Mike Torreano is here today

                                                           

Today I have the good fortune to be visited by an author whose understanding of the western genre is much deeper than anything I have read. Please welcome, Mike Torreano:

Mike Torreano has a military background and is a student of history and the American West. He fell in love with Zane Grey’s descriptions of the Painted Desert in the fifth grade, when his teacher made her students read a book and write a report every week.

Mike recently had a short story set during the Yukon gold rush days published in an anthology, and he’s written for magazines and small newspapers. An experienced editor, he’s taught University English and Journalism. He’s a member of Colorado Springs Fiction Writers, Pikes Peak Writers, The Historical Novel Society, and Western Writers of America. He brings his readers back in time with him as he recreates western life in the late 19^th century. 

 

A Score to Settle

https://www.amazon.com/Score-Settle-Mike-Torreano-ebook/dp/B08HJ2WSTC/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=mike+torreano&qid=1599683925&s=audible&sr=1-1-catcorr

THE CODE:

My latest western, A Score to Settle, was just released by The Wild Rose Press. The story takes place in 1870 on the Goodnight-Loving cattle trail in the New Mexico Territory. I’ve heard some people say the traditional American western is dead, and it’s true the golden age of westerns was some time back. But more recently, several big box office western movies have been released.

Are they coming back? I hope so. If they are, perhaps it’s because the Old West embodies timeless values, outcomes where right triumphs over wrong. Not always, but you get the idea. The American West in the nineteenth century was a land of clear-cut rules—there were things you were supposed to do and things you weren’t. And if you did wrong, there were consequences, usually immediate, many times violent.

There was a Code of the West¾simple rules for simpler times. Unwritten, but adhered to, nonetheless. The Code drew its strength from the underlying character of western men and women. Life back then was hard, but simple. Things that needed to get done got done. Whining wasn’t tolerated. Complainers were ignored. You weren’t offended, you just played the hand you were dealt. If you’re getting the idea I like that kind of culture, you’re right.

The world we live in today sometimes baffles me. Everything seems to be different shades of gray. Honor and fidelity don’t seem to be in fashion. Our culture is filled with victims.

While the Code of the West was unwritten, there were certain common elements that everyone—from the hard-working sodbuster, to the law-abiding citizen, and even the hardened criminal—typically abided by. Granted, there were exceptions, but generally that held true. The Code gave westerners a guide to live by that they broke at their own peril. But even today, I’d wager we still have values that are non-negotiable. After all, values don’t really change, only times, circumstances, and people do.

I don’t believe the Code’s values have vanished, but sometimes it seems they’ve been driven from our national narrative entirely. Popular culture tends to dismiss old-time values, or should I say timeless values. We’re an instant gratification society focusing on the here and now, dismissive of lessons of the past. Imagine a world where you sat with your family at night talking with each other. Imagine a world where a man or woman’s word was their bond. Where handshakes took the place of long-winded contracts.

In his poem, ‘Out Where The West Begins’, Arthur Chapman says,

Where there’s more of singing and less of sighing,
Where there’s more of giving and less of buying,
And folks make friends without half trying—

What inspired this particular story?

 A Score to Settle is set on the Goodnight-Loving cattle trail in 1870 New Mexico Territory. I was drawn to this locale by the iconic western series, Lonesome Dove. Author Larry McMurtry used an incident in Lonesome Dove that paralleled something that actually happened on Goodnight-Loving. On an 1866 cattle drive, Oliver Loving was shot by Comanches near Fort Sumner, NMT. After he died, his partner, Charles Goodnight, carried out Loving’s last wish by wagoning him back home to Texas. To me, this is one of the Old West’s most famous legends and I decided to weave a story around it. Hence, A Score to Settle, which also features a strong romantic element throughout.

Mike Torreano’s latest western, A Score to Settle, has just been released by The Wild Rose press. Find it, and his first two western mysteries, The Reckoning, and The Renewal, using the links below.

