Please Welcome Margery Scott for Her First Guest Blog.

I invited my friend Margery Scott to start her blogging tour with us. She said yes. How cool is that? When I asked her why she chose to write western novels, since she lives in Canada, this is what she said.

I was born in Scotland in a small village that dates back to the 1200's, so I suppose history is in my blood. As a little girl, I heard about Robert the Bruce and William Wallace, not Wyatt Earp and Jesse James. I listened to bagpipes, not fiddles, and I spoke with a brogue, not a twang.

Yet since the day my parents bought our first black-and-white TV when we moved to Canada, tales of cowboys, cattle drives, and wagon trains heading west have fascinated me.

Every weekend, you'd find me in front of the TV watching stories of those men and women (and animals) who tamed the wild frontier - Roy Rogers, Rin Tin Tin, The Lone Ranger, Zorro … okay, he wasn't a cowboy and he didn't live in Texas, but he was a hero just the same.

And Annie Oakley, the only female in the wild west who got her own show. Imagine my surprise and excitement on Christmas morning when I found an Annie Oakley cowgirl outfit and a Wild Bill Hickok double holster set under the tree. (Note the holster in the photo. Those guns rarely left my side for quite some time J.) This was in the days when the giving of guns wasn't frowned upon, even though giving them to a girl definitely raised a few eyebrows.

What was it about that time in history that attracted me even as a girl? The danger? The bigger-than-life characters? And as I got older, the hunky men with big guns J?

I still don't have an answer, and I'm still a sucker for a good western movie or novel, especially if it has a bit of romance and a happy ending.

I'm still intrigued by the stories of ordinary people who headed out into the wilderness to build a new life knowing they'd likely never again see the friends and family they left behind, and not knowing if they'd even survive the journey.

Yes, we left the only home I'd ever known and travelled half way around the world to settle in a new country. But my parents' journey was nothing compared to what those pioneers had to face - weather, sickness and attacks, not to mention the basic hazards of crossing mountains and rivers to reach their destination.

I couldn't have done it. I couldn't have braved the unknown the way they did. I'm not brave enough. What about you?

Margery has taken the Indie publishing plunge. Take a look at her two novels.

Wild Wyoming Wind

Sparks fly when lawman Jake Langford takes over Maddie Boone's homestead to trap an escaped killer. Fiercely independent since the death of her abusive husband, Maddie wants nothing more than to be left alone to build a new life in the Wyoming wilderness. But living in close quarters with Jake exposes emotions far more threatening than the killer watching them, forcing her to question the past, and eventually, to trust in the future.

Here's an excerpt from Wild Wyoming Wind

Wyoming, 1880

"Get off my land!" Maddie Boone's finger trembled on the trigger of the Winchester in her hand, but she held the barrel steady.

The stranger drew his roan-colored stallion to a halt. Leaning on the pommel of his saddle, he met her gaze. His horse whinnied and shuffled, raising a cloud of dust in the drought-ridden yard.

"I told you to get out," Maddie repeated, adjusting the rifle's aim until it rested in the centre of his broad chest. "I'm not about to tell you again."

"Are you Mrs. Boone?" he asked.

She didn't answer. If the man didn't know who she was, she saw no reason to tell him.

"I'm looking for Caleb Boone," he went on. "Is this his place?"

Looking for Caleb? Funny, the man didn't look like most of Caleb's friends. He was far too clean, for one thing. And even from where she stood on the porch of the cabin, she could see his clothes, though creased, weren't stained or torn. And he sounded sober. Nevertheless, she wanted nothing to do with anybody from Caleb's past. "What do you want him for?"

"It's urgent."

"Well, he's not here," Maddie said. "Now get out before I fill you full of lead."

Maddie hoped the stranger didn't hear the nervous trill in her voice. She'd never actually shot a man, but there was a first time for everything. She'd had a lot of 'first times' in the past few weeks, and no doubt she'd have many more before she was finished.

To show she meant business, she raised the sight of the rifle to her eye and clicked the hammer back with her thumb.

"When will he be back?" the stranger asked, as if he wasn't the least bit worried about the possibility of being shot, even though she did notice he was sitting a little straighter in the saddle.

Should she tell him the truth? For a moment or two, she thought about it, then decided that it was none of his business. She shrugged. "I don't know."

"Then I'll wait, if you don't mind."

Damn right she minded! She wanted none of Caleb's friends anywhere near her homestead. Besides, he'd be waiting until doomsday before Caleb came back. "You can wait as long as you like," she said, "as long as you do it someplace else. Not on my land." Her curiosity got the better of her. "What do you want to see him about, anyway?"

"I apologize, ma'am," the stranger said, the corners of his lips lifting in the beginnings of a smile. "I should've introduced myself properly. The name's Langford. Jake Langford. I'm a deputy U.S. marshal."

The law.

Maddie couldn't help the bitter laugh that escaped from her lips. Where was the law a few weeks ago, when she could have used some help?

It's available through Amazon and Smashwords

Emma's Wish

Still grieving his wife’s death, Sam Jenkins needs a mother for his children. He can't build his ranch and care for three precocious youngsters alone. Emma Witherspoon has accepted the fact that she will never have a husband and children of her own, but that doesn't ease the ache in her heart. When Emma makes Sam an offer he can’t refuse, neither of them can foresee the changes in their lives because of two little words – “I do.”

Come back Saturday and read the excerpt.

It's available from Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes&Noble and Allromance

www.margeryscott.com

If you don't comment, you don't stand a chance of winning anything, so please comment or ask Margery a question. She might be in a generous mood.