The appeal of Westerns by Joyce Saricks
This information was provided as part of the 2016 readers' advisory seminar.
Appeal of Landscape Genres
(Westerns, Fantasy, Historical Fiction)
Settings—whether real or imagined—and background details matter
Often slower paced to accommodate extensive details and world building
Stories may build on historical characters or events or retell familiar
tales
Timeless—or out-of-time quality. Don’t date as quickly; classics remain
popular.
WESTERNS
Why Read Westerns?
Useful crossover for some historical fiction fans
Great stories—adventure, exploration, gunslingers, pioneers
Represent the past of both our countries so there’s a guaranteed market
Westerns in the US
Are set west of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers from end of Civil War
(1865) until 20th century
Offer a feel of the Old West rather than the details of Historical Fiction
Feature cowboys, scouts, Indians, settlers, and lawmen
Explore the clash between civilization and anarchy in mythic stories of men
and the land.
Share similarities with Australia: terrain, aborigines, settling the unsettled
areas
The Appeal of Westerns
Frame/Setting:
Rich in landscape descriptions with setting lyrically and evocatively described
but also treacherous
Elmer Kelton (Hard Trail to Follow), Matt Braun (Dakota), C. J. Box (Off the Grid), Annie Proulx (Close Range: Wyoming Stories)
Characterizations:
Stories feature mythic heroes and real historical characters.
Women may be secondary in traditional westerns but play a larger role in recent titles.
Often stereotypical good/bad.
Jack Schaefer (Shane), Loren D. Estleman (Aces and Eights), Molly Gloss (The Hearts of Horses), Jo-Ann Mapson (Blue Rodeo), Larry McMurtry (Comanche Moon)
Story Lines:
Story lines often place hero in a morality play; he brings justice and restores order.
Other themes include survival in a harsh environment, the redemptive power of the west, revenge, and coming of age.
Max Brand (Destry Rides Again), Zane Grey (Riders of the Purple Sage), Leif Enger (Peace Like a River), Michael Punke (The Revenant), Stephen Overholser (Night Hawk)
Pacing:
Pace depends on storyline. Adventure moves story more quickly; description slows the pace. These are stories of the westward expansion and there’s a sense of forward movement.
Louis L’Amour (Sackett’s Land), Loren D. Estleman (Hombre)
Style/Language:
Colorful but spare language.
Often rich in jargon.
Reminiscences and diaries sometimes tell these stories.
Even poetry
Nancy E. Turner (These Is My Words), Charles Portis (True Grit), Thomas Berger (Little Big Man), Banjo Paterson (Man from Snowy River), Robert Service (Dan McGrew, Sam McGee)
Tone/Mood:
Often a nostalgic tone, celebrating past times.
Humor may also play a role.
Think: cowboy songs
Cormac McCarthy (Blood Meridian), Seth McFarlane (A Million Ways to Die in the West), Larry McMurtry (Sin Killer)
Classic Westerns:
Elmer Kelton
Louis L’Amour
Revived Westerns
Action-packed tales of adventure and survival
Strong heroes fighting for justice
Lives on in reprints and audiobooks (especially with David Strathairn reading!)
Ivan Doig
More Classics
Robert B. Parker (Virgil Cole & Everett Hitch series)
Don Coldsmith (Trail of the Spanish Bit series)
Owen Wister (The Virginian)
Jack Schaefer (Shane)
A. B. Guthrie (Western Saga)
Alan Le May (The Searchers)
Authors to Know:
Johnny D. Boggs
Loren D. Estleman
Known also for Detroit Mysteries
Single title westerns about Western figures and Page Murdock series
(Mystery blend)
Solid research
More elegant writing
Gritty
Details of western landscape, external and internal
Joe Lansdale
Dark, gritty, quirky and offbeat tales
Fast paced adventures
Well-drawn characters
Witty style
Also writes award-winning mysteries and horror
Larry McMurtry
De-romanticizes the West, historical and contemporary
Vivid characters, including woman
Strong sense of time and place
Lyrical prose
Often nostalgic, melancholy tone
Sweeping, cinematic tales
Leisurely paced
Western Nonfiction
Richard S. Wheeler
Crossover/Genre Blends
Historical Fiction (Etta by Gerald Kolpan, The First Mountain Men by William W.
Johnstone, Doc by Mary Doria Russell, All Together in Our Place by Jane
Kilpatrick, Gunman’s Rhapsody by Robert B. Parker)
Mystery (Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith)
Romance (A Wanted Man by Linda Lael Miller)
Inspirational (Throw the Devil off the Train by Stephen Bly)
Horror (Hell’s Bounty by Joe Lansdale)
Fantasy (Territory by Emma Bull)
Science Fiction (Empress of Mars by Kage Baker and Firefly)
Ultimate Blend
Patrick DeWitt’s The Sisters Brothers–Western, Literary,
Crime Thriller, Historical, Black Humor
Trends in Westerns
Modern “Western” (Michael McGarrity, C. J. Box, William Kent Krueger,Jo-Ann Mapson, Leif Enger)
Reprints of Older Westerns (Louis L’Amour)
TV shows on DVD (Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Tombstone, Wagon Train, as well as Ken Burns’ series, The
West), and movies (Stephen King’s The Dark Tower and Quentin Tarantino’s Hateful Eight)
“Adult” Westerns
Explicit sex and violence
Less concern for Western setting and themes
Covers reveal whether “traditional” or “adult” (Jake Logan, Tabor Evans, Jon Sharpe, Clay Dawson, Wesley Ellis)
Web Resources
-
-
Western Authors:
http://westernauthors.com (This is a great place to go to introduce yourself to authors, genre categories, and genre issues)
-
Awards
Literary Westerns
Peter Carey (True History of the Kelly Gang)
Annie Proulx (Close Range)
Larry McMurtry (The Last Kind Words Saloon)
Mary Doria Russell (Epitaph)
Philipp Meyer (The Son)
Ivan Doig (English Creek)
Cormac McCarthy (No Country for Old Men)
Lin Enger (The High Divide)
Joyce Saricks / saricksj@gmail.com / March, 2016