Old Haunts Enters Proofreading

 

Interim Cover

Old Haunts, A Steve Dancy Tale has entered the proofreading stage. The new Steve Dancy should be available in 4-6 weeks. Thank you for your patience. Here's a snippet to whet your appetite.

 

“You be Steve Dancy?” asked a man behind my shoulder.

I looked up to see a lean, shallow-cheeked youth in his early twenties who appeared earnest. Earnest about what, I wondered.

“Do I know you?” I asked.

“Nope. But I heard of you. Deadly gunman. Rich as Midas. Renown throughout the West as one of the few surviving gunfighters.”

 “You forgot author. I write novels.” I laughed. “Sorry, son, those are just stories.”

“Not from what I hear. They say you write about yourself.”

I tried a friendly smile. “If only that were true. Actually, the life of a writer is exceptionally dull. Sitting in front of an Underwood all day. How’d you recognize me anyway.”

“I got my ways. I came over see if we could arrange a duel.”

“A duel? Is this a joke? I’m not a duelist. I’m a writer and a businessman. My characters duel, I don’t.”

“No joke.” He gave me a hard stare that reminded me of someone I couldn’t place. “I demand a duel.”

“Demand to your heart’s content, I’m not responding. I’m a married man with a quiet home and three kids. You’ve been misinformed.”

“Being a father ain’t no excuse. You killed my pa.” When I didn’t respond, he added, “Name of Brian Cutler.”

“Never heard of him,” I lied.

“Oh, yes you have. Without warning, you shot him and my uncle dead in the streets of Pickhandle Gulch.”

I stared in disbelief. Brian Cutler had been the first man I killed. Or the second. His brother may have been first. I didn’t remember.

Honest westerns. Filled with dishonest characters.

 

No Peace, A Steve Dancy Tale

Now Available for Pre-Order at Amazon

Publication Date, September 9, 2019

After marriage, Steve Dancy has quietly settled in San Diego. He can hardly remember his days of wanderlust, and he’s grateful to have left behind the violence of a raw frontier. In a celebratory mood, Steve invites his mother to a meet her new grandchild in a chic resort in Monterey, California. With the delivery of a handwritten note, his world suddenly reverts to the savagery of his bygone days.

There will be no peace.

Pre-Order Today at Amazon

Honest westerns filled with dishonest characters.

Roundup Magazine on Crossing the Animas

"This sequel to the author's Steve Dancy series is as good as the come." R. G Yoho, April, 2018

Roundup Magazine reviews The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale

A book review of The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale appears in the February issue of Roundup Magazine—a publication of Westerns Writers of America.

After a plot summary, C. K. Crigger writes, “Well-written, fast-paced, interesting characters—what more can a reader want? Well I, for one, was taken with the excellent description of the late 1800s New York City. The look at Edison’s lab in Menlo Park struck me as right on, and putting the Western mentality into staid New York Society seemed fresh.”

Well, that made me feel good.

Turning a house into a home

Yesterday we walked our new house with a contractor. Whew, do we have a lot of work to do. Just about everything we own is in storage awaiting re-engineered heating, new flooring, scrapped ceilings, updated plumbing, and lots of paint. Guess our stuff will be hidden away in a dark warehouse awhile. In the meantime, we’ll stay in an apartment and make frequent visits to our renovation project. I already warned the contractor to expect to see us daily, so he should bid accordingly.

Our house may not be ready, but family and Omaha friends have already made us feel welcome. We were even welcomed by the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Douglas County Treasurer. The people in Omaha sure are friendly.

I’m hoping the temporary quarters will give me plenty of time to write. I already started researching the next Steve Dancy Tale. That means I’m reading books about the places Steve and his friends might visit. Reading about the Old West is fun, but I’m getting anxious to start writing. Especially, since I’ve come up with a tentative title. I hesitate to share it because it may change, but for now it will be called, Jenny’s Revenge.

Released: The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale

As of this morning, Amazon is offering The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale in print and Kindle formats. The hardcover large print edition is due from Center Point in the first quarter of 2014. Barnes & Noble and other retailers have not yet listed the book as available, but you can be sure I will let you know when that happens.

Amazon Print Link
Amazon Kindle Link

It's the summer of 1880, and Thomas Edison's incandescent bulb is poised to put the gaslight industry out of business. Knowing a good business opportunity, former New York shopkeeper Steve Dancy sets out to obtain a license for Edison's electric lamp. Edison agrees, under one condition: Dancy and his friends must stop the saboteurs who are disrupting his electrification of Wall Street.

After two years of misadventures out West, the assignment appears to be right up his alley. But new troubles await him in New York City. Dancy has brought a woman with him, and his high-society family disapproves. More worrisome, he has also unknowingly dragged along a feud that began out West. The feud could cost him Edison's backing ... and possibly his life.

Be the first on your block to read The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale. 

Honest Westerns ... filled with dishonest characters.

Coming Soon ... The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale

Friday, I signed the final approval forms for The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale. Whew!

