Winners -- 5th Annual Peacemaker Awards

2015 Peacemaker Awards

LIFE ACHIEVEMENT PEACEMAKER:
James Reasoner
James has been a professional writer for nearly forty years. In that time, he has authored several hundred novels and short stories in numerous genres. Writing under his own name and various pseudonyms, his novels have garnered praise from Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and the Los Angeles Times, as well as appearing on the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. He lives in a small town in Texas with his wife, fellow author Livia J. Washburn.

2015 BEST FIRST NOVEL:

CATTLE DRIVE – Big Jim Williams (High Noon Press)

Finalists:
PRODIGAL GUN - Kathleen Rice Adams (Prairie Rose Publications) 
COMANCHE TRAIL – Carlton Stowers (Signet) 
THE PIANO PLAYER – Carolyn Niethammer (Oak Tree Press) 
THE CALLING – James P. Hanley (5 Prince Publishing)


2015 BEST INDIE WESTERN:

HANGMAN’S KNOT - James Reasoner (Rough Edges Press)

Finalists:
OUTLAW RANGER – James Reasoner (Rough Edges Press)
LEFT HAND KELLY – Elizabeth Foley (Second Sentence Press)
FUGITIVE TRAIL – Wayne Dundee (Bil-Em-Ri Media)
TRAIL REVENGE – Wayne Dundee (Westward Tide Productions)


2015 BEST NOVEL:

THE BIG DRIFT - Patrick Dearen (TCU Press)

Finalists:
BUST OUT – W. M. Shockley (Western Trail Blazer)
MORGAN – Frank Roderus (Wolf Pack Publishing)
THE PIANO PLAYER – Carolyn Niethammer (Oak Tree Press)
DESPERATE STRAIGHTS – Janet Squires (Whiskey Creek Press)


2015 BEST SHORT FICTION:

THE 2ND BEST RANGER IN TEXAS – Kathleen Rice Adams (Hearts & Spurs Prairie Rose Publications)

Finalists:
LAW DOG – Wayne Dundee (Fathers: 12 Tales of the American West Published by Western Trail Blazer)
THE RESURRECTION – McKendree (Mike) Long (Broken Promises Published by La Frontera Publishing)
THE BUFFALO RUNNER – D.B. Jackson (Broken Promises Published by La Frontera Publishing)
GUNFIGHTER’S GIFT – Vonn McKee (Published by Western Trail Blazer)

Western Fictioneers would like to thank C. Courtney Joyner, the Peacemaker Awards Chair and all of the judges for their hard work this year.

Wolf Creek 12: The Dead of Winter

After a brief hiatus, we are ready now to return to the rough-and-ready fictional cowtown of Wolf Creek, Kansas. For those unfamiliar with this series published by Western Fictioneers, you're missing out -it's almost as fun to read as it is to write.

Each of our writers -there are currently over two dozen -creates one or two unique characters to be citizens of our little community. Our books are either short story anthologies, in which the authors delve more deeply into their characters, or collaborative novels in which each chapter is written by a different writer, from their character's POV.

We have two such novels to offer now... yesterday we talked about Book 11, Stand Proud... today we'll tell you a little about the second book, The Dead of Winter.

Cruel cattle baron Andrew Rogers is still trying to take over the whole county -but his resources are growing thin, and his secret investors are losing patience, so he is growing desperate.

He makes one final gamble, and Wolf Creek will not be the same...

Here is an excerpt:

Marshal Sam Gardner shivered from the cold as he stepped onto the front porch of his office. He had just been to Ma’s Café for steak and eggs and half-a-pot of coffee, which had finally warmed him up from the walk there; by the time he got back to his office, warmth was already a dim memory.

He closed the door behind him quickly, after kicking as much snow off his boots as he could. He was probably going to have to drink another half-pot of coffee just to feel human again, and this time it would be of his own making rather than the decidedly superior brew they offered at Ma’s. But enough bourbon added into the mix would balance things out a bit.

