Don't Forget...

Today is the deadline for entering the LAST of the Pulp Writer/OutWest Contests. It ends at 5 PM Pacific time today. It's a terrific prize (you have to go over to www.pulpwriter.com to get the clue and then go to the OutWest online store to find out what the prize is), and it would make a great gift for that special someone, or to keep for yourself!

The 2nd Annual Frosty Pulp Cover Extravaganza!

Some of you have been hearing my complaining about the cold here in Southern California, but I know that there are other parts of the country that are faring a lot worse right now. With that in mind, here is the second annual Frosty Pulp Covers special, with pulp covers that will make you feel toasty wherever you are. These are all new covers, and actually most of these came from just three magazines: ADVENTURE, THE POPULAR MAGAZINE and WESTERN STORY MAGAZINE (including a rare WESTERN STORY with a totally non-Western cover). And all of these are from the 1910s and the 1920s.

ADVENTURE, March 1913

POPULAR, January 23, 1915

ADVENTURE, January 3, 1918

ADVENTURE, January 18, 1919

POPULAR, January 20, 1921

POPULAR, February 7, 1921

WESTERN STORY, January 7, 1922

POPULAR, January 20, 1922

WESTERN STORY, February 24, 1923

POPULAR, March 20, 1923

ADVENTURE, August 20, 1924

ADVENTURE, October 10, 1924
WESTERN STORY, February 6, 1926

WEST, February 20, 1927

WESTERN STORY, January 12, 1929

POPULAR, March 7, 1929

So Much For the Family Christmas Card

Hope everyone is enjoying the long weekend. It's been a good one here, except for the fact that it's been so cold I have now lost about 1/3 of my garden, even though I sprayed most of it with Cloud Cover. UGH. All that work last summer. I am just sick about it. This morning I'll be cutting back and digging out those that are beyond hope.

The one silver lining is the demise of a hideous Bird of Paradise plant that the owners planted in the front of the house before they moved out. I really don't like them, even though I used to live in Hawaii. I've been contemplating digging it out and moving it to the back. Anything so I wouldn't have to see it. Well, the frost took care of that. It completely collapsed overnight and now, with all of those huge leaves black and wilted, looks like rotten lettuce. I'll be digging it out now with relish.

My friend Andrea came over yesterday with her 120-lb Rottweiler, Kimbo, who is just a big black marshmallow. We tried to get our dogs to pose with us for Christmas photos, and this is the best we could do:

The 2011 Pulp Fiction Conventions

The pulp fiction conventions for 2011 are right around the corner - sort of. It's never too early to start planning though. Here are the flyers for the two top conventions, the Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention in April, and PulpFest in July.

This year I am going to try to make it to the Windy City convention, held in Chicago. I've never been to Chicago, and this might be an opportune time to go. This year they will be celebrating 80 years of Popular Publications and in particular, DIME DETECTIVE. For more information on the Windy City Pulp and Paper Convention, go to their web site.

PulpFest will be celebrating 80 years of THE SHADOW. For more information on PulpFest 2011, go to the PulpFest web site.

Checking In

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. Mine was very nice - spent it with my best friend and her extended family down in Santa Monica. Lovely dinner and good company.

Today I hope to get some writing done - hope springs eternal, doesn't it? - and just enjoy the day. Tomorrow brings company: my friend Andrea and her 120-lb Rottweiler Kimbo, who is actually a very sweet dog. He and my dogs have already met and have gotten along well.

The cold weather has wreaked havoc on my outdoor plants up here in the "mountains." I went outside and found a lot of my perennials and some shrubs turning black and wilting from the cold. I spray them with Cloud Cover, a biodegrable spray that protects plants from excessive cold AND heat, but I'm afraid I may be a little late. Oh well, whatever dies will more than likely come back in the spring.

Is anyone shopping today? I tend to avoid Black Friday like the Black Death.

Also, don't forget to go over to the Pulp Writer web site to find the clue for this week's prize. The deadline has been extended to next Tuesday for those who are away this weekend.

Enjoy the weekend and, if you're traveling, have a safe journey home.

Pulp Covers for Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. To commemorate the day, here are some pulp covers that feature Thanksgiving themes - which, in most cases means a freshly killed turkey and in a couple of cases, buzzards.

So have a good one, everyone. Enjoy your friends and family and drive carefully.

POPULAR, November 20, 1921

WESTERN STORY, November 24, 1923

POPULAR, November 20, 1928

WILD WEST WEEKLY, November 30, 1929

WILD WEST WEEKLY, November 26, 1932

WILD WEST WEEKLY, December 2, 1933

WILD WEST WEEKLY, December 1, 1934

WILD WEST WEEKLY, November 30, 1935

WILD WEST WEEKLY, November 28, 1936

RANCH ROMANCES, November No. 2, 1942

Coming Attraction: Thanksgiving Pulp Covers

Tomorrow I'm going to be posting a repeat of my Thanksgiving pulp cover post that I did last year - but now I've got a few more to add to the collection. So look for that tomorrow.

Everybody have a great Thanksgiving. Travel safe and enjoy the holidays.

Question for Week Four and the Grand Prize is Up

Thanks for your patience everybody. The question for Week Four of the Pulp Writer / OutWest contest is up and waiting for you over at www.pulpwriter.com.

This is the LAST week of the contest and is the GRAND PRIZE WEEK. Because of that and because of our late start, and finally because it's Thanksgiving week, we'll be extending the deadline for the contest to next Tuesday, November 30, at 5 PM Pacific, instead of this Friday.

I encourage ALL of you to go over to www.pulpwriter.com and check out the contest: it's fun, and all of you have a pretty good chance of winning.

Happy Thanksgiving and good luck!

Tribute to JFK

A few years ago I managed to find a copy of this issue of SATURDAY EVENING POST and thought today might be a good day to bring it out. It's been 47 years.

Lust in the Dust Redux: Western Romance Pulps Revisited

In celebration of our contest with Out West and in anticipation of our Grand Prize week, I'm reposting here one of my more popular Pulp Covers posts: Western Romance pulps. I just checked and I originally ran this post almost exactly a year ago: November 26, 2009.

There are no duplicate titles in here, save for one magazine, RANCH ROMANCES. That's because RANCH ROMANCES was the longest running of all pulps, lasting until 1971. (In the last year it was retitled RANCH ROMANCES AND ADVENTURES.) In honor of its longevity, I have included three of its covers throughout the years.

So keep these covers in mind when you go over to Pulp Writer tomorrow morning to check out the clue....that's all I'm gonna say....


Fighting Romances from the East and West, November 1925

Ranch Romances, August Number Two, 1931

Far West Romances, April 1932

Thrilling Ranch Stories, November 1933

Romantic Range, June 1937

Cowboy Romances, August 1937

Romantic Western, January 1938

Romance Roundup, May 1938

Rangeland Romances, May 1939

Ranch Romances, December 1941

North West Romances, Summer 1942

Lariat, January 1946

Rodeo Romances, April 1947

Golden West Romances, December 1949

Western Love Romances, February 1950

Romance Western, June 1950

Two Western Romances, Winter 1950

Romance Western Roundup, February 1951

Rangeland Love Stories, August 1951

Real Western Romances, December 1951

Fifteen Range Romances, September 1954

Ranch Romances, May 1966