*This post is a part of a blog hop focused on Equine Goals over at Equus Education.

You can never stop learning about horses. I love this about them! In your passion for horses, it can be great to set goals to increase your learning.

There is no limit to what sort of equine goal you could set. Let’s consider some examples:

• Read a certain number of horse blogs / books
• Learn a new horse skill
• Ride a certain number of horses
• Ride a certain number of hours per week
• Travel to different countries to work with horses
• Work in different disciplines with horses
• Observe a great horse race like the Melbourne Cup or Kentucky Derby

You name it! There are so many things that you can set as goals for yourself and your equine learning. So now that we’ve considered a few possibilities I’d love to know, what would you love to add to your equine goal list?

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Here’s the third excerpt from my new novel B and B.  If you missed the previous post, you can check it out here.

Ben sighed, suddenly wishing for his previous conversation with Jake to continue. Anything but this.
The group of ten had a couple of capable riders, but the majority were shaky at the trot and definitely weren’t up to too much cantering. This meant more conversation. Normally Ben could put up with this – Jake had given him a couple of great questions that he used to keep their clients talking about themselves.
Unfortunately there was one chatty brunette who seemed insistent on getting Ben to talk. He was surprised by her apparent interest in him – the young women usually were drawn to Jake’s dark curls and blue eyes, as well as his easy laugh and ability to talk with anyone comfortably. More often than not when Ben watched the clients interact with his co worker he either felt amused, or old.
Today he would have settled for old. This woman – Jane or Jan or Janine, he couldn’t remember – appeared a little young and her energy was quickly tiring him. Didn’t some people know how to stop talking?
He was glad when the group drew close to a hill they used for cantering. The ride slowed to a stop as Jake outlined what they were going to do. Then one by one, the riders cantered up the hill to wait at the top. Jake lead the way and thankfully Ben’s sudden fan realised he needed to keep watch over the riders as they made their way between him and Jake waiting up top.
Ben purposely held back when he saw the young woman make her ascent at a lazy canter. He smiled to himself when halfway up the hill the older mare she was on, decided a trot would suffice. The young brunette gave a hearty kick with her heels and the mare snorted and broke into a canter again – for three strides – before abruptly coming to a walk. Ben chuckled outright as he headed up the hill after her, noting with satisfaction that although she was surprised by the mare’s sudden change of pace, she stayed in the saddle.
The rest of the ride was made up mainly of brisk trotting – a pace that caused some to focus on their seat, rather than the joys of conversation – and Ben was able to get a few moments to himself. He kept an eye on the riders, but was also able to enjoy the scenery of tall eucalypts, some acacias and the odd pine.
The smell of the bush was both a familiar comfort, and refreshing. At times Ben wondered if there was a job that paid where he could just ride all day – without the clients.
As the ride came to a close, the riders were allowed to spread out on an open hillside and push their mounts into a canter. It was an exhilarating feeling – the twelve of them racing up the hillside. Ben let out an uncharacteristic whoop as they reached the top. The riders appeared a little breathless, but were all smiling. It was a nice way to finish the ride.
The group made their way at a steady walk down the hillside and toward the tie up yards. The brunette whose name Ben really wasn’t sure on continued her chatter, asking Ben questions about himself. He muttered some answers, glaring at Jake who was grinning cheerfully back at him.

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Feedback welcome!

This is my new novel I’m working on.  If you missed the first excerpt, you can check it out here.

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Red stamped his foot impatiently, snorting at the stationary figure beside him.
“You’re right, mate. Stop sleeping on the job,” Ben said as he slapped the horse affectionately on the shoulder and then said, “thanks for the wake up call. Let’s see if we can’t get another few horses tacked up before Jake finally gets out here.”
They had a 2pm ride booked that was quite big. All staff members were invited to dine with the managers in their house for lunch, but Ben more often than not preferred a quick sandwich and the solitude of his own thoughts and horses for company. He wasn’t one for small talk – it irritated him.
Jake on the other hand loved to socialise – and he wouldn’t pass up the opportunity of a free home cooked meal. Ben knew they were allowed to take their time over lunch, but he preferred to make sure all the horses needed for the ride were sound and tacked up well before curious clients started turning up ahead of their three hour ride.
Fifteen minutes later Jake ambled over to the holding yards. Ben was onto his fourth horse and shot his co worker a quick grin.
“You’ve been busy!” Jake stated, slipping between the rails of the fence lining the holding yards.
“Someone’s got to get these horses ready while you stuff your face and socialise,” Ben bit back cheerily.
He wasn’t one for small talk, but banter between workmates kept his days entertaining.
“And boy am I glad I did today!” Jake said, causing Ben to question the likelihood of Jake not having lunch with the husband and wife pair who managed the property.
Ben didn’t have to ask if the reason was the red headed figure he’d spotted from afar. In fact, he decided he wasn’t interested in hearing all about it. He grunted noncommittally, making a comment about how many horses still needed to be saddled.
“You’ve already tacked up six, plus our horses. There’s only four to go,” Jake responded, not taking the hint.
“She’s a looker,” Jake informed him, quickly brushing over a little bay mare.
Ben wondered if he didn’t respond, if Jake would just drop it.
“Her name’s Brooke and it seems like she’s going to stick around for a bit. Margaret hired her as the new cook.”
Ben sighed. It didn’t look like the conversation was changing until some guests started to turn up. He looked down the long drive expectantly – hopefully. He muttered as he picked out the feet of a bay gelding.
“So she’s not a relative then.”
“Why would you think that? They’re hoping she’ll be able to take on the cooking position indefinitely. Lunch sure was good. I like a woman who can cook.”
“She’s got a kid,” Ben heard himself say before he could stop.
What happened to just being quiet and letting the conversation stop?
“So?” Jake questioned.
Obviously that piece of information wasn’t new to him.
“So… something has to transpire for a kid to come about. She’s obviously taken… and if not, kids just add a whole other dimension. There are two of them that have to like you and if she’s single, then there’s a reason she’s not with the father and that can be a whole other problem. Too much hassle.”
“But if she didn’t have a kid and those other problems… what would you think?” he persisted.
Ben looked at his co worker like he’d bumped his head one too many times.
“What would I think?” he asked, annoyed that Jake just wouldn’t drop it.
“Yeah. Would you be interested?”
“In what?” he asked with a sigh.
“Brooke? Would you be interested in Brooke?”
He wants me to admit she’s attractive. What’s the point? Looks aren’t everything and I’m not getting stuck in his little game.
Ben looked at Jake steadily for thirty seconds. He almost smiled as the younger male seemed to shrink under his gaze.
“You can’t ask if things were completely different, would my current view be different. That’s illogical, Jake. Can we finish these horses now? There’s a car coming up the drive.”
Ben just held back his thankful smile. It was about time they started turning up and it was definitely about time that this conversation ended.

