Bain's name is a combination of my paternal and maternal grandfathers. John Henry and Bain being their given names were combined to create my bounty hunters full name. Two men that were very important to me as a child. I used the name for my days competing in SASS (Single Action Shooting Society) better known as Cowboy Action Shooting. At the time I wrote the first story about him, I chose the name because of the connection to my Grandpa and my PaPa. Since both my granddads were old, the first tale I featured John in he was old.
When I wrote his first adventure, this man, an aging former gunfighter turned gunsmith, must drag his guns out one more time. I don't remember much about what other's thought of the story, but I liked it, and I really liked Bain. The teacher, a wonderful woman now in her late 80's or early 90's, loved it and began to urge me to write more.
I continued to write about Bain on legal pads and kept them in a box. At some point, I can't quite remember exactly when I started writing longer stories about other characters. That notwithstanding, I returned to Bain often, writing about different periods in his life. I never attempted to get any of John Henry's stories published but kept those short stories in the same box as all my other writing.
In the late 70's I did try to get stories published. Had one novel that a publisher said, "Show's promise, make these changes, and we will review the book again." Unfortunately, I was going through a divorce at the time, then a remarriage and yet another divorce. So, five years after the fact I open my box to make those changes (and yes much too late to have the publisher remember it) and all my notes, short stories, outlines, and completed novels have been shredded.
This event set me back, about 25 years. Eventually, I rewrote the full-length novel, a western. Now, I'm exploring Bain once again. If you are a fan of westerns, you might check it out John Henry Bain Bounty Hunter, right here on Storiesonline. Follow me on Facebook, or check out my webpage.