Howard Andrew Jones's Blog, page 20

Used Westerns

Used to, I had no idea what authors to look for in the western sections at a used book store. These days, I have a much better idea, but the sections are SUBSTANTIALLY smaller than what they used to be. There are fewer people reading westerns, and those used books that are left tend to be pretty beat up.

But I found some treasure. First, two more Marvin Albert novels, which you can see in the lower left of this picture. Second, a slew of Fawcett Gold Medal books by authors I don’t know. Any older Gold Medals, though were probably edited well and will at least be good. Maybe they’ll be great. If you enlarge the picture, you’ll see that some &*&%^! wrote X-P over the front and sides of a number of the books. Nice going, dipwad. Way to ruin a book forever.

Let’s see. On the right are nine Gordon Shirreffs novels, three of them double-sized featuring two shorter novels a piece. Morgan Holmes has been telling me good things about Shirreffs for years. And there’s also Lost Stage Valley, by Bonham, which Hocking says is supposed to be on a list of one of the 50 greatest westerns written, and The Cage, by Talmage Powell. I really dug Powell’s private eye series, and these were all .89 cents, so, why not? Lastly, there’s a Brian Garfield title, and I’ve been reading some good reviews of his work lately.

That’s not all, and doesn’t include some other treasures, like Peter Corris novels and some other bits, but I have to get to work.

Novel Writing and Pulp

Hocking sent me a link to a site the other day that might be of interest to a lot of my regular visitors — although as I live in a cave, it may be that you’ve already found it yourself. Anyway, PulpRev had an interesting article on writing a novel, quickly, and it had a lot of salient points, most of which I practice myself.

I’ve poked around the rest of the site some and found it of interest. Certainly I’m in sympathy with a lot of their philosophy, as anyone who’s been reading my posts about my lack of pleasure with padded modern books, or my increasing interest in hardboiled detective and western novels. It’s always nice to find like minded scribes gathering ’round the camp fire, as Adventure fans know.

I love that they’re excited about the wonders of pulp. I’m a little confused by their “starthere” list in that it offers up Robert E. Howard AND E.E. Doc Smith, Burroughs AND Shadow creator Gibson (AKA Grant) without caveats. Sure, Smith and Grant were important, but you want to be careful before you use either of them as a model. Maybe they’re thinking more about a writer’s approach to the craft of writing rather than actual style. While I devoured some Smith books as a kid, he was pretty wooden and actually interfered with my own style development.

While I always thought The Shadow cool in concept, I usually found that The Shadow stories didn’t live up to the promise (I hear from people in the know that The Spider can really deliver what The Shadow promises).

Pulp as thrilling as it seems like it ought to be is actually rare, which is one of the reason the good Ki-Gor stories really ought to be more celebrated.

And of course, no list of “pulps that ought to be read” should leave off Harold Lamb. Just sayin’.

 

Western Round-Up

I’ve continued to read outside of my usual genres, despite some great fantasy suggestions.

Last year I tracked down and read all of Merle Constiner’s westerns, all of which I liked and some of which I loved, and I’ll have to put a best-of list together. Here’s a write-up of one, although I’m not entirely sure the essayist appreciated it as much as it deserved.

And lately I’ve been reading a lot of Marvin Albert. Except that sometimes Albert wrote as Nick Quarry, and sometimes he wrote as Al Conroy and sometimes he wrote as Ian MacAlister, and sometimes as Tony Rome and sometimes he wrote as, you guessed it, Marvin Albert. And sometimes stuff he wrote under a pseudonym got reprinted under his Albert name. Anyway, I’ve yet to read something by him I didn’t like, and it’s all different. He had six hardboiled private eye novels (with a spicy flare to them, because the dames are always improbably gorgeous) with twisty plots and lots of good action, written as Nick Quarry. I’ve read two and enjoyed them, a lot. He had four series books about a gambler/gun-slick named Clayburn, written under his Al Conroy alias, and I’ve read two and enjoyed those, a lot, — and it’s a different style from his Quarry books. One of the Clayburn novels was made into a movie back in the day.

