Everyone is a Critic: My All-Time Favorites – Westerns
Posted: June 15, 2026 Filed under: Everyone is a Critic, Movie Review, Movies, Review, Western | Tags: A Fistful of Dollars, Everyone is a Critic, For a Few Dollars More, Movie Review, Review, The Good The Bad and The Ugly, The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Quick and the Dead, The Unforgiven, Tombstone, Westerns, Writing to be Read, Young Guns 5 CommentsThere are some movies that I can watch over and over and never get tired of them because they are so fun to watch. I’m sure certain movies are the same for everyone, in this respect. For “Everyone is a Critic” in 2026, I’d like to talk about my all-time favorites, because if you haven’t seen them, they are worth watching, and if you have, maybe this will remind you how fun they are, and you’ll give one or two another go. I’ve categorized them by the values I find in them, or the reason that I watch them. Many of them, I have watched so many times, I can quote them word for word through many parts. (And, yes, I am old, but they really don’t make them like they used to.)
Now, here, I will share them with you in the hopes that you will get the same enjoyment I have from watching them. For those who have seen the movie, the quotes will bring certain scenes alive in their minds. And if you haven’t seen the movie and you watch it, when you see the scene, you’ll understand why I chose the quotes that I did.
Westerns – Always a Favorite of Mine (Yep. I like Clint Eastwood)
The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), with Clint Eastwood and Chief Dan George
Set during and after the American civil war, Eastwood plays Josey Wales, who looses his family to the Union red-legs, and joins up with Bloody Bill Cantrill with a vow to kill as many as he can in his vengeance. He becomes an outlaw after the war, when he refuses to surrender and runs from the Union troops, gathering a rag-tag following of colorful characters in the process.
This movie is quite long and there are too many great quotes to list them all here, but I’ve given you several.
I have this one in my personal movie collection.
Favorite Quotes: “I reckon in that war we all died a little.” – Fletcher (John Vernon)
“Get ready, little lady. Hell’s coming to breakfast.” – Lone Watie (Chief Dan George)
“I’m pert as a rutting buck.” -Kid (Sam Bottoms)
“Cures just about anything. How is it on spots?” -Josey Wales (Eastwood)
“You gonna pull them pistols or whistle Dixie?” – Josey Wales (Eastwood)
“Dying ain’t much of a living.” – Josey Wales (Eastwood)
“Reckon I’m right popular.” – Josey Wales (Eastwood)
“All I have is this piece of hard rock candy. But it’s not for eating, it’s just for looking at.” – Lone Watie (Chief Dan George)
“I’m glad you stopped me. I might have killed her.” – Lone Watie (Chief Dan George)
Favorite Scenes: Josey Wales meets and talks with Ten Bears, chief of the Commanche, to bargain for his friends’ lives. (I can quote the entire exchange, but it’s too long to feature here.)
The Missouri Boat Ride
Josey Wales and Lone Watie on horseback: “Any time I get to liking someone, they ain’t around for long.” – Josey Wales (Eastwood) “I notice when you get to disliking someone, they ain’t around for long neither.” -Lone Watie (Chief Dan George).
A Fistful of Dollars (1964) & For a Few Dollars More (1965), with Clint Eastwood
In A Fistful of Dollars, Eastwood plays a man with no name, a drifter who blows into town, looking for an opportunity to profit. He learns that the town has two bosses, the Rojos and the Baxters, vying for control and he positions himself between them and plays them against one another.
In For a Few Dollars More, Eastwood plays a bounty hunter named Manco, and Van Cleef plays an old war hero named Colonel Mortimer, who are both seeking the notorious outlaw, Indio, and his gang.
I watch both of these on Pluto T.V. for free.
Favorite Scenes (Fistful): The offended mule scene.
The final shootout, when Ramon thinks he’s losing his touch and the man with no name won’t die.
Favorite Quotes (Fistful): “When a man with a forty-five meets a man with a rifle, you said, ‘the man with the pistol is a dead man.’ Let’s just see if that’s true.” – Man with no name (Eastwood)
“You mean the American government on one side and the Mexicans on the other, and me in the middle? Uh, huh. Too dangerous.” – Man with no name (Eastwood)
Favorite Scene (Few Dollars): The final gun battle between Colonel Mortimer and Indio.
Favorite Quote (Few Dollars): “Two hundred thousand dollars is a lot of money. We’re going to have to earn it.” – Manco (Eastwood)
“No, old man. Thought I was having a problem with my adding. But it’s okay now.” – Manco (Eastwood)
“I generally smoke just after I eat. Why don’t you come back in about ten minutes.” – Colonel Mortimer (Van Cleef)
The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly (1966), with Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, and Eli Wallach
A civil war tale of survival and greed. This is a lengthy movie, but well worth it. There are so many great quotes, it is difficult to pick favorites. I have this one in my personal movie collection.
Favorite Quotes: “When you have to shoot, shoot. Don’t talk.” – Tuco Rameriz (Wallach)
“You know when I take a job, I always see it through.” Angel Eyes (Van Cleef)
“Take a swig of this, Captain. Keep your ears open.” – Blondie (Eastwood)
“Such ungratefulness. After all the times I’ve saved your life.” – Blondie (Eastwood)
“It’s good to know you’ve always got a brother who won’t deny you a bowl of soup.” – Tuco Ramirez (Wallach)
Favorite scenes: Sad Hill Cemetery (Cool Fact: Sad Hill Cemetery was built specifically for this movie. The set was just abandoned when they finished, but it was restored after fifty-five years by a dedicated group of film fans in 2015.)
