It’s always good to see hard work pay off as it did last week for Patrick Dearen, a Sterling City native and longtime writer friend who now lives in Midland. Patrick earned a Spur Award from Western Writers of America for … Continue reading →
During the Western Writers of America convention, I had the opportunity to attend this year’s induction into the Western Writers Hall of Fame. After the 2015 ceremony, the Hall of Fame, which is housed at the Buffalo Bill Center of … Continue reading →
Of all the Old West towns I’ve read about over the years, Fort Griffin, remains my favorite, but not until this year had I ever had the opportunity to attend the Fort Griffin Fandangle, produced by the citizens of nearby … Continue reading →
I missed the first installment of Texas Rising as I was out of town, but picked up the second part of the History Channel’s mini-series. I must admit I was disappointed. While I favor historical movies and westerns, this one … Continue reading →
One of my luckiest breaks in life was attending Baylor University when I did because I was able to get a journalism education under David McHam, who provided the foundation for my writing career and got me my first professional … Continue reading →
Landscape is an essential part of most westerns and this weekend we traveled to the Texas Hill Country around Mason in search of Lupinus texensis, better known as the Texas Bluebonnet. Yes, who can live in Texas without going on … Continue reading →
I just returned this weekend from the annual meeting of the West Texas Historical Association, which always offers an interesting program of presentations on the region’s history. One of the most fascinating papers was by Holle Humphries on “Quanah Parker … Continue reading →
Occasionally, I get asked why I’ve written under various pennames. The answer can be simple or complex, but either way it carries on a great literary tradition. Mark Twain, of course, was actually Samuel L. Clemens, Lewis Carroll was really … Continue reading →
As a young boy I remember seeing a lot of John Wayne movies in the 1960s, but one I don’t recall is The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. I do remember the identically named Gene Pitney song, though it was … Continue reading →
One of the things I enjoy about history is getting to meet such interesting people. In researching Civil War journalism for a talk as part of Angelo State University’s Civil War Lecture Series this week, I first met Peter Wellington Alexander. … Continue reading →