Author of the Week

Check out here how writing saved Western Fictioneer member, Jory Sherman's, life.

The Traditional West Now on Sale

The Kindle edition of THE TRADITIONAL WEST, the first anthology from the Western Fictioneers, is on sale for a limited time for $3.99. This is a great price for a huge collection of stories by the best Western writers in the business. It's also available at the same price for the Nook.

Christmas Campfire Collection: A New Western Anthology

While this isn't a Western Fictioneers project, many of the contributors to this beautiful new anthology are WF members. The line-up of top-notch Western authors includes L.J. Washburn, Troy D. Smith, Frank Roderus, Tim Champlin, Larry D. Sweazy, Robert Vaughan, Douglas Hirt, Dusty Richards, Kerry Newcomb, Matthew P. Mayo, Robert J. Randisi, Rod Miller, James Reasoner, and Terry Burns. This would make a great Christmas gift for anyone who enjoys Western fiction.

Peacemaker Award Submissions

WF (Western Fictioneers) Peacemaker 2011 Award submissions

Submissions for the WF Peacemaker Awards are being accepted for works published in the year 2011.

 Qualifications:  Copyright dates must be between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2011. Works must have been published by a reputable publisher that pays advances and/or royalties.  No self-published works will be considered for a WF Peacemaker Award.  This includes works published directly by the author on web sites and programs such as iUniverse, Kindle, or Lulu.  Proof of the viability of the publisher is the submitter’s responsibility; author, agent, or publisher.  Publishers that cannot be verified to meet the above standards will not be considered for a WF Peacemaker Award.  Books and short stories may be published in any country in the world (submissions must be in English).  WF reserves the right to decline any submission for consideration of an Award.

 Authors, agents, or publishers may submit a work for consideration of an Award.

 At least three entrants in the Best Western First Novel must be received for an Award to be presented.

 Novels and short stories must be set in the time period between 1830-1920 to be considered Westerns under WF guidelines.

 Nominees for the WF Peacemaker will be announced on 04/15/2012 and the winners will be announced on 06/01/2012.

 The WF Peacemaker will awarded in three categories:

 Best Western Novel – Any novel published during the award year set in the appropriate time period (1830-1920), 45,000 words and higher.  There are no format requirements.  The novel may be a hardcover, trade paperback, mass market paperback, or eBook, as long it has been published by an appropriate publisher.

 Best Western Short Story – Any short story published during the award year set in the appropriate time period (1830-1920), 500 words to 10,000 words.   There are no format requirements.  The short story may be published in any publication, print or electronic, as long as it has been published by an appropriate publisher.

 Best Western First Novel – Must meet the same requirements as Best Novel, and must be the author’s first published Western novel.  If the author has published novels in any other genre they will notdisqualify the author from the Best Western First Novel Award competition.  Submissions may be made in both novel categories in the same year.

 Procedures:

 One copy of the work must be sent to each judge (3 per category), and the awards chair, accompanied with the appropriate form.  Links for the forms can be found at the bottom of this Western Fictioneers Website.  All entries must be postmarked by January 31, 2012. Judges should not be contacted by any entrant concerning their entry during the consideration period.  Doing so may result in disqualification of eligibility for the WF Peacemaker Award.  Works submitted will not be returned after the awards have been announced. 

 **FOR SHORT STORIES ONLY: If you choose not to mail entries to the overseas judges, you can send the story as a Word file or .rtf file to the Award Chair (larrysweazy@prodigy.net).  The chair will still need to be mailed hard-copy (in the case that the short story is not an electronic publication) so the copyright date can be validated. 

 Awards Chair:

 Larry D. Sweazy, 18078 Benton Oak Dr., Noblesville, IN 46062

Email: larrysweazy@prodigy.net

 Best Novel Judges:

 Terry Burns, 1414 Sunrise Dr. #51, Amarillo, TX 79104

 Anthony Clark, 1884 Willow Oak Dr., St. Charles, Mo 61303

 Robert J. Randisi, 106 S. Alley Street, Clarksville, Mo 63336

 Best Short Story Judges:

 Frank Roderus, 3241 Montano Ave, Spring Hill FL 34609 

 Charlie Whipple, 1-10-11 Miyanogidai Hanamigawa-Ku, Chiba 262, Japan

 Dr. Keith Souter, 106 Manygates Lane, Sandal, Wakefield, West Yorkshire,

WF2 7DP, UK

Best First Novel Judges:

 Phil Dunlap, 410 North Rangeline Road, Carmel, IN 46032

 Larry J. Martin, 48 Rock Creek Road, Clinton, MT. 59825

 Matthew Mayo, 591 Shore Rd., Northport, ME 04849-4216