Writing
He sold his first writing, Bucking Horse Riders, in 1922. The sale of several short stories and books followed, enabling him and his wife to buy a small ranch in Washoe Valley, Nevada, where he wrote his most famous book, Smoky the Cowhorse. It was published in 1926 and won the Newbery Medal for children's literature in 1927. Several film adaptations were made of the book, with James narrating the 1933 film. His fictionalized autobiography, Lone Cowboy, was written in 1930 and was a bestselling Book-of-the-Month Club selection. He wrote his last book, The American Cowboy, in 1942. In all, he wrote and illustrated 23 books.
His later years were spent on his ranch at Pryor Creek, Montana and at his Billings home on Smoky Lane. In the late 1930s he lived in the California high desert on the Godshall C Bar G Ranch. The ranch overlooked the Mojave River and is now within the boundaries of the Town of Apple Valley, California. While on the ranch, he wrote at least one book, "Flint Spears." He died of alcoholism in Hollywood, California, in 1942.
The largest public collection of James' writings, artwork, and personal effects is at the Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings, Montana.
James was inducted into the Nevada Writers Hall of Fame in 1991, and into the Hall of Great Westerners of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in 1992.
Read more about this topic: Will James (artist)
Famous quotes containing the word writing:
“When all things are equal, translucence in writing is more effective than transparency, just as glow is more revealing than glare.”
—James Thurber (1894–1961)
“The writing of a poem is like a child throwing stones into a mineshaft. You compose first, then you listen for the reverberation.”
—James Fenton (b. 1949)
“Scott took LITERATURE so solemnly. He never understood that it was just writing as well as you can and finishing what you start.”
—Ernest Hemingway (1899–1961)