About Jane Little Botkin
National award-winning author Jane Little Botkin melds personal narratives of American families with compelling stories of western women. Her books have won numerous awards in biography, western historical nonfiction, and women’s studies, including two Spur Awards, two Caroline Bancroft History Prizes, the Barbara Sudler Award for best book about the American West by a woman, Women Writing the West’s Willa Literary Award biography finalist, High Plains Nonfiction Book Award Finalist, Foreword Indies Bronze Award in women's studies, Sarton Book Award finalist in women’s studies, and Independent Publisher Book Awards' Bronze Medal for Best Regional Nonfiction.
Recently completed, The Pink Dress, Memoir of a Reluctant Beauty Queen will release September 10, 2024 (She Writes Press). She is currently working on The Breath of a Buffalo, a biography of Mary Ann (Molly) Goodnight, tentatively scheduled for release in 2026.
A member of Western Writers of America since 2017, Jane sits on its board of directors and serves as vice president. She also judges entries for the WWA's prestigious Spur Award, reviews new releases, and writes articles for various magazines. A late-bloomer, Jane served as a public-school teacher for thirty years before turning to historical investigation and writing. In 2008 the Texas state legislature honored her career in education by formal resolution. Most notably she directed her students to produce and publish a collection of oral and documented county history essays annually. Now she blissfully escapes into her literary world in the remote White Mountain Wilderness near Nogal, New Mexico.