Category: Writing Challenges
Challenges from the Bonanza Brand Forums.
Bitter, Sweet, Wonderful Everything (by JC)
Summary: Their first little bird has left the nest, and more change is on the way for Adam and Moira.
(Part of the More than a Memory series, written for Camp in the Pines 2026)
Rating: T Word Count: 3447
Vows and Loopholes (by DJK)
Summary: Adam is determined to know why Ben Cartwright always refused his sons’ requests for a family dog. This was written for the 2026 Lorne Green’s Birthday Challenge which required the author to write a Carwright story that included a dog in honor of Lorne’s love of dogs.
rating: teen word count : 2843
Bringing Harmony into the World (by DJK)
Summary: Alone at the ranch, Hop Sing and a young Little Joe assist a mare in delivering her foal. Written for the 2026 Hop Sing’s Chinese New Year Challenge. rating: teen word count: 2633
Tiānyì (by PatD in PA)
Summary: Written for “Hop Sing’s Chinese New Year Challenge 2026,” honoring the year of the Fire Horse.
Rating: G/K
Word Count: 1,350
The Road to Hell (by Cheaux)
Summary: Despite good intentions, a good deed turns deadly and the Cartwrights must grapple with the outcome.
Rating: T Word Count: 4,632
A Surprise Friend (By AC1830)
Summary – Ben discovers a surprising friendship when he gets maneuvered into helping out a friend. Written for the 2026 Lorne Greene Birthday Challenge.
Rating: G; Word Count: 785
Unfortunate Goings-On (by Tavia42)
Summary: Joe and Hoss meant well. They always do. But somehow they find themselves falling into a series of misadventures, and getting out of one only lands them in another. This story is a compilation of 2025 Pinecone Challenges, which form an ongoing narrative – thank you to AC1830 for so many wonderful prompts!
Rating: G | Word Count: 6,042
A Percolator Conniption (by AC1830)
Summary: While the Cartwrights are away, Hop Sing plans a massive Spring cleaning. But his blissful time alone is soon interrupted by an unwanted visitor who brings an unexpected gift. Written for the 2025 4th Quarter Chaps and Spurs Challenge. The required words were percolate, earthquake, pipeline, surgeon, amendment.
Rating: G, Word Count: 2324
You Can Bet on It (by PatD in PA)
SUMMARY: With Christmas just around the corner, Little Joe Cartwright learns exactly how far his Yankee Granite Head of a big brother will go, just how much he will do, in order to keep him safe.
RATING: PG
WORD COUNT: 10,301
Written for the 2025 Bonanza Brand Advent Calendar
The Twelve Trees of Christmas (by Tavia42)
Summary: Joe and Hoss form Cartwright Brothers’ Christmas Trees, selling trees to familiar faces all over Virginia City.
Rating: G | Word Count: 4,133
Written for the 2025 Bonanza Brand Advent Calendar
Mr. Adam and Them Boys (by DJK)
Summary: Adam loses a bet and must take Little Joe and four friends hunting in the high country. His fears of catastrophe come true in an unexpected way. This prequel was written for the Chaps and Spurs Quarter Four Challenge. The five mandated words were: percolate, earthquake, pipeline, surgeon, amendment. Rating: teen Word count: 7373
Three Thousand Six Hundred Seconds (by Pat D in PA)
SUMMARY: A short piece written for the Michael Landon Birthday Literary Challenge 2025. (536 words, rating G/K)
Making Hay (by DJK)
Summary: Little Joe does not understand why Roy Coffee is keeping him in jail. This story was written for the Micheal Landon Birthday Challenge 2025. rating: rating: T/PG13 word count: 2306
It Was Just One Second (by AC1830)
Summary: How long does it take to change a life forever? Joe Cartwright finds out it only takes a second. Written for the 2025 Michael Landon’s Birthday Challenge – pick a period of time, from a second up to a year, that changed Joe Cartwright’s life forever.
Rating: T, Word Count: 1101
The Declaration (by Pat D in PA)
SUMMARY: An older brother mourns his believed failure in keeping a promise. Written for the 3rd Quarter 2025 Chaps and Spurs Writing Challenge.
RATING: K/G WORD COUNT: 1,335