Bridge Explosion (Cool Fact: They used three cameras on the first take, and the explosion blew the cameras up, so they had to reconstruct and do a second take using nine different camera angles to ensure success. No computer animation back then.)
The Unforgiven (1992), with Clint Eastwood, Morgan Freeman and Gene Hackman
When a bounty is posted to avenge a prostitute who is scarred for life, widowed pig farmer William Muney returns to his old killing ways to save his farm and feed his children.
An original and thought-provoking story line, accompanied by excellent acting from all players. I have this one in my personal movie collection.
Favorite Quote: “I ain’t like that anymore.” – William Munny (Eastwood)
“It’s a hell of a thing, killin’ a man. Take away all he’s got, and all he’ll ever have.” – William Munny (Eastwood)
“All right, I’m coming out. Any man I see out there, I’m gonna shoot him. Any sumbitch takes a shot at me, I’m not only gonna kill him, but I’m gonna kill his wife, all his friends, and burn his damn house down.” – William Munny (Eastwood)
“He should have armed himself if he’s gonna decorate his saloon with my friend.” – William Munny (Eastwood)
Favorite Scene: Confrontation between Munny (Eastwood) and Little Bill (Hackman).
The Quick & The Dead (1995), with Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, and Leonardo DiCaprio
This has to be Sharon Stone’s absolute best role as the strong female protagonist. A gripping storyline for her character necessitates our rooting for her to triumph. Gene Hackman plays Herod, the cruel villain through and through.
I watch this one on Pluto T.V. for free.
Favorite Quotes: “Today I am.” – The Lady (Stone)
“You need a bath.” – The Lady (Stone)
“Some people deserve to die.” – The Lady (Stone)
“The law’s come back to town.” – The Lady (Stone)
“Sorry, John. Changed the rules. From now on, all the fights are fair.” – Cort (Crowe)
“I’m so damned fast I can wake up at the crack of dawn, rob two banks, a train and a stage coach, shoot the tail feathers off a duck’s ass at 300 feet, and still be back in bed before you wake up next to me.” – The Kid (DiCaprio)
Favorite Scenes: The Lady puts the dirty old man in his place
Young Guns (1988) & Young Guns 2 (1990), with Emilio Estevez, Kieffer Sutherland, and Lou Diamond Phillips
This telling of the story of Billy the Kid and the Lincoln County War is brought to life by an all-star cast, in both the original movie and Young Guns 2. I have both in my personal movie collection.
There’s plenty of action and plenty of old west humor. Both are very quotable movies.
Favorite Quotes (First): “I’ll make you famous.” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“If we’re caught, we’re gonna hang… But there’s many a slip twixt the cup and the lip.” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“Did you see the size of that chicken?” – Dirty Steve (Dermot Mulroney)
“Many nights while you were sleeping, I could have slit your throat. Glad I didn’t kill you, Steve.” Chavez y Chavez (Phillips)
Favorite Quotes (Second): “Stop napping on the job, Bob.” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“Best dollar eighty I ever spent.” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“It’s the real lynch mob! Skin out!” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“I shall finish the game.” – Billy the Kid (Estevez)
“I’d rather drink turpentine and piss on a brush fire.” – Sheriff Kimball (Jerry Gardner)
“White Oaks, you can kiss my ass.” – Jane Greathouse (Jenny Wright)
“Let me tell you what you really are! You rode a 15-year-old boy straight to his grave, and the rest of us straight to hell… straight to hell! William H. Bonney! You are not a god!” Josiah ‘Doc’ Scurlock (Sutherland)
“You’ll get down below all right. You’ll get down below. You’re Billy the Kid, too, you know. You’re all Billy the Kid. Little Billy bastards.” – John Chisholm (James Colburn)
“Incumbered by idjits, I pressed on.” – Pat Garrett (William Peterson)
Tombstone (1993), with Kurt Russel, Val Kilmer, Sam Elliot, Bill Paxton and Powers Boothe
This is a telling of the events leading up the shootout at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona, October 26, 1881. The all-star cast brings the story to life, with Kurt Russell playing Wyatt Earp, and Sam Elliot and Bill Paxton playing brothers Virgil and Morgan. The notorious Doc Holliday is played by Val Kilmer and Curly Bill Brocious (Powers Boothe) and his cowboy buddies play the villains. I have this one in my personal movie collection.
Not historically correct on many aspects but entertaining none-the-less.
Favorite Scenes: The afternoon horse race & The faceoff between Doc Holliday (Kilmer) and Johnny Ringo (Michael Beihn)
Favorite Quotes: “I’m an oak.” – Wyatt Earp (Russell)
“You tell them I’m coming, and hell’s coming with me.” – Wyatt Earp (Russell)
“I’m your huckleberry.” Doc Holliday (Kilmer)
“You’re a daisy if you do.” – Doc Holliday (Kilmer)
“I’ve still got one good arm to hold you with, Ally-girl.” – Virgil Earp (Elliot)
About Author Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and book 1 in her Time-Travel Adventure series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw, as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource.
Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press, where she edits and publishes two short fiction anthologies and one poetry anthology every year amidst her many writing projects. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.
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This segment of “Everyone is a Critic” with Robbie Cheadle is sponsored by The Women in the West Adventure Series andWordCrafter Press.
Women in the West Adventure Series and a Digital Doubles Deal
Get books 1 & 2, Delilah & Sarah, both for one low price of $10.
