Over the past few weeks I’ve been introducing you to the main players in my upcoming release On Common Ground. In case you haven’t seen it yet, here is the cover.
I don’t know about you, but I love it!
So far you’ve met Trevor and Ketra, the 2 people featured on this cover, and you’ve also met Rocky who owns the ranch where Trevor and Ketra are currently living. Today, I’d like to introduce you to the ranch itself. It really is its own character in the book. So much stuff happens at the ranch. I want you all to have a better understanding of what my make-believe ranch looks like, and feels like, and smells like.
So, without further ado, let’s take a look at what a large cattle ranch looks like.
The fictitious ranch in my book is called the Diamond D, but it closely resembles the Babbitt ranches featured in the video above. Both ranches are just outside Flagstaff in Northern Arizona. Both are working cattle ranches. Both raise over 8,000 head of cattle.
Without good, reliable horses, it would be impossible to efficiently run a ranch of this size. That means, horses are probably the most important element in running a successful ranch. That, and good help. Typically ranchers use American quarter horses because they have been bred to work cattle. As the video points out, horses are the cowboy’s primary tool. If you can’t count on your horse, or trust your horse, you probably won’t be able to do your job. In fact, there is a scene in my book dealing with just this very thing; the relationship between horse and rider.
So there you go. Now you know the key players. When the book is released on October 24, if you’ve pre-ordered it (and I hope you do) you can crack open the cover and immerse yourself into my story. If you haven’t pre-ordered it, you can order it at any time in the future when you’re ready to enjoy reading about the people and places I’ve been blogging about.
On Common Ground is currently available for pre-order at these fine retailers:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2DH5kFF
Kobo: https://bit.ly/2NcCn3T
GooglePlay: http://bit.ly/2QfmUlA
Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/2QmC60i
BookBub: http://bit.ly/2P8Cv6m
Also available on iBooks
Thank you for visiting today. I hope you’ve been enjoying my posts about my book and my characters. Tell me readers, what have you most enjoyed learning about On Common Ground? Want to know about the next book in the series? Want me to stop with the western book stuff and get back to the snarky posts about inn guests or obnoxious people? Let me have it. I aim to please.
Word of the day: Gelandesprung
Fun fact about me: I’m discovering that maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks.
Original post by Jansen Schmidt, October 2018. Photos courtesy Google Imaged. Video courtesy YouTube (AQHA Video).
I can’t wait to read! And yes, please share about the next book in the series. 🙂
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I can’t reveal too much about the next book just yet, but I can say that it is also a contemporary western set in Arizona and has a couple of overlapping characters. It’s called On Hallowed Ground and take place primarily on an Indian Reservation. Look for that early next year. (Hopefully anyway.)
You can swing by my newly re-vamped website and sign up for my newsletter to get the lowdown.
Thanks for visiting. Stay tuned.
Patricia
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Signed up!
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I always enjoy hearing about my friends’ books, so bring it! Nice cover, too. I also enjoy your posts about B&B guests, so please continue those whenever you have some good ones to share.
Never done a Gelandesprung, and I doubt I ever will…
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Oh Jennette, there’s never a dull moment here at the inn. Some people are just downright weird. Some are impossible to please. Some of ideal guests. We seem to run the gamut here.
I hope you enjoy the book. You know they are always a labor of love to create.
And, as always, thanks for visiting. Have a great rest of the week.
Patricia
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Great cover!! Yay and congrats, so exciting!
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Thanks Coleen. I’m pretty excited about it.
Have a great week.
Patricia
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Love your cover and can’t wait to read your first book. Wheee, so exciting!
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Thanks Sheila. It’s available for pre-order just about everywhere. I hope you enjoy it.
Have a great rest of the week.
Patricia
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I pre-ordered it! I can’t wait to read it! 😃
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Thank you my friend. I hope you like it.
Thanks for letting me know. If you like it, you know how to leave a review. If you don’t like it, forget you know me. (kidding.)
Patricia
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Love the cover. How exciting! I’m looking forward to reading it. Have a wonderful week, Patricia!
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Thanks Lynn. I hope you enjoy the book. It was a fun story to write.
Have a great week yourself.
Patricia
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