All Comments on 'The Trail West Ch. 01'

Awesome beginning. I'm looking forward to the daily (semi-daily?) posting of subsequent chapters.

to the readers of this story. The story is complete (8 chapters), I finished the tale before I started posting. Personally I hate to get started on a multi chaptered story and have to wait a week or more for the next chapter.

I'll try to get a new chapter posted every day or every second day. It's a matter of timing and sometimes it's not easy to judge when to post. Lit's schedule of postings are not always easy to follow, but I'll do my best.

Anyway, thanks for reading my first try at an historical period piece. If you like, or even dislike, the story please leave comments or send an email detailing what you think of this piece.

Thanks for taking the time and effort to read and comment on my work.

I liked it (so far). <p>

My two favorite genre in serious reading are Western and Science Fiction. <p>

(And together, as in that little movie Serenity, based on that short-lived TV series, or individually, if either genre is well written, I think it is just the best reading anyone could have: one is about a past in MOSTLY in our imagination, and the other is a future MOSTLY of our imagination, too; so the author, if he/she is imaginative, could come up with fantastically real and surreal landscape for his/her creation to roam.) <p>

I have read both genre seriously since high school in the mid 1980s, so I am a reasnably seasoned/experienced reader. Plus, my focuses in college were History and Science (on the foundation of basic science in modern biology, chemistry, and mathematics: and I am not talking about just "survey"/"historical" set of classes on the "theories" of science; I am talking about doing some serious, decent biology, chemistry, and calculus classes, too), so I can tell when someone is just grasping for straws or is trying to do some serious, imaginative writing on either subject. <p>

In any event, let's see how your story was written (since you said it's already finished and all you needed to do was just post the chapters each week). <p>

I usually am not very impressed with people who insert their characters into too many "real events"/incidents in history. I rather read fresh characters in fresh, LITTLE events mostly of their own/the author's own creation, with only the most minimal reference to real events but not enough to serve as the background of a fresh story. It is the DEVELOPMENT of a character on its own, for its own purpose, in this own world, interspersed with, now and then, some "real" background, that I am interested in. <p>

Whether it is about intense love, or intense hate, or some other passion to live and to wander in the vastness of the land, of TIME ITSELF --- as well as about personal growth and struggle to understand things, from pain to love to education --- that interest me in stories... NOT so much silly/idiotic things like: <p>

"My IQ is so high, I discovered cold fusion and ushered in the age of unlimited energy and I became so rich, I build 7 palaces all over the world and in one I have a harem of Playboy-like 19 year-olds." ...... or..... "I won the $300M Powerball and so I sequestered myself in one of the world's most exclusive and luxurious hotel suites and did nothing but fuck the most beautiful women money can buy... and in 5 years, I fucked 5,567 of them... and never got any STD or shit like HIV, because I am immune to those diseases." ..... or..... "My family and I are so rich, I do nothing but philanthropic work, in dishing out hundreds of million each year to the poor, the lazy, and starving scientists and they all --- including beautiful women --- think I am the God of Compassion, and, since I also happen to be 6'5" and 250lb and and can easily hoist 700lb over my head easily, women just think I am the true Stud man of all time."..... or.... "I am so fast with my revolver, I can outdraw and outgun Clinton Eastwood's Man with No Name and other bad-assed characters..." Or nonsense like that... <p>

Anyway, you see where I am going... on my likes and dislikes as a reader....

Pleased you will post the chapters daily...

That era is one of my favorites and you are bringing it alive again. Thank you.

You had me worried there at the beginning when I thought that the hero would lose his whole family which is a standard way to start bang-bang.

I too, love science fiction and have been Astounding Science Fiction, today

Analog since 1948 when I was 10 years old, but do believe that the last Zane Grey was back when I was 14... Though I did watch all the films and recognize the first Star Wars flic as a great Western I have not read Western

in years and only started on this one because it was yours! I firmly bet that it will be an enjoyable read!

i have read 6 chapters so far really wish that the other 2 were all ready posted i liked what you have written

It should stop polluting this site. 1* .

are folk in the USA so obsessed with guns?

Everyone in the civilised world gets on fine without them. We have better things to do.

i grew up on a quarter section farm along the Arkansas River in western Arkansas listening to the stories told by my grandfather and his daddy. My grandfather was born in 1894 and died in 1998, his daddy was born in 1857 and died in 1960. They told of good times and bad, of births and deaths and of marriages and divorces. But they told true stories and not some imagined tale. Your stories give me great pleasure as they remind me of the stories I grew up hearing. So you keep on writin and I'll keep on reading and thank you sharing.

Ed Grocott

edgrocott@gmail.com

Thanks for sharing this little bit of history. My granddad moved from N E Alabama to S Central Arkansas a dozen years later than this story. It beings back memories of a tough but gentle farmer, one of my heroes. Please keep em coming.

You have given him some interesting skills as he starts on the trail west, skills that should serve him well on his journey.

Thanks for another great story

Great start! And thanks for the historical notes and your comments about the family connections.

I appreciate the historical notes and the genealogical references. Excellent story!

Good start, I’m hoping to see a storyline develop, I appreciate there is a family tragedy you wanted to get out there, but I’m interested to see where this tale is going and whether he’ll come to see his folks should everyone make it through the war alive.

So the Evil Nemesis is right in front of them and they let him walk away? Personally forget about direct confrontation track them down and kill them in their sleep. How many good people have died being 'honourable'

Both sides in that damn war were wrong. And for the reasons you stated for the 'Chiltons' reasons. The way the Union changed after the war was to lessen freedom for everyone. And slavery was only the rich. Slave ownership never reached 30% of Confederates.

There was a school of thought that the war was God's punishment for the sin of slavery. Could be. The US Senate had yet to pass a bill for ending slavery, it had passed the House, when the South Carolina dunderheads fired on Fort Sumter. At least The Empire of Brazil (BTW the largest slave holding nation at that time, both in size and number of slaves) saw the devastation of the war and took that previously mentioned Bill and used it to free their slaves.

Xhristianj - re: Bushwackers - you didn't read what happened to Fogerty? They DID hunt him down. When the price got too high to bear.

Remarkable! You bring back to life the unalienable tough man and women who forged this nation. I was born in '47 and was raised by folks like them. Both mu ancestors, and your would have nothing but contempt for a lot of the people in this country today. I KNOW that we're they here today, they'd spit on this nation and "RIDE WEST". I'm 76 and, if I could, I would.

THANK YOU for sharing your family.

Danny