Social Media

Facebook author page https://www.facebook.com/Mike-Torreano-Author-107581914412283/

Facebook personal https://www.facebook.com/miketorreano/

Goodreads author page https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/10187716.Mike_Torreano

Bookbub page https://www.bookbub.com/profile/mike-torreano

LinkedIn page  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-torreano-0a407929/

Twitter https://twitter.com/mtorr4650

Website miketorreano.com

Buy Links

A Score to Settle

https://www.amazon.com/Score-Settle-Mike-Torreano-ebook/dp/B08HJ2WSTC/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=mike+torreano&qid=1599683925&s=audible&sr=1-1-catcorr

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-score-to-settle-mike-torreano/1137660779?ean=9781509232819

The Reckoning

 https://www.amazon.com/The-Reckoning-Mike-Torreano-audiobook/dp/B079817D1Z/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=mike+torreano&qid=1599683825&sr=8-2

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-reckoning-mike-torreano/1124273029?ean=9781509209293

The Renewal  

https://www.amazon.com/Renewal-Mike-Torreano-ebook/dp/B079Y5MKG3/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-renewal-mike-torreano/1128011214?ean=9781509220014

Email mtorr4650@comcast.net

Website  https://www.miketorreano.com

Dr. Randy Overbeck is here today

Hi, this is Bob. I'm excited today to host an outstanding author, Dr. Randy Overbeck. I have just finished his great novel Crimson at Cape May and highly recommend it. You will find his post today intriguing and informative:

SO YOU WANT TO BE A PUBLISHED AUTHOR

At a recent author event, an excited eighteen-year-old stepped up and asked me about my new novel, Blood on the Chesapeake.

After I’d given my elevator pitch, he pivoted and asked “How hard is it to get a novel published?”

My response threw him. “The hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

“Really?” He looked unconvinced. “I mean it looks like fun. First you hole up in your room and write your story and then you get it published. I mean, you sign books and everything.”

I plowed on. “The book you see here took years to research, write and edit, and that doesn’t include all the time and effort it took to find the right publisher.”

The young man said he had a friend who wrote a fantasy novel and published it himself. “Jeremy said it took him only about three months. No big deal," he said.

I nodded, not answering right away. “The self-publishing route wasn’t right for me, but some authors do it like that. But getting it ‘published’ is only a start. Maybe a few stats about the business will help make my point about the challenge ahead.” 

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and I could almost see the glaze roll over his eyes.

I went on, “Do you realize that there is a new book title released on Amazon every two minutes! Just to be clear, that means about 33 books every hour, 800 new titles every day and that’s more than a quarter million every year. At last count, Amazon listed over 6,000,000 books on Kindle—and that’s only one tenth of the total number of books on their site.!

He started shaking his head. “That’s unbelievable.” 

“And on Amazon, guess how many copies of an individual title are sold, on average.” I paused.

He took the bait. “A hundred. Uh, no, maybe a thousand?” He looked up hopefully, his brown eyes narrowing.

“Six.”

“What?”

“The average number of copies of any title sold on Amazon is six.” I stopped, letting it sink in. “And that includes adding in the million seller titles too.”

He shook his head. 

“So why do you do it?” The young man pointed to the paperback. “If it’s really that hard and you don’t sell that many books, why do you even bother?”

I smiled. “Because I love it. The only reason you should choose to do something this hard is because you love it.” He looked unconvinced. “When I’ve spent hours, days and sometimes weeks to get a paragraph, a page, a chapter just right, I’m thrilled with the result.” 

He started nodding his head.

“After it’s published and readers write back or post 5 star reviews, saying how much they love the book, or how the book was hard to put down, or how reading the novel late into the night made them lose sleep…well there’s no feeling like it.”

He grabbed up my other novel, now holding both in his hands. “I’ll check them out. Thanks for the explanation.”

I gave a quick wave. “Just decide if writing is something you love.”

