I'm in Love

Yep, I admit it.
I'm in love.
He's tall, dark, and handsome, a big galoot by the name of Cochise. He's a black brute who stands 17 hands tall.
Of course Cochise is a horse.

I recently met a lovely lady by the name of Pat who lives just a couple streets down from me. My husband did some remodeling work for her. She's a retired school teacher whose real passion is for horses. She has several of her own, and boards a few more.

Pat thinks it's just great that she got to meet me - a real live author.

I've been jonesing to get back on a horse ever since we moved here to the White Mountains with a stable and corral in the back yard - but no occupants. With a signed copy of Golden Enchantment in hand as a bribe, I casually mentioned to Pat that if she never needed someone to ride her extra horses, I was the woman for the job.

Well, she did, and I got to. Ride, that is.

Little did I know she was going to pick this big black brute of a gelding named Cochise for me to ride. The first time I used a stepstool to climb aboard and view the world from up in the clouds. I didn't feel so bad when another riding companion, Rosie, had to do the same to get on her smaller horse.
(That's the three amigas there in the photo - Pat on the left on her horse Ribbon, the 80-year-old dynamo, Rosie, on Bunny in the middle, and me, astride Cochise.)

I was a bit nervous at first. After all, I haven't been on a horse for nearly two decades - almost since I got rid of my own pure blooded Arabian, Nijem Warrior, so many years ago.

"His ride is as smooth as glass," Pat assured me. "You could hold a glass of wine while he's trotting and not spill a drop."

I was skeptical at first. How could such a huge animal be so smooth? But she's right. The big brute is gentle as a kitten and his gait feels like I'm riding a Cadillac.

According to Pat, Cochise loves me. I've taken a big leap and can now mount him without that silly step stool. I trust him enough to let him gallop. He hugs me with a nuzzle from his smooth, velvety face and I feed him a horse cookie to watch his gentle brown eyes close in contenment. I'm falling, fast.

Yep, I'm in love. And his name is Cochise.

News To Know

Attention all book lovers! Starting on September 1, 2008, the New Mexico Book Reviews website goes live with reviews.

This great new site reviews books about New Mexico, or by New Mexico authors. Of course, I sent in my book for review! As well, I am a reviewer, and my four reviews will be listed when the website officially opens.

Come take a look and see what New Mexico is all about – from stunning views, to excellent cuisine, to ancient lore and legend, and a whole slew of talented authors.

Another piece of exciting news is that my author’s interview with Crystal Adkins is now live. Read the interview here.

That’s it for now. September is coming up quickly and I’ve got a whole bunch of new stuff to post so stay tuned.

Silver City, New Mexico History Part III - The Apaches

New Mexico Territory, in the 1860s to the end of the century, was known as quite a wild and dangerous place, largely due to the bands of marauding Apaches who made their resentment of the white man well known. The risk of travelers being tortured, killed, and kidnapped by bloodthirsty Apaches was not just the use of artistic license by Hollywood filmmakers; it was a real and immediate threat, particularly to the hordes of miners invading the territory in search of silver and gold.

Silver City had its share of notorious Apache warriors. This band of Native Americans differed quite drastically from the peaceful tribe of Pueblo Indians, the Mogollons, who settled the area in the 13^th century. The Apaches, led alternately by Cochise, Victorio, Nana, and Geronimo, had learned to distrust the settlers who came for gold and silver ore, and with good reason. Living in relative peace until 1860, it was the white man who encroached upon their territory and attempted to force them out. The violent warrior Geronimo is said to have been born near the Gila Cliff Dwellings, at the headwaters of the Gila River outside Silver City, once home to the peace-loving Mogollons.

Beginning in 1861, Cochise joined the Hot Springs Apache band under Mangas Coloradas, who was determined to drive out “Los Godammies”, their term for white men. In September they attacked the mining camp of Pinos Altos. Captain Thomas Mastin, who defended the camp along with nine Arizona Scouts, was fatally wounded before they withdrew. Mangas Coloradas was captured in 1863 and killed a day later, on January 14^th, at Fort McLane in Pinos Altos. The following day, his wife and ten of his followers were executed.

It was 1872 when the Apache leader, Cochise, was finally persuaded by the government to move his band to reservation land. At this time, the Chino Copper Mine finally began operating in full swing, lulled into a sense of security with Cochise out of the picture. Unfortunately, Geronimo took over where Cochise left off, but his capture in 1877 again allowed mining operations in Santa Rita, Mogollon, and Pinos Altos to continue uninterrupted and even expand. Geronimo was released in 1882.

