Hallowtide

By Kristy McCaffrey

Halloween is near, but it wasn’t always a one-day celebration. It evolved from a triduum called Hallowtide (derived from halig, meaning saint, and tide, meaning season). While many cultures celebrate the dead from October 31 to November 2, the most notable contributions to our westernized celebration of Halloween come from the Roman Catholics, the Mexicans, and the Celts.

In Catholic theology, November 1 is All Saints’ Day and commemorates those who have reached perfect salvation. The following day, November 2, is All Souls’ Day, devoted to those who have not reached a beatific vision. It stands as a day of prayer for the dead, and lighting a fire or lantern was often done to provide guidance to the souls of the dead. Public worship, or liturgy, would begin on the eve of All Saints’ Day, thus making Halloween All Saints’ Eve or Hallows Eve.

In Mexican culture, celebrations of the dead can be traced back thousands of years. Giant skulls, sugar skulls, shrines, decorated rabbits, poems and dancing with colorful costumes and devil masks in the town center are all part of Day of the Dead (October 31 – November 2) celebrations, and are thought to bring good luck and peace. It encompasses All Hallows’ Eve, when spirits of dead children are welcomed with the presence of a children’s altar; All Saints’ Day, when adult spirits are invited; and All Souls’ Day, when families visit cemeteries.

In ancient Gaelic culture, the end of harvest season was celebrated with the festival of Samhain, beginning at sunset on October 31 and lasting until sunset on November 1. This is a liminal period for the spirits, or aos sí, to enter our world. Lighting bonfires served as protection from the spirits and costumes were thought to help in appeasing them. Divination and feasting rituals were also practiced.

Looking for a spooky and romantic read this October? Check out these two historical western romance novellas with paranormal twists.

THE CROW AND THE COYOTE

In Arizona Territory, Hannah Dobbin travels through Cañon de Chelly, home to the Navajo, in search of a sorcerer who murdered her pa. Only when she retrieves the silver cross taken from her father's corpse will she be able to free her pa's spirit, and allow him to be at peace.

Bounty hunter Jack Boggs—known as Crow—is on the trail of a vile Mexican bandito when he discovers Hannah and her companion, a superstitious old Navajo woman. He knows he must protect them, but with the shadows of Hallowtide descending, more dark magic is at hand than any of them know.

Available at Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited

THE CROW AND THE BEAR

Bounty hunter Callum Boggs—sometimes called Crow—arrives in the mining town of Silverton on a cold October day in search of a man who has committed unspeakable crimes. Skilled in the technique of dream scouting, Crow has narrowed the location of the criminal to Silas Ravine. No normal man would dare to venture into this region, where so many gruesome and unexplained murders have taken place—a piece of land forever haunted where Death still walks. But Crow is no normal man...

Jennie Livingstone knows her papa is in trouble. When none of the local men will come to her aid, she must accept a newly-arrived stranger—a half-Comanche bounty hunter—as her only ally. As they head into the mountains to track Jennie’s father, she can hear more than the whispers of man. The mines carry spirits, and her only hope in navigating the living and the dead lies with the Crow.

But is Jennie prepared for the consequences of where her fate with Callum Boggs may lead? And is she the woman who can hold fast to the Crow’s heart after all his years alone? Bewitched by the beautiful young woman, Callum must do everything he can to stay one step ahead of the spirits that can’t rest—just to keep Jennie and himself alive.

Available at Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited

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Taking the Stage--Coach, That Is

One of my favorite John Wayne movies is Stagecoach. Do you remember the scene where, after three days in very close quarters with strangers, the passengers descend the steps, the gentlemen tipping their hats as they walk away, the ladies fanning at the unexpected heat, though they look as fresh as if they’d just left the tender ministrations of their maids.

Yeah. Right.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Stagecoaches were open air affairs where passengers were crammed together onto barely padded benches, some inside, some riding the “rumble seat” on the top of the coach, shoulder to shoulder with strangers, with no privacy from those who were less careful about their personal hygiene. If it rained, oilcloths were lowered over the window frames to keep out some of the water, but that meant less ventilation. Passengers climbed out of those hot boxes with crumpled and stained clothing, sweaty and cranky, with dust in places no God-fearing person should have to abide dust.