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Feedback welcome! 🙂

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I’ve decided to take part in the Equus Education Blog Hop about your career.  My answers can be found below!

a. What is your horse related career?
Equine writer. It’s possible to make a living from writing horse informative articles, horse non fiction books and resources for teaching, and horse fiction stories.

b. Where in the world can we find you?
Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia.

c. Is your horse career able to be carried out in part online?
Definitely. It can be mostly online from writing on a computer, to publishing online and selling articles/books online.

d. Do you need a qualification to do your job?
No. It helps to have a good grasp of the language you’re writing in, including spelling and grammar. Plus a background in horses is important so that you’re not making facts up!

e. What’s the best thing about your job?
There is so much to learn about horses and so many things you can do with them, you can write about almost anything and find a way to make money from this. Whether it’s horse health, horse breeding, horse care, horse riding or horse stories, it is possible to write about and earn.

Hi everyone!  I am excited about a new novel that I’m working on and wanted to share some excerpts with you to give you a feel for it!  So I’ll post an excerpt every two weeks, following on from the one before for a little bit.

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It was a nice place where Ben worked. Good physical work, great views and accommodating bosses. He definitely couldn’t complain. And to be honest, if he could, it tended to be toward the end of the season when he’d had enough of clients, but that didn’t matter – he was moving on in a short while by that stage.
The business – Happy Trails – focused on providing just that; trail rides that customers could truly enjoy and have a good time on. It was seasonal work, running through the spring and summer months with a break in February due to the heat, then back on for the autumn months and slowing down over winter.
Generally this meant one of two things for Ben – he did maintenance odds and ends in the early mornings and late evenings of February and then went back to taking clients out over autumn, or he headed off for a break and a scene change at another job an hour down the road until spring came around again.
Ben enjoyed his work with Margaret and Peter – the owners and managers of Happy Trails – but he also enjoyed that he could go off and carry out another job for a spell before coming back to the busy but laid back environment of trail rides. He’d been working this way for the past five years and nothing had changed much over that time.
Margaret and Peter worked hard to keep any staff that they liked – encouraging them to travel and gain other skills in the off season – but always maintaining that there was accommodation, food and a job waiting for them when the riding season started again. Ben liked it that way. He knew where he stood, and he knew the people he worked with.
There was one other regular trail guide – Jake – and a handful of part timers who helped care for the horses and occasionally came out on a trail ride with clients. As much as you had to be ready for anything with horses – you never knew what the day would hold even though you could plan what you would like it to include – Ben was averse to change.
He found he could handle random events that occurred with his equine friends – a sudden lameness, a client falling or a horse running away with him – but he wasn’t the same with people. He liked them to be predictable – and more often than not – he liked them to leave him alone.
Even though he dealt with strangers six days a week, he felt no obligation toward them other than a safe and enjoyable ride. He didn’t need to build up an ongoing rapport with them or become their best friend. He could just answer questions; tell them about the horse they were riding and point out the highlights of the surrounding countryside.
That was enough for him. In fact at this point in time, it was all he wanted. He couldn’t shake the feeling that things were changing though. Ben glanced up from the girth he was tightening on Red, a trusty chestnut gelding often used in trail rides on the farm.
He’d noticed the female figure flitting between the large vegetable garden and the main farm house a few times over the past couple of days. He figured she was a relative of Margaret and Peter’s, or something equally as boring. It didn’t really matter; she was just another figure that was showing up from time to time and therefore a part of his day. Granted, she appeared to have something about her from a distance. But what appeared good from far away often had faults that were obvious up close.

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Well that’s the end of teaser one!  Stay tuned for another excerpt in two weeks!