Welcome to Historical Fiction Author D. B. Holy's Website
Most of my writing is historical fiction of America between 1820 and 1900. I have an interest in the Mountain Man Period, Civil War, and Settling of the West. I strive to be acurate in my historical fiction books and I find the Civil War especially fascinating. My interest in writing historical fiction about the Civil War is due to the emotional trauma of "brother against brother, " and the fact I was raised in the south.
The west was settled by hard men and women, who faced problems on their own terms, and expected life to be rough. It was a period of time in America when a person could expect to die at mid-forties and earlier if they were unlucky. Being a bully or having a big loud mouth could, and often did, cut a lot of years from a normal life expectancy. The biggest difference in the America then and now, was each man took care of his own problems and law suits were almost unheard of. If you wronged a man, he would come looking for you and a confrontation would result.
Punishment was swift and usually fatal to the serious criminal, who normally stretched a little hemp rope tied to the nearest tree. There was no conviction and then a ten year wait before the sentence was carried out due to appeals. If convicted to death by hanging in a western court, a man could expect to meet his maker within the hour. The men and women of the west had little use for criminals and were no nonsense kind of folks, but fair minded. It took people like them, with guts and determination, settled our great country.
As far as the traditional gunfight in the middle of town at noon, that is a bunch of Hollywood suspense and not very accurate. I suspect historical fiction books keep our interest by building suspense, not by using good historical notes. The average cowboy or soldier was a poor shot with a handgun, regardless of what movies show, and a shootout was more dangerous to bystanders than the men firing the guns. Of course there were exceptions to handgun accuracy, just like everything else in life, but cowboys were normally terrible shots with a sidearm.
Another aspect of the west that most folks don't know is as many as 3 out of 5 cowboys were African Americans or Hispanics. In those days, being a cowboy was not the glamorous job we consider it today, and only men without real skills took to caring for cows. I'm sure some men liked the solitude of punching cows and took the job to be alone. It was a hard job and the pay was poor, so skilled men avoided it.
During the cowboy period, which started in my opinion, right after the Civil War, many men on both sides were out of work and desperate. The Southern economy was in shambles, jobs were hard to find, and men, along with families, moved west by the thousands. But, it was a time of great growth for our country and these men found land, settled it, and then defended it against Indians, rustlers, and anyone else who threatened. It took tough men and women to settle our land.
When you want good solid historical fiction, books filled with excitement and emotions, read historical fiction books by D.B. Holy. Historical fiction literature doesn't have to be dull and while you can read romance historical fiction to find love, D.B. Holy writes it all - Romance historical fiction and historical fiction.
Author D.B. Holy, quality historical fiction books.