2020 WRMA Winners

Book titles are followed by the author and publisher (in parenthesis).

Western Nonfiction

First Place: Terror on the Santa Fe Trail: Kit Carson and the Jicarilla Apache by Doug Hocking (TwoDot)

Second Place: The Mormon Handcart Migration by Candy Moulton

(University of Oklahoma Press)

Third Place: Geronimo, Prisoner of Lies: Twenty-Three Years as a Prisoner of War (1886-1909) by W. Michael Farmer (TwoDot)

Fourth Place: Wyatt Earp & Bat Masterson: Lawmen of the Legendary West by Bill Markley (TwoDot) and

Billy the Kid & Jesse James: Outlaws of the Legendary West

by Bill Markley (TwoDot)

Western Biographies

First Place: According to Kate: The Legendary Life of Big Nose Kate, Love of Doc Holliday by Chris Enss (TwoDot)

Second Place: California Madams by Sherry Monahan (Farcountry Press)

Third Place: Killing Pat Garrett: The Wild West's Most Famous Lawman

by David G. Thomas (Doc45 Publishing)

Fourth Place: Washington Territory's Grand Lady: The Story of Matilda (Glover) Koontz Jackson by Julie McDonald Zander (Chapters of Life Memory Books)

Western Romance

First Place: This New Day by Harlan Hague (Graycatbird Books)

Second Place: Red River Rifles: The Texas Wyllie Brothers by Dorothy Wiley (Author Dorothy M. Wiley Publications)

Third Place: The Daughter's Predicament by Mary Davis

(Mountain Brook Ink)

Fourth Place:

Summer of Fire

Rain of Fire

Lake of Fire by Linda Jacobs (Goodreader Press)

Fifth Place: A Slip on Golden Stairs by Joanne Sundell (Five Star Publishing)

Maverick

First Place: Catacombs by Mary Anna Evans (Poisoned Pen Press)

Second Place: The Healer's Daughter by Charlotte Hinger

(Five Star Publishing)

Third Place: All Man's Land by D. Laszlo Conhaim (Broken Arrow Press)

Fourth Place: The Apprentice: North in the Spring by Frank Kelso (Beachfront Press)

In Memoriam:

Kunze Up Front! by Otto Kunze (Christian Faith Publishing)

Western Fiction: Young Readers/Illustrated

First Place: Ruby's Christmas Gifts by Nancy Oswald,

Illustrations by Nate Jensen (Filter Press)

Second Place: Rowdy Randy by Casey Rislov , Illustrations by Zachary Pullen (Mountain Stars Press)

Western Fiction: Young Readers

First Place: Silverbelly: The Adventures of Wilder Good #6 by S.J. Dahlstrom

(Paul Dry Books)

Second Place: All Their Yesterdays by Karen Mireau (Azalea Art Press)

Western Fiction

First Place: Land of Wolves: A Longmire Mystery

by Craig Johnson (Viking)

Second Place: The Last Warrior: The Life and Times of Yellow Boy

by W. Michael Farmer (Five Star Publishing)

and

Blood-Soaked Earth: The Trial of Oliver Lee

W. Michael Farmer (Five Star Publishing)

Third Place:

Death Stalks Apache Oro by Sam Judd Fadala (Sundown Press)

Fourth Place:

Cut Nose by Ron Schwab (Leafcutter Publishing)

Fifth Place: Promised Land: Wyatt Earp, An American Odyssey

by Mark Warren (Five Star Publishing)

In Memoriam:

The Mustangers by Andrew J. Fenady (Pinnacle)

Inspirational Western Fiction

First Place: Apache Lament by Patrick Dearen

(Five Star Publishing)

Second Place: One More River to Cross by Jane Kirkpatrick (Revell)

Third Place: A Texas Promise by Laura Conner Kestner (Sycamore House Publishing)

Fourth Place: Mustang: A Novel of World War II by John Dwyer (Tiree Press)

Fifth Place: Sand Creek Serenade by Jennifer Uhlarik

(Smitten Historical Romance)

Western Short Stories

First Place:

The Hope Chest by Preston Lewis

(The Spoilt Quilt & Other Frontier Stories)

and

A Grave Too Many by Preston Lewis

(Contention & Other Frontier Stories)

Second Place:

The Assassin by Patrick Dearen

(Hobnail & Other Frontier Stories)

Third Place:

Boy in the Darkness by Anne Schroeder

(Trailblazer Western Fiction)

Fourth Place: Sit a Tall Horse by Paul Hunter

(Davila Art & Books)

Fourth Place: Peaches by Matthew P. Mayo

(The Spoilt Quilt & Other Frontier Stories)

Fifth Place: Running Iron by Robert McKee

(Contention & Other Frontier Stories)

Graphic Novels & Iconic Images

First Place: Alamo All-Stars by Nathan Hale (Amulet Books)

Western Photographic Essays

First Place: Tales From Out There by C.J. Hadley

(RANGE Magazine)

Cowboy Poetry: Written

First Place:

Musings From Cowboy Country by George Rhoades (Outskirts Press)

Second Place: Earthbound by Sharon Salisbury O'Toole

(Red Dashboard)

Cowboy Poetry: CDs

First Place: Snow on the Sage by Marleen Bussma (CD)

Second Place: Cowboy Spirit by Larry Thompson (CD)

Western Nonfiction: Young Readers/Illustrated

First Place: Let 'Er Buck! George Fletcher, the People's Champion

by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, Illustrated by Gordon James

(Lerner Publishing)

Western Humor, Written

First Place: Petey and Cecil Ride Again by Denny Bertrand (Somewhere Outwest Books)

We would like to extend our thanks and congratulations to all the poets, authors, publishers, and artists who entered. Both the number and the quality of entries this year are outstanding, and is a tribute not only to the continuing interest in the West and literature about it, but also to the the scholarship, insight, and skill of the researchers, writers, and storytellers who keep that interest alive and vital. This year was especially notable for the depth and virtuosity of the Western Fiction, with two dozen entries in that category alone. Once again, our thanks and admiration to all the wonderfully talented people who took the time and effort to enter. Thank you!

-Charles Williams, Executive Director

Will Rogers Medallion Award Committee