Quint Croy and Satterlee’s deputy Zack Zacherly were playing checkers. The two were often seen together when they weren’t on duty, and even when they were. It was only natural, they were a lot alike: both in their twenties, former cowboys, both known for having level heads and being slow to anger. They did both have quite a bit of green on them, especially when it came to trusting people, but maybe age would cure that—or maybe, Sam thought to himself with a bit of surprise, maybe that would make them better lawmen someday than he was. If they lived long enough. He had taken a very protective view of Quint, and the two young deputies sometimes reminded him of younger versions of himself and G.W. Satterlee, who had become the best friend Sam had ever had.

“Mornin’, Zack,” Sam said. “I see you’re using a shrewd strategy, taking Quint on after he’s put in a night shift.”

“Mama didn’t raise no fool,” Zack said with a smile. “The sheriff sent me over to drop off some reward dodgers, I figured I could spare the five minutes or so it usually takes to outwit Quint, here.”

“Well, if we’re having a party, I might as well put on a full pot,” Sam said. Then he heard a horrible caterwauling coming from the back room.

“Oh, hell,” the marshal said. “Please tell me that’s not what I think it is.”

Quint shrugged. “He’s been here since I got in, Sam.”

Sam sighed and headed for the back room, where he kept his cot. This building was more than his office, it was his living quarters—and one person in particular seemed to think it was theirs, as well.

Sure enough, Rupe Tingley was stretched out on Sam’s cot, snoring like a banshee. Sam actually wouldn’t mind—he had a soft spot for Rupe, who reminded him of an uncle he used to have—if the town drunk’s bathing habits were more consistent. Or if they existed. Every time Rupe stumbled in and occupied the marshal’s bed, the sheets had to be taken to the Li Laundry and fumigated.

Sam reached out and grabbed the other man’s shoulder—the good one, that still had an arm attached to it—and shook.

“Rise and shine, old hoss,” he said. Rupe burped, but made no indication he was gaining consciousness. Sam shook him harder.

“Damnation, man, what does it take to wake you up?”

And that was when all hell broke loose.

The air became alive with the sound of gunfire, and the thuds of bullets—it was not just a few shots, it was a veritable fusillade. It reminded him for a moment of the battlefield. And then it was over, as quickly as it had begun, and he heard the sound of horses galloping away.

Rupe was still asleep, but Sam Gardner was more awake than he had ever been in his life. He ran back into the front room.

The books are released under the house name Ford Fargo- but here are the writers in this volume, and the characters they write for:

James Reasoner - Sheriff G. W. Satterlee

Cheryl Pierson - Derrick McCain, farmer

James J. Griffin - Ben Tolliver, hostler

Clay More - Logan Munro, town doctor

Big Jim Williams - Hutch Higgins, farmer

Troy D. Smith - Marshal Sam Gardner

Check it out today- and if you haven't read the first ten, shoot, find 'em and see just how much fun they are!

AMAZON

SMASHWORDS

Review Roundup: Christmas and Candle-making

Wolf Creek: O Deadly Night (Volume 10)
By Ford Fargo
Western Fictioneers, November 2013
$9.99 paperback, ISBN 1493727133
$2.99 Kindle, ASIN B00GFF6SYG
$2.99 other e-formats, ISBN 978-1493727131
188 pages

Wolf Creek series editor Troy D. Smith has a gift for intriguing, often pun-laden, titles. That gift is displayed right up front in Wolf Creek’s tenth overall volume and second Christmas anthology, O Deadly Night.

Like the first collection of holiday-themed short stories (A Wolf Creek Christmas), O Deadly Night visits some of the Kansas cattle town’s familiar denizens and introduces a few newcomers.

At the rate newcomers were spilling from the woodwork in the previous Christmas anthology, it seemed Wolf Creek might explode before 1871 ended. Thankfully, the pace of immigration seems to have slowed by O Deadly Night. Only two new characters are introduced: farmer Hutch Higgins (written by Big Jim Williams) and Irish drifter Kelly O’Brian (Charlie Steel). O’Brian, formerly a track-layer for the railroad, may become a rancher in partnership with his long-lost brother and an easterner…if the three of them survive a white-slavery ring operating way too close to Wolf Creek for comfort. Steel’s “Irish Christmas at Wolf Creek” introduces the sort of never-say-die character Wolf Creek needs with the body count rising as it has been lately.