June 1 – 30, 2026
2 for $10 Bundle
Book 1: Delilah & Book 2: Sarah
$10.00
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Sizzling Summer Reading Deals
Posted: June 13, 2026 Filed under: Book Sales, Books, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical Inspiration, Western, Women's Fiction, WordCrafter Press 5 CommentsWomen in the West Adventure Series and a Digital Doubles Deal
Get books 1 & 2, Delilah & Sarah, both for one low price of $10.
June 1 – 30, 2026
2 for $10 Bundle
Book 1: Delilah & Book 2: Sarah
$10.00
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Book Review: ” Saddled Hearts”
Posted: April 10, 2026 Filed under: Book Review, Books, Fiction, Mystery, Review, romance, Western, western romance | Tags: Book Reveiw, Jan Sikes, Kaye Lynne Booth, mystery, Saddled Hearts, western romance, Writing to be Read 14 Comments
About Saddled Hearts
Colt Layne lives an idyllic life between caring for the animals on his ranch and playing music with his band. That is, until a stranger appears with unreasonable demands. Now the man is dead, and Colt is facing a murder charge. He’s being framed, but by whom and why?
His only hope lies in a conversation with his deceased grandfather—an impossible task. Or is it?
His answer arrives in Sage Coventry, a psychic who can speak to the dead. Though skeptical, Colt needs her help. But he gets more than messages from beyond the grave as she breezes into his heart with sweet patchouli fragrance and tempting lips.
As the clock runs out to clear his name and save his beloved ranch, Colt and Sage unearth shocking revelations about the past, their love, and the future.
Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Saddled-Hearts-White-Rune-Book-ebook/dp/B0G3XV9C4T
My Review of Saddled Hearts
I purchased a digital copy of Saddled Hearts, by Jan Sikes through a countdown deal promoting through Author Sikes’ Newsletter. I’m offering an honest review. All opinions stated here are my own.
One might think Saddled Hearts is a western romance, but it is really a western mystery. Strange things are happening at the Double L Ranch and it seems someone is trying to take the ranch from Colt Layne. A mysterious stranger shows up, claiming to be the lawful owner of the ranch, a horse is mysteriously poisoned and fences are cut. Of course, the romance is there, too. Thinking his deceased grandfather might have answers, he seeks a reading from a medium, Sage Coventry, and falls for her before he realizes what is happening. When Colt goes to talk to the stranger and finds him dead with evidence pointing to Colt as the killer, the stakes of the game are suddenly higher, and Colt worries about bringing his beautiful new love into his life, but it takes a lot more than a little danger to discourage Sage from the man she is quickly falling in love with.
The romance seems too easy, but the mystery is quite the puzzle. The two seek answers, Colt from his grandfather’s papers and Sage from beyond the veil. Together, they piece together the puzzle and uncover the secrets which have lain hidden for three generations.
Skillfully crafted, author Jan Sikes brings her characters to life in living color and keeps readers guessing to the very end. Saddled Hearts is book 3 in Sike’s White Ruin Series, but it holds up just fine as a stand-alone. In fact, I didn’t realize it was a mid-series book until I began to do this review.
Romance and mystery, all with a distinctive western flavor, Saddled Hearts is a delightful love story with a twist. I give it five quills.
About Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and Book 1 in her Time-Travel Adventure series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw, as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders.
Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press, where she edits and publishes two short fiction anthologies and one poetry anthology every year amidst her many writing projects. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARC digital copies, (she also accepts print copies). Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.
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Book Review: “Wild Seduction”
Posted: February 13, 2026 Filed under: Book Review, Books, Fiction, Review, romance, Western, western romance | Tags: Amber Everly, Book Reveiw, Kaye Lynne Booth, western romance, Wild Seduction, Writing to be Read Leave a commentAbout Wild Seduction
Dr. Rowan Ashford is an elite equine trauma surgeon—precise, ambitious, and on the run from a career-ending crisis. Her task is simple: travel to the snowy isolation of Montana, save a prize stud named Legacy, and earn enough to wipe out a crushing, $500,000 debt. The only thing standing between her and financial freedom is Jake Wild, a formidable, stone-cold rancher whose only priority is the bottom line—the crippling ledger of Wild Acres.
Haunted by his father’s legacy of failure, Jake views Rowan as a temporary, high-cost asset. He’s determined to keep the brilliant, fiery surgeon who saved his horse at arm’s length, fearing that any emotional attachment will lead to the ultimate loss. But when a brutal winter blizzard traps them alone in the isolated ranch house, the fight for survival quickly ignites a desperate, undeniable passion.
Under the pressure of a life-or-death rescue, Jake’s stoic shell shatters, revealing the vulnerable man beneath. Rowan forces him to choose: cling to the past and the fear of commitment, or embrace a future where their passion is matched by a powerful, multi-million dollar partnership. The seduction of Wild Acres is fierce, but the vow they make in the firelight is forever.
Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Wild-Seduction-Amber-Everly-ebook/dp/B0FWV7DNMY
My Review of Wild Seduction
I received a free digital copy of Wild Seduction, by Amber Everly, from the review program on Sandra’s Book Club in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated here are my own.
I chose this book because I liked the cover. The cover image and the title told me the story would be western romance, which is right up my alley. Although I’m not a big romance reader, in 2018, I was a judge for the Western Writers of America Spur awards and romance was my category, so I can honestly say I’ve read a lot of western romance.
Luke Wild is a traditional rancher, who values the old ways handed down by his father. He bears the weight of his father’s legacy, but feels inadequate to carry it on, especially when the ranch is failing and on the verge of going under. Rowan is the headstrong veterinarian who can save his prize horse and the ranch with all her modern medicine and equipment, if he’ll give her control to do so. Two strong willed characters, they go head-to-head in the struggle to save the horse and accept each other for their strengths.
