Western Historical Fiction Author

David Z. Pyke



Media Kit
David Z. Pyke, author of Rescuing Crockett, the debut book of the Silas Grant historical adventure fiction series

Author Bio

David Z. Pyke is a native Texan related to one of the Alamo defenders. His great-great-great-great-great-granduncle, Isaac Millsaps, was one of the Immortal 32, the reinforcements from Gonzales who answered William Barret Travis's call for help, rode to San Antonio, and died in the Alamo on March 6, 1836.

A professional writer since 1975, Pyke has written for newspapers, magazines, and websites. He currently works for Texas Woman's University, writing news and feature articles about the College of Arts & Sciences for the TWU website, though his stories have been picked up by print and broadcast media.

In 1991, a mutual friend introduced David to Suzanne, an English literature teacher from Missouri. Their first date was on a Friday the 13th. She later confessed that before that first date, she read some of his stories to make sure he could write. Apparently, he received a passing grade. They were engaged five months later, married four months after that, and in 2022 celebrated their 30th anniversary.


Artwork

The images below are:

Fanny is included because her book, Life In Mexico, was critical in the development of Rescuing Crockett. When Pyke came up with the idea for the novel, all he had was the title and a basic concept, what if David Crockett survived the Alamo? During his research, he found Fanny's book and therein found multiple characters (including Fanny) and locations for the novel, but more importantly he discovered the triggering event that ignites the mystery and provides the through line that weaves the plot together.

Click an image for the full image.

cover of Rescuing Crockett
author David Z. Pyke
Fanny Calderon de la Barca


Research

There are too many books and articles and websites involved in the research for Rescuing Crockett to list here, but these are the primary sources:



Influences

A writer is the sum of their reading, and these authors and books have particularly influenced Pyke's writing. Rescuing Crockett is high-concept historical fiction and action/adventure, similar in style and pace to the historical adventures of Bernard Cornwell and Steven Pressfield.



Contact

author@davidzpyke.com


Buy Rescuing Crockett

Rescuing Crockett is on sale in paperback, hardcover, and eBook through the following retailers. Hardcover copies from Amazon are case laminate (full-color art printed directly on the cover).

Rescuing Crockett is adult fiction containing mild profanity, consensual sexual situations, and some graphic violence.

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