Black Horse Extra new issue now live

The latest issue of the online magazine, Black Horse Extra is now available HERE

In this issue Nick Morton tells us about his new western, Old Guns - think the young guns with stubble. There's also a detailed obituary of the late Howard Hopkins who was a guiding light in the Black Horse Community and will be much missed.

The magazine is edited by Archive friend and frequent contributor Keith Chapman and is absolutely superb.

You'd expect to pay several pounds for a magazine like this on the newsstands and readers can get it all for free by visiting the website HERE

Black Horse Extra - free online magazine

There a new issue of Black Horse Extra available online - edited and presided over by Keith Chapman the online magazine never fails to provide provocative and though provoking articles and, of course, it's all  imbued with a love for the western.

"A shrinking percentage of Black Horse Western authors are veteran, lifetime professional writers with credits in multiple genres and media: film, television, paperback originals, and comic books. Today, many more are novices and sometimes retirees from other professions or trades, realizing lifelong dreams of seeing their work in print through the good offices of the books' UK publisher, Robert Hale Ltd."

Check out issue 24 HERE

Free O'Keefe for Kindle

Chap O'Keefe is one of those writers who for decades has been keeping the western flame burning - together with other authors from Robert Hale's Black Horse Western imprint, the author has been delivering thrilling western adventures, ignoring the fact that mainstream bookstores seemed to have forsaken the genre and taking heart in the large readership gained from the public libraries. Indeed until recent years Libraries provided the main market for the western, but now with the digital revolution westerns are as easy to find as any other genre - and that, dear reader, is how it should be.

Much of Chap O'Keefe's impressive back list is now available for the Kindle, thanks to the author's own publishing imprint which truly deserves to be a success. These days writers have to do all they can to maximise the potential of their work and ensuring the books are available digitally for the new breed of western reader is something to be applauded. The books have to be out there if we are to entice new readers to the joys of the genre.

"Yep, pardners . . . Chap spins a mighty fine yarn that
should send yuh moseyin' on down tuh yuh local
bookshop pronto. This excitin', fast-paced, quickdrawin'
book is jest thuh thing for puttin' in the
cowhands' Christmas stockings."
– NZ Rural Press

"... what kept me going was O'Keefe's sensitive approach
to the scenes and his interweaving of the oppressive lives
that women had to lead in the 19th century into the book... Dillard's determination to help Liberty as his number one priority endeared
him to me forever. It's an action-driven novel and a page-turner
that will keep you going until the very end. And the end is worth
all the discomfort you feel when reading about Liberty's helplessness:
the ending is chaotic, surprising and actually pretty funny. Or maybe
that's just my take on it because I love it when women who have been victimized come back and get theirs. Revenge can be so sweet."
– Laurie Powers, grand-daughter of
pulp legend Paul S.Powers, talking about Liberty and a Law Badge.

 "You could as well have been watching a movie as
reading a book. . . O'Keefe writes westerns with the
coolness of a hired gun."
– New Zealand Herald

". . .the quintessential action-packed western."
– Saddlebums Western Review

And here's how the promo works - Buy any O'Keefe Kindle ebook, except The Sheriff and the Widow, which is already subject to a special-price promotion, and you get to choose any other O'Keefe ebook FREE, supplied to you as a PDF file you can read on your ereader!

Send us a copy of the Amazon receipt etc. And name the second book you want, which can be any of the five, including The Sheriff and the Widow, if that's your preference.

Simply email the Tainted Archive at garydobbs@hotmail.co.uk with the words O'Keefe Kindle in the subject line. Include your choice of free book and a copy of your Amazon sales reciept and I will pass your details onto Chap O'Keefe who will promptly send out your free eBook.

Check out Chap O'Keefe's Amazon page HERE and find a review of Chap's latest eBook at Western Fiction Review 

 

BLACK HORSE EXTRA - THE LATEST ISSUE

The latest issue of free online magazine, Black Horse Extra is now live and it's another packed issue - one of the articles this issue, The Ballad of Jack Martin looks at my July Black Horse Western release, The Ballad of Delta Rose. The book can be pre-ordered now from Amazon, The Book Depository and Robert Hale's website. Pre-ordering is always the best way to ensure you get a copy

"I’VE called The Ballad of Delta Rose my most hardboiled western, and several people have asked me in what way is it hardboiled?

