Welcome to the “My Place” page
 My name is Scott
I run the Rope and Wire website.
This is the page where I get to write about western subjects. Writing short story fiction in the western genre is great. I love to do it, as you can see by the short stories I’ve written and posted on this site. (See the link below.)
I’ve been writing western fiction for some time now and I’ve done well enough to sell some of my work. But there are times when I just feel the urge to write a short non-fiction article about western history or maybe about the people, places or things that were truly an important part of the makeup of the American old west.
I know I’m not alone on this. I know there are others out there who feel the same way, so if you have an interesting western article you wish to share with others, send it my way, and maybe I’ll post it as well.
If you click on any of the links to past blog's, you can return to this page by clicking on the My Place menu button.
I hope you enjoy it, but if not, might I suggest you “stroll the grounds.” Read one of the many great western stories posted on this site, watch an old western movie or listen to one of our old western radio shows. There's plenty to do.
If you're interested in reading one of my stories. I write under the name of Christopher Scott. You can find me HERE.
Thanks for visiting.
Scott
Look for me on Facebook...Scott Gese
Taking Advantage
Self-publishing is looking better every day. And for the western genre, this can only be a good thing. Brick and Mortar bookstores have never taken the western genre seriously, but as the Internet begins to play an ever-increasing role in book sales, the field is leveling out.
Borders Group inc., yes, that would be the Borders of Borders bookstores, has recently closed 182 of its Walden bookstores. That would be more than half. Reducing the number to those still open to 148, and I doubt if they will be open for long.
Borders is the second largest bookstore chain in the U.S., after Barnes & Noble.
As I have stated before and truly believe, the Internet allows consumers easy access to a vast number of titles, whereas mall bookstores have long been losing favor with consumers because of their limited assortments. The brick and mortar bookstore is quickly becoming a thing of the past.
In fact, just last year, Barnes & Noble introduced its own version of the Kindle e-reader, called The Nook. And now it seems, they have a deal with Apple to include a built-in Barnes & Noble digital bookstore in its new, soon to be unveiled Apple Tablet computer. A built in Barns & Noble e-reader would give the Apple Tablet access to over one million titles.
Borders Group Inc. reported a 13.7% drop in total sales for the 11-week holiday period ended Jan. 16. Why doesn’t this surprise me?
Borders, as well as Barns & Noble see the writing on the wall. They are both repositioning themselves to take full advantage of this quickly changing landscape.
For self-publishers, the advantage will be to those who grasp the value of marketing their product through their own websites. But, keep in mind, having your own website doesn’t automatically guarantee success. That’s where marketing comes into play. Those who are ahead of the curve are taking full advantage of sites like Rope and Wire, who help western authors promote their work.
As the Rope and Wire, About Rope and Wire page states. We are currently seen in over 145 countries, by many thousands of readers each and every month. Our support continues to grow daily thanks to the many western authors, and now western musicians and artists, who see the importance of this opportunity and take full advantage of it.
Mary Scriver
Here is a copy of the January 11th blog post from Mary Scriver, one of the authors who submit their work to Rope and Wire.
It's always appreciated when this website is mentioned by others, and to be mentioned by someone like Mary Scriver makes it extra special.
Mary writes 1,000 words daily for www.prairiemary.blogspot.com on whatever comes to hand. However, www.scriverart.blogspot.com is more focused on Western art and information about Bob Scriver.
EYES, AGGREGATORS AND CURATION
Daily I wade through blogs and vids from the many websites trying to figure out what to do about the collapse of “English gentry” Manhattan-style publishing a la Bennett Cerf, which probably died about the same time he did, and then the corporation Hollywood mogul-style publishing that has slid along behind for the last decade or so until they realized there simply were not the profit-margins they expected. It’s strange that everyone got so excited about Detroit collapsing, but no one offered a government bail-out for publishing. Maybe it’s because entrepreneurs are unlikely to create automobile factories at home, but they CAN publish from the kitchen table. At first (like me) we printed pages at Kinko’s and bound them with some kind of clunky machine. Then came Print On Demand outfits like Lulu.com and via computer we could order professional quality books that arrived at the post office in a week.
But distribution and marketing remain huge and largely unsolved problems. Slowly the necessary concepts for renewal are appearing. I see three good ones so far: eyes, aggregators and curation.
Eyes means readers, which translates to buyers. Eyes are driven by interest, people looking for material they care about. They can be grouped into what we might call “niches” which is more specific than calling them “mailing lists.” So much of what Amazon, as well as mail-order gizmo merchants, does is to accumulate humonguous mailing lists either on paper or via email. The selling of tasty concentrated email lists is profitable enough to attract pirates. The best ones don’t include much spam, but are crammed with people who have a true interest in some topic. They might also include “hits” on a website: people coming to see what is there because of search engines like Google or because they picked it up from word of mouth. Facebook is pursuing something similar: the creation of webs of relationship that one can tap in one place to send vibes all over. The assumption is that friends might be interested in about the same things. (This doesn’t entirely work for me because I have quite separate “spheres of interest” who are not in sympathy with each other, as readers of this blog know.)