In 1879, Victorio led a revolt against reservation life and took his tribe on raids which extended from the Rio Grande River, near Las Cruces, New Mexico, all the way to Arizona. Sgt. James Cooney, in Mogollon, became one of Victorio’s victims; the soldier turned miner was mutilated and killed in April of 1880. Victorio finally died in 1881, but his son-in-law, Nana took over where Victorio left off. Nana fought, and won, eight battles with troops of US soldiers before being sent to a reservation in eastern Arizona.

In the 1880s, troops of Buffalo Soldiers – so called by the Indians due to their curly black hair – were redeployed from the Llano Estacado of the eastern plains to southwestern New Mexico to control the escalating raids.

It didn’t take long for Geronimo to begin causing trouble once freed from the government’s control. The McComas Massacre occurred in 1883 in Silver City. Judge McComas and his wife were attacked by Geronimo and his band of Apache warriors. They were killed and their six-year-old son kidnapped and taken to Mexico.

Another escape occurred in 1885 as Nana and Geronimo left the reservation yet again, heading a band of Chiricahua Apache. These two fearsome leaders would wreak havoc in the southwest for one year before finally surrendering to US troops.

It has been said that Indian raids occurred in the southwest years long after the rest of the United States found peace. More than likely this was true and it was the main reason why New Mexico never developed as fully as many other states. It is great, however, for creating excitement works of fiction based on history. Although Geronimo does not show up in Golden Enchantment, there are some references to Apache raids.

Sequels - Good or Bad?

Every good story deserves a follow-up, right?

Just look at Hollywood. The aging Harrison Ford is back in the latest installment of Indiana Jones, Sylvester Stallone reprised his Rambo role last year, and news has been released that Eddie Murphy signed on for “Beverly Hills Cop 4”.

Obviously all of these original movies were big hits and of course Hollywood wants to capitalize on past success. It is often the same in the publishing world. One great book just begs to be written into a second, a third, maybe even a fourth. But is it always a good idea?

Back in the old days, I remember reading my first romance novels by Rosemary Rogers. Sweet Savage Love was one of my favorites (and I still love it today). The tale of Steve and Ginny was timeless and oh-so romantic. Of course I wanted more. I bought every Rosemary Rogers book I could get my hands on. Unfortunately, the sequels of Steve and Ginny’s romance just weren’t as good as the first book. I didn’t want to read about their marriage and their children – that stuff was too realistic. I wanted to be swept away again into the passion and excitement when two people first meet and sparks fly.

And therein lies the crux of the matter. Sequels are only worthwhile, in my opinion, when they bring something new to the table. Much as I loved the “Sex and the City” series I don’t have any real strong desire to see the movie after reading reviews which state it is really just one long (two and a half hours) episode which continues where the television show left off.

I started a sequel to Golden Enchantment after writing that first book using Kent McCabe, a secondary character who was just so charming and exciting that he nearly begged me to be written. I was almost finished with it when I re-read my efforts and decided it just wasn’t working for me. I hated the characters, I hated the way they acted, I just hated the whole idea. Now, maybe someday I’ll go back and rewrite that sequel and make it better, but honestly, I don’t have any motivation to do so right now. I’d rather move on to other, more interesting concepts.

And sometimes that’s just the way it should be.

And for the record, I don’t want to see an AARP-eligible Michael J. Fox reprise his role as a high school kid in “Back to the Future 4” or geriatric versions of Mel Gibson’s and Danny Glover’s characters bringing down bad guys with walkers in the latest installment of the “Lethal Weapon” series. Let it go, people, let it go.

My Character is Being Interviewed

The heroine from Golden Enchantment, Andrea Alexander, is being interviewed on Allison Knight's blog Thursday, March 20th. Please head on over to http://www.mycharacters.blogspot.com/ to view the "It's My Turn to Talk" blog and hear what Andrea has to say about life in New Mexico in 1880!

Sometimes the most coveted treasure of all can be found where you least expect it.

Well, it’s finally here!

A year and a half after completion of GOLDEN ENCHANTMENT, I am proud to announce the release of my first book!

If you love historical romance and Westerns in particular, you are sure to love GOLDEN ENCHANTMENT.

Blurb:

When her father dies, Andrea Alexander decides to return home to New Mexico and continue his search for a buried treasure of gold dating back to the days when conquistadores ruled the territory. However, she didn’t count on a mysterious figure shooting at her, a puzzle of clues and the involvement of her very masculine and handsome neighbor, Jake Houston.

Jake Houston remembers Andrea as the scrawny little tomboy next door who followed his every move. When they meet again years later, Jake is surprised to find Andrea has filled out in all the right places. Tempting as she may be, he is betrothed to another with no way out. Fighting his attraction to Andrea as he helps her solve the puzzle of where the buried gold lies hidden will test his strength in more ways than one.

How will these two, destined to be together, find a way out of danger and around their problems to realize true love?

GOLDEN ENCHANTMENT Release Date March 1, 2008

Available for sale at www.champagnebooks.com