I’ve also read one of Albert’s standalone westerns (there are at least a half dozen of those as well, and at least one other was made into a movie) and it, too, was slightly different in feel, and I read one of his four ’70s adventure novels, Driscoll’s Diamonds, which was a cracking desert adventure yarn, and also different. The man was versatile but delivered the goods every time. At some point soon I’m going to have to discuss his work in depth, but I don’t feel expert enough to do that yet, except to say, wow, seek this guy out. Here’s a great article about him by Bill Crider that has helped me assemble my want list.

The first westerns I read and enjoyed (not counting Lonesome Dove) were those by Ben Haas writing under his John Benteen pseudonym, and I know you’ve probably seen me gush about those (here and here). It’s much easier to get his work, at least in e-book form, than it was when I got interested in him.

Then there’s Donald Hamilton, best known for his Matt Helm books. He only wrote four westerns, and I’ve read three of those and loved every one. The most recent, The Man from Santa Clara aka The Two-Shoot Gun is probably the best yet. I’m holding off on the fourth because, you know, there won’t be any more. The Man from Santa Clara was even more fun after having read so many other westerns, because Hamilton dealt with a lot of the themes I’d been seeing recently and did different things with them, with deeper characters.

Lately I’ve tried two Louis L’Amour novels. I’d read one, long ago, that I thought was okay. Its name escapes me. Recently I read Flint, which was kind of cool, but also Mary Sue, in that the main character seemed to be great at everything. And also rich. And also supremely handsome. And also intimately connected with stocks and business. And he had a secret base in the lava fields. And an awesome horse. And a super gun… Anyway. This time I’m reading an early L’Amour, from Gold Medal, a publisher whose editors (back in the day) seemed to bring out the best in people. About halfway into Last Stand at Papago Wells I’m probably enjoying it about twice as much as Flint. It feels like I’m reading a ’50s or ’60s hardboiled western movie.

Last week I ended up at one of the few local used bookstores and got a gold mine of beat up westerns for cheap. I’ll talk more about that later, but I found some Gordon Shirefs novels, who Morgan Holmes has recommended for years, especially his work for Gold Medal. I’ll probably try one of those when I finish this L’Amour.

So, there you go. I suppose as a fantasy author I ought to be talking about fantasy. Or maybe history. Yet I just keep talking about westerns and hardboiled stuff. I have no idea what kind of audience I’m supposed to attract to draw attention to my own fantasy books, but I gotta write about what interests me…

It’s All About Meeeeeee!

Nerds On Earth invited me over for an interview the other day. Now’s your chance to learn my secret origin, a few details about the new series I’ve been working on, background info on how I approached writing for Paizo, a thumbnail version of my writing techniques, seven favorite books, and other assorted nerdery! Investigate at your own peril!

Seriously, I had a nice time and I’ve been enjoying poking around their site for the last week or so. You should take a look around. There’s plenty of interesting stuff to see over there.

4th of July in 2017

We had a lovely 4th of July here in our tower by the Sea of Monsters. For several days our small selection of chicken drummettes had been soaking in a solution of buttermilk, garlic, and special sauces and those went in the oven until crisp all over (requiring several turns). From the local farmer’s market we had chilled watermelon, corn on the cob (roasted in the oven), and green tomatoes, which my skilled wife breaded and converted into fried green tomatoes.

Said tomatoes were served with homemade remolade sauce, fashioned with homemade mayo, and a lovely homemade orange sauce to dip the drummetes in. On the side was a tasty little salad with some homegrown peas tossed in, and some delicious bread from Cisse’s Bakery — a bit of a drive for us, but worth the trip. And speaking of drives, our old friend Bruce drove down and supplied dessert. Now my wife’s an amazing cook AND chef AND baker, but we do love a Grand Travers pie, especially the blueberry crumble, and that’s what Bruce brought out of the sack.

