Max McCoy


Max Allan McCoy is an American journalist and novelist.
He is the author of ten westerns, two thrillers, four original Indiana Jones adventures, the novelization of the mini-series Into the West and the first three volumes in Wylde’s West, a paranormal mystery series.

Biography

Born in Baxter Springs, Kansas, McCoy is the son of Carl McCoy and Mary Carter.

He attended Baxter Springs High School, has a B.A. from Pittsburg State University and an M.A. from Emporia State University.

Journalism

McCoy began his career in journalism in 1980 as a police reporter for The Pittsburg Morning Sun. In 1986, he traveled to Japan on a grant to report, in words and photos, the story of the aging survivors of the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
McCoy was the investigative reporter for The Joplin Globe in southwest Missouri and won first-place awards from the Associated Press Managing Editors and the Missouri Press Association for his reporting on unsolved murders, serial killers, and hate groups in the Ozarks.

Works

Novels

Most of McCoy’s novels are set in Missouri or Kansas, and major themes include alienation, redemption, complicated family and personal relationships, and the legacy of violence in American culture.

Literary Awards

2014 – Kansas Notable Book Of Grave Concern

2011 – Spur Damnation Road

2008 – Kansas Notable Book Hellfire Canyon

2008 – Spur Hellfire Canyon

2005 – ESU Outstanding Master Alumnus

1991 – Spur The Sixth Rider

Journalism Awards

2013 – Distinguished Newspaper Advisor – College Media Association

2002 – Investigative Reporting, Associated Press, 2002.

2001 – Investigative Reporting, Associated Press, 2001.