Montana Man - Matthew P. Mayo interview

Montana Resident Matthew P. Mayo is another of the writers producing books for the highly regarded Black Horse Western range which are published by British House, Robert Hale LTD. They are a well respected long established publisher who have been in the business since 1936.


And so in this lead up to Wild West Monday the Archive cornered Matthew for a question answer session.

Matthew lives in real cowboy country but what is it about the western that attracts him?

"First of all, thanks for the interview. I’m flattered and I appreciate all you’re doing on behalf of the Western genre.

The Western is, arguably, uniquely American, as are jazz and Peeps (squishy, tasty sugar thingies), and by writing about the frontier I feel I’m contributing a bit to our national mythology. I also value self-reliance and the Western genre is ideal for exploring that. Plus, in my head I’m a cowboy. Always have been. When I was a kid I watched old reruns of Bonanza and Gunsmoke with my folks and there was a strange appeal about them that never left me. I’m afraid it’s only gotten worse—Yee haa!"


The western is booming at the moment with blogs such as The Tainted Archive, Broken Trails, Western Fiction Review all promoting the genre regularly. And more and more blogs are appearing all the time. Also these days writers have blogs and have never been so close to their fans/readers. These days fans can chat with messaging services, web site comments and so on. This situation is thanks to the internet and perhaps this has something to do with the western's renewed growth. So with all the new interest where does Matthew see the genre going the the future?



"Anyone who says the Western genre is dead isn’t paying much attention. The term “Western” is appropriate for far more than shoot-em-up page turners—historical dramas, non-fiction works, poetry, contemporaries set in the West (check out Craig Johnson’s Walt Longmire mysteries or CJ Box’s Joe Pickett series), plus there are films, television shows, songs, conventions, reenactments, etc. The Western genre is alive and well, it’s just different—and more diverse—than what it was a few decades ago. And the future for it, if people don’t continue to define “Western” as a traditional fictional novel, looks rosy. The history of the American frontier is rich and deep. I hope people continue to explore it and share what they find. "




Matthew's characters are all very well drawn and could have stepped from life onto the page. What comes first for the writer, character or plot?



"Characters usually come first. I’ve read many times in interviews with writers that characterization is the block on which a tale is built and that makes sense to me. But then I like to put characters in the salad spinner, throw in some locations, emotions, and see if the result is tasty. Sometimes it works, sometimes it’s dag-nasty."


The Hollywood and literary version of the wild west is usually far removed from the real period in history. So I wonder if the author feels research is important to a good western?

"I do a fair amount of research since readers of Westerns are astute, they know their guns, horses, locations, and so much more. I caution anyone who thinks they can just whip up a believable Western without research. But I also like the freedom fiction offers in cobbling together locations from various places I’ve visited and researched. "

How would Matthew describe his books to new readers, many of whom are reading the Archive now and looking for new writers?

"Let’s see…. I try to make my traditional Westerns pulp-based page-turners with strong dialogue and bold, graphic descriptions that help form a tight, visual style that propels the reader—teeth clenched and eyes wide—toward an unexpected denouement. That’s the rough plan, anyway! (Check ‘em out at: www.matthewmayo.com). "

So what elements are needed for a perfect western?


"For traditional Westerns, I like old-school manly action. Edgar Rice Burroughs’ male protagonists are the ideal for me—brawny, capable, and chivalrous. So an action-filled Western with a man caught in a situation in which he must think and battle his way out is the bee’s knees to me."

To be an author you must first be a reader. I wonder what writer's influence Matthew?

"Influences, in no particular order: Edgar Rice Burroughs, Loren D. Estleman, Charles Bukowski, Stephen King, Donald Hall, Johnny D. Boggs, David Robbins, Peter Brandvold, Garrison Keillor, Elmer Kelton, James Reasoner, Elmore Leonard, Raymond Chandler, Ed Gorman, Louis L’Amour, Robert Randisi—I could go on and on and on…."

Quite an eclectic list. So The Archive prompts Matthew for his fave western book and movie?

"This is always a liquid list for me, but a few solid favorites: Books: Loren D. Estleman’s “White Desert” and Jack Schaeffer’s “The Canyon.”

Movies: “Open Range” and “Seven Men From Now.”"

Matthew's novels have built up a strong readership and fans would be pleased to hear of any future projects.

"I have substantial chunks of two traditional Westerns in the works, but set those aside because I was approached by a publisher to write a non-fiction book about the Old West. I can’t say much more about it right now but it’s a good-sized project and I’m having a ball working on it. The whole enchilada’s due by April 1. I’m also shopping a contemporary action series and a few other ideas that have attracted interest. Plus I have poetry and crime, Western, and horror short stories coming out in various anthos over the next year. And I need an agent. Any takers?"

The non-fiction works sounds interesting and The Archive will print whatever details of the project as they become available.

And finally what will Matthew be doing for Wild West Monday?

"As I’m located in Montana, it’s rare to find a bookshop that doesn’t have a Westerns section, so I’ll have to be more creative. I think I’ll fire off a

few letters to CEOs of chains that don’t carry sufficient stocks of Westerns. Maybe I can help to guilt them into ponying up."

NEWS: All of Matthew's westerns have sold their large print rights.

Winter's War is currently available and the others are to follow.