The Writing Slut

Yes, that’s what I am. When it comes to writing, I’m a slut – I can’t get enough of writing itself, I can’t get enough of the genre I write – the Old West and its magnificent landscape and explosive growth – the Native American – the iconic cowboy - and I can’t get enough of my heroes. I am crazy about the mega-alpha hero, which is why I enjoy writing historicals because there were places and time periods wherein men could be men and reap their own vengeance, which is crucial to my heroes.

The Power Of The Alpha Hero And Falling In Love With Him

My Savage Destiny series (7 books) will soon be available as e-books for ALL types of e-readers. Up to now they were only available for Kindle. Well, that means proofing the books all over again, because a different conversion program is used when converting a book for all types of reading devices.


Oh, my! Believe it or not, I didn’t want to have to read these books all over again because they are so emotionally draining for me. They were when I wrote them – when I proofed them the first time 30 years ago – when I had to re-read them in order to write the 7th book in ’96 – when I read them again for the Kindle conversion – and now I have to read them again.


The Perils of Heroines and Due Dates

Blogging about writing today. I am ¾ finished with my latest book, DESPERATE HEARTS, and now I can’t decide what will happen next – plus there about 3 different ways this story could end. I have a hundred other things to do this holiday season, so too many distractions. I will never time a due date that is close to the holidays again. And right after the holidays my husband and I head west for several weeks, so I have no choice but to get this book done SOON. Actually, it’s due now, but publishers usually don’t mind if an author takes a couple of extra weeks to turn in a book. They just don’t want it to take a couple of extra MONTHS.

Places We Hold Sacred

I was recently looking at our Rand McNally maps to check out the surroundings of the town that is the setting for my current work in progress, set in Alder, Montana, just west of Virginia City. That led me to the location of the Crow Indian reservation … and that led to seeing the Little Big Horn River … and that led to finding the Custer Battlefield on the map, which lies within the Crow reservation. I’ve been to that battlefield, and finding it on the map brought it all back, and my chest actually hurt at the memory.

Take a Walk on the Wild Side!

I wonder how many of you remember and still listen to Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band – big in the 70’s – great old-fashioned rock & roll – the kind of music that makes you want to jump on the back of a Harley and take off across the country with a burly, bearded biker. Yes, I, Rosanne Bittner, actually said that! Don’t most of us have that bit of a wild side way down inside that dreams about letting loose sometimes? Seger’s song “Roll Me Away” always wakes up that side of me. I close my eyes, put my head back, and I’m winding through the Rockies on a Harley, drinking in the awesome landscape and leaving all my cares behind me. If you’ve never heard that song, download it to your phone or MP3 or however you listen to music. Another good one is “Like A Rock,” where a man reminisces about when he was young and strong and feared nothing. Heck, all of Seger’s songs bring back memories of being young and wild – like his song about climbing into the back seat of a Chevy to make out.

The Joy Of Life … And Change …

The weather is changing. I “feel” it and I can even “smell” it. Still nice and warm today, but a crispiness to the air, a bluer sky, cold mornings, and wind. I love the wind. Even that sounds different, has kind of a howl to it that you don’t hear in summer. The leaves rattle more because they are getting very dry, even though most of them are still green. 

Western Romance - The "Cowboy" Hero Lives On!

My latest book, PARADISE VALLEY (July 2013) is another western historical romance, and (as some tell me) written only as Rosanne Bittner can write the “American West.” It is my 58th published book over the past 30 years, and 95% of those have been western historical romance, my favorite, favorite subject. The rest are also American historicals, some about the French & Indian wars, the American Revolution and the Civil War. But I dearly love America’s Old West! As my title states, no matter which genre is currently popular, the cowboy hero never dies and is always in demand. My husband and I have traveled the western terrain for over 30 years now, visiting just about every location in my books. And because I love the western landscape so dearly, you will always find vivid descriptions of some of the most beautiful places in this country, from the magnificent Rocky Mountains, to the endless horizon of plains and prairie. I have visited the ancient stone medicine wheel on top of Medicine Mountain in northern Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains twice. It’s fascinating to see, and the medicine wheel is the key theme in my Mystic Indian trilogy (MYSTIC DREAMERS, MYSTIC VISIONS and MYSTIC WARRIORS).

History – Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow

I have started my “next” book (#59) – DESPERATE HEARTS – a western romance set in a little gold town in 1880’s Montana. People ask me how I come up with so many ideas, and I just tell them that so much happened in the early years of America’s growth that it all provides an unending supply of food for plot. The gradual growth from Jamestown to California; the political upheavals (especially when the Civil War divided us); the era of carpetbaggers; the great discoveries (gold, silver, oil and more); the transportation advances (first the journeys by riverboat and covered wagons; then the Pony Express; then the telegraph; then the Transcontinental Railroad); the gradual change from lawless places to civil towns with schools and churches; years and years of wars with Native Americans and how our growth affected them; the gradual changes in women’s rights; the Emancipation Proclamation; the list goes on and on. 