In Wild Seduction, Everly follows classic romance story structure, for the most part, and romance tropes, making this book 1 in the series. She veers from the standard his view/her view with alternating chapters by adding more than main two P.O.V. characters, Luke and Rowan, including brief chapter viewpoints of brothers Nick and Mike , and that of foreman Pete. We don’t hear a lot from these other characters, and I found it kind of distracting, as I couldn’t see the author’s purpose in including them. If they were being introduced because their stories will be told in subsequent books in the series, they did not feel important enough here, I felt like they were just there to make the reader aware of the characters, but that could have been accomplished through the viewpoint of Luke, and not felt out of place. That being said, I felt the alternating chapters worked well to let the story unfold.
I had some difficulty relating to the characters for a couple of different reasons. One, I am not familiar with the ranching world or the veterinary world, but Everly did a great job of introducing me to these other areas and educating me in an unobtrusive way. But also, these character’s insight is way too clear to be believable. Luke knows he’s his own greatest obstacle because of his feelings of obligation to tradition and his father’s ways. Rowan knows the faults that are holding her back, giving both of them clear choices to make. But I find most people are not that honest with themselves and must struggle to identify and admit what’s blocking them before they can deal with it, and I don’t see that happening with either of these characters. Usually everyone around can see the trouble before the main character does. But these two know who they are and what they want quite clearly, leaving the path to creating a romance with their opposites on a straight path with few surprises.
A classic western romance with a good volley between character point of views. I give Wild Seduction four quills.
About Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and Book 1 in her Time-Travel Adventure series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw, as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders.
Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press, where she edits and publishes two short fiction anthologies and one poetry anthology every year amidst her many writing projects. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARC digital copies, (she also accepts print copies). Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.
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WordCrafter News: January Release – “The Ones Who Stayed With Me” & What’s Ahead in 2026
Posted: December 29, 2025 Filed under: Anthology, Book Release, Book Sales, Dark Fantasy, Dark fiction, Debut novel, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Horror, Memoir, Poetry, Science Fiction, Short Fiction, Time travel, Western, WordCrafter News, WordCrafter Press, Writing | Tags: 2026 Publishing Schedule, Happy New Year, New release, Nurse Sammy, The Ones That Stayed With Me, WordCrafter News, WordCrafter Press 12 Comments
The Ones Who Stayed With Me, by Nurse Sammy
I’m pleased to announce the release of a collection of true-life stories from the career of an L.P.N., written by a debut author known only as Nurse Sammy on January 13, 2026. I am so excited to be partnering with Nurse Sammy on this book and publish it through WordCrafter, because my own experiences in the health care field makes Nurse Sammy’s accounts ring true. Some stories will make you laugh. Others may make you cry. But there’s never any doubt that these stories come straight from the heart.
Chronicles of the journey into the medical field as a young nurse and beyond, told with raw sensitivity and compassion. The Ones Who Stayed with Me offers small glimpses into the world of an L.P.N. put in difficult, often touching or humorous, situations—and Nurse Sammy’s courage, vulnerability, and insight are a gift to us all. In these pages, Nurse Sammy tells her story and that of those she met along the way.
What’s Ahead in 2026
WordCrafter Press has a busy year planned for 2026, with a book release almost every single month, and two months designated to the writing of my own works, I may find little time to breathe. But, I’m excited about the new works by rising authors that are scheduled, including the one above, by Nurse Sammy, a paranormal romance by B.T. Clearwater, and two novels by rising author Lindsey Martin-Bowen, as well as a nonfiction work on a new approach to treating diabetes, by Daniel Cox, Ph.D., A.B.P.P.
We’ll also be publishing two themed anthologies which are by invitation only, as well as our annual short fiction contest and the resulting anthology, which will be book 4 in the Midnight Anthology Series.
February: Writing Month
I’ll be using this month to finalize the second book in my Time Travel Series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Double Visions, which will be scheduled for release in March. This book was originally scheduled to release in 2025, but due to unforeseen technical difficulties, (my laptop died), I was unable to make those deadlines, so I’m excited to be releasing it at last.
March: The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Double Visions – Book 2 in the Time Travel Adventure Series, by Kaye Lynne Booth
In 1887, LeRoy is stuck, bringing trouble down on those around him. When Sissy is kidnapped and he’s the only one who can save her.
In 2030, Amaryllis will stop at nothing to find LeRoy fix what she messed up in the past, when she wakes up in a future very different to the one she knows, one in which she may not be born.
She and a version of Monique which is different from the one she grew up with travel back to 1887 to try and make things right.
When they cross the other time loops, already created, things change, but not the way Amaryllis intended.
Add two time travel regulators from the future who are after the time module, and things start to get wild.
April: Poetry Treasures 6: Seasons poetry anthology
The annual WordCrafter poetry anthology, Poetry Treasures will be released in April in celebration of National Poetry Month. 2026 brings us volume 6 in the Poetry Treasures anthology series with a theme of ‘Seasons’. The contributors for this anthology are selected from the guests on Robbie Cheadle’s “Treasuring Poetry” blog series in 2025.
May: The Dark Horse Waits in Boulder, by Lindsey Martin-Bowen
A Romantic Comedy set in Boulder, Colorado, in the late 1970’s. Charli Erickson is a “rock poet” who’s a bit “flippant.” Each chapter will be music to your ears.
June: Smothered, by B.T. Clearwater
A paranormal romance by B.T. Clearwater.