Well, for one it’s very minimalist in style, which is something I’ve been developing over recent years. It was all down to reading Richard Stark’s The Hunter, which literally left me dazed. I had an epiphany of sorts during the reading – Stark’s minimalist prose was so incredibly powerful that the connection between reader and story was like a physical thing and the knocks and blows were actually felt. I mean it –  this book had me, several times, looking up open-mouthed and vocalizing, “F****g h**l!” And I think that unconsciously I felt the desire to develop my own writing style in this way." FULL ARTICLE

As well as the piece on myself the magazine also looks at the new True Grit movie, with author Lee Clinton wondering what lessons we can learn from its success, Greg Mitchell gives another entertaining and informative article and Ross Morton also pops in with some news. There's also more details on Chap O'Keefe's (the magazine's editor) new Misfit Lil Kindle release and if you've not bought a copy yet, then why not? -  Misfit Lil has been a most notable BHW series heroine. The Kindle ebook edition of Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope received an ecstatic welcome from Gary Dobbs (aka Jack Martin) at his Tainted Archive blog. He wrote, "Move over, Calamity Jane, Misfit Lil is in town! This hot chick of the West would have Wyatt Earp tongue-tied, send Billy the Kid weak at the knees, and transform John Wesley Hardin into a gibbering wreck. I urge anyone who considers themselves to be a western fan to buy the ebook and show that the genre which has always been too tough to die, has a place in this new eWestern world. Find the book over in Amazon's Kindle store.


And if that's not enough free content for all us western fans, there's the excellent Hoof Prints news roundup section.

Black Horse Extra - all new issue of your free online magazine

There's a brand new issue of Black Horse Extra now live for all western fans - as always, the online magazine is packed full of features, opinion pieces and the indispensable western news section, Hoofprints.

And all this for a measly £00.00 - In the latest issue Chap O'Keefe talks about his western heronine, Misfit Lil, some chap called Gary Dobbs/Jack Martin asks if True Grit heralds a horse opera renaissance, there's  a feature with David Whitehead and Alfred Wallon. And there's also the most detailed story of the Black Horse eBooks available anywhere.

Find the latest issue of Black Horse Extra HERE

Black Horse eBook Bundle now available - go get em!

The Black Horse eBook bundle has finally turned up on Amazon and other online retailers - The ever reliable Black Horse Extra offers this report:

Black Horse Extra tells the Archive the BHW ebook is now listed on Amazon! The Extra will be running this news item as a "Hoofprint" in its next quarterly edition, due out mid-February:

At last! The first bundle of BHWs to appear as an ebook showed up at Amazon on the last day in January. At the same time, pressure was mounting on the Conservative-led UK government to scrap an onerous 20% VAT (a sales tax) on ebooks to put them on equal footing with printed books, which are exempt, and with ebooks from elsewhere.  Glasgow Labour MP Tom Harris pointed out that ebooks in some other jurisdictions were not subject to similar taxes and therefore enjoyed a huge competitive advantage in a growing industry which should be supported and encouraged within the UK. Harris said he had acted after being approached by an epublisher in Glasgow and could not see why an industry of the future had been singled out for discrimination in the UK. BHW readers and writers had understood one good reason for issuing BHWs as ebooks was to make them more widely available internationally at a lower cost. The effect of VAT on Black Horse Westerns Collection No. 1 was as follows: Amazon US price reduced from publisher's digital price of $13.90 to $9.99: "You save $3.91 (28%)." Amazon UK price reduced from publisher's digital price of £9.99 to £7.99: "You save £2.00 (20%)." The US bottom-line figure of $9.99 converts roughly to £6.29 depending on the currency exchange rate of the day.  Thus the Amazon customer who goes to the UK site pays an extra £1.70, as Amazon carries out its duties to the British taxman.  Amazon customers who choose the UK site as their seller over the US are told, "Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT."   

Extra Extra read all about it - The Black Horse rides again

The latest issue - Dec-Feb- of Black Horse Extra is now available online at the usual price of 0 pence. It's a great magazine and offers several hours of western centric reading. I always print each issue out and I now have quite a collection in my magazine pile.

This issue features a campfire chat with Nik Morton, Matt P. Mayo and myself with the subject being, what we like to read and indeed what we don't like to read.

 "You know, I despair of the book industry at the moment. I recently tried to read a James Patterson book and I found it poorly written and predictable with no characterization – and this guy is one of the best selling names in the world. He doesn’t even write his own books these days. He has turned his name into a brand like Coca-Cola – and yet readers snap him up. This wouldn’t have happened years ago – have we dumbed down this much? There is so much great writing out there but there seems to be a lack of taste with the average reader." Gary Dobbs, Black Horse Extra Dec-Feb 2011 issue.


There's also the exhaustive Hoofprints section and much much more.