Soon after we watched a DVD of Hidden Figures, which was just as good as we’d all been told, and then took a walk and watched my son, still suffering from an upper respiratory infection and sounding a little like an asthmatic Mickey Mouse, light our small, low-key fireworks. My daughter, alas, was away being a camp counselor. Highlights were the little fireworks that whirled into the air with a faint buzzing whish, the one that went awry and spun off into the grass (dubbed the Wheel of Doom), the grand finale fountain that set its box on fire (and continued to burn and spin for long minutes until it was christened the Flaming Box of Death), and then the conclusion, wherein we each lit and launched a lantern, AKA miniature hot-air balloon. If you’ve seen Tangled, you know what these are like.

It was a good day. And near its conclusion we sampled a great new root beer, one of the finest I’ve ever tasted, though not quite as fine as my friend Hal Hackleman’s home-brewed root beers. Unlike Hal’s, though, this root beer was found in the local market and purchased by me on a whim so we had something new to try out on the 4th. I’ve been staying away from sodas of late and mostly they taste over sugary to me, but Henry Weinhard’s Root-Beer was most pleasing, with a smooth, well blended flavor.

 

Martial Fitness

Every Saturday when my wife and I leave the karate dojo we head across the street to pick up horse grain or chicken feed or other necessities for our little farm. We wait to change until we get home, so I’m still wearing my gi pants and tee-shirt emblazoned with East-West Karate when I head into the store. I always stop, though, to remove my black belt before I leave the car. At first I removed it because I was embarrassed by my low color belt (and I shouldn’t have been) but now I do it because I don’t want to appear to be showing off.

I’m proud to have earned that belt, and the second stripe on it that means I have a second degree black belt, and I’m going to be proud when, a few years from now, I test for my third degree black belt. I recognize that being proud is not necessarily something to advertise in a public space, which is probably why I don’t talk about martial arts much here on the blog. In point of fact, though, martial arts are a huge part of my life. I spend far more time writing here about solitaire gaming, which I’ve only recently managed to get in once a week. Whereas I’m at the dojo at least twice a week working out and almost always three times, something I’ve been doing off and on for fifteen years.

I started training in my mid thirties and had to stop for about five years (owing to getting busy and followed by a knee injury) but I was still regularly at the dojo taking my children for their own training. When I joined back up I rediscovered  just how good it was for me. I already knew it had been a tremendous boost for my confidence — for instance, I haven’t been chased in my dreams since shortly before I earned my first degree. Round about the time I got my brown belt, which is about three years of experience in Shotokan Karate, I started to be able to block sparring attacks without having to pause and think about which one to use. I haven’t been in a real fight since I was a kid and I don’t expect or desire to be, but it’s a heckuva raise to your self esteem knowing that if some ugly event happens and someone comes at you with a punch you can instinctively knock it out of the way — and know how to swiftly and efficiently counter.

I look and feel more fit, and I seem to be a lot more limber than other men my age not with me at the dojo. After training with one particular upper level kata with a lot of crane stances (where you’re on one leg) my balance has improved as well.

That’s not to say I have fully escaped some age related issues (one troublesome knee, for instance, or an occasional creak as I climb out of bed, or the seemingly inevitable onslaught of love handles) but I can’t help wondering what those issues would be like if I wasn’t working out. Take for example the concluding calisthenics at the end of our stretching regimen every workout day — 25 leg lifts, 25 situps, 25 pushups. I remember that when I first started those 25 pushups were excruciating. After years of effort, those 25 pushups are a breeze and now I’m up past 50. (In fairness, the last 3 or so are a challenge). It’s been slow, steady progress with occasional back sliding, but that continued effort has paid off.

