Rio Ruidoso

Author and historian Preston Lewis has written more than 50 fiction and nonfiction works. The versatile author's books include traditional westerns, historical novels, comic westerns, young adult books and historical accounts. In 2021 he was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters for his literary accomplishments. His writing honors include two Spur Awards from Western Writers of America and three Elmer Kelton Awards from the West Texas Historical Association. He has received ten Will Rogers Medallion Awards for western humor, short stories, traditional westerns and nonfiction articles. In 2024 he earned an inaugural Literary Global Independent Author Award in the Western Nonfiction category for Cat Tales of the Old West as well as a finalist designation in the IAA's Memoir category for Cotton-Picking Folks. His nonfiction articles and short stories have appeared in True West, Wild West, Persimmon Hill, Louis L'Amour Western Magazine, Saddlebag Dispatches, and multiple anthologies. He is a past president of Western Writers of America and the West Texas Historical Association, which named him a fellow in 2016. Lewis earned a bachelor's degree from Baylor University and a master's degree from Ohio State University, both in journalism. He holds a second master's degree in history from Angelo State University. Lewis resides in San Angelo, Texas, with his wife Harriet Kocher Lewis.