June: Diabetes: How to prevent or treat it with a new and effective approach that does not involve supplements, weight loss or medication, by Daniel Cox Ph.D., A.B.P.P.
Personalized, research based, practical, empowering, effective workbook. For individuals who want to take control of their diabetes.
July: Marta – Book 3 in the Women in the West Adventure Series, by Kaye Lynne Booth
Marta is a woman trying to make a new start in hostile territory.
Marta is not the timid Mormon woman, who was abducted by Utes as her husband and children were killed in the raid. Now she is determined to make her way as an independent woman, after her partner tried to cheat her out of her share of a gold mine.
Determination and inner grit bring this strong and spunky heroine into the company of a cast of colorful and unique female characters and together, they face down banditos, Comancheros, and angry husbands and fathers, as well as Marta’s disgruntled partner as they travel the rugged desert landscape to unruly border town of El Paso, Texas.
If you like strong and capable female protagonists, you’ll love Marta.
August: Legends anthology
A WordCrafter themed anthology
September: Deep City in Times Roman, by Lindsey Martin-Bowen
A “Roman Clef” based upon the Moony movement, popular in the 1970s and ’80. Set in the 1980s, Lynette and Shirley are quite angry at the Reverand Yun Sung Ghunne, who has separated their husbands from them as he is forming his Ghunies movement. This story spoofs the Mooney movement, or any movement that is mainly designed to dupe persons into supporting the leader and building his wealth.
October: Midnight Madness: A Carnival of Nightmares dark fiction anthology
Volume 4 of the WordCrafter
Midnight Dark Fiction Anthology Series
November: Writing Month
This month I’ll be working on revising what I have of my Playground for the Gods science fantasy series. (It’s been a while since you heard about this one. I bet you forgot all about it, but I didn’t.) Originally planned as a massive four-book series, I now plan to release this entire series in serial installments on Ream.
This series started out as my thesis project for my first M.F.A. degree. I left off with the first book completed, and part of the second, as well as a few chapters for the third. Once these have been revised, which is planned for the month of July, I should be ready to take off with new chapters and continue the saga. Look forward to seeing this series released on Ream as a serial in 2027!
December: The 12 Dark Nights of Christmas anthology
‘Twas the night before Christmas
And all through the crypt
Not a body was stirring
Not a single bone twitched.
The corpses were nestled in eternal beds
While visions of the macabre lurched through their heads.
The Spirits were restless and flitting about
In anticipation of mayhem when the demons came out.
Twelve dark stories that prove Santa isn’t the only thing stirring on Christmas.
Happy New Year – Have a Great 2026!
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WordCrafter Holiday Book Bash
Posted: December 8, 2025 Filed under: Book Promotion, Book Sales, Books, Dark Fantasy, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Short Fiction, Stories, Time travel, Western, Women's Fiction, WordCrafter Press | Tags: Baiting the Hook, Chris Barili, Danari Lai series, Delilah, Hidden Secrets, Kaye Lynne Booth, Sarah, Shadow Blade, The Rock Star & the Outlaw, Time Travel Adventure Series, Women in the West adventure series, WordCrafter Holiday Book Bash, WordCrafter Press 3 Comments
Starting Black Friday, November 28th and running clear through December 25th, for those last-minute gifts.
Click on the book title to go to the landing page. Then, select the distributor of your choice.
WordCrafter Novels
Women in the West Adventure Series, by Kaye Lynne Booth
•Strong Female Protagonists
•Fictionalized Historical Characters
•The Western Frontier Brought to Life
Delilah – $1.99 – Delilah is a woman haunted by her past.
Her homecoming from prison quickly turns into a quest for vengeance when she is brutally raped and left for dead, and her fourteen-year-old ward is abducted. Sheer will and determination take this tough and gritty heroine up against wild beasts of the forest, Indians and outlaws to Leadville.
Can the colorful inhabitants of the Colorado mining town work their way into Delilah’s heart, offering a chance for a future she thought she’d lost along with her innocence?
If you like strong and capable female protagonists, you’ll love Delilah.
Sarah – $2.99 – Sarah is a young girl trying to make a place for herself in the world.
Sarah is not the young girl stolen away from Delilah anymore. Now she is Hair of Fire, mate of Three Hawks, even as she blossoms into a young woman and tries to make a place for herself among the Ute tribe.
When she is stolen away from the life she’s made, she struggles to survive in the heart of the Rocky Mountains. A streak of stubbornness and determination take this tough, feisty heroine up against wild beasts of the forest and the rugged mountain landscape to Glenwood Springs, Colorado, where she receives a less than welcoming reception by some.
Will this young woman find her way back to the Ute tribe, which she’s come to think of as family, or will she discover a place among the colorful inhabitants of the Colorado hot springs and mining town?
Follow along on her journey to learn who she truly is and where she belongs in this rough, and often hostile frontier.
If you like strong and capable female protagonists, you’ll love Sarah.
Marta – Coming in 2026
Time Travel Adventure Series, by Kaye Lynne Booth
The Rock Star & The Outlaw – $2.99 – A time-traveler oversteps his boundaries in 1887. Things get out of hand quickly, and he is hanged, setting in motion a series of events from which there’s no turning back.
In 1887, LeRoy McAllister is a reluctant outlaw running from a posse with nowhere to go except to the future.
In 2025, Amaryllis Sanchez is a thrill-seeking rock star on the fast track, who killed her dealing boyfriend to save herself. Now, she’s running from the law and his drug stealing flunkies, and nowhere is safe.
LeRoy falls hard for the rock star, thinking he can save her by taking her back with him. But when they arrive in 1887, things turn crazy fast, and soon they’re running from both the outlaws and the posse, in peril once more.
