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Sunday, May 24, 2009

Why We Like Cowboys


Who hasn’t thought about the cowboys of yesteryear driving cattle across the prairie, a lawman riding for justice, a modern rodeo cowboy, or the cattle rancher down the road and sighed. There’s something about a man in boots, denim, and a cowboy hat that makes a woman’s heart increase speed and her mouth go dry.

Is it their manners, chivalry, sense of justice, or the fact they take off their hats and say, “Thank you, Ma’am”? All I know - cowboys have the ‘it’ factor for me and many women.

The swagger of the rodeo cowboy after he picks himself up off the ground. The set jaw, cool demeanor, and stance of a lawman in a movie standing up to the bad guy. The easy way a rancher leans over the corral fence taking stock of his herd, with one foot resting on a rail.

Sigh, there’s something about cowboys.


I write about cowboys both in the past and now. I try to capture the honor, justice, manners, and that raw maleness that seems to ooze from cowboys and men in the 1800's. I don’t know how else to explain it, but they would fight a man twice their size, barehanded, to defend a woman or child’s honor. That is what makes a cowboy or any hero in a romance stay in my heart.

Any man who doffs his hat and opens doors in this day and age gets a smile and notch on my hero meter. And you’ll find most cowboys do. They respect women. I think it harkens back to the days in the West when women were few and far between and men were so tickled to have a female to cater to, they bent over backwards to make them want to hang around.

What is the “it” factor about cowboys that makes your heart skitter with
excitement?

To read about a cowboy some reviewers have fallen in love with, check out my latest release, “Outlaw in Petticoats”. You can purchase it in e-book at http://thewildrosepress.com or in print at any book store. To find out more about Paty Jager and my other books you can go to: http://www.patyjager.com

21 comments:

Unknown said...

I love them cowboys myself and I think the reason is they have a lot of the old manners that we miss. They no how to treat people with the respect they deserve. Also a lot of them are very sexy in their own way.

Victoria Gray said...

I love rugged, American men. Also, their values and manners harken back to a time when men weren't afraid to act like men and weren't worried about GQ looks. Great post!

Unknown said...

I just fall apart when I read stories about cowboys. I don't know what it is about them but I love em

Val
lastnerve2000@gmail.com

Mary Ricksen said...

All of the listed reasons sound pretty good to me. And they smell like horses, I love the smell of horses.
Plus I like to be called Ma'm.

Debby said...

There is something special about cowboys. Respectful, sexy and lotsof muscles. What's not to like?

Judy said...

I love a man in a hat for one thing. The tight jeans, boots, muscles and the way he walks catches my attention!! I have loved cowboys ever since I was a little girl!!

Gwynlyn said...

I don't write cowboys, gut their strong work eithic, laconic manner, and intense sense of honor color every character I do write.

Chuck Connor as the Rifleman, Roy Rogers, John Wayne in whatever role he played (yes, even Rooster Cogburn) all personified the quiet strength impatient with foolishness, demanding justice, and protective of those in need (even the foolish ones) that make the cowboy personna one that lives in the hearts of most women even today. They make great heroes whether in chaps, armor, or bulletproof vests.

Carol L. said...

Cowboys have to be the sexiest men alive, with the exception of a Highlander in a kilt. lol
Seriously though, they are so masculine because like someone else said, they weren't afraid to be men. They went out of their way for women and children or someone who needed their help. It was second nature to them. They ad aconfidence that just pulled you in. Love em'
Carol L.
Lucky4750@aol.com

deb said...

I grew up watching cowboys on TV and the movies as well as in real life. I don't think there can be any thing more romantic than a cow boy. He stands for all that is good about the American Way.
Debby
cleo@hbeark.com

Jennifer Johnson said...

Sincerity and decency are very sexy to me. I think it's also sweet when they say "Ma'am" to me and it isn't because they think I'm old.

Me :) said...

I think one of the things that draws women to the love of cowboys is the romance of the lifestyle some of them still live. The manners, the clothes, the thought of that sexy hunk of beef working cows on the back of a powerful horse. MMMMM

Karen H said...

Used to read historical westerns all the time but I think they have been replaced by the contemporary west...which is not a bad thing from the looks of some of the cowboys on the covers! LOL

But I think I fell in love with cowboys when I was growing up and watching all the hot eye candy cowboys on TV. Can anyone say Rowdy Yates (aka Clint Eastwood) in Wagon Train?

kkhaas at bellsouth dot net

SyndeeS said...

Yeah, I'm right there with you gals..There is something about a guy in a cowboy hat, tight jeans and a button up shirt that just does it for me. I also think it is the old school manners that are appealing as well...

Paty Jager said...

Virginia, I agree!

Thanks, Victoria!

Me too, Val.

LOL, Mary. You're right there is nothing in the world like the smell of a horse! And mix it with the musk of a cowboy.....

I agree, Debby!

Judy, there is something about a man in a cowboy hat.

Gwynlyn, so true!

Carol L. I agree it's their confidence and knowing who they are that gets to me.

Deb, True.

Jennifer, it's that respect thing. I like it, too.

Ann,you made me drool!

Karen, I like both the historical and the contemporary cowboys. Same values.

Syndee, I agree!

Thank you all for stopping by and sharing why you like cowboys!

Anonymous said...

Enjoyed reading the comments and have really liked the cowboy stories of Paty.
I like the "cowboy spirit" in men because it seems to say "Here stands a man who honors his country, his animals, his parents, and his womenfolk"
JOYE
JWIsleyATaol.com

Paty Jager said...

Thanks Joy! I think it is the traits you speak of that make cowboys great heroes for romance novels.

Tabitha Shay said...

Well Goodness Girl,
I think you said it all...it certainly made my mouth water...hot, sexy cowboys with manners...what's not to love?? Toss in a hat, a Western drawl, a rope, saddle and rifle and oh yeah, the bare chest and tight jeans...Yummy....Tabs

Anonymous said...

Preach it, Paty.

mateo45 said...

The attraction of 'cowboys' always reminds me of those Harlequin paperbacks with some guy rescuing the hapless heroine screaming, "oh, take me, you handsome brute!" And like the "hero" and the typical 'demographic 'for this kinda literature, they're usually not exactly the sharpest tacks in the box either. But to each their own!

Robert S said...

Nothing of what you mentioned is historically correct. Real cowboys were poor, dirty hard working men. They were not gentlemen, or gunslingers. All the things you women mentioned are things that the movie industry invented, and later the country/western music scene reinvented to get your panties wet. Cowboys smelled like manure and body odor. Oh, and they were originally Mexican. Keep dreaming.

Anonymous said...

Actually most were originally black .even the Mexican Baqueros and Gauchos