No, I couldn’t take on a horde of ninjas, nor am I ripped like a movie star when I pull my shirt off, but I feel pretty comfortable with who I am, what I look like, and what I can do, which is something I honestly never expected to be able to say, and that’s just about priceless. I hope that if I build these muscles in these middle-age years while it’s still possible to build ’em, it will be far easier to maintain myself in the next phase of my life. While some of that improvement has to do with the additional exercise I do outside of the dojo, I have a hard time believing I’d keep with it if not for the excellent instruction, encouragement, and discipline I’ve learned at East-West Karate.

 

Fantasy Recommendations

Having noticed that I almost NEVER talk about any modern fantasy these days, and further noticing that I have been reading nothing but books that are at least 30 years old and outside the genre I actually write it for most of the last year, I’m opening up the floor.

Regular visitors, you probably have a sense of what I like. Fast paced, imaginative prose. No padding (knowing today’s market I guess I can suffer through some minimal padding, but not much). Strong characters. Actual heroism and not constant nihilism.

What can you suggest? Tell me about it.

Solitaire Gaming

My Kickstarter copy of the second edition of Nemo’s War arrived from Victory Point Games, but I’m not opening it for my birthday. It was a BIT late coming in from the Kickstarter (I originally thought it was going to be a Christmas present last year) but it’s there in a box waiting for its mid July debut in the household.

Anyway, on occasion of that, here’s the secret origin story of how I got involved in this whole crazy solitaire gaming hobby. You’ll note that I’ve since become aware of a whole slew of additional solitaire gaming companies, like White Dog and Hollandspiele and DVG and Decision Games, to mention just a few more. And there’s a great new updated Barbarian Prince download, which I detailed at Black Gate.

You’ll notice that I mention the tactile pleasure of sitting down with a board game. I’ve grown to appreciate that more and more. I spend so much time hunched in front of a computer already. I feel — without any kind of medical study backing me up, mind — that it must be exercising a different part of the ‘ol brain than working with a computer does, and I’m sure learning all the rules and mastering different tactics is good for stretching the gray matter. That, of course, is the side benefit, because the game play is FUN.

But if I keep blathering I’m going to completely lose track of the whole point of re-printing an article because I’ll have spent too much time typing this intro! I must spend a chunk of the day working on the secret sword-and-sorcery product before I get to writing, so I’d best get to it. Here’s what I knew about solitaire gaming back in 2011:

Another great adventure from Dark City Games.

I blame the whole thing on John O’Neill.

A few years back I asked him about the solo Dark City Games adventures that Andrew Zimmerman Jones and Todd McCaulty had reviewed so favorably for Black Gate. John happens to have a larger game collection than most game stores, so I’d come to the right person.

Solo games were great fun, John told me. “Here’s an extra copy of an old game you’ve never heard of that’s really cool. Go play it.”

That was Barbarian Prince. And yeah, it was pretty nifty (you can try it out yourself with a free download here, along with its sister solitaire product, Star Smuggler).

I started playing and enjoying the products created by Dark City Games, which the rest of the staff and I have continued to review for the magazine.

But what are these solitaire games like?

The most obvious analogy is to say that solitaire games are a little like computer adventure games played with paper, with dice and cards taking the place of a computer game’s invisible randomization of results.

My first thought was something along the lines of “how quaint,” but it turns out that while the play experiences are similar, the flavors are slightly different, even if playing them stimulates similar centers of the brain.

It’s like switching off orange pop to try some root beer, or vice versa. You may not drink one or the other exclusively, but they both sure are sweet on a hot day.

“You mean your only plan is to stand behind a few feet of mealie bags and wait for the attack?”

While playing a solitaire game you may not see any computer graphics, but your imagination will paint some images for you.

And there’s the tactile pleasure of manipulating the counters and looking over the game board and flipping through the booklet and rolling the dice.

Solitaire in no way means that you will get the same game play each time, and to my surprise I’ve discovered that a well designed solo board game has better replay value than many computer games.

