Inland Empire (In-Person): Researching for Plot Development and Historical Setting

Saturday, May 27, 2023

Jan Herrman – The Last Cowboy

Jan Herrman will share his interest in the characters, places and events of what we think of as the Old West. He will to do so by reading some excerpts from The Last Cowboy and explaining the research that led to the plot development and historical settings of the American frontier. The novel spans the period from 1860 to 1912. It tells the story of a reluctant hero who somehow manages to survive the Civil War, Texas-sized desperados, and the great San Francisco Earthquake, only to face one last perilous adventure to rescue a friend…in Morocco. He admits to developing an extraordinary affection for the main characters, especially Hank and Beth, and had many conversations with them as he wrote the book. And, no, he does not believe this was a form of schizophrenia. He does, however, want to discuss the creative process with the authors in the audience and make the presentation as interactive as possible.

Jan Herrman is a retired physician with a keen interest in the myths of the Old West. In fact, he has been moving steadily west, having been born and raised in New Jersey. He attended Hamilton College in upstate New York and graduated in 1974 with a degree in English. From there he wandered a bit, spent time in Spain and eventually wound up in medical school at LSU in Shreveport, Lousiana. From there he moved on to the University of Texas at Houston for training in internal medicine and where he met his wife, Marta. She was a medical student from Brazil at the time and was doing research at MD Anderson Hospital.(She is now a practicing pediatrician.) The next move west was to Stanford for fellowship training in nephrology. From there he joined Kaiser in Fontana and, except for a several year hiatus on faculty at the University of Rochester School of Medicine, remained there for over 30 years, until retirement in 2020. He played many roles during that career besides seeing patients, including serving on the SCPMG Board of Directors, chief of nephrology and medical director of a dialysis unit. He and his wife have three children, all married (or one nearly so) and all embarked on successful careers of their own.

Jan’s Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100082994097518