There have been times when I’ve considered my devotion to my brothers to be a bit unusual. I continue to grieve over my brother Rick and worry all the time about Scott and Corey. Both are grown men, one is the director of 911 services in the Ray County, Missouri area and the other is in the Navy. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for them. Buffalo Bill Cody’s sister felt the same way about him. The book I’ve been writing about his life would not be complete without touching on the relationship he had with his sisters. His older sisters, Julia and middle sister, Helen both wrote books about him. They were proud of him and helped manage his ranch and hotel. His little sisters, May and Eliza were equally dedicated to him. Cody made sure they were taken care of too. He had homes built for them and supported them monetarily. When it became clear that their brother had married badly and wanted a divorce, all of Cody’s sister championed him in court and to the press. I have a great picture of Buffalo Bill flanked on either side by his sisters. It’s an endearing photograph. His sister did everything they could to keep their brother from being physically or emotionally harmed, but were unsuccessful. If only they’d been able to convince him that the woman he was marrying was a shrew. But just like my brother Rick, Cody wouldn’t have listened. Helen Cody said of her brother, “We regarded him as a superior being&it seemed so fit and proper that the promise of the stars concerning his future should be fulfilled that never for a moment did we weaken in our belief that great things were in store for our brother.” I admire the Cody sisters loyalty to their brother. Maybe what I feel for my brothers isn’t that unusual after all.

At one time I had hoped to get the okay to write a biography about Mary Jo Kopechne. The story of her life and untimely death fascinated me and I wanted to write about all the wonderful things she managed to do in her short time on earth. It seems that most only know about her accident with Senator Ted Kenedy, but she was much more than that. I’ve included a bit of the sample chapter in my notes today. Let me know if it catches your interest. If the response if favorable I might be able to convince my publisher to give me another shot at the manuscript. “I guess those girls just aren’t going to talk. It would ease the heartache so much if they would give some answers.”
Mrs. Joseph Kopechne – September 26, 1969. A determined diver dressed in full scuba gear carefully lifted a bent, stiff body with gritted teeth and clawed hands out of a murky pond. A company of police officers, fireman and medical examiners all wearing doleful expressions watched as the lifeless figure was placed on a white tarp stretched out on the ground. Few spoke as a cursory examination of the twenty-eight year-old woman laying before them begun. The process took only ten minutes.
It was 9:30 a.m. on July 19, 1969, and most of the residents at Chappaquiddick Island had no idea their tiny community had played host to a tragedy. News that a car had plummeted off Dike Bridge claiming a life in the process had not reached them yet. From the standpoint of Massachusetts law enforcement this meant there would be no curious crowds to control or usher away from the wreckage. They were free to investigate the scene without distraction. Doctor Donald Mills, Associate County Medical Examiner, squeezed his fat hand into a pair of surgical gloves and stared down at the woman’s face. “This is Mary Jo Kopechne, gentlemen,” he announced in a business like manner. “Looks like she fought hard to stay alive,” he added. In Doctor Millss initial inspection of the body he noted that Mary Jo was wearing a blouse, a bra and slacks, but no panties. “Maybe she forgot them,” he offered to no one in particular. With mortician Eugene Frieh and his assistant, David Guay, looking on, Doctor Mills loosened the front of Mary Jo’s blouse and pressed his stethoscope over her chest and abdomen. The physician inspected the body for ten minutes then turned to the examiners on either side of him and confessed, “This is the most drowned person I’ve ever seen &any light pressure on the chest wall&water would simply pour out of the nose and mouth.” The mortician nodded, “We need to be sure, though,” he insisted. Doctor Mills stood up, his hand on his chin. He squinted into the sunlight as he pondered the comment. At that moment a black Oldsmobile arrived at the scene and stopped next to an awaiting ambulance. Senator Ted Kennedy, dressed in a neatly pressed pair of trousers and a white shirt, emerged from the back of the vehicle. His attorneys climbed out after him, flanking him on either side.

Rarely have I had a better time at a book signing than I did at the event in Redding. The audience was attentive and respectful. They were fun and asked some great questions after the presentation. I can’t wait to go back. The highlight of the evening was when a reader walked up to me and told me that she had read the journal entries on my site and would be praying for me and my family. I heard from another reader in Arizona the following day who had read the journal entries as well. She emailed me and shared the hurt she experienced over her daughter’s incarceration and was looking forward to reading The Deadliest Accusation. Such encouragement I believe is from God because at times I feel like I’m just holding on by a thread to get to the next day. I received the final quote about Thunder Over the Prairie from Dakota and Sunny Livesay at Chronicles of the Old West. Here’s what they had to say&. “Lawmen, cowboys, songbirds and soiled doves&it doesn’t get much better. A shooting, a chase and a trial whose verdict changes all of their lives. Thunder Over the Prairie is a great story from the history of our American West, warts and all.” I’m just waiting for a couple more photos to arrive and then I can turn the posse manuscript into the publisher. It’s very exciting.

