JOHNSON WINS HILLERMAN AWARD: Ucross resident Craig Johnson has been named the winner of the Tony Hillerman/PEN USA Mystery Short Story Contest. According to a press release: “The award, co-sponsored by Cowboys & Indians Magazine and Wordharvest Workshops for Writers of Santa Fe, N.M., includes publication in the February/March 2006 issue of the magazine. The contest requested submissions for the best mystery short story set in the Western or Southwestern U.S. and was to include at least one cowboy and/or Native American character.

"Johnson's short story, ‘Old Indian Trick,’ uses some of the characters from his debut novel, The Cold Dish, which was released by Viking Press in January 2005. Viking will release the second novel in the series, Death Without Company, in March of 2006 when The Cold Dish goes into paperback (Penguin). ‘I had an idea but nobody got killed so I didn't really think the story had much of a chance,' said Johnson. 'Evidently, the judges had a sense of humor.’ The story concerns the fictional sheriff, Walt Longmire and a friend, Cheyenne Indian Lonnie Little Bird, as they solve the robbery of a local restaurant.

"Johnson and his wife Judy traveled to the conference's banquet Nov. 5 in Albuquerque. ‘I was really looking forward to meeting Mr. Hillerman,’ Johnson said, ‘and he and his family are truly wonderful.’ Johnson received a complete set of signed Tony Hillerman novels and a hand-engraved, sterling silver pen from Cowboys & Indians Magazine as part of his winnings. ‘I'm pretty sure the pen is worth more than the first three pickup-trucks I owned, combined.’ "

Johnson received a Wyoming Arts Council creative writing fellowship in 1995.

- posted by Michael Shay @ 9:45 AM