Spur Award History    

Owen Wister Award History

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The Spur Awards, given annually for distinguished writing about the American West, are among the oldest and most prestigious in American literature. In 1953, when the awards were established by WWA, western fiction was a staple of American publishing. At the time awards were given to the best western novel, best historical novel, best juvenile, and best short story.

Since then the awards have been broadened to include other types of writing about the West. Today, Spurs are offered for the best western novel (short novel), best novel of the west (long novel), best original paperback novel, best short story, best short nonfiction. Also, best contemporary nonfiction, best biography, best history, best juvenile fiction and nonfiction, best TV or motion picture drama, best TV or motion picture documentary, and best first novel (called The Medicine Pipe Bearer's Award).

Winners of the Spur Awards in previous years include Larry McMurtry for Lonesome Dove, Michael Blake for Dances With Wolves, Glendon Swarthout for The Shootist, and Tony Hillerman for Skinwalker.

The Spur Awards are open to nonmembers as well as members. To obtain entry information, click on the links below.

WWA also presents the Owen Wister Award each year for lifelong contributions to the field of western literature. Recent winners include John Jakes, Douglas C. Jones, David Lavender, and Max Evans.

The Lariat Award

This special honor, created in 2006, is designed to recognize the company or individual who has shown exceptional support for WWA and for the literature of the West.

2006 — The first Lariat Award was presented to the Caxton Publishing, one of the oldest Western publishers and a long-time champion of WWA.

2007 — The first Lariat Award to an individual was presented to Tom Doherty of Tor-Forge Publishing.  His firm has produced three WWA anthologies and generated fourteen Spur Awards through 2006.

The Branding Iron Award

This special honor, also created in 2006, is presented to the WWA member who has provided exceptional support to the organization and its goals.

2006 — Natlee Kenoyer, past WWA president and long-time active member

2007 — Jim Crutchfield, long-time active member, past Secretary-Treasurer and first Executive Director