With his debut novel “Where Heaven Meets Cheyenne,” WSU alum Charles Macduff Westerman’s journey from Murrow College graduate to published author reached a milestone.
“This is kind of a dream for me,” Westerman said the day after the novel’s release.
Becoming an author was not Westerman’s initial career path. Originally pursuing a broadcast major and imagining himself at ESPN, he discovered his passion for literature through a humanities 101 course and a Shakespeare class.
“I just really fell in love with literature, and I changed to a journalism major and wanted to be a sports writer instead,” Westerman said. “The more I got into my English classes, the more I thought I wanted to write about sports and try to be a novelist.”
Benjamin Shors, Westerman’s former journalism professor, said Westerman spent years down in the Daily Evergreen newsroom honing his writing.
“It’s great to see that he’s continued to write,” Shors said. “He’s talented, he’s smart, he’s empathetic — he’s all of the things you look for in a good writer. I’m proud of the work he’s done.”
After graduating from WSU in 2012 with degrees in journalism and English literature, Westerman moved to Portland, Oregon, where he worked as a school bus driver. Between routes, a wave of hypergraphia struck him, inspiring him to write the first draft of “Where Heaven Meets Cheyenne.”
Westerman completed the manuscript in about three years, finishing it by age 25. However, publishing took another nine years. Shortly after signing a contract, he began teaching high school English in Denver. Balancing the demands of teaching with the long publishing process was challenging, but he found an agent to bring his deeply personal story to bookshelves.
The novel, an autobiographical fiction, draws from Westerman’s life. One central character, Minister Chuck Westerman is inspired by Westerman’s father, who passed away from a brain tumor. Diana, Luke, Paige and Aaron round out the cast, representing real-life family members who each add to the narrative’s emotional landscape.
“[The book] was based on a real-life story, so there’s all kinds of different people, and they each have their own memory and perspective of their events,” Westerman said. “I didn’t want to call it a memoir or nonfiction, which gave me a little more creative license to tell a good story.”
In “Where Heaven Meets Cheyenne,” he delves into grief with unfiltered honesty. The novel touches on profound themes, including the nature of God, perception versus reality and finding grace amid hardship.
“A lot of the chapters are based on stories and things I heard growing up,” Westerman said. “My mom’s ‘grace in the midst of hardship’ line was, ‘God brought beauty from the ashes.’”
Faith is deeply embedded in Westerman’s story and life. He used his Christian beliefs to shape the novel’s narrative and emotional core.
In celebration of “Where Heaven Meets Cheyenne,” Westerman will host a book signing event from 12:30–2:30 p.m. on Nov. 30 at The Bookie just before the Cougar football game kickoff.
