John R. Erickson's Blog, page 6
May 24, 2016
"A Rained-Out Roundup" - An Essay by John R. Erickson
I was in a nervous state all week. I had set May 24th and 25th as the dates for my spring branding. I had lined up a crew of 12 riders for each day, and had spent weeks repairing gates, fences, and wing fences.
I had made long lists of things to do: buy groceries for the crew; buy horse feed, vaccine, and supplies; gather wood for the branding fire; turn on the windmill in the summer pasture; trim the feet of all the saddle horses; tie up the dogs so that they wouldn't ca...
February 25, 2016
A Sneak Peek at Chapter 3 of "Wagons West"
Hi All!
We hope you enjoy this special peek at "Wagons West" - set to be released in just over ONE MONTH!! As always, we love hearing what you have to say, so be sure to leave us your feedback in the comments section below!
- Hank's Minions
Wagons West Summary and information about its upcoming release!
The Dreaded Broom
Maybe you guessed what Drover did, because it was entirely predictable, entirely in keeping with his miserable record with the Security Divisi...
January 19, 2016
Hank is Cupid in Disguise...
Dear Hank-Fans,
We've posted these stories in the past, but in case you haven't seen them, here they are again! Bet you didn't know Hank played a role in so many love stories!! (We've received other, similar stories, but these are our favorites.)
- - - - - -
These two stories were recently sent to us, and we just loved them! (Who knew Hank plays Cupid when he isn't busy guarding the ranch?) We hope you enjoy them as much as we did, and if you have any stories like them, we'd...
August 19, 2015
"Pete Gets In Trouble, Tee Hee" - A Sneak Peek at Chapter 4 of Hank #66!
Chapter 4 of "The Christmas Turkey Disaster" (to be released October 2nd):
For a moment, and we’re talking about a long, throbbing moment, Our Beloved Ranch Wife couldn’t believe what had happened. She stared at the cat, her eyes filled with hurt and shock, while the villain gave her a sultry, pouting glare. But as the seconds passed, the truth began to soak through the coffee filter of her mind.
...
June 28, 2015
Announcing: An Early Look at Hank #66!
Hi Everyone!
First off, thank you to everyone who asked for information about Hank #66! It's been in-the-works behind-the-scenes for the past few months... and we're happy to be able to announce some details today!
Hank #66, "The Christmas Turkey Disaster" will be released on October 2, 2015, and here's a little bit about the story:
"Hank is in real trouble this time. Loper and Sally May’s relatives are coming for Christmas dinner, and Sally May has been working to get...
June 24, 2015
"The Politically Incorrect West" - Article by John R. Erickson in American Cowboy Magazine
Hi Hank-fans!
We thought you might enjoy this great article by John Erickson about Hank's early experience with television. And, as always, we'd love to hear what you think in the comments below!
From the American Cowboy magazine article:
"In 1984, I received a phone call from a man who worked for a major television network. He said they wanted to turn my first Hank the Cowdog book into a 30-minute animated cartoon. He said, “We love this story.”
That made me...
June 15, 2015
Hank the Cowdog and John Erickson interviewed by Lone Star Literary Life
Hi Hank Readers!
Recently, Hank --and John Erickson too-- were asked by Lone Star Literary Life to be interviewed for their Children’s Literature Summer Special, and the interviews are great! (We'd love to know what you think of them in the comments below!)
Interviewer, Kay Ellington, asked Hank questions like "What is your back story? How did you arrive at the ranch?", "You've been mentoring Drover for quite awhile, yet he doesn't seem to quite s...
April 27, 2015
"Dogs at the Office" - by John R. Erickson
In the 1990s, our ranch’s Security Division had three employees: Sophie, Texie, and Bones. They were dogs, of course, and dedicated employees. They took their work very seriously and over the years, while they were on the force, we never lost a single tree or acre of land to thieves. That was an amazing record.
Every morning at 5:30 or 6:00, I made the one mile...
February 9, 2015
TOP SECRET: The Audiobook Recording Sessions...A special sneak peek for Hank's Fans!
Hey Hank fans!
Want a sneak peek into the recording session for Hank 65: The Almost Last Roundup's audiobook??
Each audiobook recording session is different, but one thing that stays the same is that John R. Erickson reads the entire book and performs all of the voices of the different characters himself.
It takes a few days to get the tracks just right, and then Carlos Casso, the producer (and owner of the "Audio Refinery" recording studi...
January 4, 2015
The Valentine's Day Robbery! - a Snippet from the Story
Chapter Three (of The Valentine's Day Robbery)
. . . Sally May had been sweeping the porch with a broom. Slim made his way up the sidewalk and gave her a greeting. “Morning, Sally May. Is Loper around?”
“Morning, Slim. No, he went north to feed the cows.”
Slim gave his head a nod. “Okay, then I’ll feed the south end of the ranch. Thanks.” He turned and started toward the yard gate.
“Oh, Slim?”...