Still, traveling by stagecoach was preferable to making the trip on horseback, or, heaven forbid, walking. And since the trains stopped halfway across the country, in places like St. Joseph, Missouri, or Memphis, Tennessee, the stagecoach picked up their passengers and took them to all points west.

Government mail contracts were the impetus and the financing for many of the stagecoach lines. And a lot of different companies ran stage lines across the west to Texas, Arizona, or California, to take advantage of those contracts. Here are a few examples.

Butterfield Overland Dispatch--two trails, a southern route, established in 1858, ran from Springfield, Missouri and Fort Smith, Arkansas, southwest across Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico to California, and was the first to carry mail; the other trail ran from Fort Riley, Kansas, to Denver, Colorado, beginning in 1865.

NOTE: John Butterfield’s company had the southern route, David Butterfield’s the Kansas/Colorado route--and the gentlemen were not related.

Visit this site if you’d like to see all the stations on the Kansas/Colorado route, as well as the approximately mileage between each: http://www.santafetrailresearch.com/research/bod-dispatch.html

Butterfield Overland Stage Company--this was probably the most famous of all stagecoach companies, certainly in Texas. Butterfield proposed the southern route because the mail could continue to run, even through the winter months.

“Butterfield's route headed southwest from St. Louis and Memphis, crossing the Red River at Colbert's Ferry (qv) in Grayson County and continuing across Texas for 282 miles to Fort Chadbourne via Jacksboro, Fort Belknap, and Fort Phantom Hill. The next 458 miles to El Paso swung south across a barren plain between the Concho and Pecos rivers, where water was in short supply, past Horsehead Crossing (qv) on the Pecos, up the east bank to Pope's Camp, (qv) where it crossed the river, hugged the west bank northwestward to Delaware Spring, and then turned westward through Guadalupe Pass to Hueco Tanks and El Paso. The line continued westward through Tucson and Fort Yuma to San Diego.” http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/SS/ers1.html

Butterfield ran the stage lines until they were seized by the Confederate Army at the beginning of the Civil War. When he could no longer operate in the south, he moved his operation north and made use of the “Central Overland Route.”

Central Overland Route (aka “Central Overland Trail", "Central Route", "Simpson's Route", or the "Egan Trail")--This trail was scouted by Howard Egan and used to move livestock between Salt Lake City and California. When the Army heard about the route, they sent an expedition to survey it for military use. It was opened to stagecoach lines and settlers in 1859. In 1860, the Pony Express made use of the trail, followed soon by the laying of lines for the Transcontinental Telegraph.

Cheyenne-Black Hills Stage and Express Line went from the Black Hills of South Dakota to Cheyenne, Wyoming. The Cheyenne-Black Hills line covered just over 300 miles, “…and for the most part the stations were located about 15 miles apart. The daily travel was about 100 miles and three days were necessary to make the entire trip.”

Black Hills Dead Wood Stagecoach went to--you guessed it--Deadwood, South Dakota. And William “Buffalo Bill” Cody rode shotgun and later drove for the company.

In February, 1866, Ben Holladay took over the Butterfield Overland Mail Company, renaming it Holladay Overland Mail and Express Company. Mr. Holladay sold out to Wells, Fargo in November of the same year.

There were specialized coach companies, too, like the Yellowstone Park Stage Coach Line, who had a fleet of bright yellow Concord stagecoaches as sightseeing vehicles in the park in 1886. 

And that most famous of all stagecoaches? Wells, Fargo and Company didn’t own their own stagecoach line until 1866, when they purchased Ben Holladay’s company. Until then, they rented space from other lines as they needed it.

 
Not all stages were the big coaches, drawn by six horses or mules. Concord made what they called a “Celerity Wagon,” a light, durable vehicle made for travelling over rough roads. But from what I read, it wasn’t any more comfortable, it just held together longer.