With the tsunami of books out there and the pandemic wreaking havoc everywhere, I’m grateful my novels made it this far. And I am truly thankful that readers continue to discover and enjoy my new series, the Haunted Shores Mysteries. These novels have been described as a cold case murder mystery wrapped inside ghost story, served with a side of romance, set in some of the most beautiful locations in the country.

The first entry in the series, BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE, was published last year by the Wild Rose Press and earned rave reviews and even picked up two national awards.  BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE takes place on the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, where Darrell Henshaw—teacher, coach and paranormal sensitive—encounters the spirit of a student murdered years before still yearning for justice. When the ghost haunts Darrell, he finally agrees to help, only to discover a much uglier crime than he could have imagined. 

  The second installment in the series, CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY, was released this summer and it quickly garnered two ★★★★★ reviews and a national award, the Gold Award from Literary Titan. (Insert graphic of Gold Award) CRIMSON follows our hero, Darrell Henshaw to the incredible resort town at the tip of New Jersey. There, he is stalked by the Haunted Bride, who is desperate for him to seek justice for her, and for many more victimized girls.

Reviewers have been generous in their praise of my writing. 

“A haunting, yet fast-paced whodunit that captures the reader’s attention from page one. A wonderful book!”—Alexandra Ivy, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author

“Delivers an unpredictable mystery along with a powerful look at people…Completely engaged by the intrigue.”—Long and Short Reviews

http://www.longandshortreviews.com/book-reviews/crimson-at-cape-may-by-randy-overbeck/

“With both elements of mystery and suspense, readers across genres will find this second book about Darrell Henshaw intriguing…I highly recommend it.” ★★★★★—Literary Titan

https://literarytitan.com/2020/02/04/crimson-at-cape-may/

“It’s a ghost/mystery story filled with suspense and action. The plot is so engrossing it had me hooked from the very first page.” ★★★★★—Nana’s Reviews, Greece

https://nanasbookreviews.wordpress.com/2020/08/11/review-crimson-at-cape-may-the-haunted-shores-mysteries-book-2-by-randy-overbeck/

“The well-plotted storyline keeps a steady pace through two-thirds of the book and then gradually ups the ante, adds tension, grit, drops more pieces of the puzzle then explodes.”—V. Williams, Rosepoint Publishing 

https://rosepointpublishing.com/2020/09/13/crimson-at-cape-the-haunted-shores-mysteries-book-2-may-by-randy-overbeck-a-bookreview-ghoststories/

BIO

Dr. Randy Overbeck is an award-winning educator, writer and speaker who has earned recognition in the Midwest and beyond. As a member of the Mystery Writers of America, Dr. Overbeck is an active member of the literary community, contributing to a writers’ critique group, serving as a mentor to emerging writers and participating in writing conferences such as Sleuthfest, Killer Nashville and the Midwest Writers Workshop. When he’s not writing or researching his next exciting novel or sharing his presentation “Things That Go Bump in the Night,” he’s spending time with his incredible family of wife Cathy, three children (and their spouses) and seven wonderful grandchildren.

Randy Overbeck

randyoverbeck@authorrandyoverbeck.com

www.authorrandyoverbeck.com

@OverbeckRandy

FB: Author Randy Overbeck

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.com/Crimson-Cape-Haunted-Shores-Mysteries/dp/1509231633/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1BCBKCDPQRK3L&dchild=1&keywords=crimson+at+cape+may&qid=1599856137&sprefix=Crimson+at+Cape+May%2Caps%2C163&sr=8-2

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/crimson-at-cape-may-randy-overbeck/1137088608?ean=9781509231638

https://www.bookbub.com/books/crimson-at-cape-may-by-randy-overbeck

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9nWiaGO-KM

#1 BLOOD ON THE CHESAPEAKE—winner of the Gold Award from Literary Titan and ★★★★★ from ReadersFavorite.com, Long and Short Reviews, Literary Titan, Chanticleer Reviews and Readers Views

“Timely and original. A terrific, one-sitting read!”—Hank Phillipi Ryan, Best Selling Author
“Kept me turning pages until the totally surprising conclusion.”—Kings River News and Reviews

