Lenore Mitchell’s lifetime fascination with horses shines through her writing

Lenore Mitchell, a Colorado native, is happily infected with “horse fever” and got to know herself and her horses during many miles of long-distance competitive trail riding. When not writing or dreaming about equines, she is an amateur botanist member of Colorado Native Plant Society and also teaches Native Plant Master courses for Colorado State University Extension.
“Dying to Ride” was a Colorado Authors League award finalist.

SunLit: Tell us this book’s backstory. What inspired you to write it? Where did the story/theme originate?

Lenore Mitchell: My lifelong fascination with horses met up with the mysteries of family dynamics when I began plotting “Dying To Ride.”

Was I the only kid who rolled down the back window and loudly whinnied at horses during family car trips? Not one animal whinnied back. Such disappointment! And nope, my parents and my sister were not impressed. Anyhow, “horse fever” simmered until I finally bought my first horse at age 24, undeterred by marriage, a toddler, a job. 

A second daughter soon joined that toddler, and both girls grew up around a barn full of equines. Naturally, my daughters became thoroughly hooked, and provided great riding companions for me! Also naturally, any story I told had to involve horses. Writing became another way to enjoy these elegant creatures, to advocate for their welfare, to incorporate great memories of forest trails, of sure-footed steeds, of soft velvet muzzles.

As a native Coloradan, I grew up on the outskirts of metro Denver, but I always wanted to live on a ranch. Four acres in the mountains west of Denver sufficed, and my supportive husband even built our barn!

Many books I read are mysteries, with people from joyful to sorrowful populating the chapters. Which is where the business of “what if” comes into play, nudging considerations of missteps made, consequences coming. The family I conjured is more of a group than a genetic blend, but with complicated issues and sorrows. While my protagonist is a female professional horse trainer, every character in the story loves horses in some way, with lengthy and challenging wilderness rides providing excitement.

SunLit: Place this excerpt in context. How does it fit into the book as a whole? Why did you select it?

Mitchell: The excerpt includes a short prologue and first chapter, serving as a set-up for the story as readers meet the characters and, of course, some of the horses.

UNDERWRITTEN BY

Each week, The Colorado Sun and Colorado Humanities & Center For The Book feature an excerpt from a Colorado book and an interview with the author. Explore the SunLit archives at coloradosun.com/sunlit.

SunLit: Tell us about creating this book. What influences and/or experiences informed the project before you sat down to write? 

Mitchell: Although my equestrian skills are little more than basic, I learned the most about myself and my horses with NATRC (North American Trail Ride Conference) which involves 60-mile judged competitive trail rides over two days. Over the years, I accumulated almost 2,000 miles in NATRC rides. And while I had a barn full of great horses, one mare we called Babe earned the status of “my one in a million mare” during the many years she graced us with her presence. Babe taught me so much about friendship between species, about dependability, about honesty, that without her, I wouldn’t have been able to convey how much humans can gain from taking the time to understand and know another creature as fully as possible. Any success I’ve had in writing the equine portions of this story are due to Babe.

SunLit: What did the process of writing this book add to your knowledge and understanding of your craft and/or the subject matter?

Mitchell: While this is the fourth book I wrote, I readily admit that learning to write is an ongoing process, always with room for improvement. My goal for this particular book, though, is to entertain all those people who enjoy horses, even if only from afar. Sure, some are frightened of them. Others might’ve ridden only briefly in childhood but somehow never quite got over mild cases of “horse fever.” I also wrote this book to attempt answering the question of why many of us feel the way we do about equines. Not an easy question to answer, but I have a few theories. Simply put, horses serve as a link to nature, an escape from our often hectic lives. 

“Dying to Ride”

>> Read an excerpt

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As for mysteries, these lurk everywhere. In a broad sense, even the future is an evolving mystery. Some of my stories begin with a death, and final pages often shock. But my intent isn’t to dwell on the end of life, but rather on the choices we make and the consequences that follow. We’re driven by desires of many sorts. Most of us “color within the lines” so to speak, but others rage against norms.

SunLit: What were the biggest challenges you faced in writing this book?

Mitchell: I employed a “stop and start” technique for this book, although that’s far from ideal. But I wrote this book over many years. One benefit is that setting aside a work in progress gave me more perspective when rereading portions. The negative, of course, is that forward progress slows to a crawl. Ultimately, I lost count of the number of full revisions I cranked out, but even if I’d written more consistently, revisions are still needed. I mostly enjoy revising, but it’s also easy to overdo it. Knowing when to quit is important.

SunLit: What’s the most important thing — a theme, lesson, emotion or realization — that readers should take from this book? 

Mitchell: Hopefully, readers may gain more appreciation for equines and their place in our world. In regard to the human mystery aspects, readers might ponder just how much childhood experiences stay with us and sometimes corrupt us in surprising ways. The perfect childhood doesn’t exist, of course, but what happens to us as we grow up stays with us for better or worse.

SunLit: What is it about horses? Why do some feel drawn to them?

Mitchell: Some reasons many of us love them include their power, their grace, the way they allow us to ride them! Horses are herd animals and also prey animals. We puny humans are predators. It’s just plain weird that horses let us get on their backs. Having contributed immeasurably to early human mobility, horses now serve as everything from pasture ornaments to the muscular portion of competitive duos. 

Fortunately, the horrid term “breaking” a horse has mostly given way to gentler techniques, although even highly valued equines might be subjected to abuse with whips and spurs. I include equines in my stories because these majestic animals are good to be around and relaxing to read about.

SunLit: Tell us about your next project.

Mitchell: After completing Book Two of the Everything Equine Mystery Series, “Wild Ride,” I plan a series of short stories. Readers can guess what I’ll include…

 A few more quick questions

SunLit: Which do you enjoy more as you work on a book – writing or editing? 

Mitchell: I tend to try and revise too soon, but I actually enjoy both the initial writing and the revision.

SunLit: What’s the first piece of writing – at any age – that you remember being proud of? 

Mitchell: A number of years ago, I entered a contest at Denver Women’s Press Club (DWPC) with a short nonfiction piece entitled “A Special Friend.” This friend was Babe, the wonderful mare we had from age 3 to 40. Yes, horses can live that long! Anyhow, the piece won second place and I was so excited! One judge said I’d made her fall in love with Babe too. 

SunLit: What three writers, from any era, would you invite over for a great discussion about literature and writing? 

Mitchell: I’d invite Margaret Atwood, Ray Bradbury and Harlan Coben and take notes on what they say about writing.

SunLit: Do you have a favorite quote about writing? 

Mitchell: “Half my life is an act of revision” by John Irving

SunLit: What does the current collection of books on your home shelves tell visitors about you? 

Mitchell: My bookshelves overflow with everything from sci-fi to mysteries. Naturally, one entire shelf is devoted to equine books.

SunLit: Soundtrack or silence? What’s the audio background that helps you write? 

Mitchell: Utter silence works for me.

SunLit: What music do you listen to for sheer enjoyment? 

Mitchell: Paul Simon, Ed Sheeran, Lindsey Stirling.

SunLit: What event, and at what age, convinced you that you wanted to be a writer?

Mitchell: Even though I actually enjoyed writing papers in high school and college, I didn’t realize how much I wanted to be a writer until later years.

SunLit: Greatest writing fear? 

Mitchell: Rejection, which of course is a part of being a writer.

SunLit: Greatest writing satisfaction? 

Mitchell: Acceptance by a New York agent and working with her for a number of years. Also, memberships in Denver Women’ Press Club, Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers, Women Writing the West, and Colorado Author’s League.