Author W.C. Jameson

 Best-selling treasure author W.C. Jameson is here today to answer a few questions about his writing. First, though, let me tell you a bit about him. He’s the award-winning author of 70 books, 1500 articles and essays, 300 songs, and dozens of poems. His prominence as a professional fortune hunter has led to stints as a consultant for the Unsolved Mysteries television show and the Travel Channel. He served as an adviser for the film, National Treasure starring Nicolas Cage and appears in an interview on the DVD. Jameson has written the sound tracks for two PBS documentaries and one feature film. His music has been heard on NPR and he wrote and performed in the musical, “Whatever Happened to the Outlaw, Jesse James?” Jameson has acted in five films and has been interviewed on The History Channel, The Travel Channel, PBS, and Nightline.

Welcome W.C. Let’s get right to the questions.

 Your latest book, Treasure Hunter: Caches, Curses, and Deadly Confrontations, is an adventure memoir of some of your most memorable expeditions. Why did you write this book?

At first I did not want to write Treasure Hunter. The principal reason is related to the fact that one of the best advantages a professional treasure hunter can have is anonymity. The truth is, most of what I do as a professional treasure hunter is illegal, therefore the less that is known about me and what I am involved with, the better.

My wife has encouraged me for years to write about my adventures as a treasure hunter. I resisted but finally gave in a few years ago for a couple of reasons. Because of age and increasing obligations relative to writing, speaking, and other things, I am no longer as active as I once was. The partners I worked with for years are either dead or have moved on to other things. Most of my recovery expeditions required the cooperation of several men – since they are no longer active, I have cut back on my own my involvement.

While I still have a couple of treasure recovery projects on the burner, neither is likely to be affected by the release of this book.

Do you still hunt for lost mines and buried treasures?

Yes. I have a couple of ongoing projects I won’t discuss. In addition, there are still a number of caches of Spanish gold and silver we had to abandon in Mexico for a variety of reasons. I am tempted to try to go back and retrieve some of those, but recovering and transporting such things in Mexico is very difficult these days.

One of my current projects is located in Arizona, another in Texas. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

Interesting. You are regarded as the best-selling treasure author in the world. How many books about lost mines and buried treasures have you written?

Of my 70 books, at least 22 have dealt with lost mines and buried treasures. The first was published in 1988. All but two are still in print. During the next few years at least 12 more will be released.

I have had the good fortune of having publishers contact me about writing books for them. These books sell well and make the publishers money. With a renewed interest in this country for searching lost mines and buried treasures, the books seem to be in great demand.

What is your next book?

At this writing I am awaiting the release of three books:

Lost Mines and Buried Treasures of Arkansas
Lost Mines and Buried Treasures of Missouri
Billy the Kid: The Lost Interviews

Billy the Kid: The Lost Interviews can be considered a sequel to my best-selling Billy the Kid: Beyond the Grave. Searching for lost or missing people is very similar to researching and seeking a lost treasure cache. In this case, the man we searched for was the outlaw Billy the Kid who, in truth, was never killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett but went on to live in hiding for another 69 years.

The evidence for this is found in Billy the Kid: Beyond the Grave. A few so-called experts on historical American outlaws have gotten upset because my findings make a lie of what has long been perpetuated as the truth. These experts have been challenged to debate me for years but none have responded.

Thank you W.C.

W.C. Jameson lives in my home state of Texas, but no matter where you live, keep an eye out for him. When not working on a book, he tours the country as a speaker, conducting writing workshops and performing his music at folk festivals, concerts, roadhouses, and on television.

W.C. will try to stop by today, so leave a comment or a question. Then check back this Saturday when I’ll announce who wins a paperback of Treasure Hunter. All commenters will be entered in the drawing!