Regis Alum, Brannon McPherson Introduces His Newly Published Novel, “Yellowstoned”

Gabriella Sandoval, Events Liaison and Manager 

Brannon McPherson, a Regis Alum, is an up-and-coming author with a newly published novel called “Yellowstoned”. It’s a coming-of-age story of fiction and is mainly centered around a summer that he spent living and working in Yellowstone National Park while he was in college. His book is written under his pen name, August West.  Brannon offered the Regis Highlander an exclusive interview on his recent book release, his plans for the future, and some memories from his time as a Ranger himself. 

What is “Yellowstoned” About / What Inspired “Yellowstoned”?  

In 1990, right after his freshman year of college, 18-year-old Brannon worked in National Yellowstone park in the summer. This experience would end up transforming him into a totally different person. He went on to meet people from all over the world who then became great friends – friends that he still keeps in contact with 36 years later.  

On his days off while working in Yellowstone, he spent time with friends, taking advantage of being outdoors with much camping, hiking, and exploring the park. These side quests would create many memories for him.  

“Yellowstoned” is based on a fictional character named Jack Straugh who takes a summer cooking job at Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone National Park. During the day, he tirelessly serves tourists alongside his fellow college students, the Yellowstoners. But once it becomes nighttime, Jack and his friends venture out into the park, influenced under drugs and alcohol. As his time working in Yellowstone progresses, Jack embraces young love, while also dealing with a growing addiction. With a few friends guiding him towards sobriety, Jack must grapple with whether he can reclaim his relationships, salvage his love life, sober up, and ultimately save himself. 

“Yellowstoned" is part of a series, and the next two books will be heavily influenced by Regis in the early 90s, as reflection of Brannon’s time at Regis.

About the Author and His Time at Regis

Brannon is a former graduate of Regis – he completed his BA in 1994 as well as his MBA in 1998.  He grew up in Bayou La Batre, Alabama, and moved to Colorado for college. After this move, he came to really love Colorado’s nature and outdoors. While Brannon enjoyed studying business, he also really liked the communication side of everything. While getting his MBA in 1996, he published a mountain bike guide entitled “Front Range Fatties” for the Colorado Front Range.   

Throughout his college years, Brannon was an avid reader who also enjoyed writing, as well as being outdoors and going skiing. Brannon’s college years reflect a pre-media time in which not having social media helped hone his skills as both a reader and writer.  

Brannon speaks very highly of Regis, as Regis provided many great tools, relationships, and networking opportunities for Brannon. Regis allowed Brannon to gain experience and become equipped with the tools needed to create works of art out of them. Brannon highly enjoyed his time spent at Regis and the opportunities that Regis gave him to meet new people, both professors and peers, and the opportunities for him to explore Colorado. Brannon would strongly encourage students to take advantage of and utilize opportunities here at Regis.  

The Process of Writing “Yellowstoned”

Brannon wrote the manuscript for “Yellowstoned” a few years after he came back from working there. His time in Yellowstone was etched in his memory, so it was easy for him to remember his experience. This helped with the creation of the fictional characters and storylines. 

Throughout his time spent in Yellowstone, Brannon realized that he really enjoyed nature, exploring, and being outdoors and wanted to embrace that. Because “Yellowstoned" is fiction, it allowed Brannon to create his own narrative of his story and tailor it however he liked. He specifically chose fiction in order to expand the creativity of his story.  

What You Should Know About “Yellowstoned”

“Yellowstoned” represents the major themes of young adulthood, innocence, and the freedom of being immersed within the wonders of Yellowstone National Park. Brannon wants his novel to be a tale of caution for young people to go out and explore, instead of being stuck home. The book also brings awareness to substance use. 

 Two of the key points of the book are that everyone can embark on meaningful and impactful journeys, and that if given the opportunity, everyone should go and seek new adventures outside of what they’re used to. Brannon wants readers to go out and explore the world, awaken themselves to nature, and understand that everyone has the power to control what they’re doing. 

Brannon also wants to emphasize how important personal growth is and that many benefits come along by allowing yourself to be open-minded as well as being willing to step out of your comfort zone. “The current will take you where it wants you to go. Your job is to keep paddling and trust yourself,” Brannon says.

Other Work by Brannon

Brannon has also written a short story, “The Bramble Element of Surprise” that is published on Amazon. It starts with an experience-based story of him and friends going on a road trip to Phoenix over spring break. The story takes place during his time at Regis. While the road trip was initially meant for the group to catch some Grateful Dead shows, it quickly became a bigger adventure than anticipated. Once the shows are over, they hear a friend had rented a place in Jackson Hole. So, they grab their skis and head up there on the spur of the moment. Brannon really enjoys using his personal and inspirational experiences from his life and creating them into fictional stories because it allows him to be as innovative as he’d like. 

 What’s Next for Brannon? 

Currently, Brannon is 80% done with the second book called “Crescent Wrenched” in his Jack Straugh fiction series. It will follow the events of “Yellowstoned”. 

Brannon is also having conversations about turning “Yellowstoned” into a film on a streaming platform such as Netflix. He aspires to turn his writing into a streaming series given we live in what he calls “a golden era” of streaming services. 

Where to Read “Yellowstoned”

The Regis Bookstore along with Barnes & Noble and Amazon is now selling copies of “Yellowstoned” – both in paperback and ebook and it is well worth a read! 

Brannon can be found on Instagram August_West_the_author and Facebook under August West.