“The Butterfield Overland Mail transferred passengers and mail to light, durable vehicles for travel over rough roads.  From Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, October 23, 1858.”

Whether a Celerity Wagon or a Concord Stage Coach, the trip west was certainly not for the faint of heart.

Have you ever seen one of the old stage coaches? Or ridden in one at a local fair or historical reenactment?

Tracy G.

AVAILABLE NOW ~ WILD TEXAS HEARTS!

A broken man…
Revenge has driven Wolf Richards since the brutal murders of his wife and young daughter. Returning home with his son, Cal, he faces memories and loss at every turn. Raising Cal alone seems to be more of a challenge than he can handle. He can never replace his perfect Emily—until a rough-edged female falls into his arms—and living becomes a new adventure.

An unlikely woman…
Lizzie Sutter is as rough as a cowboy and as compelling as a stormy sky. Dressing as a man allows her to hire on with a cattle drive, only to be discovered and set adrift near Civil, Texas. When she stumbles onto an abandoned cabin, she makes herself at home. Then the owner of her newfound home shows up and Lizzie discovers just what’s missing from her life—and her heart.

Two wild hearts tamed…
Lizzie hasn’t a feminine thing about her, yet she calls to something deep inside Wolf, something he can’t deny. Being a woman has always left her feeling lacking, until he shows her their WILD TEXAS HEARTS belong together…

Ending A Series

THE WILDINGS

I’ve been writing about the Wildings for several years. It all started with a time travel western romance in which Lola Barton inherits a haunted plantation in Virginia from a mysterious relative who terrified her on the one occasion of their meeting. Lola falls into an antique trunk that takes her back to 1910 just in time to hear the words, “I now pronounce you man and wife.” She is immediately accosted by a horrible man who thinks she’s another woman named Callie. With nowhere else to turn, Lola goes home with her new husband Joe Wilding. I only intended to write this one story, HARMONICA JOE’S RELUCTANT BRIDE, but something happened.

Banjo, an intelligent and courageous, albeit wild teenager raised by whores until he was 10 saved Lola’s life, almost died in the attempt, and won my heart. I simply could not let go of him until I wrote his story in a sequel to Harmonica Joe. Joe’s father adopted Banjo and gave him the last name of Wilding in the novel FOR LOVE OF BANJO.

My fictional town of Hazard, Wyoming cast a spell over me (I have to blame it on something so it may as well be magic) and I decided to write about the second generation of Wildings: Joe and Lola’s two daughters and one son and Banjo and Maggie’s 3 sons, the last two of whom are twins. I also brought to Hazard Teekonka Red Sky who has been searching for his nephew, Banjo. He falls in love with the English immigrant Jane Pierpont who has been raising her son, Robin, on her own after her husband died on the Titanic.

I have written stories of the Wilding children now all grown in the 1950’s. The last of Banjo’s twin sons, Kit Wilding ,a survivor of WWII with battle fatigue now called PTSD has settled into marriage in the story IT’S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE presently under contract, but not yet released from Prairie Rose’s imprint, Fire Star Press.

And now I’m on my final story with Kyle Red Sky and Mia Beckett. Because it is the final book in the Wilding series I want to somehow bring the entire clan together one last time to say goodbye. Maybe it will be a funeral, or perhaps a wedding, but I can’t let them go without some kind of acknowledgement. These characters have been like my family all this time. I have lived through their adventures, heartbreak, and triumphs. I have fallen asleep thinking about them and I confess I will miss them.

You might wonder what I’m going to do now. I’m starting with my contribution to the SWEET TEXAS CHRISTMAS anthology for Prairie Rose this year with A Christmas Visitor. The hero of my story, Sterling Thoroughgood, has one last stop before he leaves Texas to make his way home to the growing little town of Hazard, Wyoming.

Have you ever written a series? Was it hard to let go of your characters? How did you write the final volume in your series?

THE WILDINGS WESTERN ROMANCE SERIES IN ORDER OF PUBLICATION:

HARMONICA JOE’S RELUCTANT BRIDE (time travel western novel)

This book is where the Wildings series begins with Joe and Lola in the fictional town of Hazard, Wyoming 1910

Logline: A haunted house, a trunk and a date with destiny.