Big News!

To all my readers - a big THANK YOU for your wonderful response to PARADISE VALLEY! Due to big orders for the book, Sourcebooks (my publisher) has purchased the proposal for my "next" book! It's called DESPERATE HEARTS, but please bear in mind that the title could be changed. Just watch for my announcements about the book when it gets closer to being published next summer. I am so excited about this story, which is set in 1880's Montana and will be packed with "wild west" action, a good share of humor, and lots of romance between heroine Elizabeth Wainright and my hunky hero, Mitch Brady! 

Who Was Haym Solomon?

I recently received the following e-mail that was full of some interesting historical facts about the U.S. dollar bill. As much as I have studied our history, I did not know all of this. I am blogging this to be used as a game with your children and grandchildren. I would like to add that I believe these facts are important and worth sharing with others because I am staunchly behind our Founding Fathers’ intent for this great country and its basic freedoms, many of which we are lazily allowing to be taken from us. This, to me, is a slap in the face to our veterans, who fought so hard for the freedoms we enjoy today – and to those who gave up their fortunes and their lives to win our freedom from the power of a King and to establish what became the richest, most powerful country in the world. We are fast losing all of it. People had better wake up to what is happening.
Anyway, my blog for today is to give you these facts about the dollar bill, which I intend to share with my grandsons. My readers can make a game of this with their own children and grandchildren.  

Get out a dollar bill and let them find all these interesting symbols and then read to them what they stand for!

Click the image to see more detail
Who  Was Haym  Solomon?

Read this fascinating history of the $1 bill all the way to the bottom to know about Haym Solomon. You may be in for quite a surprise! 

On the rear of the One Dollar bill, you will see two circles. 
Together, they comprise the Great Seal of the United States.The First Continental Congress requested that Benjamin Franklin and a group of men come up with a Seal. It took them four years to accomplish this task and another two years to get it approved. If you look at the left-hand circle, you will see a Pyramid.

Notice the face is lighted, and the western side is dark. This country
was just beginning. We had not begun to explore the west or decided what we could do for Western Civilization. The Pyramid is uncapped, again signifying that we were not even close to being finished. Inside the Capstone you have the all-seeing eye, an ancient symbol for divinity. It was Franklin's belief that one man couldn't do it alone, but a group of men, with the help of God, could do anything. "IN GOD WE TRUST" is on this currency.

The Latin above the pyramid, ANNUIT COEPTIS, means, "God has favored our undertaking." The Latin below the pyramid, NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, means, "a new order has begun." At the base of the pyramid is the Roman numeral for 1776. (MDCCLXXVI)

If you look at the right-hand circle, and check it carefully, you will learn that it is on every National Cemetery in the United States. It is also on the Parade of Flags Walkway at the Bushnell, Florida National Cemetery, and is the centerpiece of most heroes' monuments. Slightly modified, it is the seal of the President of the United States, and it is always visible whenever he speaks, yet very few people know what the symbols mean.

The Bald Eagle was selected as a symbol for victory for two reasons:

First, he is not afraid of a storm; he is strong, and he is smart
enough to soar above it. 

Secondly, he wears no material crown. We had just broken from the King of England.

Also, notice the shield is unsupported. This country can now stand on its own. At the top of that shield there is a white bar signifying congress, a unifying factor. We were coming together as one nation. In the Eagle's beak you will read, "E PLURIBUS UNUM" meaning, "from many - one."

Above the Eagle, we have the thirteen stars, representing the thirteen original colonies, and any clouds of misunderstanding rolling away. Again, we were coming together as one.

Notice what the Eagle holds in his talons. He holds an olive branch
and arrows. This country wants peace, but we will never be afraid to fight to preserve peace. The Eagle always wants to face the olive branch, but in time of war, his gaze turns toward the arrows.

An (untrue) old-fashioned belief says that the number 13 is an
unlucky number. This is almost a worldwide belief. You will almost never see a room numbered 13, or any hotels or motels with a 13th floor. But think about this: America, which relies on God (not a number) to direct and lead, boldly chose:

13 original colonies,
13 signers of the Declaration of Independence ,
13 stripes on our flag,
13 steps on the pyramid,
13 letters in "Annuit Coeptis",
13 letters in "E Pluribus Unum,"
13 stars above the eagle,
13 bars on that shield,
13 leaves on the olive branch,
13 fruits, and if you look closely,
13 arrows.

And finally, notice the arrangement of the 13 stars in the right-hand circle. You will see that they are arranged as a Star of David. This was ordered by George Washington who, when he asked Haym Solomon, a wealthy Philadelphia Jew, what he would like as a personal reward for his services to the Continental Army. Solomon said he wanted nothing for himself, but he would like something for his people. The Star of David was the result. Few people know it was Solomon who saved the Army through his financial contributions . . . then died a pauper. Haym Solomon gave $25 million to save the Continental Army, money that was sorely needed to help realize America’s –our- freedom and independence from England.

