About the Author

William Florence is a former newspaper reporter and editor who teaches journalism at a college in Salem, Oregon. He worked at newspapers in Michigan, Washington, D.C., South Dakota, Indiana, and Oregon for almost 25 years before heading the Chemeketa journalism department in 1993.

He has written newspaper articles, features, columns, editorials, and has been published widely in individual newspapers and on wire services throughout the country. He has won writing awards in four states. His work has been published nationally in such widely read industry magazines as The Bulletin for the American Society of Newspaper Editors and APME NEWS for the Associated Press Managing Editors group.

As well as living in the West, Mr. Florence has traveled extensively throughout the Western states and has a good feel for the land and the people. He studies Western lore, is knowledgeable about the customs and history of the times, and is especially well-versed in the guns that were used during this period. In his spare time, he writes Western novels.

He attended colleges in Michigan and Ireland. He is a voracious reader (particularly of Western novels from all periods) and a movie buff (with Westerns again a favorite genre). He is married and has two adult children, along with three cats and a big mortgage. His wife, Linda, a high school administrator and former English teacher, is his toughest critic as well as his best friend.

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