Ask the Author: Don Bendell
Answered Questions (12)
Don Bendell
American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Don Bendell
Southern Colorado in the 1880s, and I would become friends with the characters I created I created, Joshua Strongheart and Chris Colt.
Don Bendell
Dusty, dry, and weary from several days of travel in the hot sun trying to track down that ruthless killer of women and children Johnny Three-Guns, my left hand held the saddle horn as I wearily stepped out of the stirrup. To my shock, my right foot went down into the ground, then my whole body, as I slipped into the camouflaged pit he had dug by the hitching post, and I could easily see the sharp spikes pointing up at me ten feet below, as I held onto the left stirrup with one hand and prayed for help.
Don Bendell
You can view it for free if you belong to Kindle Unlimited or buy it on Kindle for $6.99 or large paperback for $16.99.
Don Bendell
Thank you. I lost her on Valentine's Day, 2014. My wife now Janet and I just co-wrote Cowboy the F Up! How to be a Real Man in Today's World. I have only had two really great loves in my life, Shirley and Janet. Shirley was Annie Oakley and just what I needed for those 33 years in my life. Janet is nothing like Shirley. She is Grace Kelly and totally what I need for this part of my life. We just celebrated our 2nd anniversary last weekend.
Don Bendell
I ride my horse. I also have romances in each of my novels, and I am in love with my girlfriend which inspires me and was also in love with my late-wife which always inspired me. I also feel great passion about doing traditional westerns because I feel strongly that today's kids (and adults, too) need happy endings, and very moral, strong heroes with lots of principle. We all need something greater than ourselves to aspire to. Creating such an atmosphere inspires me to write.
Don Bendell
I am currently working on The Rider of Phantom Canyon, the third sequel to my amazon dot com number one best-selling western paperback Strongheart. It will be released worldwide in 2015 or 2016. Additionally, I am working on a hardcover military thriller A Quiet Strength.
Don Bendell
Grow yourself and ONLY write what you truly know about. For example, I physically ride my horse, when at all possible, over every inch of ground I write about in my westerns. NEVER give up and DO NOT try to please everybody. Take advice and input and analyze it. If it is useful, use it to make yourself grow. You MUST be a self-promoter to become successful. Learn how to market yourself and view yourself as a product.
Don Bendell
A sense of fulfillment; I believe God put me on this earth to write. I tell young people to find what you are most passionate about, then do it with all your heart. Then, I add the caveat, however if you can figure out a way to make a few bucks doing it that is even better. I strongly believe real, true writers feel strongly compelled to write, not a desire, but a true passion. Each new book I write is akin to giving birth in one sense.
Don Bendell
When you are a professional, you cannot afford to have writer's block. Last year, my wife of 32 and a half years passed away after many years of a very happy marriage and close friendship. It tore me up to watch her struggle with leukemia with blast crisis for four years, and my publisher, Berkley/Penguin-Random House, was very, very supportive. My editor told me to take my time on my latest book, The Indian Ring, and they would adjust the release date based on when I turned it in. It actually helped my writing because I had to go through all the obvious pain and grieving. However, I believe in turning negatives into positives. I feel my writing in that book was much, much better because I had the protagonist dealing with grieving himself and after that was written, it occurred in my own life. Nothing improves your writing as much as real life experience.
Don Bendell
I was just asked what do I have coming out next. I am now writing the third sequel to my amazon number one best-selling western paperback Strongheart (Berkley-Penguin Group, 2011). The first sequel was Blood Feather which was one of three finalists in the Colorado Authors League 2014 competition for "Best Mainstream Novel," although it was a western. The second sequel was The Indian Ring, which is now being edited by my publisher and prepared for publication and worldwide release in 2015. I am currently writing The Rider of Phantom Canyon, the third sequel, which will be released worldwide in late 2015 or in 2016 by my publisher Berkley/Penguin-Random House.
Don Bendell
I recently finished The Indian Ring, a historical western novel which is the second sequel to my amazon number one best-selling western paperback novel Strongheart. The first sequel was Blood Feather. The hero Joshua Strongheart a half-Lakota/half-white Pinkerton Agent tries to tackle and dismantle the infamous, Washington-based Indian Ring. The book will be will released worldwide in 2015 by my publisher Berkley/Penguin-Random House, but I do not have the exact date yet.
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