Therein lies America's Judeo-Christian beginning. Most American children do NOT know any of this. They are not taught because their history teachers do NOT know this. [They were not taught!]

On America ’s Freedom: 

Too many veterans gave up too much to let the meaning fade.
Many veterans came home to an America that did not care.
Too many veterans never came home at all.
They served, they died for you … for me.

I hope you will share this page with many, so they can learn about the UNITED STATES DOLLAR BILL, and what it stands for.

A Review Of Paradise Valley By Romantic Times Book Reviews (July 2013 Edition)

Paradise Valley
Release Date: July 2, 2013
Published by: Source Books {Casablanca}
Available for Pre-Order:
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Maggie Tucker has just gone through hell.
Outlaws murdered her husband, looted their camp, and terrorized Maggie before leaving her lost and alone in the wilds of Wyoming. She isn't about to let another strange man get close enough to harm her.

Sage Lightfoot, owner of Paradise Valley ranch, his hunting for the men who killed his best ranch hand. But what he finds is a beautiful, bedraggled woman digging a grave. And pointing a pistol at his heart.

From that moment on, Sage will do anything to protect the strong-yet-vulnerable Maggie. Together, they'll embark on a life-changing journey along the dangerous Outlaw Trail, risking their lives...and their love.


*******************************************
Review Of Paradise Valley By Romantic Times Book Reviews (July 2013 Edition)

Four Stars – Rated “Hot”

Setting – 1880’s Wyoming

One of the most powerful voices in western romance returns with a gritty, earthy, moving love story that captures the true spirit of the West. Bittner sweeps readers away with a powerful tale that brings her fans back to the days of early western romance and the unforgettable men and women whose determination carved out a nation.

SUMMARY: A chance meeting with outlaws ends in her husband’s death, and Maggie Tucker is left alone on the Wyoming prairie. Sage Lightfoot is hunting the men who killed one of his cowhands when he finds Maggie digging a grave. Bound by the desire to find their common enemy, Maggie and Sage team up in hopes of meting out their own justice. Sage soon learns that Maggie has a backbone of steel. She’s unperturbed by his heritage, and he is understanding of the horrors she suffered at the outlaws’ hands. Their journey of vengeance slowly becomes a journey to salvation and an unexpected love.  - Kathe Robin

The Mid-Michigan Romance Writers of America

I have no idea when I joined MMRWA. I just know its been a long, long time ago. I don’t even know how I found them. When I first started writing over 30 years ago, there were no sources where a writer could go to get help in understanding not only how to write, but how to find any kind of editing, where in heck to send the book, how to submit, how to approach a publisher – none of those things. In fact, I started writing using a manual typewriter (yes, manual – not electric). I knew nothing about computers, and personal computers were unheard of. When I moved to an electric “memory” typewriter (it remembered about 2 sentences at a time!) I was in heaven. Then came my first computer, which scared me to death! I cried and almost sent it back, thinking I’d never learn how to use it. (Yes, I’m that old!)

Well, somewhere amid all of this personal ignorance and turmoil I found MMRWA. I probably found RWA first and then learned about the different chapters. Or perhaps one of the other members with whom I’ve long been a friend, perhaps Alison Hart or Lucy Kubash, told me about MMRWA. Somehow I found them, and then began attending meetings as well as a couple of bigger conferences, where I learned there really WAS help out there. By then I probably had already been blessed with a first sale (sold my first book in 1982). It’s one of those “which came first” things – the chicken or the egg (the first sale/or MMRWA).

All I know is that not only did I finally find some help, but I also found some life-long friends within a group of writers who truly cared about my career, and I cared about theirs. A writer NEEDS to socialize with other writers. Our problems/needs/concerns and success or horror stories can be understood only by other writers. We need people who can identify with everything we talk about and can help us learn to cope with disappointments and also to celebrate with us when things go well.

Anyone reading this who is considering joining MMRWA should stop right now, go to the registration site and become a member. You will receive so much support for your writing, whether you are newly published or still an aspiring writer. You can’t find a better group to help you reach your goals. You can cry on our shoulders, ask for advice or critiquing suggestions … and/or we will share a glass of Champaign with you at our annual Retreat From Harsh Reality when you realize that First Sale! Welcome! I look forward to meeting you!





Queen For A Day!

Just returned a few days ago from a huge writers/readers conference in Kansas City. It was sponsored by ROMANTIC TIMES magazine and it was one of the best conferences I have attended in a long time! RT does this every year in a different city as a way to reach readers and connect them with their favorite authors. I thought last year's in Chicago was the best, but this one out-did them all! Of course I'm prejudiced, because they made me feel extra special this year. As one of the bigger names in historical romance back in the 80's and 90's I was honored (along with several other well-known names from the era of bodice-rippers) in several special ways at this conference and felt a bit like I was Queen for a Day, for any of you who remember that old TV program.