Buy links: AMAZON 

Harmonica Joe’s Reluctant Bride is included in a 5 novel collection titled A COWBOY’S BRAND by veteran western authors for the incredible price of 99 cents. I’m not kidding—99 cents.

Buy Link: A Cowboy’s Brand

FOR LOVE OF BANJO (novel)

Banjo was the street wise teenager, raised by prostitutes that Joe and Lola took compassion on and Joe’s father, Ben, adopted. World War I era story in which Banjo searches for his biological father and attempts to prove he’s worthy of Maggie, the woman he loves.

Logline: Deceit stands between Banjo Wilding’s love for Maggie O’Leary and his search for the father he never knew.

Buy links: Paperback at Amazon:  Amazon kindle  

A HUSBAND FOR CHRISTMAS (year 1919 short story also included in the Christmas anthology titled WISHING FOR A COWBOY as well as a single)

Buy Link: AMAZON)

While in New York, Banjo saved an English immigrant, Jane Pierpont and her son, Robin, and brought them to Wyoming. Banjo’s uncle, Teekonka Red Sky, has fallen for the widow Jane, but his chances of winning her are slim…until one magical Christmas…

Logline: A night of horror… a wish for a new life...and a secret love

Buy Link: AMAZON

FLY AWAY HEART (novella Great Depression era)

Now only 99 cents

Lola and Joe’s oldest daughter, Lilith, has fallen in love with the English lad, Robin Pierpont, whom Banjo saved along with Jane, the boy’s mother for a factory fire. But now they’re grown and Robin, who loves flying airplanes, finds himself in a desperate flight to save Lilith.   

Logline: The Great Depression…Rum Runners and Old Fears…Love Against the Odds

Buy Link:  AMAZON PAPERBACK AMAZON KINDLE

FLY AWAY HEART is also in a collection of sweet western romance novellas titled

LOVE’S FIRST TOUCH (collection of 4 sweet western romance novels)

that includes myself and 4 other western writers,  Celia Yeary Sarah McNeal Meg Mims Agnes Alexander and Karen Mihaljevich All of these stories for a ridiculous price of 99 cents! AMAZON

HOLLOW HEART (post World War II short story also included in the Valentine anthology, HEARTS AND SPURS as well as a single)

Buy Link for anthology: AMAZON KINDLE  AMAZON PAPERBACK )

The grown up orphan, Madeline, was engaged to marry Sam Wilding, Banjo’s oldest son. But when the War ends, Sam doesn’t return and now Madeline is faced with a lifetime ahead without him. Now what?

Logline: Lost love and the hope for possibilities

Buy Links for short story: AMAZON KINDLE 

THE BEAST OF HAZARD (1940’s short story included in the Halloween anthology, COWBOYS, CREATURES, AND CALICO, Volume 1)

 Buy Links: AMAZON KINDLE  AMAZON PAPERBACK)

Joe and Lola’s youngest child and only son, Joey Wilding, has transformed the family ranch into a veterinary clinic where he treats anything from house cats to cattle. He meets a circus performer who finds herself in desperate straights.

Logline: A Terrorized Town…A Killer Beast…And Deliverance

The Beast of Hazard is available as a single, but if you’re looking for a real bargain, you can buy a boxed set that includes COWBOYS, CREATURES, AND CALICO VOLUMES 1&2 for only 99 cents. Volumes 1&2 Boxed Set

UNEXPECTED BLESSINGS (1950’s short story also included in the summer anthology,

LASSOING A BRIDE)

Buy Links:   AMAZON PAPERBACK  AMAZON KINDLE

Joe and Lola Wilding’s youngest daughter, Juliet, has cancelled her wedding to Harry O’Connor when she learns some devastating news. What happens next may surprise them both.

