Spur Award for Best Novel of the West

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The Spur Award for Best Novel of the West is a category formerly used by the Western Writers of America (WWA) as part of the annual Spur Awards. It was introduced for the awards' 1988 iteration, replacing the earlier category of Best Historical Novel. [1]

For a period, the Spur Awards included a Best Western Novel category as well as a Best Novel of the West category. John Mort explains the distinction in his book Read the High Country: "WWA defines Westerns... in market terms. A Western novel is a 'traditional' tale of revenge, rival cattlemen at war, or settlers fighting Indians. Owen Wister's The Virginian is a famous example, as well as Louis L'Amour's Hondo. A 'novel of the West' is what's otherwise known as a historical, where characterizations are based around historical events, and historical personages such as Davy Crockett, George Armstrong Custer, and Crazy Horse become characters." [2]

During 2000, the official Spurs Award website defined both categories as "book-length novels... dependent in whole or in part on settings, characters, conditions, or customs indigenous to the American West or early frontier," the distinction being that Best Western Novel was for works "90,000 words or less" while Best Novel of the West was for works "90,000 words or more." [3]

The category was used for the final time in the 2006 iteration of the Spur Awards. After that, the awards' categorization system was reworked, with the new categories of Best Short Novel and Best Long Novel introduced. This division remained until the 2014 awards, which removed Best Short Novel and Best Long Novel and re-added Best Western Historical Novel, also introducing the new category Best Western Contemporary Novel. [1]

List of Winners

1953 – 1987: Best Historical Novel [1]

1988 – 2006: Best Novel of the West [1]

2007 – 2013: Best Western Long Novel [1]

2014 Onwards: Best Western Historical Novel

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on 27 December 2018. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  2. ↑ Mort, John (2006). Read the High Country: A Guide to Western Books and Films . Westport, Connecticut: Libraries Unlimited. ISBN   9781591581345.,pp. xii, 415.
  3. ↑ "About the Spur Awards". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on May 21, 2000. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
  4. ↑ "2019 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on June 30, 2024. Retrieved 30 June 2024.
  5. ↑ "2020 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on July 3, 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  6. ↑ "2021 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on July 3, 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  7. ↑ "2022 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on July 3, 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  8. ↑ "2023 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on February 23, 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  9. ↑ "2024 Winners -- Western Writers of America". Western Writers of America. Archived from the original on March 22, 2024. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
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