RT is super good at connecting us authors with our readers, and throughout the 5-day conference they gave us several opportunities to meet our readers, whom I adore because without them I wouldn't be sitting here writing this blog as a multi-published author. My biggest sales and biggest advances came in the 80's and 90's, and after selling 58 novels over these past 30 years, I and several other lovely "legends of romance" (as they called us) qualified for a special brunch. The next evening we were given special honors at a grand ball, where there was dancing and music and where I and other authors were escorted to the stage by some very handsome cover model "hunks" and then introduced. Each of us gave a short talk, and we were made to feel like the most important writers who ever walked. It was a wonderful experience! Other authors who received special honors were Shirl Henke, Thea Divine, Janelle Taylor, Jude Deveraux, Judith McNaught, Mary Balough, Patricia Rice, Bobbi Smith, Beverly Jenkins, Eileen Dreyer, Laura Parker, Robyn Carr, Mary Jo Putney, Heather Graham, Jennifer Blake, Laura Kinsale and Karen Robards. I'll bet many of you reading this recognize most or all of those names. 

At the conference I finally got to meet my agent of the last 5 years FOR THE FIRST TIME FACE TO FACE. It's so nice to be able to "see" her now when we correspond. She has done great things for me as my career seems to enjoying a "re-awakening" thanks to the reissue of several of my older titles by Sourcebooks and by Amazon. My first brand new title is coming out this July (PARADISE VALLEY) and we are working on selling more older titles for reissue in print and as e-books. I also met with my Sourcebooks editor, and her enthusiasm means lots of promise of more to come from Rosanne Bittner for my many faithful readers! 

I have to mention here, since this blog is read by both readers and writers, that nearly all of the writers there like myself, who experienced great sales in the 80's and 90's but who were suddenly dropped by publishers and told readers didn't want our kind of books any more, are now selling like hot cakes on the internet due to putting our older titles back into print and even publishing new titles on our own. For everyone reading this blog, I am here to tell you that us "old timers" are finding out something we already knew and that publishers, for whatever reason, just didn't recognize – and that is … YES, READERS DO WANT WHAT WE WRITE!!! What I was being told by publishers didn't match the feedback I was getting from my readers, who kept begging for a new Bittner book – and yet I couldn't sell to any of the publishers. Now, due to social media, I am FINDING MY READERS AGAIN, AS WELL AS HOOKING UP WITH A HOST OF NEW READERS WHO NEVER EVEN HEARD OF ME!!! And guess what? They love historical western romance! Westerns have always been popular, and now their popularity is again emerging on the readers' market – and I am ready to deliver!

Meantime, Romantic Times made me feel like a true VIP and awakened my desire to write more books. I felt like "Queen for a Day," and it was a riot! While on that stage, all us "oldies but goodies" looked at each other in a bit of a daze because of all the sorely-needed attention we hadn't realized in a long time...and we just kind of smiled to ourselves. I am sure several of the others wanted to shout, like I wanted to shout to publishers – "See? We TOLD YOU READERS WANT OUR BOOKS!!!" Publishers need to get out and visit middle-America and listen to their readers, who are tired of reading the same book over and over because publishers keep pushing their big-name authors by re-issuing their books with different titles and covers. Readers are tired of being over-fed certain genres because publishers think that's all they want. Readers want VARIETY, and they most certainly still want those good old-fashioned historical romances with heroines we all dream of being, and heroes we all dream of sharing our beds with – heroes who respect women, defend women, and love their particular woman forever and beyond!

The Lazy Blogger

Here I am – the lazy blogger. Yes, I am guilty. I so appreciate everyone who visits my blogs and I apologize for not contributing more often. I am not one to sit on the internet much, as I am so busy with “life” and writing, but it is also my responsibility to keep up with all you wonderful readers and fans out there who want to hear more from me and who help keep me sitting down at the computer and typing “page 1.”

Speaking of “page 1,” that can be so intimidating for a writer, even one with 58 books under her belt. No, I’ve never run out of ideas, but sometimes, when I sit and look at my hundreds of resource books, and stare at my 4-drawer file cabinet literally stuffed with hand-written notes (all 4 drawers) – and when I stare at the shelf that holds copies of all 58 of my books plus numerous copies of foreign prints, I wonder when in God’s name I wrote all those stories. Each one is full of history and adventure and romance, and each story is different. Somehow I came up with all those ideas and all those characters, with stories that take place over a few weeks or months and some that take place over 20 to 40 years – some series books or trilogies that had to be linked to past stories – and how or when all those ideas came to me, I don’t even know.

Many of my most prolific writing years are just a big blank for me. I think it’s because – strangely enough – I did the biggest share of my writing in my absolute busiest years – and through some of the toughest times in my life. Believe it or not, the majority of my books were written during a 10-year period of a son on drugs and the horrors that go with that (I won’t even go there) – through brain surgery – surgery behind my heart – two broken wrists – a sister dying of cancer – a father dying of cancer – raising two very active boys – working full time – helping fix up 30 acres of very overgrown, neglected property we bought, including a house and two cottages that needed a total makeover – traveling west for research and hours and hours and hours of reading and taking notes.