Logline: A broken dream…a cancelled wedding…and an unexpected blessing

Buy Links for the single: Amazon 

WHEN LOVES COMES KNOCKING (a short story also included in the Christmas anthology, A PRESENT FOR A COWBOY) Buy Links: AMAZON 

This story takes you back to 1910 before Banjo was adopted by Ben Wilding. Later in his life, Banjo speaks kindly of the widow, Penelope Thoroughgood. When Love Comes Knocking is the widow Penelope’s story which takes place at Christmas time.

Logline: A lonely widow…an indiscretion…a gift for redemption

Buy Links:  Amazon 

HOME FOR THE HEART (Contemporary Wilding novel)

Logline:

Love doesn’t come easy…for some, it may never come at all.

Blurb:

Lucille Thoroughgood is a social worker for orphan children. She is known to the town’s folk as dependable, logical, determined, and…well…stubborn. But Lucille has a secret affection for the determined bachelor, Hank Wilding.

Hank Wilding loved hard and lost. He has sworn to never marry. After Lucille makes a bargain with him, he agrees to allow troubled and physically challenged children from the orphanage to ride his horses as equine therapy. One of the orphans is a half Lakota boy, Chayton, who reminds Hank of his own father’s painful childhood. 

But a Lakota prophesy holds a shadow over the rejected, embittered teenager, threatens the happiness of the inhabitants of Hazard, Wyoming, and may end in tragedy for Lucy.

Excerpt:

Smoothing her hands over her lavender shirtwaist dress, Lucy took a deep breath. Hank is never going to be interested in a plain woman like me. She turned from the mirror just as she heard the knock on the front door downstairs.

Her mother called up the stairs. “Lucy, honey, Hank is here.”

A thrill rippled through Lucy’s core. Hank. Handsome, unattainable, Hank Wilding. A reminder flashed through her mind. Even if she was beautiful, it wouldn’t matter. Hank was a self-proclaimed bachelor. Guard your heart, Lucille Thoroughgood. It will only get broken.

The sight of Hank standing with his hat held politely in his hands at the bottom of the stairs caused her heart to leap into her throat and beat so fast she could barely breathe. Her hands shook from the surge of adrenaline. No man should be that beautiful. A lock of his bronzed hair had an enticing way of falling over his brow. She wanted so much to touch it and sweep it back just so she could feel its texture. Hank gazed up the stairs at her with his dark brown eyes and seemed to hold her in his spell. And if that wasn’t enough, he grinned at her in that charming, crooked way she found so endearing. It wasn’t often Hank smiled. He frowned most of the time. It was a good thing, too, because, if he did smile often, women all over town would be swooning at his feet.

Excerpt: Banjo comforts his son, Hank

His hands shook as he placed the telephone receiver back in the cradle. The magnitude of what had happened hit him like a freight train. His knees felt weak like they might give out and his breath seemed to shut off. His whole world seemed to be falling apart. The earth swayed. His life shifted. Banjo stepped forward and grabbed him into his arms. His father hugged him so tight Hank didn’t think he could draw breath. He didn’t care because he realized then and there how much a father’s love truly meant.

“I’m scared, Dad. I’m so damned scared.”

“I know, son.” Banjo ran his hand through Hank’s hair and smoothed it the way he’d done when Hank was just a kid. Hank found it comforting. 

“Do you think Mom will come soon?”

Banjo grinned. “You know your mother, she’s already on her way.”

Buy Links:

Amazon:  Kindle     Paperback

Another Wilding story under contract and coming in the near future:

IT’S ONLY MAKE BELIEVE (contemporary Wilding romance)

June believed Kit loved her…until she married him

June Wingate has just married the man of her dreams only to overhear a conversation at her wedding reception regarding the truth about why he married her and that her marriage is a pretense. Her heart and trust are broken. 

The newly elected mayor of Hazard, Kit Wilding, needs a wife because the town demands that their mayor be a married man. He trusts June, but now that they’re married, his wife has become distant and secretive. Kit wants to fix things. He is not the kind of man to give up easily.

