My Favorite Western Writer

By Matthew Pizzolato

My absolute favorite writer in any genre is by far Louis L'Amour. I've written many times about why I admire both him and his writing.  I own everything he published and have read all of his book numerous times.  He was an influence not only on my writing but on my life as well.

I found this video of a 60 Minutes interview done with him that I'd never seen before and felt compelled to share it.

What writer has influenced you the most?

Increase Your Publication Chances

The best way to put the odds in your favor when submitting to any publication is to read the Submissions Guidelines for that magazine.  It's amazing how many people fail to do that.  Sometimes guidelines can seem tedious, but they are always there for a reason.

For example, The Western Online only publishes Western fiction, articles or artwork.  Yet we constantly get fiction submissions that aren't even Western stories.

The next step is to make sure your writing is good.  The best way to do that is to follow the advice of the great Elmore Leonard.  Numbers three and four are especially important as they are by far the most noticeable.

New Short Stories at The Western Online!

We've published several new short stories recently. Stop by the site and stay a spell!

A Woman of Certain Age by Sierra Mackenzie

Leavin' Clean by Jim Lescher

Chesetopah the Sword Bearer by Gary Every

The Hat on the Bed by J. R. Lindermuth

Montana is Big by Mark Hinton



Stop by the Fiction section of the site for More Short Stories....

Coming Soon to The Western Online!

Episode 5 of our Western comic strip, Jud Nelson - Texas Ranger is currently in the works and will be coming soon. It will bring the story "Vengeance Trail" to a conclusion.

However, Jud Nelson won't be going anywhere. When he reaches the end of the "Vengeance Trail," he will be appearing in a new comic strip story, "Gone But Not Forgotten."

We will be adding some new items to The Western Online Mercantile in the coming few days, just in time for Christmas shopping. All proceeds from the store go to pay our contributors.

Thanks for supporting The Western Online and I hope you enjoy our latest updates.

Keep Your Powder Dry,
Matthew Pizzolato

New Western Fiction!

Two new short stories were published today:

• No Place to Run by Melissa Embry


• Doc's Warning: "Play Poker!" by Lowell "Zeke" Ziemann

"No Place to Run" is a story that will keep you guessing until the end and "Doc's Warning" is a fictionalized account of a report given by Wyatt Earp of an incident that took place in Fort Griffin, Texas between Doc Holliday and Ed Bailey.

There is also a new historical article:

Annie Oakley by Janett L. Grady.

A new installment of our serialized novella, The Call Chronicles: Black Hawk Showdown by Kathi Sprayberry.

Updates at The Western Online

Our three most recent short stories:

• Mitchellsville by J.S. Bell


• Doc Galen's Medicine Show by K. H. Fenner


• The Way of All Flesh by Joseph Grant

We have a new artist featured at the site, S.L. Estes. Her two pieces of artwork, Horsethief and Rattlesnake are excellent.

We've published two new historical articles by Janett L. Grady about Old West figures you've probably never heard about: Charlie Parkhurst and Marion Hedgepeth.


We have new content in the Review section:

• Deadwood: How a Non-Western Television Series Challenged Myth and Stereotype by Kenneth Mark Hoover


• The Ranch Next Door and Other Stories by Elisabeth Grace Foley


• The Guns of Retribution by Icy Sedgwick

We have two exclusive interviews:

• Interview with Richard Prosch


• Interview with Icy Sedgwick.

Mitchellsville by J.S. Bell

If you haven't read our short story, Mitchellsville by J.S. Bell, you owe it to yourself to check it out. It's a powerful story of racism and heroism and one of the most compelling stories you'll ever read of prejudice in the Old West. A grim indictment of the world around us, both then and now when righting wrongs is never easy.