When I started writing there were no personal computers. Amid all the “business” of life, I was writing my books on an old manual typewriter and using white-out to correct mistakes. For a while I used an electric typewriter, which I thought was an amazing instrument. Then I finally got my first computer. I think I’d written about ten books by then. For the first fifteen books I had no agent, and I didn’t make enough money to quit my job. Before I even sold anything I suffered about 100 rejections but kept submitting to other publishers until – finally – I sold that first book, which was Savage Destiny #1 – SWEET PRAIRIE PASSION.

And for all you newbies struggling for that first sale - do you want to know what sold that book? It was one scene that made the editor cry. Right editor – right scene – right time. Yes, it comes down to a lot of luck, but when I think about all I went through and wonder how I kept writing all those books and kept trying amid the chaos in my life and trying to squeeze 48 hours into 24 hours every day – well, I realize it comes down to one basic thing that all writers need if they want to sell …

LOVE YOUR GENRE– STUDY YOUR GENRE – STICK WITH YOUR GENRE – BUILD A NAME IN YOUR GENRE. I tried other genres – hated it. I tried contemporary – hated it. I tried vampires and mysteries and suspense and erotica and short, fun romances, steam punk – tried all of it. Hated it. And while I tried all that I sold NOTHING. I went ten years selling NOTHING! All because I was trying to write what I didn’t love. But when I went back to the Old West and American History, a story poured out of me and sold. That book is coming in July, PARADISE VALLEY, set against the backdrop of an unsettled Wyoming Territory and a good deal of the story taking place along the famed (and yes, it really existed) Outlaw Trail. I think you can already pre-order PARADISE VALLEY at Sourcebooks and at Amazon. It’s not the longest or deepest book I’ve written – and it doesn’t cover many years like a good share of my stories do – but it’s a great read and a touching love story, and I’m hoping to write a sequel to it because I love the two main characters and want to continue their story. When you finish the book you, too, will want to read more about Maggie and Sage and their new life together.

LOVE WHAT YOU WRITE – LOVE WHO YOU WRITE – LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. I have loved the American West since I was a little girl – I love the “wild west” history – love telling the truth about what happened with our Native Americans – love the grand and gorgeous landscape, the mountains, the forests, the plains, the “wide open spaces” that truly are something you have to see to appreciate how huge the country truly is. If you have ever watched the movie THE BIG COUNTRY, you’ll understand a little bit of what I’m talking about. In the movie a sea captain comes to Texas to marry a spoiled young woman raised by a wealthy rancher. Everyone considers him a greenhorn and throughout the movie they keep reminding him “It’s a big country,” fearing if he rides off alone he’ll get lost. Well, a true greenhorn certain can easily get lost in that “big country!” It’s a great movie to depict the rugged west. Rent it or buy it! And listen to the theme song – it’s wonderful! I often play it when I want to get into the western “mood.” Just listening to it makes me picture that “big country” – the wide open prairie and plains, the magnificent Rockies and Sierras. I can’t begin to explain how much I love everything about it. And what makes the writing even easier is having great characters. After all, just imagine the kind of independent, strong, brave, virtuous (and not so virtuous), determined kind of people with big dreams that it took to settle a land as rugged and wild an dangerous as America’s Old West. 


I am headed for a Romantic Times conference in Kansas City soon – HUGE conference, where I will meet hundreds of my readers. I can’t wait! Watch this site for a blog about the conference when I get home. And now that many of my older titles are again available through Amazon.com and Sourcebooks.com, as well as in print, I am selling books again – LOTS of books! I just contracted with France for SONG OF THE WOLF, after years of success in France with MONTANA WOMAN. Things are looking up, and my ten years of no sales are becoming a distant memory. I feel like a writer again, and now that I am sticking with what I truly love, I am already writing another western – this one set in Montana – a real western “romp” with a great hero and heroine. It’s called DESPERATE HEARTS, but sometimes titles get changed and this book isn’t even fully written yet, so hang on to your hats. Just letting you know that Rosanne Bittner is back at the computer writing yet another new book for you! Just thought I’d take time out for another blog before all of you think I’ve forgotten you. No, I haven’t. I’m just having too much fun immersing myself again in the “Old West!”

Past And Present … Some Thoughts On Both …


Sorry, but I’m a rather lazy blogger. It’s not that I don’t think about getting a new message out there. It’s on my mind every day. I’m grateful to all of you who visit my site often, probably hoping to see a new message, and I apologize for not “visiting” you more often.

