Posting a note here so hopefully more people will be aware. Yesterday I updated the Western Markets sticky at the top of the Western forums. I still have more to do, but there are some ideas for possible markets for short fiction there. Puma
Great work, Puma; not only recently, but historically, too. You have done, and continue to do sterling work in providing a wealth of information and help to the members of this site and it is much appreciated.
I've been pretty busy, and will continue to be pretty busy for this coming month due to grafting, drinking, hustling and -- on a lighter note -- celebrating a landmark birthday with my father. Still, (regardless of the fact I am only learning and not yet writing to publishable standard) I look forward to helping investigate the markets in the near future.
With that said, I do have some thoughts about what we are all trying to do with the Western SYW and genre at this time and will now put on my pretentious hat (put on, you say?) and list a few things I would like to see happen.
* That Puma's amendment of the western writing markets went unread tells me that the structure of the sub-forum is not conducive to easy reading. So I suggest that Dave Hardy's very useful western history thread is stickied and the three, also very useful, 'Van Cleave' memoirs are merged with it. This will cut the amount of sticky in half and leave Puma's 'how to and where to go' thread that shows there's a future in the genre at the top, seconded and supported by DH's invaluable resource thread next to it.
* I would like to see the stickies in the Western SYW ported or merged or gone, too. Yes, they are interesting and useful, but the age old last post nature of their being only serves as a symbol of the anachronistic nature of this genre which is something we should be seeking to avoid if we want to revitalize the genre and instill interest in it.
* We have successfully, although in my case, poorly & verbosely, started a regular Western prompt. However, we now have an October prompt and this is only advertised in the western sub-forum. Surely, this (just the prompt itself, the loose rules of the prompt and the information that it is to be a regular thing) should be the lead and only sticky in the SYW sub-forum. This will capitalize on the new movement in the SYW forum created by the September prompts and give people exploring the forum for the first time something to join in with and get their teeth into.
* I suggest that anyone who's interested in trying to get new people to start writing westerns and joining in with the prompts should add a advert and a link to the new prompt to their signatures and cajole both their friends and enemies to give the western genre a go.
* I think a competition, no prize other than kudos needed, should be thought about. This, again, will raise awareness of the genre and get people interested. (Ribbons not needed.)
* A petition to the PTB should be raised in support of either randomizing, or stickying, the less visited genres in SYW. If this is done, people who only ever visit certain genres will at least pass over the western (and other unvisited genres) on the way to their own rather than be totally oblivious to them. This can only be a good thing in widening peoples horizons.
* There could be a certain and concerted effort by those writing westerns to start submitting en masse to certain publications. Now, this may (certainly in my case) put off these publications due to coercion and the poor quality of the writing. But, if we can get enough people doing it and interested in it and excited in it then said publications may start to take note that something is happening and a scene is developing.
* I think we all have discussed the different types of western (classic, modern, hybrid et al) at length and I think we need to let people know that all of these are welcome in the forum. I think we have made a good start with this with the October ghost western Halloween prompt. But we should definitely try to advertise this more. If we can get some of the much viewed sci-fi genre writers to think their work is more western than sci-fi we will get more writers and readers in. Cowboys and aliens, anyone? We should know whats at the box office and exploit it. (in a positive and friendly way, of course.) This doesn't mean we always have to do something away from the classic, but i think the signs that all is welcome should be big and neon.
* The bent nail saloon has quite a few well respected (ahem) and wide posting regulars. If we can get these fellers and fellowesses on board with what we are trying to do they would be worth their weight in gold. Of course, these people may have objections to being measured in gold, but I'm a hoping that they won't mind at all.
* Other ideas, for I am now running out of liquor, include self publishing, various amount of blogging, drawing interest in old and new western books and film, a wet T-shirt competition and anything that you reading this now can think of. This list is not exhaustive.
We've made a helluva start to things and I think its only fair to everyone who has gone before, and everyone who has been here a while and is still giving it a go, and everyone who is new and giving it a go, to try make this reinvigoration of the western genre, both on site and off, work.
With that said, I remove my pretentious hat (remove? you say!) and bid y'all a fond adieu.
P.s, can anybody help me get this hat of, it seems to be stuck.