JAMES WADE
ABOUT JAMES
Photo credit: Madelinne Grey
James Wade was awarded the 2026 Dobie Paisano Fellow from the University of Texas at Austin. His latest novel, Narrow the Road, won the 2026 Western Heritage Award for Outstanding Novel. James is the youngest novelist to win two Spur Awards from the Western Writers of America, and the recipient of the MPIBA’s prestigious Reading the West Award. His debut novel, All Things Left Wild, was listed as one of the most influential westerns of the 21st century by True West Magazine and included in the Los Angeles Times's 1,001 Novels: A Library of America. His Southern Gothic mystery, Beasts of the Earth, was named a Best Book of 2022 by both Deep South Magazine and The Southern Review of Books. James is a four-time finalist for the Austin Chronicle's Best Writer in Austin award, and his non-fiction work has appeared in Texas Highways, Writers’ Digest, and numerous additional publications. James was inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters in 2026. He lives and writes in the Texas Hill Country with his wife and children.
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Represented by Mark Gottlieb with Trident Media Group
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NOVELS AND AWARDS
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Novels
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Narrow the Road – Blackstone Publishing (2025)
• Starred Review – Publishers Weekly (2025)
• Western Heritage Award – Western Heritage Museum (2026)
• Editor’s Choice – Historical Novel Society (2025)
• Summer Reading Selection – Garden & Gun Magazine (2025)
• Best Texas Travel Novels – Austin American Statesman (2025)
• Summer Reading List – Texas Highways Magazine (2025)
Hollow Out the Dark – Blackstone Publishing (2024)
• Lariat List – Texas Library Association (2026)
• Favorite Indies List – Barnes and Noble (2024)
Beasts of the Earth – Blackstone Publishing (2022)
• Spur Award – Contemporary Novel – Western Writers of America (2023)
• Best Southern Books – Southern Review of Books (2022)
• Best Books Fall/Winter – Deep South Magazine (2022)
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River, Sing Out – Blackstone Publishing (2021)
• Best Books of the Summer – Deep South Magazine (2020)
• Favorite Indies List – Barnes and Noble (2021)
All Things Left Wild – Blackstone Publishing (2020)
• Spur Award – Historical Fiction – Western Writers of America (2021)
• Reading the West Award – Mountains and Plains Independent Booksellers Association (2021)
• 1,001 Novels: A Library of American – Los Angeles Times
• Mayor’s Book Club Selection – Austin Public Libraries (2020)
• Compelling Historical Fiction List – PopSugar (2021)
• Most Influential Westerns of the 21st Century – True West Magazine (2021)
Awards, Scholarships, and Fellowships
• Inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters (Spring 2026)
• Dobie Paisano Fellowship – The University of Texas at Austin (Spring 2026)
• Distinguished Visiting Writer Fellowship and Workshop Director – Stephen F. Austin State University (2025)
• Fiction Workshop Director and Guest Lecturer – Larry McMurtry Literary Center (2026)
• Rose Trip Scholar – Texas State University (2024)
• CD Marshall Scholar – Texas State University (2026)
• 4 x Finalist for Best Writer in Austin – Austin Chronicle’s “Best Of” (2022-2025)
• Best Historical Fiction Manuscript – Writers’ League of Texas Manuscript Contest (2016)