I guess I wouldn’t really call myself lazy, because I am actually a very busy person, probably TOO busy! I think not getting around to blogging is really from being so busy that I have to set priorities. Since we returned from an extended vacation in Las Vegas a month ago, I have been inundated with family business matters that have taken up most of my days – catching up on all kinds of reports – getting things ready for tax time – catching up with my grandsons – proofreading two books (I got the proofs to the Kindle version of EAGLE’S SONG, Book #7 of my Savage Destiny Series, which will soon be available for your Kindles!) and also proofreading my new book, PARADISE VALLEY (July 2013) so it can go into production. And by the way, it’s already up on Amazon for pre-orders, so be sure to get your order in! On top of all that, I’m catching up on treasurer duties for two different organizations, and trying to get busy on a new book I’ve been trying to get started for months.

The days slip by too fast, and before I know it I’m worn out and realize I still haven’t blogged in a while. Sometimes all this social networking can make it difficult to get our daily work done, and even though I am 68 years old, I am far from retired!! I don’t think that will ever happen. I don’t look or feel my age and I sure don’t intend to ACT my age! Nor can I picture myself visiting a senior center every day playing cards and bingo. No thank you! That’s not me! Life goes by too fast and I still have too much to do.

So here I am, finally blogging, and not really saying much. Let’s see – what can I say that is enlightening and interesting? Well, I don’t know about enlightening, but my 12 year old grandson said something yesterday that made me feel good and “enlightened” me as to what’s going through his 12 year old mind. He said that as far as he can see, from talks he has with me and from books and movies and the old TV shows I “make” him watch when he stays at our house (he’s actually come to enjoy them), he thinks the “old days” were much better than today’s times. This from a kid who is immersed in today’s social media, video games, and all the other things thrown at kids today. He said it seems like “back then” people had more respect for each other, were kinder to each other, and dressed nicer.

Right on! I was so happy to hear him say that, because I love when young people see and understand those things. He even asked how and why things have changed so much. I told him I think it’s mainly that the “personal touch” has been removed from so many things. Neighbors don’t need their neighbors any more (or at least they think they don’t until there is a disaster); we don’t know our neighbors and we stand in line at the grocery store completely ignoring those waiting ahead of us and behind us. TV has opened us up to all that’s going on in the world, and sometimes it’s all overwhelmingly depressing and brings out our fears and makes us want to lock our doors and keep the “world” out. Entertainers strut on stage practically naked, sitcoms are about single parents and broken homes, prayer is gone from schools (and teachers can’t even hug a child any more), kids come home to no one there, and drugs are passed around like glasses of water. Fewer and fewer children are introduced to God and church. TV, movies and video games are about murder and mayhem, and nowadays a person of fame and/or power can do something sinful and against the law and then brush it all off with “I’m sorry for what I did.” Sorry? They got caught!! If they were truly sorry, they would have admitted their mistake in the first place before they were found out.

And so it goes. These things take away from personal relationships, take away from closeness with friends and neighbors, lend a hardness to feelings, bring out fears and feelings of self-defense. i.e. – “If I stay away from my neighbors … if I don’t talk to the stranger standing beside me … if I’m careful not to open myself up to anyone, I’ll be safer.”

Sitting in a McDonald’s this morning having breakfast with another of my grandsons, there was a young man in a booth nearby who was a bit scrubby, wore a hooded sweatshirt and was avidly typing away on a computer. My first thought? He could be a serial killer, or maybe some guy planning to kill a bunch of kids and conferring with a cohort via e-mail. Why did I immediately jump to that conclusion? Today’s news and all the terrible things happening caused me to distrust that young man, who was probably just some college kid working on a thesis. Who knows? It’s too bad that today we have to think the worst of those around us “just in case” they are a killer and we need to be “aware” so we can escape quickly if we need to. That’s sad.

I told my 12 year old grandson about when I was little and stayed with my grandma, she at first didn’t even have electricity – used a wood-burning stove to cook and had an ice box. He said that sounded like fun. Well, it WAS fun for a little kid. I didn’t think a thing about it. I loved my grandma and always had fun there. When she finally got electricity we’d sit in front of the radio and “listen” to stories, including the first GUNSMOKE programs before it went to TV. Yesterday I found a channel on my satellite radio (called Radio Classics) that plays those old programs. What memories! I was instantly 8 years old again. Where has all the time gone?

Well, apparently some of the things I’ve told my grandsons have sunk in and they have an appreciation for the “old days.” At the same time, I’m grateful for today’s times mainly because of the medical help we have now that we didn’t have then. Other than that, I’m not so sure I wouldn’t rather go back in time. But then I would not have the gift of social networking that helps me reach the world with news about my books, so I am grateful for that.

So here I am caught up in both past and present. I prefer not to think about the future because I’m not really sure how great it will be for my grandsons – and at my age you tend to just be grateful for each new day and not worry about ten years from now. I hope that all of you out there will do the same, because all we have is today. The past is gone, and there really is no tomorrow because when you get there it’s “today” again. Enjoy life and try to instill some of that old-time respect in your children and grandchildren – respect and love not only for others, but also for themselves. Teach them it’s okay to have feelings, to want to hug someone, and to search for their spiritual side. Teach them that if they don’t like some of the things going on in the world, there are things they can do to help change that … and that human nature makes us basically still yearn for love, still care about others and still be “good neighbors.”

