by Guest Writer, Major Mitchell
Louis L’Amour once said that every writer writes from their own experience, and that has truly been my case. My father passed away when I was seven, and my mother never remarried. My brothers were both older, and had little time to spend with a seven-year-old. I was raised by my mother and two sisters, giving me a perspective of women being strong. While my mother did the best she could, we lived below the poverty level, and I became the quiet kid who sat in the back of the classroom and said little or nothing. I remember one of my grade school teachers telling my mother my biggest problem was that I was a daydreamer. Heck yeah! What was happening inside my head was vastly more interesting than what took place inside her classroom. I quickly developed the ability to create alternate worlds, with different times and locations that interested me. The rest was a matter of learning the mechanics of getting my thoughts onto paper.
I was asked by my sister to accompany her best friend and co-worker to a Christmas party. My date turned out to be a lovely lady named Judy. It didn’t take long before I asked her to marry me, and she accepted. She had no idea her wedding vows were to love, cherish, and edit everything I write. I wrote my first serious novel as a Christmas present for her. It was a little story about a Comanche Indian, called Manhunter. I packaged the manuscript inside a box, wrapped it with pride, and placed it under the tree. After reading the story, Judy said she loved it…it made her cry. Then she handed it back and added, “It’s too short. Make it longer.” After getting over my hurt feelings, I discovered she was right. Since then, we have ten novels, mostly historical westerns with strong female characters, and two children’s stories in print. We also have one screen play currently being considered as a possible movie by a producer. This is basically where life has taken us right now. I have no idea what I might try next. Judy will have to wait and see.
Synopsis of his book The Don͂a: Leonida Flores arrived in California as a wife in an arranged marriage, then suddenly found herself having to take charge of a seventy-five square mile land grant. The rag-tag group of people she must care for consist of Indians, vaqueros, cowboys and a couple of saloon girls. Her story is one of honor and passion that draws a line between right and wrong, while adding a little romance and humor and a lot of action to spice the reading. The customs and traditions of the mining towns and Spanish ranchos mentioned are true to the time period in which this story takes place. The Don͂a is an historical novel in the truest sense, with several pages of author’s notes included at the end.
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