If the word “cowboy” for you paints rodeos, cattle raising, gunslinging, and all other related images portrayed in movies and books, maybe it’s time to brush up on your history and general knowledge.
Cowboys might have earned a bad name due to the delinquency of some of them in the past and maybe up until now. Rubbing more salt in the wound, popular culture either presents them in a bad light or romanticizes the cowboy life, so much so that these portrayals have molded stereotypes. The dictionary even defines the term “cowboy” as “reckless,” among other negative denotations. But the modern-day Clint Eastwood has broken the mold. Many of them have made their marks in their own right and earned accolades for various achievements.
One such man is Xlibris author Denny Bertrand who recently became a silver medallion awardee (Cowboy Poetry category) at the Will Rogers Medallion Award, founded in memory of writer and cowboy entertainer Will Rogers also known as “Oklahoma’s Favorite Son.” This annual award in Forth Worth, Texas acknowledges extraordinary cowboy literature and movies that celebrate and honor the late celebrity’s legacy.
The Xlibris Blog switches off the Hollywood spotlight and instead shines the Xlibris spotlight on Denny’s literary feat for his book Western Poetry with a Cowboy Flair self-published through Xlibris in 2010.
About his book
Western Poetry with a Cowboy Flair is a collection of my poems that I had written. I had my book published so I could share it with friends and family. I never dreamed it would be a 2nd place finalist and a silver medallion award winner in the Will Rogers Medallion Award.
Here’s what Denny has to say about a poem titled The Eagle from his collection:
I wrote this poem when I was living on Dr. M.J. Nachtriebs Ranch at Nathrop, Colorado. In the mornings as I would leave for work, I would see this pair of eagles above in their nest in a tree. At night when I got home I wouldn’t see them, but just before dark they would fly over the camper I was staying in. I always liked to think they were watching over me.
On writing, reading, and literary influence
To this day I still can’t just make up a poem. It takes something to inspire me then the words just flow, and if I don’t write them down, I forget them. I have always been an avid reader and had an interest in writing. When I was a kid, western writer and past president of the Western Writers of America Steve Frazee was a neighbor that may have been my influence.
On the pipeline
I am currently compiling a book of western/cowboy short stories, poems and western art, and am also writing a western fiction novel.
All the best to you, Xlibris author Denny Bertrand! May your poetry and other works flourish even more to serve as a shining example to all aspiring writers, cowboys or not.
Keep visiting the Xlibris Blog and the Xlibris Indie Authors Roundup for more noteworthy Xlibris authors.
For writing, editing, and book marketing tips, visit the Xlibris Writer’s Workshop.