It turns out that Dark City Games isn’t the only producer of solitaire games, for I stumbled upon another company, Victory Point Games,  that creates and sells solitaire and traditional multi-player games. For perhaps the first time ever, I was able to get John hooked on games he himself hadn’t heard of before me, which warmed the cockles of my cold, cold heart.

VPG has created an entire series of solo tactical and adventure games. The one that first caught my eye was Zulus on the Ramparts, not because it seemed like an ideal fit for Black Gate readers, but because it was based upon the Battle of Rorke’s Drift, known to me because it inspired one of the greatest (and manliest!) war movies ever filmed, Zulu — the true story of a tiny British outpost manned by approximately 140 soldiers who were under attack by thousands upon thousands of Zulus. Through guts and luck and some inspired leadership, the British survived. And here was a game that simulated those events.

Only your starfleet stands between the robotic star titan and the outposts of the empire.

But then I saw a whole bevy of Victory Point Games — there was Nemo’s War, which allows you to travel the steampunk seas aboard the Nautilus, and Astra Titanus, where you’re controlling a starfleet trying to stop a giant ship/planet killing robot machine.

It’s Astra Titanus I’ve been trying first, and having great fun. I hope soon to have a full length review, but the game comes with multiple scenarios, and I haven’t had an opportunity to try more than the first one yet (and a few times, owing to the fact that its clever design means the game never plays the same way twice). There are, in fact, lots and lots of games from Victory Point Games, as well as a whole bevy of great fantasy board games from other game makers, both traditional and solitaire, and I plan to be discussing all the best of them in the coming months, both online and in print.

L’Amourapalooza

My wife’s Aunt Judy, fellow bibliophile, gifted me with her entire L’amour collection. Thanks, Judy!!!

You can see it there in stacks and stacks of  its glory. In all my years I’ve read but ONE L’Amour. You folks out there have any suggestions on where I should start?

One Sword for Love

I finished another Gardner Fox historical earlier this week, and it was a cracking good one. Any of you who love a good Harold Lamb swashbuckler would have seen some familiar features, enough that I couldn’t help thinking that Fox must have read some Lamb. That’s fairly likely, actually, given that Lamb was one of the most popular writers in one of the two magazines best known for historical fiction (Adventure and Argosy — Lamb wrote primarily for Adventure).

As a matter of fact, the whole thing read rather like an R-rated version of a Harold Lamb Crusader story. So you get the gritty, tough, man-at-arms, but you also get some far racier moments that happen on-screen. That sword he’s holding, by the way… you don’t get much of that, because our protagonist’s preferred weapon is a spiked ball on the end of a chain with which he’s frighteningly proficient.

You’ll note that there’s a lovely blonde woman on the cover, and you don’t get much of THAT, either, because the romantic lead is a Persian Princess.

The novel starts with a bang and never really lets up. Pretty soon there are at least three competing factions (sometimes more) that are out to stop our two heroes, determined now to flee into the distant east. It’s a pretty grand adventure story. If I had any quibbles about it at all, it’s that I wished there were another two-thirds of the book. Yes, everything in the book gets resolved by the end, but I sure wish I knew what happened next!

The only  thing that kept me from loving it as opposed to liking it a lot was more a matter of personal preference. With its setting in the Crusader kingdoms, or Outremer, and its hero wielding a morning star, and even the inclusion of some Mongolian archers, it felt so very much like a Harold Lamb story that I thought I’d basically be getting one, just R rated. But John isn’t quite a Harold Lamb leading character. He’s brave and wily, but he’s not as clever, so that he’s constantly on the wrong foot and having to improvise. There’s nothing wrong with that, at all, but I mention it to demonstrate the faultiness of  bringing one’s own expectations to the book when reviewing it. (This swashbuckling adventure didn’t say ANYTHING about the plight of whales, or address gun rights, so I didn’t like it!)

This is a GOOD one, folks. Maybe not quite as good as The Borgia Blade, but it’s definitely worth picking up. And like all of these old books, it’s a quick read.