Sunrise behind Mount Aeneas, at 7,500′ the tallest mountain in the Swan Range, banner for swanrange.com
For example, today I put an email contact on it. You can now reach me directly at carolbuchananauthor@gmail.com. I still have the old email address, which I’m not publicizing on the website, but people have rightly pointed out that the website had no way to contact me. Now you do! I’ll look forward to hearing from you. (Of course with the usual caveats about being flamed or spammed or solicited for money or anything else.)
This website has been 4.5 months in the making because I have an ulterior purpose in doing it. As I wrote in the last post, I wanted to learn the new technology that makes writing enhanced ebooks possible. I’ve done that, to a large degree, and I feel empowered. Now I can experiment with a type of fiction that I glimpsed 15 years ago with hypertext. What a feeling! I’ve proved to myself that I can learn this stuff. (Sir Richard has been an amazing help with his knowledge of video and audio technology.)
To celebrate, I’ve put a new short story on Kindle. Well, new to Kindle anyway. “Fear of Horses” won an award for the best short story in the very first short story contest sponsored by Women Writing the West. Of course, Gus the Wonder Horse posed for the cover of “Fear of Horses” on Kindle. Cover for Kindle ebook, “Fear of Horses”
Starting tomorrow, “Fear of Horses” will be free on Kindle. Celebrate with me by downloading the story. It’s about a woman named Claire who fights her equinophobia to save a terrified horse from the slaughterers. And yes, it’s a little autobiographical, because I have had to overcome some fear to reach the point I am now with Gus, although I would never call my own fear of horses equinophobia.
As a final note, building the website has helped me grieve for Marilyn, who died about 2 months ago. Whether I say anything or not, I shall miss her the rest of my life. God rest her beautiful soul.
Thank you for the comment, Ron. I’m not surprised that you know of another rider who recounts getting over a fear of horses caused by an accident. Gus and I have had our moments, for sure, but I’ve loved horses since my father put me on my first horse at the age of 3. I fell off into a fresh cowpie, but no matter. I wanted to get back on.
A fear of horses is not uncommon; it’s called equinophobia. Luckily I don’t have it, but I do have a type of fear that might also be called common sense. A horse is a large, sudden animal. They’ve evolved over the eons from the size of a dog, which makes them one of the more successful species on the planet. To survive, they have learned to run fast from danger, and if they can’t run, to fight with hooves and teeth. People can’t win in a direct confrontation unless we’re unbelievably cruel, and at the end the horse is a beaten, suffering creature.
I advocate knowing the horse, being sensible, and winning his trust. That can defuse situations before they start. Most of the time.
Your new site is a handsome place to showcase your work. Well done. And Gus is one good looking horse; you can see the character in that noble profile. I haven’t downloaded your story yet, but the theme reminds me of a memoir by Native American writer Linda Hogan, THE WOMAN WHO WATCHES OVER THE WORLD. She tells of being seriously injured in an accident with a horse and learning to recover her confidence with horses.