They can’t go back to the future, so it looks like they’re stuck in the past. But either when, they must face forces that would either lock them up or see them dead.
The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Double Visions – Coming in 2026
Shadow Blade, by Chris Barili
Shadow Blade – $5.99 –
The Denari Lai: An order of religious zealots who control their assassins through an addiction to magic.They haven’t failed in over one hundred years.
Ashai Larish: An unstoppable Denari Lai assassin sent covertly to kill the Pushtani king and his daughter. But he falls in love with the princess and finds himself, despite struggling withdrawal symptoms from his magic, as they flee from a second assassin and the King’s guard.
Makari: A beautiful and unconventional princess seeking to change the laws of her father’s kingdom when she learns Ashai’s true identity.
Pachat: A Pushtani slave who unknowingly sparks a slave rebellion all along the border between their nations.
Will Pachat gain the revenge he so lustily seeks?
Can Ashai kill the second assassin, win back Makari’s love and return her to the throne that is rightfully hers?
Short Fiction Singles
Baiting the Hook – Free! – On the ice-polished rooftops and the otherwise dark allies now choked with snow, Tabe Ge Nishi, the past pursues the future, old chases young. The Chargh Lai—leader of the brutal assassin’s guild, the Denari Lai—searches for the perfect leader to take over the order when he passes on. But the boy has other suitors and wishes only to be left alone. Betrayals have made Ashai cautious, and just as he rebuffs the advances of a street gang, he also rejects the Chargh Lai’s offer of constant brotherhood. But “no” is not an answer the Chargh Lai is used to hearing. And he pressures Ashai to join him. And meanwhile, another assassin hunts them both.
What will Ashai choose? The camaraderie of the Denari Lai, or freezing alone on the streets? The final battle will determine the fate of both men, and an entire nation.
Hidden Secrets – $.99 – Cassie wants nothing to do with the legacy her grandmother wants to hand down to her.
She doesn’t believe in all those Native American legends anyway.
She and Tony are to be married and start a family. They’re returning to her ancestral lands now to tell her grandmother to pass the tribal legacy on to someone else, along with the cursed gold that goes with it.
When she forces herself to go out on the lake where her parents drowned, she discovers the cave which holds the tribal treasure and the lake takes another life. Now Cassie must rethink all that she believes. If the treasure is real, could the curse be real, too?
Can Cassie find a way to stop it before Tony becomes the next victim?
November 28th – December 25th, 2025
Get your copies today!
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Writer’s Corner: NaNoWriMo No Mo
Posted: December 1, 2025 Filed under: Books, Historical Fiction, NaNoWriMo, Western, Women in History, Women's Fiction, Writing, Writing Challenge | Tags: Kaye Lynne Booth, Marta, NaNoWriMo, Women in the West, Writer's Corner, Writing Challenge, Writing to be Read 4 Comments
I look forward each year to participating in the NaNoWriMo challenge in November. In fact, I depend on it to get a major portion of one novel completed and I schedule it into my production calendar. Even if I do not make the word count for the set goal at the end of the month, I’m still that much closer to a finished novel, so it is a win-win situation.
November 2022 produced The Rock Star & The Outlaw, book 1 in my Time Travel adventure series. In 2023, I used it to get a start on Sarah, book 2 in my Women in the West adventure series. 2024 brought a good start for the second book in my Time Travel series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw 2: Doubles Visions, which will be released early in 2026. This year’s NaNoWriMo was scheduled to create the third book in the Women in the West series, also scheduled for release in 2026.
So, you can imagine my surprise when a few days before Halloween, I’d done my research, I had my outline, and I went to sign up for the challenge and found that NaNoWriMo is no more. Apparently, the traditional challenge which has been around for over a decade and attracted writers from near and far, had an incident involving AI material last year, unbeknownst to me, which turned the whole event topsy-turvy. I still am not sure what the problem was, or why it was so serious as to shut down the whole event permanently. I was too busy panicking as I searched the web for my favorite month-long writing event, to read any more in depth than that.
What I did find was a new event called Novel November which looked to similar to NaNo, so I signed up. After I had begun setting up my dashboard, it became apparent that they were expecting me to upload my manuscript so they could keep track of my word count, instead of self-monitoring, like NaNo. So… ProWritingAid will have direct access to the words I write? That made me pause.
All of the articles I’ve read about the hullaballoo over AI snatching authors’ works illegally for training, etc…, I had to wonder how smart that would be. Then, add to that, the fact that something happened which involved AI writing, which shut down NaNo after last year’s challenge, and doing the challenge through this site seemed like a a really bad idea. So, that’s as far as I got with that.
I started thinking about the aspects of NaNo which I found valuable. It was always fun to earn their little badges, but that and the word count was all I really used. For me, NaNoWriMo was a motivator that offered achievable goals and helped me keep track of my progress. I never really used the community aspects of the challenge, although I did adopt a writing buddy one year and we held each other accountable, sort of. I realized that both of the aspects I used most during the challenge, the ones I depended on, were actually things I could do myself pretty easily.
So, this past November, I ran my own personal writing challenge. It was the same challenge NaNo set; 50,000 in 30 days. That’s a good start on any novel, and it’s enough to enable me to finish the book within the next few months. And there was nothing stopping me from setting my own goal and keeping track of my own word count.
So, that’s what I did. On November first, I began writing on Marta. I’m keeping track of my word count on a sheet of notebook paper. I am maybe not quite as disciplined as I have been in past years during NaNo, but I’m following the same principles. I sit down to write every single day, utilizing every spare minute that I can to write.
