THE BIG NEWS: PEOPLE OF THE MORNING STAR IN NEW EDITION!

We are often asked which of our books are our absolute favorites. We hate that question! The fact is, we never wrote a novel we didn’t love, weren’t totally immersed in, and didn’t absolutely enjoy writing. All of them were favorites and remain that way in our current estimation. We can pick up each novel, smile, and say, “Remember how surprised we were when this plot took a sudden right turn at midpoint?” or maybe “We sure had fun putting the characters through their paces on this one.” We have never published a novel we were not immensely proud of.

We’ve been remiss with the newsletter. Somehow, the distractions just kept coming. Travel, a couple of medical jaunts to Salt Lake City (nothing critical), and the real world—intruding on our writing schedules—all conspired to foil our attempts at keeping up with communication with you, our readers!

WHAT’S NEW!

So, what’s new? Our latest publications are to be found in two new anthologies, ROUGH COUNTRY and HARD COUNTRY, both published by Roan & Weatherford Publishing Associates. Both volumes are released in partnership with the US Marshals Survivors Benefit Fund. All proceeds from the sale of the volumes go to benefit the fund. What does it do? It provides financial relief and aid to the families of US Marshals killed in the line of duty. We are honored to have been asked to contribute so such a worthy cause.

Greetings! This is going to be a somewhat unusual newsletter, because we want to have a serious discussion with you about censorship.

You see, our book THE BETRAYAL was just banned.

French historian Michel Foucault, known for his sobering work on surveillance, said in an interview in 1994, “My point is not that everything is bad, but that everything is dangerous” (Bernstein, 1994, p. 226).

Greetings and Solicitations!! This is written on Memorial Day, and we are ever cognizant of the debt we owe our military veterans and those currently in the armed forces.

Everything we do, all that we accomplish, is possible because of the men and women who risked their lives and too often paid the ultimate price to protect this country and its institutions. A military veteran from the Vietnam war altered Michael’s life back in his university days. Captain Dan Smith had returned from two tours of duty flying helicopters in the war and was pursuing his education. Not all Vietnam vets were treated with respect let alone appreciation in those days. Over coffee one day, Michael noted that while he wasn’t headed to the military, he was very much aware of the sacrifices our troops were making for the country, and what should he do? Dan lifted his coffee, sipped, and said, “You’re doing what the guys are fighting for. Finish your degree, go out and live your life. Just be sure that you live it in a way that makes a contribution.”

Spring has finally begun to show its greenery in our part of Wyoming! The grass is starting and out on the BLM land the sagebrush buttercup has its first little yellow flowers. To our consternation, the trees are leafing out. We think that’s a bit early since Wyoming was always prepped for the Mother’s Day blizzard. Spring didn’t officially start until after that last hooraw by winter.

We did, however, cook our first buffalo burgers on the Traeger yesterday.  Hip Hip Hooraw! And we accented them with fresh pineapple cut into slices and then seasoned with a chili-chocolate powder before roasting them on the grill. Wow! Outstanding!  (Though God knows how we managed to get a ripe pineapple at our local Cody grocery.) Yes, indeed, we are ready for warm afternoons sipping a glass of wine on the deck and drives up the North Fork.

Dear Readers!

We are adding the final editorial changes requested by our editor, then BUFFALO JUSTICE will be off to the publisher. It should be available in July, we think. Having owned buffalo for over 30 years, it was an especially interesting book to write. It’s set in our home country of northern Wyoming and southern Montana, where we’ve lived for 47 years, country we know and love.

The story is about a buffalo rancher named John Cody who lives at the edge of Yellowstone. It explores the joys and struggles of raising an iconic American species in the face of overwhelming pressures from unethical “conservation” groups, bad scientists trying to make a buck, and clueless government agencies. The challenges that John Cody faces are challenges we have faced. While fictionalized to protect the guilty, John’s problems are not fiction.