In Williams’ “Sarah’s Christmas Miracle,” Wolf Creek gets another man trying to live down a shameful past in anonymity. By the time Higgins gets his Christmas wish—a miracle cure for his dying daughter—readers will be privy to the farmer’s darkest secrets, but the citizens of Kansas have no idea the kind of trouble Higgins’ mere presence could attract.

While Cheryl Pierson’s contribution, “A Home for Christmas,” doesn’t exactly introduce new characters, the stars of the story have played only minor roles previously. When Kathleen Hyder decides to leave her abusive, minister husband, she little suspects a chance encounter with a childhood friend, Cherokee Lighthorse officer Carson Ridge, will lead to an affair of the heart. Readers who have followed the series from the beginning probably will delight in seeing judgmental, mean-spirited Rev. Dill Hyder get his comeuppance, and Kathleen and Carson fairly sizzle together.

Chuck Tyrell’s “The Angel Tree” is the most touching of the six stories. Soiled dove Brandy, who previously appeared only long enough to deal with series regular Billy Below’s embarrassing gunshot wound, befriends a group of starving urchins. Outcast because their mothers work as whores in the low-rent cribs, the kids are convinced an angel will deliver them from infamy on Christmas. Tyrell wrings sniffles and smiles from readers with this heartwarming tale.

“The Spirit of Hogmanay,” by Clay More, drops readers into the middle of Dr. Logan Munro’s busy holiday and a minor mystery involving some expensive scotch. As usual, More entertains and educates, providing fascinating—often surprising—medical details laced with Scottish wit and no little charm. Hogmanay, the Scottish New Year’s observance, is a melancholy period, but More spices Munro’s experience with hope for the future.

Smith’s “O Deadly Night,” which lends its title to the entire volume, is the darkest of the tales. As 1871 draws to a close, Marshal Sam Gardner is called upon to put a literal end to a local troublemaker. The deed must be done, and Gardner faces that knowledge with typical stoicism. Afterward, reaction from the townsfolk has him doubting himself and mankind in general. Usually a wiseacre to the core, the marshal reflects on the year in an uncharacteristically morose exchange over a drink with Munro.

O Deadly Night is an entertaining end-of-the-year read—but more than that, it displays the depth and breadth of life in Wolf Creek in a new way. Taken together, the two Wolf Creek Christmas anthologies hint that 1872 may be one heckuva year in Kansas.


“The Art of Dipping Candles”
By Judy Alter
Self-published, February 2011
$0.99 Kindle, ASIN B004M18Q1I
$0.00 other e-formats, ISBN 9781458181565
6 pages

A Comanche raid on a North Texas farm leaves lasting scars on a mother and her preteen daughter in Judy Alter’s ultra-short, powerful “The Art of Dipping Candles.” Told from the young girl’s point of view, the story resonates with fear, a mother’s all-consuming love for her children, and a daughter’s aching loss.

Alter has said she based the story on a real incident that took place in the 1880s, but the emotional punch is universal and timeless.

Read this one. It will haunt you.


Kathleen Rice Adams is a Texan, a voracious reader, a professional journalist, and an author. She received a review copy of Wolf Creek: O Deadly Night from the publisher. Her opinions are her own and are neither endorsed nor necessarily supported by Western Fictioneers or individual members of the organization. Links in the review are for convenience only; they do not produce affiliate revenue.

Christmas Comes to Wolf Creek

Several months ago, we decided to do a special Christmas anthology of Wolf Creek stories, with all the tales taking place in the Christmas season of 1871. I encouraged new folks to join our writing team, with these short stories an ideal way to introduce a new character to our town.

And boy did Western Fictioneers respond.

We wound up with what would have been a 90,000 word book, when our regular books range from 25,000 to 35,000 words. We decided, then, to break the anthology up into two volumes.

Both of which are available now.