Saddle up and get over there and read it now - HERE

IT'S FREE MAGAZINE TIME AGAIN

The September/November issue of Black Horse Extra as just gone live online - HERE

Edited by Keith Chapman (pictured) the magazine contains articles, reviews and all the wild west news.

I've said it before and I'll say it again if this magazine was printed up and placed into W H Smith's or such like it would easily sell well. And it's all free for western fans everywhere.

As always it's a packed issue, bursting at the virtual seams you may say.

Get over THERE

ARKANSAS SMITH ONCE AGAIN

UNDER his pen-name Jack Martin, Gary Dobbs produced in 2009 the fastest-selling Black Horse Western ever. The Hale-published fiction line, established in its present form in 1986, had previously been marketed actively only to British and Commonwealth public lending libraries. Gary's runaway success was achieved by way of online, retail, non-library sales.

The performance was outstanding and managed largely on the Net via Gary's hugely popular blog, The Tainted Archive. Gary quickly realized, as the sales of his debut novel totted up, that it was going to be a hard act to follow.

He said, "After The Tarnished Star I wanted to try a new kind of character, one that would develop over a series of stories." FULL STORY AND INTERVIEW AT THE BLACK HORSE EXTRA WEBZINE

NEW ISSUE BLACK HORSE EXTRA

The latest issue of Black Horse Extra is now available online HERE

Edited by Keith Chapman AKA Chap O'Keefe, the lead piece is an in-depth interview with Ross Morton. Add to that a piece from Keith himself looking at the puritan state of the publishing industry, a round up of the latest BLACK HORSE WESTERNS, news items and much much more.

It's an essential read, pards.

Been a quiet Archive day

Mainly because I've been on set all day - waltzing can you believe for an episode of the BBC's Larkrise to Candleford. Fans will love this third series - some of the story lines they've cooked up are going to please viewers no end. And so for today I'd like to direct you back to the previous post and tell you that the latest Black Horse Extra is now live. It's another great issue of the webzine for lovers of western fiction and contains news of the new BHE paperback western range - scroll down to the previous link for details.

BLACK HORSE EXTRA

The latest issue of Black Horse Extra - dated September to November is almost ready to go and will be made live soon HERE.

The issue is another packed feast of Black Horse and western related information - I have seen the new issue and I can tell you it's as good as ever, essential reading for any western fan. There's an interview with Steve Hayes who was also recently featured on The Archive and big news about Chap O'Keefe's latest venture - putting affordable paperback westerns back into the public consciousness. The first title from BHE Books is Misfit Lil cheats the hangrope and you'll get full details in Mr O'Keefe's article in the latest Black Horse Extra webzine. Keith also tells me that there is a 10% discount that will expire on the 5th August - so go to LULU to buy the book and enter the coupon code (all CAPS) KHCHAPMANATCLEARDOTNETDOTNZPTZO to benefit for this saving which is, strictly speaking, for friends of the author but Keith maintains that all Archive readers and Western fans are friends. The book is also available on Amazon, Book Depository etc so compare prices before purchase - remember the special coupon code is redeemable only at LULU.

But wait there's more - The latest Black Horse Extra also features the regular news section, Hoofprints and a rare interview with Paul Lederer who writes Black Horse Westerns under the name of Owen G. Irons as well as Logan Winters. The issue is rounded off with an article by Greg Mitchell that will prove as useful to writers as it is to readers.

All in all another great issue that will go live any day now.

WESTERN PAPERBACKS NEW LINE - FIRST TITLE ANNOUNCED

This is the cover for the first title in the new paperback line of western fiction. Full details of the new venture will be announced in the upcoming issue of Black Horse Extra (the new issue should go live by the end of this month) and you can read an extract of Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope HERE

The Tainted Archive recently published a full length earlier O'keefe novel as an E-book. This title is free to all and can be found in the right hand side bar of this blog.

Misfit Lil is a popular character with western fans and she should be just the thing to get readers interested in this new line of westerns in pocket sized, inexpensive paperbacks.

The upcoming Black Horse Extra looks, as always, to be essential reading but I'll let Keith Chapman AKA Chap O'keefe tell you about that with an extract from the introduction to the new Black Horse Extra which will go live soon.

And so over to Keith:


we move on to an important announcement about the publication of an original western novel in paperback. Support for this initiative could result in the book becoming the pilot offering for a new series, supplementing BHWs. Older readers fondly remember the days when the paperback original was a staple on the racks of every corner shop in countries around the world. With the rising appeal of online shopping, can the western ride this modern trail to a new golden age?