I’m a realist, however, and I learned long ago that you can’t always put life on hold, so my writing times are spread out with ten minutes here, thirty minutes there. Of course, I try to get in as many hour, or two hour, stretches as I can. So, on days when I have to go out and work in the real world, and can’t stay in my world of fiction, I may not get as many words in. I don’t always make my daily word count goal, and I might be lagging behind in the overall goal, even on the days when I do make it. But, again, any number of words I get down adds to my overall word count and moves my story forward.
I am writing this post on November 26, the day before Thanksgiving, and to date, I have 39, 298 words down. If I had made the word count every single day, the expected word count by the end of this day is 43, 342, so I still have a ways to go, but the story line is coming along nicely. Where the first two books in the Women in the West series had long periods when the protagonists must survive alone in the wilderness, with inner dialog to carry the story, Marta is surrounded by a full cast of characters on her journey with lots of external dialog. The characters are diverse and colorful, and they find themselves in some unusual situations.
I don’t know how many words I will have by the time this post is published, on December first, or how many words I will have left to type. I’m sure this story will not be completed at 50,000 words, since they haven’t yet reached their destination with over 40,000 words. Whether I reach my goal or not, Marta will be scheduled to be released in June of 2026.
**Update: It is December 1st and I did not reach my writing goal for November, but I do have 47,651 words toward the story of Marta. That’s not a bad start. As I’ve said before, any way you look at it, a 50,000 word challenge is a win-win for me. 🙂
About Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and book 1 in her Time-Travel Adventure series, The Rock Star & The Outlaw, as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource.
Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press, where she edits and publishes two short fiction anthologies and one poetry anthology every year amidst her many writing projects. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.
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This segment of “Writer’s Corner” is sponsored by the Robbie’s Inspiration blog site, where you can find ideas on writing and baking with hostess, Robbie Cheadle.
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WordCrafter AI Audio Books
Posted: August 18, 2025 Filed under: Audio Books, Book Promotion, Books, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Paranormal, Science Fiction, Time travel, Western, Women in History, Women's Fiction | Tags: Audio Books, Delilah, Hidden Secrets, Kaye Lynne Booth, The Rockstar & The Outlaw, WordCrafter Press Leave a comment
Did you know that you can listen to my AI narrated audio books on Google Play Books? In fact, I’ve just dropped the price on all three of them to make it even easier.
Listen to my western historical women’s fiction, Delilah; my time travel adventure, The Rock Star & The Outlaw; or my paranormal mystery, Hidden Secrets at the links below.
Delilah: Book 1 in the Women in the West Adventure Series: ($4.99) https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details/Kaye_Lynne_Booth_Delilah?id=AQAAAECSazYrtM
The Rock Star & The Outlaw: Book 1 in the Time Travel Adventure Series: ($4.99) (https://play.google.com/store/audiobooks/details/Kaye_Lynne_Booth_The_Rock_Star_The_Outlaw?id=AQAAAECSG2Zb5M
Hidden Secrets: Paranormal Mystery Novella: ($2.99) https://play.google.com/books/listen?id=AQAAAECSG0ZbxM
About Delilah
Delilah is a woman haunted by her past.
Her homecoming from prison quickly turns into a quest for vengeance when she is brutally raped and left for dead, and her fourteen-year-old ward is abducted. Sheer will and determination take this tough and gritty heroine up against wild beasts of the forest, Indians and outlaws to Leadville.
Can the colorful inhabitants of the Colorado mining town work their way into Delilah’s heart, offering a chance for a future she thought she’d lost along with her innocence?
If you like strong and capable female protagonists, you’ll love Delilah.
About The Rock Star & The Outlaw
A time-traveler oversteps his boundaries in 1887. Things get out of hand quickly, and he is hanged, setting in motion a series of events from which there’s no turning back.
In 1887, LeRoy McAllister is a reluctant outlaw running from a posse with nowhere to go except to the future.
In 2025, Amaryllis Sanchez is a thrill-seeking rock star on the fast track, who killed her dealing boyfriend to save herself. Now, she’s running from the law and his drug stealing flunkies, and nowhere is safe.
LeRoy falls hard for the rock star, thinking he can save her by taking her back with him. But when they arrive in 1887, things turn crazy fast, and soon they’re running from both the outlaws and the posse, in peril once more.
They can’t go back to the future, so it looks like they’re stuck in the past. But either when, they must face forces that would either lock them up or see them dead.
About Hidden Secrets
Cassie wants nothing to do with the legacy her grandmother wants to hand down to her.
She doesn’t believe in all those Native American legends anyway.
She and Tony are to be married and start a family. They’re returning to her ancestral lands now to tell her grandmother to pass the tribal legacy on to someone else, along with the cursed gold that goes with it.
When she forces herself to go out on the lake where her parents drowned, she discovers the cave which holds the tribal treasure and the lake takes another life. Now Cassie must rethink all that she believes. If the treasure is real, could the curse be real, too?
Can Cassie find a way to stop it before Tony becomes the next victim?
If you love paranormal mysteries, pick up a copy of Hidden Secrets.
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Did you know you can sponsor your favorite blog series or even a single post with an advertisement for your book? Stop by the WtbR Sponsor Page and let me advertise your book, or you can make a donation to Writing to be Read for as little as a cup of coffee, If you’d like to show your support for this author and WordCrafter Press.
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This post sponsored by WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services.
Whether it’s editing, publishing, or promotion that you need, WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services can help at a price you can afford.
