vaudeville, and that is good. If there are weaknesses in the story, he will spot them and steer me toward solid ground. He is a senior, and gifted, acquiring editor there.
There were the usual last minute problems. My Brother printer began putting black blots onto the pages, which I ascribed to a cheap replacement toner cartridge I had gotten through Amazon. I hastened to Staples and got an original Brother cartridge, at breathtaking expense, but it solved the problem. (The cheap cartridge cost me a 55-mile round trip to Bozeman, and saved me nothing.) The old Brother printer wasn't grabbing the paper well, so there were a lot of pauses and red lights, but I finally got the 412-page story printed, and packaged, along with electronic copies, and off to my publishers.
I hope the editor finds it a worthwhile project.
January 25, 2014
Reading to Sue
I'm finding real pleasure in reading to my wife, Sue Hart, who is now in an assisted living place three blocks from our Livingston home. It has become difficult for her to read, but she enjoys literature when it is read to her.
I've started reading our friend Craig Johnson's novel, A Serpent's Tooth, which is the newest in his celebrated Longmire series, featuring a Wyoming sheriff. Sue enjoys it so much she smiles as I read. I'm doing a chapter a day.
On many an occasion, Craig and his lovely Judy, were Sue's dinner companions in Billings, and now I am bringing Craig's sure and rich literary voice back into Sue's life.
I've started reading our friend Craig Johnson's novel, A Serpent's Tooth, which is the newest in his celebrated Longmire series, featuring a Wyoming sheriff. Sue enjoys it so much she smiles as I read. I'm doing a chapter a day.
On many an occasion, Craig and his lovely Judy, were Sue's dinner companions in Billings, and now I am bringing Craig's sure and rich literary voice back into Sue's life.
January 20, 2014
Changes In My Life
My wife, Sue Hart, is now a resident of an assisted living facility three blocks from our Livingston home. I go to see her two or three times a day, usually before meals. Several times, I've been able to bring her here for a little while. Recently I wheelchaired her the whole distance, and she got some fresh air.
She was an English professor for over half a century, and the Montana board of regents is awarding her an emeritus professorship at commencement next May. She taught a celebrated course on Montana authors, many of whom she knew personally.
She has short-term memory loss, which makes it hard for her to read, so I am reading to her. There was a piece on an early Montana novelist and screenwriter, B. M. Bower, in a recent Montana Quarterly, which I read and she enjoyed. I also read a moving piece about our treasured friend Ben Bullington, singer and composer, who died of pancreatic cancer.
Sue and I are closer than we've ever been, and often we sit watching the evening news and holding hands.
She was an English professor for over half a century, and the Montana board of regents is awarding her an emeritus professorship at commencement next May. She taught a celebrated course on Montana authors, many of whom she knew personally.
She has short-term memory loss, which makes it hard for her to read, so I am reading to her. There was a piece on an early Montana novelist and screenwriter, B. M. Bower, in a recent Montana Quarterly, which I read and she enjoyed. I also read a moving piece about our treasured friend Ben Bullington, singer and composer, who died of pancreatic cancer.
Sue and I are closer than we've ever been, and often we sit watching the evening news and holding hands.
January 13, 2014
Another Stab at It
Some months ago I noted that one of my Kindle novels, Cashbox, wasn't selling. (The earlier hardcover and mass market published by Forge had done well.) The e-book had a text cover.
I discovered that Amazon permits authors to design their covers, so I decided to try it out. I knew from years as a book editor that covers are humbling. Many a commercial cover I thought would sell books proved to be a dud.
At any rate, I began designing covers for Cashbox, and none of them sold books. But I keep on trying. Cashbox is the story of a dying silver mining town on the frontier, and a remarkable woman who keeps on living there, a little like Baby Doe Tabor, the legendary real-life woman who hung on to a worthless mine.
Here's my latest effort. Tell me what you think of it.
http://www.amazon.com/Cashbox-Richard...
I discovered that Amazon permits authors to design their covers, so I decided to try it out. I knew from years as a book editor that covers are humbling. Many a commercial cover I thought would sell books proved to be a dud.
At any rate, I began designing covers for Cashbox, and none of them sold books. But I keep on trying. Cashbox is the story of a dying silver mining town on the frontier, and a remarkable woman who keeps on living there, a little like Baby Doe Tabor, the legendary real-life woman who hung on to a worthless mine.
Here's my latest effort. Tell me what you think of it.
http://www.amazon.com/Cashbox-Richard...
December 27, 2013
Edna Ferber's Great Western Story
Giant, filmed in 1956 from Edna Ferber's great novel, is in a class by itself. It is a remarkable western, maybe the greatest. Here is James Dean, pacing off a bit of Texas land he inherited. It is scored by Dmitri Tiomkin, and ranks as one of his finest evocations.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDPTkR...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDPTkR...