Once “eyes” are listed, the next step is “aggregation” which is simply the gathering of materials that go together. This is more slippery than one might think because it requires careful definition of the niche, as anyone knows from trying to get Google to cough up info you want. (I’ve been trying to make it give me an account of how and why frost comes out of the ground which I know is in there someplace because I got it once before. I just can’t remember what phrase I used to fish for it.)
Let’s assume “eyes” who are interested in traditional cowboy stories and lifeways -- not the glitzy sequin-studded New West crowd, but the old-fashioned real-life ranchers in their cozy kitchens, as served by a website called www.ropeandwire.com. I was looking for an online ezine that printed short stories in the Western mode. That’s exactly what this is and more.
If you like the whole category of authentic Western stuff -- stories, poetry, cooking, jokes, musicians and those classic old movies from just after WWII, not quite “Turner Classics,” then this is the website for you, “A gathering place for Western Writers, Cowboy Poets and Old Western Movie Buffs.” You can order eCards, watch those movies right online, and read what Scott Gese, the owner of this spread, calls a “barnful” of stories. Maybe send in a few of your own. It’s an “aggregation.” That’s a collection. You know, like your duck-hunting license says you can shoot so many ducks in the “aggregate,” which is not an organ but the total number. Amazon and other online book distributors are “aggregators” that list enormous alphabetized lists of available books.
The next step is curation. Right about now the self-aggregating artists who wish to participate in one of the March auctions of Western art in Great Falls are sending slides or maybe actual artwork to the committee in charge of sorting the works, deciding which should be included. They will probably also be doing a bit of active searching for authentic works by Charlie Russell, since the whole shindig is in his honor. This takes experts, people who know the range and who has what stock. Among book publishers, curators -- which is an art term -- are usually called “editors” who are the people who can identify quality and other considerations. People confuse editors with publishers, who are simply the providers of capital and might have no taste whatsoever -- just money.
Scott Gese, who has Western tastes, is his own curator for www.ropeandwire.com and puts his criteria for inclusion online. So far he has accepted some of my stories and turned down two: the one about the punk but artistic Blackfeet boy on a motorcycle who liked snakes and the one about the mail-order bride whose husband staggered in from a blizzard nearly dead of hypothermia. She was in a hot bath in front of the fire and simply pulled him in with her to warm him up, which also warmed up the marriage. It made Scott blush.
This is entirely legitimate. Scott neither pays nor charges for the stories he prints and he gives full credit and free publicity to writers. He is an aggregator and a curator, and his practices are above-board, though they don’t please commercial authors trying to sell the same sort of material. A smart publisher would simply keep on eye on this website and acquire some of Scott’s stock. In the meantime it is a way for an amateur like me to get started, to attract eyes.
We are in hard times when it comes to publishing. Too often hard times cause people to put up fences and hoard. The gatekeepers slam shut the access and load their guns. But smart people maintain their generosity, knowing that the way to get new ideas is to share the old ones. Ideas can be aggregated and curated as easily -- maybe MORE easily -- than actual objects. (No UPS charges.) In the end we all profit.
If you think cattle rustling is a thing of the past...think again.
Cattle rustlers still at work in Oregon | More than 1,200 cattle have been stolen in Malheur County
By Richard Cockle
The Oregonian
Appeared in print: Wednesday, Nov 25, 2009
News: Local: Story
JORDAN VALLEY — They were spotted from a small airplane, two cattle rustlers on horseback hazing 125 white-faced cows across Malheur County’s forbidding empty quarter in Oregon’s far southeast corner.
The men, sighted last spring, were pushing the stolen herd south through a high-desert tapestry of chaparral, manzanita, juniper and sagebrush. They looked like ordinary cowboys.
Read Full Story>>
A COWBOYS DAY
Monty Bush
The morning stillness and the rays of sunlight breaking over the mountain, sets in motion another day at the ranch. It was just breaking dawn when I went to the barn to grab my saddle for the day’s work ahead. It is spring according to the calendar, but the fresh blanket of snow would cause one to question that and argue that spring should be a time when meadows are covered with flowers and green grass and not a new dusting of snow and ice. A day such as this where I grew up in central Texas, would be one for the record books, but out here it is not unusual to have snow on the ground and another month of winter.