#2 CRIMSON AT CAPE MAY—★★★★★ and winner of the Gold Award from Literary Titan 
“A haunting, yet fast-paced whodunit that grabs the reader’s attention from page one.”—Alexandra Ivy, NY Times best-selling author
“Delivers an unpredictable mystery along with a powerful look at people.”—Long and Short Reviews

“So engrossing it had me hooked from the very first page.” ★★★★★—Nana’s Book Review

“The mystery and suspense kept the pages turning.”—Creative Deeds Review

 

Literary Novels

Why do literary novels as a whole not sell as much as genre fiction?

First, what are literary novels?

They’re character driven.

I’ll say they’re more artistic, in that they employ to a greater degree, similes and metaphors, poetic descriptions or poetry itself, flowery language, impressionistic scenes meant to invoke visceral reactions to get the author’s point across or to have the reader fall in love with the character. Yes, genre fiction employs these technics, perhaps not too much poetry.

I’ll dare to say that without a plot who will sit through 300 pages? After all poems are short and effective and therefore instantly rewarding. So, to have a successful literary novel I’d recommend a plot. Some people think that, oh, that person had an interesting life, I’ll fictionalize it. This writer is better off writing a biography, because the moment you label it as literary fiction, there must be a sweeping theme, points of high drama, character arcs, etc. All good fiction must be compelling (I can’t put it down), and IMO, tension at nearly every turn, either internal, external or both.

Literary fiction often turns genre fiction plots upside down and on purpose. The moral of the story might be there is no moral, Things Fall Apart (Chanua Achebe). There might not be a HEA, The War of the Roses. The detective might not solve the crime, the aliens might win, evil might triumph over good, or worse than that, there is no right or wrong (due to the author’s idea of reality). Hopefully, the effect on the reader is not to make them sad and despondent, but to arm them to the horrors of life so that they might avoid them. Although the author has the right to paint a bleak picture. Or, the author really doesn’t care, and being an artist at heart, he/she will paint the truth as they see it. Any fiction, genre or literary, can be heavy or light. The reader decides how absorbed they want to get into the finer details, the subtleties.

Aristotle nailed all this. Tragedy has a downward spiral for the hero which creates pathos in the reader and comedy has an upward trajectory that creates joy in reader.

Somehow I feel, I may have oversimplified this subject. There are those who don’t believe there’s a difference between literary and genre fiction. After all are we not entertained by both. Don't they both have a purpose, a theme, a moral to the story???

Why romance novels are so successful

 Someone other than oneself

Empathy drives the popularity of the romance genre. We all know love or want it in our lives. We have it and like to see or read others getting it. It validates a purpose for being on this planet. It recalls a moment in time when you knew you have found your person. Or we want love and turn to romance novels or TV for reinforcement that it can and will happen to you.

So, write on.

Clare Crawley will start her search for a happily ever after on ABC’s The Bachelorette this Tuesday. ABC has been expanding their fans with men and women of color in the lead and in Clare’s case, she’ll be the oldest Bachelorette at 39. Since the population is aging, it’s a good move. Also, people can fall in love at any age. So, bravo.

But something strange has happened. In the teaser, Chris Harrison, the host says to Clare, “you have blown up the Bachelor.”

Well rumors have it that Clare falls in love quickly and leaves early with her man. Then ABC, having less than a full season pick up, Tayshia Adams who finishes the season, and I guess it may be extended. Tayshia is a gorgeous woman with a great heart and kindness ofr others. She’s an exotic mix of black and white.

The thing I don’t understand and I’ll find out by watching is that Tayshia is 30 and I assume the men on Clare’s show are older like Clare. So we’ll see if ABC scuttles Clare’s men and rounds up a new batch. Age differences are a matter of personal choice, so we’ll see.

A word of caution. Since the show hasn’t aired yet, all this about Tayshia is speculation, but the investigative reporters swear by it. Stay tuned.