A promising sign was the recent huge pre-orders success of the June BHW, The Tarnished Star. As recorded here last time, author Gary Dobbs, aka Jack Martin, waged a magnificent campaign online to show just what could be done.

Readers have been asking the obvious question for years: "Why aren't BHWs – handsome but expensive library hardbacks – also available as lower-priced, convenient pocket-book paperbacks designed for the broader retail market?" The answer has been, "Because there is no demand."

Other than by writing stories that capture the imagination of the contemporary reader, the authors are in no real position to change the situation. Only the book-buying public can. But the first step, of course, is for someone to publish the right books in an attractive format. Readers can't buy what doesn't exist.

Please read the article BHE's First Paperback Original with care and consideration. You'll find it immediately after Hoofprints, the regular round-up of newsy items from the western genre.




The Tainted Archive will bring you all the news of this new paperback line as it becomes available.


Praise for Chap O'Keefe and Misfit Lil
****
"You could as well have been watching a movie as
reading a book. . . O'Keefe writes westerns with the
coolness of a hired gun."
– New Zealand Herald

"Misfit Lil . . . . What a terrific name for a character,
eh? This book belongs to an endangered species: the
western. As for the story: totally professional, as you
would expect, and a lot of fun. By my count, Misfit Lil
Fights Back is the author's sixteenth book, so he knows
how to do the job. Ms Lil has appeared before, and
doubtless will again."
– Grumpy Old Bookman


". . .the quintessential action-packed western."
– Saddlebums Western Review

"Yep, pardners . . . Chap spins a mighty fine yarn that
should send yuh moseyin' on down tuh yuh local
bookshop pronto. This excitin', fast-paced, quickdrawin'
book is jest thuh thing for puttin' in the
cowhands' Christmas stockings."
– NZ Rural Press

"Misfit Lil . . . Chap O'Keefe's daring babe of the West."
– The Tainted Archive

"Misfit Lil Rides In is a fast-paced book that relates the
adventures of independent-minded, tough cowgirl
Lilian Goodnight. Lil is a fine horsewoman, expert at
roping calves and driving cows and is an excellent shot
with a pistol, too. Apparently, she can also out-cuss
her father's ranch-hands. . . . Most enjoyable and
recommended."
– Ross Morton


"Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope is a fine and eminently acceptable
western, beautifully written as always, with a nice line in
dry humour, good characterization, a whole string of neat
and imaginative sequences, and a mystery that certainly
baffled this reader right to the end. Refreshing and
bold . . . it takes western fiction in an exciting new
direction and this, I believe, is a major selling-point."
– David Whitehead

WILD WEST MONDAY IS GETTING NOTICED.

The Mystery*File blog takes a look at the latest issue of the Black Horse Extra and have some nice things to say about The Tainted Archive -


"The lead piece, though, is a long profile of western writer Gary Dobbs, aka Jack Martin, whose Tainted Archive blog is always worth a visit. Gary’s also a one person publicity factory for the revival of western fiction in general, making every effort he can to promote the genre and to keep it alive and well — and succeeding, too."

Head on over THERE

Black Horse Extra

The new issue of online magazine Black Horse Extra is now live HERE

This issue features a large, very flattering article and interview on yours truly, as well as many more features including a great round-table type chat on heroes too good to kill off. There is also available from the site a free sample chapter of Chap O'keefe's latest Misfit Lil adventure.

Get over there folks.

RELATED: There are two main black horse western sites - Black Horse Express and Black Horse Extra. The Tainted Archive will be looking at both of these sites in depth soon.

And be sure to check here tomorrow for an interview with Howard Hopkins/Lance Howard veteran of the Black Horse Stable.

The Archive's been quiet today

largely because I've been on a film set today working on a tele-movie to be shown on Boxing Day 2009 - my part of a market stall holder was but a little one but it's been a long day - I had to be on set for 5am and then we wrapped at about 4pm and then the night from 6pm onwards till now - 2am was spent cabbing.

Ahh well, need must.

Anyway the Archive is back to Wild West Monday mode all next week with interviews with Lance Howard and Joanne Walpole, as well as an early review for Joanne's Long Shadows which is published at the end of this month. There'll also be some more guest bloggers as well as the usual reviews and what not and news of the new issue of Black Horse Extra which will be going live around the middle of the month. I've seen a preview and Keith Chapman AKA Chap O'Keefe has managed to pull together the usual varied bunch of features and news. This issue also contains a great piece on Jack Martin's Tarnished Star which really made my day and an interview with myself.

Keith's done a great job putting this together. There's even mention of the Welsh arm of the Chap O'keefe fan club.

Anyway I'm going back to sleep