The response from an article in the Grass Valley Union newspaper about the book A Beautiful Mine was overwhelming. Many people signed up to be on the mailing list for my newsletter and all of the interested parties got a free copy of the book. I was pleasantly surprised. I’m off tomorrow to do a book signing event in Redding, California. I’ll be close to beautiful Shasta Mountain so I’ll probably take a drive there before the lecture. I hope to have all the finishing touches made on Thunder Over the Prairie this week. I’m waiting for the rest of the photographs for the book to come in and a few more permission useage forms to be returned. After that, it’s good to go. I’m happy with the book and the changes that were made as a result of the early reviews. I don’t know if I’d have been able to get through those necessary revisions if not for Sunny and Dakota Livesay and Jim Sherer. They are good people and I’m glad I know them. The title for the book about my brother was decided on today. It will be called “The Deadliest Accusation.” I think it’s a good, solid title.

The book I’ve been working on about my brother has allowed me to connect with a variety of interesting people. Many of those have lost a loved one in the Federal Prison system. Some of them have loved ones inside that have been falsely accused. It’s comforting to talk to people who know the hurt and sadness you’re experiencing. No matter how much you talk about it or cry over it with them nothing erases the image of the one you hold dear being repeatedly raped and beaten beyond recognition. I wish it did. There’s a common bond, but nothing makes it hurt less. Not even if I were able to write the most stirring novel ever, compose the most touching symphony heard, or paint a picture that would move all who looked upon it. Nothing, nothing diminishes the grief in your heart. You just go on living by faith that God knows ALL.

I miss my brother and think about him everyday. My sincere prayer is that when the book I’ve written about him and the circumstances surrounding him being taken from us is told that lives will be changed. Prior to penning the tome I only wanted to get back at the two people who brought this on. I realize now that it won’t change anything as far as they’re concerned. I hope it helps the next group of people who find themselves in similiar situations where false allegations rob them of a son and a brother. I’m working on chapter six in the Buffalo Bill Cody saga. I’m looking forward to being in Cody, Wyoming in August to do more research on the subject. Think I’ll rent a car and take a drive through Yellowstone. I finished writing the western film treatment for AMC. I’ll work on the rewrite this afternoon and this evening turn my attention to promotions for the book Frontier Teachers: Stories of Heroic Women of the Old West. The book is being released in September. I was encouraged by the quote I received from Jay O’Connell for Thunder Over the Prairie. It’s going to go on the back cover of the book. I can’t wait to share it though so here it is. “Thunder Over the Prairie, written with cinematic clarity and a galloping pace, is a wonderful primer for the considerable literature on Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp et. al. This accessible narrative of a fascinating episode in the careers of these well-known western icons is filled with characters that are archetypal yet utterly fresh at the same time. This charming books is the perfect read for anyone over a drink (or two) in a dusty western saloon on a lazy afternoon.” I’ve got a couple more copies of A Beautiful Mine: Women Prospectors of the Old West for anyone who writes and let’s me know they’d like to give it a read. Drop me an email.

Part of the process of completing a manuscript is soliciting quotes from other authors or industry professionals. The quotes can be used for the back jacket of the book or the inside cover, etc.. In the past few years I’ve been able to get quotes from some great people such as Kim Dickens, who starred as Jonie Stubbs on HBOs Deadwood, Dusty Rogers, Roy Rogers and Dale Evan’s son, and producer Rob Word. Most of the people I have asked to supply a quote have been very kind, but none more so than the author Jay O’Connell. Mr. O’Connell wrote a book entitled The Train Robber’s Daughter. The book is a biography of the life of Eva Evans, the daughter of one of California’s most notorious outlaws, Chris Evans. Jay has one of the largest collections of material on the crime team of Chris Evans and John Sontag. I didn’t know that when I was writing the book Outlaw Tales of California or I certainly would have looked him up. One of the chapters in Outlaw Tales is about Chris Evans and John Sontag. When Outlaw Tales came out Jay sent me an email congratulating me on the book and told me about The Train Robber’s Daughter. I wrote him back and asked him to give me a quote for Thunder Over the Prairie. He kindly agreed. He agreed even though he wasn’t too thrilled about Outlaw Tales and the fact that I didn’t contact him when I was writing the book for information about the men. Like I said, if I’d known about his background I would have done just that. His response to Thunder Over the Prairie was positive and I look forward to his quote. Jay O’Connell demonstrated a level of decency I have rarely ever seen in the writing business. I respect and admire him for that. The Train Robber’s Daughter is a good book and I look forward to more work by him.

In the last five years I’ve learned more about how cruel people can be than any of the 47 years I’ve been around. Most of what I’ve learned about depraved behavior I learned at the hand of a young woman that used to call me “Aunt.” It would be nice to get past the hurt and lies, but I don’t think there is any chance of that happening. Somehow I feel if I let the hurt go entirely I would be forgetting the brother I lost and I can’t do that. Maybe the people who caused this pain can go on like he didn’t exist, but I can’t. I may not write about him everyday, but he is always in my heart. I wish he could be at the launch for the posse book, which has now been rescheduled to June 6th , 2009 in Dodge City. The publication date for Thunder Over the Prairie was set for September of next year, but according to my editor it’s in good shape and ready to go to press. I did get the forword from Jim Sherer, former Mayor of Dodge City, yesterday. He had a lot of nice things to say about the work and I’m grateful. There is a blessing with having had experience with truly ugly people and that is that the truly decent individuals I’ve known stand out all the more. Without the cruel I’ve known it I wouldn’t recognize the kindness in someone like Jim Sherer, or the sweetness in my little adopted niece Breanna Sanders, or the beauty of a special friend long since gone like Edna Kirsten. From that respect I’m thankful I’ve gone through what I have. It improved my vision when I wasn’t even looking.