The Return by James D. Best

I wish that meant the book was done and the novel would be available next week. Lots yet to do for the print version and formatting remains for ebooks. Turnaround for ebook formatting is generally quick, so I expect both formats to be available within the next four weeks. Perhaps a little sooner. Center Point's Large Print version will come out the first quarter of 2014. The movie has been green-lighted for 2024, or thereabouts.

Modern Gadgets Can’t Beat Kit Carson

Last night we arrived back in Arizona safe and sound. It was a great road trip through Nevada and none of us played a single slot machine. We were far too busy. On Saturday, we visited the Reno Gun Show. Compared to Arizona shows, Reno had many more displays of 19^th century revolvers and rifles. The vendors were highly knowledgeable about Old West guns and I picked up a few good reference books that will help with the Steve Dancy Tales.

On the drive back we discussed our favorite experiences. Visiting with old friends was at the top of everyone’s list and Fort Churchill at the bottom. As we cruised along the highway, we agreed that we’d probably never make a return visit to the old cavalry fort. I think we riled Kit Carson because at almost that exact moment we saw a turn-off sign for Fort Churchill. We had been chatting away and missed a turn fifty miles back and had driven in a circle back toward Carson City. Bummer. 

We would have made lousy scouts, especially since we had Garmons, iPhones, a digital compass, and web connected computers inside the car. Of course, we would have needed to stop talking long enough to actually glance at one of these devices, or perhaps look out the window at a highway sign. 

Oh well, when we reminisce about the trip years from now, our first recollection will be about getting lost with a car full of computers that would’ve made the Apollo moon-bound astronauts jealous.

Road Trip!

We're about to drive to Garnerville, Nevada with friends. We'll stay with other friends who happen to be relatives. It looks like we might luck into some snow, so a day or two of skiing is not out of the question.









Beyond traveling and visiting with good people, I'll be starting the research for the next Steve Dancy Tale. I won't give away the plot, but a good portion of the story will take place in Carson City and Virginia City. Along with Steve, Joseph, and Jeff, there will a few characters from The Shopkeeper intent on making life difficult for Mr. Dancy and friends. Since The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale is not yet back from the editor, I'm still on recess and plan on having fun. This is a good life.

Saline River Chronicle reviews The Shopkeeper

"This is a compelling narrative and as good as the best of classic Westerns. James D. Best is a name to remember."

Read full book review at Saline River Chronical

Early Adopters Pay a High Price

The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale is an unusual Western because Dancy and his friends go to New York City to make a business call on Thomas Edison. Those who have read Murder at Thumb Butte know what Dancy wants from the Wizard of Menlo Park. 

What struck me during my research was the aggressiveness of entrepreneurs when a new technology emerges. This seems to be a constant throughout our country's history. From this distance in time, we think Edison invented the light bulb and everybody bought this miraculous device from him. Not true. Just as in the early days of personal computers or during the dot-com craze, there were an untold number of start-ups vying for customers in every city in America. It was chaos.

The reason for the overhead rat's nest in the above photograph is that each company had to string their own wires. (This photo was taken to show the effects of a snow storm, not the wiring mess. Sky-blocking wires were considered normal.) 

In each new phase of the computer revolution, thousands of company jumped into the field, but they were soon ruthlessly trimmed to a few giants. The same thing happened with electricity. In less than a decade, most of these unsightly wires were gone from New York City. A single supplier had been chosen. It eventually became known as Consolidated Edison, or Con Ed.

You might also like Dueling Entrepreneurs.

Wishing All a Great 2013

Today is a fresh start.A whole new year. Three hundred and sixty five days to write and enjoy life. Maybe I have that backward. My New Year's resolution is to finish The Return, A Steve Dancy Tale and make it the best book of the series ... but not for a few days. Right now I'm with my children and their families in Colorado on a ski vacation. Steve and his friends can wait a bit while I ring in the new year with a few more ski runs and some fun times with six grandchildren and their parents. 

My year is starting out great. I hope it's starting out as well for you, and may 2013 be a year of health, prosperity, and great relationships with all of your loved ones.

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Dueling Entrepreneurs

When a technology is about to break out commercially, entrepreneurs get their competitive spirits up. They want to dominate the marketplace for the new and nifty. Inevitably, a handful of business savvy technologists carve out large segments of the market and stiff arm any upstart that has the audacity to invade their territory.  Before long, there is usually only two to five left standing. Except, they aren't exactly standing around idle ... these titans are gathering up arm's full of cash. Piles of money that mere mortals can't even comprehend.

Is it all really about money? Not a chance. It's the game. It's about winning, and money is just how the game is scored.

I could be talking about Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Page or Sergey Brin, but I'm not. I'm researching the next Steve Dancy Tale, which will be titled The Return (Which is now available). The men who brought this thought to mind lived one hundred and fifty years ago. Today, technology entrepreneurs build their empires along the western seaboard, but during the mid-eighteenth century, they live in New York City and its environs. If you want to see how little has changed in the business of leveraging emerging technologies, read about Thomas Edison, George Westinghouse, Nikloa Tesla, and their contemporaries. Bringing electricity to the masses was as electrifying as anything this modern bunch is doing with computers, clouds, and tablets. You'll be startled at the parallels.

Steve Jobs

Bill Gates

George Westinghouse

Thomas Edison