Howdy folks. I'm usually only on the history board, but figured I'd pop over here for the reading/literature folks not frequenting that spot. Wanted to let y'all know about my history book published last year, which is now winning a few awards, including the top prize in Texas for non-fiction.
www.lostwarfortexas.com
"The Lost War for Texas" is the true, but nearly forgotten story of Texas' FIRST revolution of 1811-13. Twenty-five years before the Alamo, Mexican Texans or Tejanos launched a revolt against the Spanish Empire, part of the broader Mexican War of Independence. After they were subjugated by the Spanish, a small force of mostly Anglo-American filibusters crossed the border to aid them in their cause. The war that resulted was the biggest ever fought in Texas, with four battles bigger than San Jacinto and a seige 7 times longer than the Alamo. It concluded in the largest battle ever fought in Texas, the bloody Battle of Medina, August 18, 1813.
This book took me five years to research and write and I found a lot of great information that had never been published before, uncovering the heretofore unknown origins of the conflict and the many ties between this conflict of 1811-13 and the Texas Revolution of 1836, including two men who fought in the first war whose sons (and a third with a grandson) who died at the Alamo.
The book was published by A&M Press (Whoop!) in 2024. I'm humbled by the response I've gotten - several great scholarly reviews, five star reviews on Amazon, etc. I won the Presidio La Bahia Award from the Sons of the Republic of Texas, the Kate Broocks Bates Award from the Texas State Historical Society and the state's top prize for non-fiction, the Carr P. Collins Award from the Texas Institute of Letters.
Just wanted to share with folks, especially those folks out there that have always wanted to write that you can do it. There's a lot of work to putting out a book, but it can be done and the process can work. And if anyone is looking for something fun to read, I can honestly say I haven't gotten a bad review yet. It's scholarly history, but I specifically wrote it in a style that I believe is engaging and interesting for the general public too.
If you like it, spread the word.
An interview I did recently with KAMU-TV:
The Book Mark: The Lost War for Texas, by James Aalan Bernsen
www.lostwarfortexas.com
"The Lost War for Texas" is the true, but nearly forgotten story of Texas' FIRST revolution of 1811-13. Twenty-five years before the Alamo, Mexican Texans or Tejanos launched a revolt against the Spanish Empire, part of the broader Mexican War of Independence. After they were subjugated by the Spanish, a small force of mostly Anglo-American filibusters crossed the border to aid them in their cause. The war that resulted was the biggest ever fought in Texas, with four battles bigger than San Jacinto and a seige 7 times longer than the Alamo. It concluded in the largest battle ever fought in Texas, the bloody Battle of Medina, August 18, 1813.
This book took me five years to research and write and I found a lot of great information that had never been published before, uncovering the heretofore unknown origins of the conflict and the many ties between this conflict of 1811-13 and the Texas Revolution of 1836, including two men who fought in the first war whose sons (and a third with a grandson) who died at the Alamo.
The book was published by A&M Press (Whoop!) in 2024. I'm humbled by the response I've gotten - several great scholarly reviews, five star reviews on Amazon, etc. I won the Presidio La Bahia Award from the Sons of the Republic of Texas, the Kate Broocks Bates Award from the Texas State Historical Society and the state's top prize for non-fiction, the Carr P. Collins Award from the Texas Institute of Letters.
Just wanted to share with folks, especially those folks out there that have always wanted to write that you can do it. There's a lot of work to putting out a book, but it can be done and the process can work. And if anyone is looking for something fun to read, I can honestly say I haven't gotten a bad review yet. It's scholarly history, but I specifically wrote it in a style that I believe is engaging and interesting for the general public too.
If you like it, spread the word.
An interview I did recently with KAMU-TV:
The Book Mark: The Lost War for Texas, by James Aalan Bernsen
