COMING SOON
Because This is Texas
An updated edition of Sneed’s non-fiction account of the infamous Sneed-Boyce Feud, originally published in the 1999 edition of the Panhandle Plains Historical Review under the same name.
June 17th, 2025
Praise for Because This is Texas
“Clara Sneed has written a definitive study…Learned journals, as a rule, are unexciting and opposite of sexy, but (this) will knock your hat in the creek.”
— KENT BIFFLE, The Dallas Morning News
“One of the great Amarillo stories— some say the greatest— told with authority and high style.”
— MARY KATE TRIPP, Amarillo Globe News
Love and Revenge in the Texas Panhandle
In Clara Sneed's debut historical novel—based on an infamous Texas feud—passion, pride and vengeance brew up a storm in 1911 Amarillo that spreads to consume three prominent families and leaves tragedy in its wake.“A fresh new voice in literary fiction steps onto the stage.”
— JODI THOMAS, author of NEW YORK TIMES bestseller and hit Netflix series, RANSOM CANYON
John Beal Sneed
Lena's Husband; born 1877
Lenora “Lena” Snyder Sneed
Maiden name Lenora Snyder
Wife of John Beal Sneed ; born 1878
Albert “Al” Gallatin Boyce Jr.
Bachelor ; born 1875
DISCLAIMER/PLEASE READ: Despite the fact that the words spoken in the videos above are pulled from Before We Turn to Dust, they are NOT related to a pending audiobook or any official narrator/orator or dramatic interpretation. These snippets have been created in order to promote the physical book, and offer the reader special insight into the characters, colloquialisms, time period and depth of the story. There is currently no set or guaranteed date for an audiobook release of Before We Turn to Dust.
* Bookshop / Indiebound is a site where you can order the book from the independent bookstore of your choice. You can either choose to have them ship your book directly to you, or pick it up in-person at the store once it arrives. It’s a fantastic way to support local.
About Author Clara Sneed
Sneed was born in Texas and never got over it, despite a peripatetic childhood that landed her in California. She earned a BA and an MA in English literature at UC Berkeley, raised a son, managed IT systems for a San Francisco law firm, and had a successful second career as a tutor for writing and Spanish—all the while working on her own writing. Though she began as a poet, she loves complex historical stories that require a lot of research.
Before We Turn to Dust is Sneed’s first novel acquired by Blue Handle Publishing and is set to release in December 2024. Her non-fiction account of the same events, Because This is Texas, was published in the 1999 Panhandle Plains Historical Review.
Sneed and her husband split their time between Berkeley, California and Milam County, Texas.