I hope you wave to your neighbor tomorrow and maybe smile and say hello to the stranger standing in line with you at the grocery store. And I promise to try to blog more often after this!

Romancing the West Blog Hop!


WELCOME TO THE ROMANCING THE WEST BLOG TOUR

Why do we enjoy writing and reading about the West? What is it about cowboys that is just plain irresistible? Over thirty authors and bloggers tackle these and other questions by explaining why we love Romancing the West.

But that’s not all, as you enjoy some awesome blogs and find fantastic books, for every post you comment on with your email address, you will be entered for some amazing prizes.

***PLEASE LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO QUALIFY***

Grand Prize: A swag pack which includes books (both ebooks and paper), Amazon gift card, custom made butterfly jewelry, book cards, magnets and much more all tucked away in a keepsake box. (Available to US residents only. Winner will be announced on February 26 at 10 PM EST)


And, as an added bonus, enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win my book Paradise Valley (due July 2, 2013)!
* * * * * Here's My Post on Cowboys! * * * * *

No matter how you look at it, cowboys have always been popular. You can barely count the number of western movies that have been produced over the last 50 years, the biggest share of them in the 1950’s and 60’s. Lately, remakes of famous old standards like TRUE GRIT and 3:10 TO YUMA, have done well. Then there are the famous “big screen” favorites like DANCES WITH WOLVES and HOW THE WEST WAS WON – and of course there are the unforgettable Clint Eastwood “shooters.” My favorites are THE GUNS OF JOSIE WALES, PALE RIDER and TWO MULES FOR SISTER SARAH. Then there is the name known world wide for his western films – John Wayne. Actually, my favorite John Wayne movie is THE SHOOTIST – his very last film. It’s so touching to know that was the last movie he made before he died from cancer, when in the movie he was an old gunfighter – also dying from cancer. In the movie he went out of this life in the way only an old gunfighter should go – he “went down shooting.” I, of course, cried my eyes out. 

TV got into the act during the popularity of the mini-series with LONESOME DOVE and CENTENNIAL. And of course few people are unfamiliar with the numerous TV half-hour and hour-long westerns like HAVE GUN/WILL TRAVEL and GUNSMOKE, the most famous of them all. I sure hated to read about the passing of James Arness, but he will live on forever in the form of Marshal Matt Dillon.

As far as books, few authors helped keep the genre alive like Will Henry and Louis L’Amour did. Dee Brown did a fabulous job of enlightening readers to the truth about the gradual demise of the American Indian way of life in his book BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE.

There is something about the American western frontier that fascinates, something about those pioneers that makes us proud and makes us want to keep the “right to bear arms.” We are even fascinated and in a strange way “proud” of our infamous outlaws, like Jesse James and Butch Cassidy. Even more fascinating is that there was a very fine line back then between outlaw and lawman. There were those who couldn’t say which Wyatt Earp and his brothers were … good? Or bad? How many books have you read, or movies have you watched, in which the “bad guy” was really good at heart?

Ah, yes, the American cowboy … restless, wild, roving, hard-drinking, ready for a fist fight, quick with a gun, tough, brave, rough looking yet handsome – even those who weren’t all that good looking were handsome in their own way when they wore those great hats and smoked that cheroot and stood their ground. I think the western hero has remained popular because we all identify with some part of their personality … perhaps we all daydream that we could be that rugged, that brave, that quick with a gun, that much in charge of our lives and ultimately that “free” to be whoever we want to be … that much “in control” of our own destinies and “unchained” from rules and responsibilities.

I truly believe there is a little bit of “cowboy” in all of us … and so I will keep writing books about men like that and the equally brave and tough women it took to keep up with them … or tame them … whichever they were brave enough to try. I love the American West, the American cowboy, and the American dreams they represented. It was an era when there were still frontiers to conquer, still places where man had never stepped, still gold and silver and oil to be found, still free land as long as you were willing to homestead that land, still endless horizons with no skyscrapers or smokestacks to mar the landscape. It’s the “cowboy” in Americans that makes them dare to try new ventures, dare to leave the familiar and take a new job or start their own business or move to a completely new area of the country. There is a little bit of “cowboy” in our armed forces, in that devil-may-care attitude of our veterans who fought world wars, in those who dared travel into space, in a boxer, a football player, a race car driver, even a reckless investor who risks it all on a hunch. It’s the American spirit, and a whole lot of that spirit can be identified as the “cowboy” in us. If you have a dream, if there is something you want to try but have put it off, if you want to stand up for yourself but are afraid to, if you have a good idea but haven’t put it out there into the real world, you need to “cowboy up!” Think like a cowboy, and you might be surprised where it can take you! I hope to keep that kind of spirit alive in my writing … and even though I’m told western history isn’t popular right now, I intend to “cowboy up” and keep writing what I love, because what goes around, comes around. Cowboys have always been a favorite, and although that genre isn’t the most popular right now, it will come back, and I’ll be ready!