The boys had already saddled and were waiting on me when I reached the corral. “Deter” was leaned against the fence pinching a new bite of tobacco while “LJ” was collecting his rope and building perfect coils before he tied it to his saddle. Now old “Deter”, well he has been ranching and cowboying all his life. A quick glance at his hands reveals a look of leather that only time, hard work and the weather can produce. His wrinkled face is filled with lines that I am certain each hold a story that most men only dream of living. His chaps show all the signs of belonging to a working man and not some weekend cowboy. His boots are worn, but soft from the leather oil he cleans them with each night. His stories will keep you mesmerized as he revisits the many adventures he has experienced over the years, and paints a picture in your mind as clear as the heavens on a star filled night. “LJ” is young, energetic, and full of spit and vinegar, but he soaks in every word that old man says, just like a sinner hears the preacher on the front row in church.
We are moving the bulls from the winter pasture to the cows today and chances are we will need the ropes and the dogs to get them there. “Bode” and “Jake” were already anticipating the adventure and they can barely sit still while we get ready. “Bode” is the youngest and fastest of the two dogs. He will become the most valuable if any of the bulls break from the herd in the gather, while “Jake” is the most experienced. They work together good and make a strong team. Kinda like “Deter and LJ”.
We down the last of the coffee and load the horses into the trailer for the drive out to the pasture. The dogs are already loaded and we climb up into the truck and head out. It is a beautiful morning, cool and calm winds. The fresh snow is just a light covering and will probably all melt off by noon. I drive slowly, not because of the road, but just to take in the beauty Old Mother Nature has provided this day.
“Bode” and “Jake” are out of the truck and anxiously awaiting a command to gather the herd. “Deter” is already moving to the east side of the pasture as “LJ” and I move out away from the truck. “Bode” stays with me and “Jake” moves on out with ‘LJ”. We only have 15 bulls in this pasture, but moving them out will be like getting an old Grizzly to leave her cubs. I expect several fights and flying hair. Several of the older bulls will be pretty cooperative, but the young ones will challenge the horses and put up a Hell of a fight. I gave Bode some bacon and a little egg this morning figuring that he will need all his energy. Besides, he eats my cooking without even one little complaint.
Deter has positioned himself on a ridge overlooking the valley and has let us know that a few bulls are moving in toward the water tank. I sent LJ and Jake a little farther up the draw and I am moving off with Bode to secure the west side of the pasture. Here is where patience is the best action. Just sit back and let them all come in before moving down on the herd. I relaxed on my horse and had Bode lie down beside me. A shadow came into view and I looked up to see an eagle soaring towards its nest. What an amazing view he must have of this country. As serene as it looks from my view, for him it must look like an ocean of grass dotted with trees. He circled for a few moments, and then disappeared over a ridge line. There is an abundance of ground squirrels scurrying to their holes and peacefulness in this little valley that is nearly overwhelming. I never grow tired of just sitting and looking at all that surrounds me.
A ringing from my cell phone brings me back. Deter has let me know that all the bulls are through the draw and we can move down when I am ready. I called LJ and we slowly started in toward the herd. If we can get two or three of the bulls moving out toward the gate, we should be able to get the rest to follow without too much trouble. LJ has sent Jake on up ahead and is whistling him to circle to the right. Bode keeps looking up at me as if to say, “When do I go”? We rode another hundred yards and I sent Bode out. He quickly reached the rear of the cattle and I motioned him to move left. He responded quickly and effectively. The bulls started moving. Deter was already set up east of the gate and LJ was drifting back to the rear. I remained on the west side of the herd and we started pushing the bulls out.
Just as I was thinking about how easily this was going, two bulls in the middle of the bunch started pushing and shoving each other. Its breeding season and the bulls feel it. These cattle act no differently than any animal in the wild. Only the strong and the most aggressive will get to breed most of the cows. The fighting instinct is strong and these bulls go at it vigorously. The problem for me is that their sparring match has caused the others to drift out of the tight group we had moving out of the pasture. I sent Bode in to disrupt the fight and Deter and I tightened up the group. We were yelling and slapping leather and Jake was grabbing any bull wanting to leave the group. It took a few minutes, but we managed to get them moving our way once again. It took a couple of hours to reach the gate and the open pasture of cows, but all in all it went really well. LJ closed the gate and we watched as the bulls set off building their little herds. Each bull would push his group off and although he will lose one or two to another bull, I am certain the best bulls will do the most breeding this year.
We rode at an easy stride back to the truck and Deter was off on another story that had LJ’s full attention. Shoot, it had mine too. I loved hearing Deter’s stories. You had to make up your own mind on how much was true and how much was coloring for the story. But as he talked along, you quickly realized, it really didn’t matter. His stories were interesting and exciting. He was completely animated as he told the story. You could feel each and every word as though it had a life. His head would rock back, his eyes would light the moment, and his hands would flail through the air as he spoke. I’m surprised he didn’t fall off his horse. I glanced down as we rode along and I swear I think Jake and Bode were listening too.
We reached the barn and LJ and Deter began rubbing down the horses as I put the saddles away. It had been a productive day and we were all tired and hungry. Bode and Jake have been in and out of the water trough ever since we got back and are now off chasing squirrels. I am looking forward to a cold beer, a good meal and a restful night’s sleep.
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