Stop by and see what we have to offer today: https://writingtoberead.com/readings-for-writers/wordcrafter-quality-writing-author-services/
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Book Review: “Menace in the Mysterious Train”
Posted: July 11, 2025 Filed under: Book Review, Books, Fiction, Review, Western 5 CommentsAbout Menace on the Mysterious Train
When Edgar Campbell arrives in Red River, he falls victim to a deceitful poker player and loses every worldly possession he has. Without hope, a horse, or even a pistol, Edgar gambles on a chance meeting with someone that will turn things around. Fortunately, luck smiles on him when he is assigned with the simple task of accompanying a cattle baron’s livestock to another town. Little does he know that amongst the cattle there is a cargo much more valuable, that will get him into trouble and will put his life in grave peril. What will Edgar be willing to risk in order to accomplish a mission that isn’t as innocent as it first seemed? Will he manage to protect the valuable shipment and defeat a murderous gang that disperses fear in its wake?
While Edgar is running for his life, he crosses paths with his boss’s daughter, who, determined to prove her worth, disguises herself and jumps on the same train with him. When Edgar discovers her true identity, he will do whatever it takes to protect her from the vicious outlaws who have invaded the train. The more time they spend together, the more he realizes that her braveness and wit have made him lose his mind. But as long as criminals are after them and his life is at stake, he has no time for love. Will Edgar help Rose survive the treacherous journey? Will he manage to get out of this train safe and sound, despite the endless challenges he encounters?
Fierce crossfires and an unprecedented hide and seek, take Edgar and Rose on an adventure that will remain indelible in their minds. Will they endure the wild ride across the frontier west? Or will overpowering forces ruin their chance at happiness once and for all?
A pulse-pounding drama, which will make you turn the pages with bated breath until the very last word. A must-read for fans of Western action and romance.
Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Menace-Mysterious-Train-Historical-Adventure-ebook/dp/B08L7TBMY8/
My Review of Menace on the Mysterious Train
A sheltered young girl who wants adventure, a drifter just trying to get by, and a father entrusted by the government with its most precious secrets, and you’ve got a rail train headed for trouble.
The civil war saw atrocities which were burned into the minds of the participants, altering the people they thought they were. When their father took young Perry with him to Washington and left his sister, Rose, behind, the siblings are drastically affected. While Perry pulls away from life, Rose can’t wait to experience it, and she forms a plan to stow away on the freight train carrying her father’s cattle to market to do just that. But the train is carrying more than cattle, and plot to take its precious cargo is in the works, bringing Rose directly into the path of danger.
Edgar is a down on his luck drifter, who suddenly finds himself entrusted to accompany Perry to take the cattle and it’s not so secret cargo as a new friendship forms between the two men. When he discovers Rose stowed away, it’s up to him to protect her and her secret.
In spite of the dorky title, I found this story quite entertaining. I think the character of Perry could be developed more, as I only got a vague idea of the horrors of war which hardened him. But Rose is well developed as a young and impetuous girl, who sees the men in her life who try to protect her only as obstacles standing in the way of her freedom and independence. I couldn’t help but like poor Edgar, who seems to find trouble wherever he goes.
An engaging story and colorful characters make Menace on the Mysterious Train a fun and entertaining read. I give it four quills.
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About Kaye Lynne Booth
For Kaye Lynne Booth, writing is a passion. Kaye Lynne is an author with published short fiction and poetry, both online and in print, including her short story collection, Last Call and Other Short Fiction; and her paranormal mystery novella, Hidden Secrets; Books 1 & 2 of her Women in the West adventure series, Delilah and Sarah, and her Time-Travel Adventure novel, The Rock Star & The Outlaw,as well as her poetry collection, Small Wonders and The D.I.Y. Author writing resource.
Kaye holds a dual M.F.A. degree in Creative Writing with emphasis in genre fiction and screenwriting, and an M.A. in publishing. Kaye Lynne is the founder of WordCrafter Quality Writing & Author Services and WordCrafter Press. She also maintains an authors’ blog and website, Writing to be Read, where she publishes content of interest in the literary world.
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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.
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Book Review: Stories from Juniper Flats
Posted: March 28, 2025 Filed under: Book Review, Books, Historical Fiction, Review, Western, Women's Fiction | Tags: A.T. Butler, Book Review, Historical Fiction, Short Stories, Stories from Juniper Flats, Women's Fiction, Writing to be Read 1 CommentAbout Stories from Juniper Flats
1882, Juniper Falls, Wyoming Territory
In this first collection of short stories from historical western author A.T. Butler, love blooms and mysteries are solved. Strong men learn to be patient and cowed women lean into their strengths.
Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYKF1LLB
My Review of Stories from Juniper Flats
I received a digital copy of Stories from Juniper Flats, by A.T. Butler through Freebooksie. All opinions stated here are my own.
Stories from Juniper Flats is a delightful collection of three short stories connected to A.T. Butler’s Juniper Falls historical women’s fiction collection. This half hour read is the perfect reader magnet, giving the reader just enough to get to know a little about the characters and make them want more.
- A man makes assumptions about Martha, the local spinster, and gets a surprise in “An Unwanted Visitor”.
- Silas decides to attend church after staying away for so long, and gets an extra blessing for his efforts in “Unexpected Blessing”.
- Edith shelters a desperate young woman fleeing from an abusive husband, who lands on the steps of her boarding house in “Desperate Hope”.
An easy, quick read that is highly entertaining. I give Stories from Juniper Flats four quills.
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Kaye Lynne Booth does honest book reviews on Writing to be Read in exchange for ARCs. Have a book you’d like reviewed? You can request a review on the Book Review tab above.
