Staff Author James L. Bruner

Column – Twisted Trails
Subjects – Outdoors
Authors Website – view

Most notably James is recognized for his research and writings regarding the Whitetail Deer as well as personal recounts of previous Black Bear encounters. His writing style consists of both informational materials as well as reflective articles which document personal experiences from his many years in the field.

James has written as a staff author for numerous physical print publications but left the print publication process to pursue his own development as an online author and promoter for a less demanding output schedule which would allow for more research.

“I would much rather research and observe for an entire month and produce two articles than jam two weeks of time in the field for three or four short article print publications. It wasn’t so much the deadlines that swayed my opinion. Editors and publicists were consistently removing pertinent information that changed the entire tone of each article. These changes were made with no regard to article relevance by people who had no experience in the field and were more or less clueless or blind to the final product appeal.”

James grew up in an outdoor family and recalls some of his first memories outdoors with his father. “I remember being very young and my dad carrying me on his shoulders out to the duck blind where a cold day of watching decoys dipping on the waves was complimented by the time spent together.” In the years that followed, moments like those were played time and again in a number of outdoor activities that included rabbit hunting, fishing, deer hunting, grouse hunting, and of course more waterfowling. “In an area like the Upper Peninsula you have outdoor activities at your doorstep and we took advantage of every season available to hunt and fish.”

Through his teens James began to venture out on his own and break away from the traditional methods of hunting learned in his earlier years. Many of his techniques were considered too far out of the box to gain any sort of recognition but, as the laws of average soon expand, some of these same techniques were now showing up in major outdoor publications by well-noted hunters. “I remember using the heel of my boot to make a scrape larger. I knew relatively little about the importance or complexity of a scrape. For the most part I didn’t have a plan or theory with the actions. I was just inspired to create a change. Two days later that scrape was three times larger the size I had left it. The lights came on when I realized I had pine scent on my boot soles during that event. The combination of a physical and scent change outraged the buck. A year later I read about the physical properties of mock scrapes for the very first time in a commercial magazine and understood that, as a hunter, experimentation could very well be the key to success”

With moments like these in mind James began expanding and simply observing deer as often as possible logging daily information through journals and video which would be studied in depth. In the next 25 years that research continued and now follows the author through his research and observation from his residence and the outlying areas of state property. As mentioned by the author, “The view from my cabin window would not be considered spectacular until it is filled with a wild black bear, whitetail deer, wolf, bobcat, fox, or any of the other wild critters that abound here. As such, these sorroundings create the inspiration for further research and articles.”

To learn more about this author we invite you to read his column in each issue of our online magazine or visit his website for a personal view.

Article List for James L. Bruner
Stuck In A Rut
Late Season Whitetails
Safe And Effective Deer Drives
Reading A Rub
The Gland Factor
Non Typical Antlers
Our Last Hunt
Belligerant Bucks And Bruins
The Little Hunter
The Monarch
How To Create Your Own Ghillie Suit
Michigans Wolf Economics
Last Chance Perch
Commercialization vs Realization
Recycled Research
From Days Of Old
Tick Tock Tick
Katies Crash Course
Dead In The Water
Poised For A Comeback
Steelheads In The Snow
Rabbits On A Shoestring
Build A Portable Ice Shelter
Ice Safety For The Ice Fisherman
Hot Tips For Ice Fishing
Introducing Kids To Ice Fishing
March Of The Black Bears
Shotgun John
Fish Tales Squared
5 Factors For More Ruffed Grouse
The Buck Of My Dreams