Here is a rundown of the stories and authors:

WOLF CREEK BOOK 9: A WOLF CREEK CHRISTMAS

"The Last Free Trapper" by Jory Sherman. Mountain man Roman Hatchett has spent decades int he Rockies,but has finally admitted to himself the beaver aren't coming back. He comes south to Wolf Creek, where his long-ago partner Casto Haston is running a tannery, to try out the buffalo hunting trade. But Roman's past has tracked him to the Plains, and he will have to face it down...

"A Savior Is Born" by Meg Mims. Phoebe Wright, fearless reformer, hits Wolf Creek in search of her sister. Phoebe Wright is always right -and will allow no one to intimidate her. Not even Ira Breedlove, owner of the Wolf's Den Saloon and controller of much of the town's vice.

"That Time of Year" by Jerry Guin. Deputy Marshal Quint Croy is a straight-forward young man, dedicated to preserving the peace. In the days before Christmas, however, he finds himself caught up in a dispute between several of the toughest people in town. Including his own boss. Can he kindle their Christmas cheer?

"'Twas the Fight Before Christmas" by Jacquie Rogers. Gib Norwood owns a large dairy operation outside town, along with his brothers Peter and Paul (whom his late father conceived with a slave, Glory, who also lives with them.) Christmas finds them in a dispute with the troublesome ranch hands of cattle baron Andrew Rogers -a dispute that involves a wagonload of prostitutes from Abby Potter's School for Wayward Girls, including Miss Abby herself.

"A Kiowa Christmas Gift" by Troy D. Smith. Cavalry Captain Tom Dent and Seminole scout Charley Blackfeather find themselves conducting an important parley with Kiowa leaders on Christmas Eve. Dent hopes they can finish negotiations so he can be with his family on Christmas; Charley fears that, if antagonistic warrior Stone Knife has his way, they won't get home at all.

"Renewal of Faith" by Jim Griffin. Texas-Ranger-turned-livery-owner Ben Tolliver and his son Danny get a very unexpected Christmas gift. Then they meet and befriend the new Catholic priest who has come to establish a mission at Wolf Creek, in time to perform Christmas Mass- but Ben finds much of the town opposed to the father's presence. Ben is determined that the Mass will be held, if he has to fight a mob to see it done...

WOLF CREEK 10: O DEADLY NIGHT

"Sarah's Christmas Miracle" by Big Jim Williams. Farmer Hutch Higgins -haunted by his own Civil War secrets, like many in Wolf Creek -must brave a snowstorm to find help for his sick little girl.

"Irish Christmas at Wolf Creek" by Charlie Steel. Kelly O'Brian has been a railroad worker and a buffalo hunter -now he has his heart set on becoming a rancher. His plans are interrupted, though, when he is kidnapped by a a cruel gang who intends to use him, and their other prisoners, for forced labor.

"A Home for Christmas" by Cheryl Pierson. Derrick McCain's sister Kathleen has not recovered from her experience at the hands of the Danby Gang -and her judgmental husband, Reverend Dill Hyder, cannot accept what he now considers an "impure woman." Then someone from her family's past shows up, and everything changes...

"The Angel Tree" by Chuck Tyrell. The soiled dove known as Brandy has previously only shown up as the object of cowboy Billy Below's desire. She takes center stage in this story, though... when she learns that the innocent children of the prostitutes at Cribtown are barred from attending school by the town fathers because they are "undesirable," and sets out to do something about it.

"The Spirit of Hogmanay" by Clay More. Doc Logan's road to Hogmanay -the Scottish New Year's Eve celebration -is littered with good intentions. And injuries and diseases galore. And to top it all off, someone has stolen his good Scotch...

"O Deadly Night" by Troy D. Smith. Marshal Sam Gardner learns that, for a lawman in a town like Wolf Creek, there is no such thing as a night off. Even on Christmas.


Both volumes out now for kindle, due soon at smashwords, b&n, createspace, and etc.

Get 'em here:

Wolf Creek 9: A WOLF CREEK CHRISTMAS

Wolf Creek 10: O DEADLY NIGHT