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The Good Ole’ “Diva” Days!

In May I am heading for another Romantic Times Convention, this time in Kansas City, Missouri – and the entire conference is geared around the “Divas” of the 80’s – 80’s romance writers, that is. Last year I was given an award as one of those Divas at their conference in Chicago. But this year the entire era of romance writing will be highlighted, and a whole HOST of big-name authors from that time period will be at the conference – old friends I haven’t seen in years. I can’t wait to get together with a lot of them!

It was in the 80’s that romance blazed its way into publishing history and exploded onto bookshelves by the millions. Oh, how I miss those days! The most popular stories were historicals – especially westerns and stories involving Native Americans … everything I loved writing about! I still do, but alas, popular genres change and new readers come into the picture … and old dogs like me have to re-invent themselves. Actually, I never quite did that, because unlike many others from that era, I didn’t change genres, which led to lower numbers and lower sales for several years. But now I am seeing a come-back, and thanks to the social media of the internet, I am finding a host of new readers who have never read Rosanne Bittner and many of whom aren’t familiar with the good old historical romances of the 80’s. They are finding out what they were missing!!

I think younger people are thirsty for true LOVE STORIES – stories in which sex actually has meaning and isn’t gratuitous or just for selfish, momentary pleasure. And I think the reason the old sweeping romances were so popular is because they took the reader away to another place and time, and the stories brought forth all the things (especially women) look for – a real hero; a strong, brave heroine with whom the reader could identify; true romance (of which we see so little today); stories about independence and the ability to explore and brave new frontiers; exciting time periods when countries were growing and changing; and something I really miss today … nice, fat, 400-500 page novels in which the reader could get lost for days … truly memorable stories that stayed in the minds and hearts of readers for months, even years. To this day my readers still talk about my characters in my very first Savage Destiny series as though they only recently read the books – and they are 30 years old!! Just think about it. Some stories last forever, like Gone With the Wind. Why? Because they were big books involving memorable characters and were sweeping historical romances. There is so little of that today on the book shelves, and I think readers are hungry for them.

I love writing about “TRUE” love, especially the kind it took to stay together through the incredible challenges of settling America’s frontiers. I could go on for pages and pages about the hardships our pioneers endured, but you can find all of that in my books. I am just so thrilled that the R.T. convention will bring attention to that kind of writing … TRUE ROMANCE at its best, and the authors who made it happen! I make a toast to all of them, and to the hope that the sweeping romantic stories of the 80’s will make it back to today’s bookshelves!

Meantime, I’ll be promoting my own new western romance, Paradise Valley (July 2013) at the conference and mixing and meeting and mingling with the Divas of the 80’s! What fun!


The American Dream…Built By Our Pioneers

Just completed a 1900 mile trip in two days! My husband and I are at our condo in Las Vegas and as always, it’s beautiful here – warm and sunny. I never get tired of looking at the surrounding Sierra Mountains, nor at the mountain that is only about ½ mile outside our window. It’s called Sunrise Mountain, and when you live around mountains long enough, you begin to recognize certain ones. No matter where we go in Vegas (and believe me, this is a HUGE valley), I can spot Sunrise Mountain.

Savage Destiny Series Giveaway!

 
 
To celebrate the re-release of my Savage Destiny Series in Kindle Version, I'm participating in a series of Buy the Book Book Tours from January 21, 2013 thru April 8, 2013. And, along with the tour, I'll be giving away the entire Savage Destiny Series listed above.


Schedule for Sweet Prairie Passion:

JANUARY 21
My Devotional Thoughts
Melissa Keir- Sexy Between the Covers
Passionate Encounters
Author Jinni James

JANUARY 22
Ella Quinn Author
It's All About The Romance
M.J. Schiller

JANUARY 23
Real World on Writing
Have Novel, Will Edit

JANUARY 24
Romance Writer Sara Walter Ellwood
HBS Author's Spotlight
Janna Shay's Fair Play

JANUARY 25
Laurie's Thoughts and Reviews
Just One More Chapter

JANUARY 26
Regina May Ross's Blog
Not Now...Mommy's Reading
Mochas Mysteries and More

JANUARY 27
Cathie Dunn writes
From the Pen of Mae Clair

JANUARY 28
Sarah Balance
The Brook Syers Blog
Socrates Book Review Blog


Please visit me on my Book Tours!!!

Giveaway Details:
One (1) complete set of the Savage Destiny Series ~ Kindle version. Drawing for the Giveaway will be held on April 9, 2013, and the winner will be announced on April 9, 2013.
 

To be eligible to enter the Giveaway, use the Rafflecopter Form below!
 
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Traveling Conversations


When I finished this blog I decided it consisted of a traveling conversation. That’s what I call a lot of rambling on about nothing … which leads into topics not even planned … and that’s what happened here, so here goes.