I DREAM OF YOU (Work in Progress--final book)

A Dream of Love and a Foreboding Danger

Blurb:

Kyle Red Sky dreamed of the woman with fire in her hair, but when she comes to town, she doesn’t seem to recognize him. Something dark and dangerous follows her. He wants to help her, but she is reclusive, secretive, and avoids him. Something is very wrong.

Mia Beckett is a survivor. Finally, she has found sanctuary in a small western town far from danger where no one knows her or her past and she intends to keep it that way. Unfortunately, a man she saw once in a strange dream told her the paths they walked were destined to meet and he would be waiting for her at the crossroads. When she awoke, she wished the dream would come true.

Kyle Red Sky is the man from her dream, but now she realizes, if she allows the dream to become reality, she will put them both in danger.

To learn more about my Wildings series click on my link: The Wildings

Or go to my Author Page at Prairie Rose Publications: Prairie Rose Author Page

Sarah J. McNeal is a multi-published author of several genres including time travel, paranormal, western and historical fiction. She is a retired ER and Critical Care nurse who lives in North Carolina with her four-legged children, Lily, the Golden Retriever and Liberty, the cat. Besides her devotion to writing, she also has a great love of music and plays several instruments including violin, bagpipes, guitar and harmonica. Her books and short stories may be found at Prairie Rose Publications and its imprints Painted Pony Books, and Fire Star Press. She welcomes you to her website and social media:

Website 

My Amazon Author’s Page

Facebook

Twitter

The Wildings

Fantasy and Dreams Blog

Sweethearts of the West

Prairie Rose Publications Blog

 

THE BIG QUESTIONS?

Post (c) Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines

As I continue on the journey of growing as a writer that began this summer, I am ending this series with 'The Big Questions'. 

What you may ask are the big questions? No, they are not, is this any good, can I get this published or will people like this? No, these are the big questions you can or may want to ask as you are writing.

I give credit to James E. Ryan, Dean of Harvard's Graduate School of Education, for these questions. He proposed that they are life's essential questions. I've appropriated them for use as I write scenes, chapters and ultimately the story. The questions are: Wait, what? I wonder (why, if)?, Couldn't we at least?, and What truly matters?. He has an addition question but it doesn't really apply for my purpose.

When I sit down to write another scene, I stop and ask "wait, what?" This allows me to focus in on what it is I'm trying to achieve by writing and including this piece in the story. If my hero wants to kiss the heroine, I will pause before I start and ask the questions. Wait, what: does he really want to kiss her, and what will be her response, or their response to each other?

Next I will ask, I wonder if things will go smoothly or I wonder why the two are in this situation. Will the kiss go smoothly, and why did things have to happen this way. Perhaps additional information is needed to inform what is happening.

Perhaps the scene could use an answer to the question, couldn't we at least let them be happy for a moment or maybe I need to create additional conflict from either the two of them or outside influences. Maybe he has had a bad experience and doesn't want to complicate their relationship. Maybe she is shy and although wants the kiss is afraid she will do it all wrong. 

Ultimately the final question is, what truly matters in the upcoming scene? Is it an end scene? Is it a catalyst scene? Do they come to some realization that makes the kiss the most important thing?

I don't always use every question, but do try. I have found it helps to focus me on what I'm trying to accomplish with the story. What is my overall purpose in telling this particular story? Why are these characters doing what they are doing? I do use 'wait, what' almost consistently when either writing a scene, re-writing/editing or when I'm pondering another project. Asking the question allows me to pause and understand my purpose for putting the proverbial pen to paper.

I've used the romance genre here, but these questions work for any type of writing. When you set down to write the non-fiction piece, or the mystery, stop and ask these questions. Wait, what is my purpose. I wonder if I should tell the story this way or another way. Couldn't I try it, see if it works. And of course, what truly matters about this work.

Hopefully, some of the ideas I've shared in this post and the other two, And Action, Badge of Pain, will help you as you travel the road of author who tells stories that matter to you and your readers.

If anyone wishes, to read Mr. Ryan's book, it is called "Wait, What?, and Life's Other Essential Questions" published by Harper One.


Doris Gardner-McCraw -Author, Speaker, Historian,
specializing in Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here